Dean's Announcement: Tateuchi East Asia Library

See also: Tateuchi East Asia Library FAQ, May 10, 2023

March 8, 2023

The Tateuchi East Asia Library is one of the most unique and distinctive libraries on campus, and well-respected as one of the top East Asia libraries in the country. The strength of its collections coupled with the deep expertise of its staff provide a rich and diverse range of resources and support across disciplines in the study of East Asia language, history and culture. It is because of this unique value to the University that UW Libraries has invested in and cultivated investment in Tateuchi East Asia Library for the long-term benefit of UW students, faculty and our broader community.  These investments include the Tateuchi East Asia Library renovation project scheduled to reopen in Spring 2023.

It is with this growth and development mindset that we are reorganizing the Tateuchi East Asia Library staffing structure. A key aspect of the reorganization is to integrate Tateuchi East Asia Library technical services staff with central library technical services. This will allow for improved training and learning opportunities for Tateuchi East Asia Library staff, more efficient problem-solving and better support for technical and preservation services. When these additional supports are in place, Tateuchi East Asia Library subject librarians will have more time to focus on working with students, faculty and donors.

The integration of area studies technical services is a national trend that started at least a decade ago at other Association of Research Libraries (ARL) institutions. This approach also supports efforts to ensure our finite resources are deployed to maximum efficiency to best support teaching, learning and research at UW. This type of integration has been part of UW Libraries planning discussions for several years, and the new structure takes into account input and support for such change from Tateuchi East Asia Library staff.

From a user perspective, these changes should be relatively seamless. While supervisory lines are changing, there is no staffing or service reduction associated with this change. The restructuring will not impact the use of Tateuchi East Asia Library for meetings, consultation, instruction or other events typically held at the library.

Through this centralized reporting structure, library staff will be better supported through position-specific growth and development, leading to overall improvements in service of Tateuchi East Asia Library collections, service, and instruction.

For additional questions, please see your subject librarian or contact us.

Simon Neame

Dean of UW Libraries