Contact the
Office of the Dean
(928) 523-6802 email us!Cline Library FY22 highlights
170,302
visitors to the library150
Hours open per week during Fall and Spring terms627,000
eResources20+ million
Digital & print items inSpecial Collections & Archives115,000
Items in the online Colorado Plateau ArchivesSpecial Collections & Archives4,031
Chats224
Presentations to 10,000 attendees1,180
Consultations provided8,700
Interlibrary loans and documents provided31,035
study room & Studio bookings3,050
laptop checkouts2,209
3D print jobs submittedOur Organization
A Message from the Dean and University Librarian

As we enter another semester, Cline Library remains a place for Lumberjacks to discover, research, learn, create, and study. Cline Library has created several book collections that align with the library’s and university’s strategic planning in support of inclusive excellence. These collections create a more welcoming and inclusive environment, which is one of the goals of our Library Master Plan, and will allow more of our students and faculty to see themselves in our collections.
Here are a few other updates on what is happening around Cline Library:
- New digital displays in the Cline Library Studios allow us to recognize and display NAU student and faculty research and creative works.
- Cline Library’s Special Collections and Archives received the David Muench collection. David Muench has photographed some of the most breathtaking landscapes of the world, many in Northern Arizona, in a career spanning more than 60 years. The vast collection includes transparencies, slides, prints, framed exhibit pieces; digital content; books, and other publications. There are even a few cameras. Having this collection housed in Cline Library’s Special Collections and Archives will allow for future learning and research, creative endeavors, and public service.
- Cline Library’s Special Collections and Archives unveiled a new exhibit, Images of a Lost World: Glen Canyon on the Colorado, curated by librarian Hank Hassell. The exhibit features 56 photographs of Glen Canyon and its tributaries before the magnificent canyon was flooded by the damming of the Colorado River. Images featured in the exhibit were drawn from photographic collections housed in Special Collections and Archives. Images of a Lost World takes visitors on a river trip of what once was.
- Cline Library has been funded for an Affordable Learning Initiative through an NAU Elevating Excellence grant. The library was awarded just over $106,000 to establish the use of Open Education Resources (OER) and other affordable learning resources at NAU. This is in alignment with NAU’s Elevating Excellence goal of creating equitable and affordable access to higher education for our students. We have accomplished bringing a guest speaker to train our library staff on how to find OER for faculty use and explore OER options with NAU leaders. $9,100 has been spent to purchase electronic access to 61 textbooks used in approximately 70 classes serving close to 2500 students. Additionally, we launched an application process for OER adoption and development grants for faculty. We are committed to making learning resources more affordable and accessible for our students.
Building and Spaces Accordion Open
Cline Library is the largest computing space on campus for students and faculty. Users have access to height adjustable workstations, a wireless network, color and black/white printing and scanning throughout the building. The Studios offer users access to multi-media production studios, virtual reality technology, and audio/video recording equipment in an iMac and Dell Precision computing environment. A variety of computing options are available to NAU and CCC users, including PC and MAC desktop computers, and PC, MAC, and Chromebook laptops. We are committed to providing technology that helps make computing and content accessible to everyone.
Library spaces include: individual and group study rooms, graduate and faculty carrels, quiet study and computing spaces, and a silent study area on the 3rd floor of the building. Of note, the MakerLab offers the NAU, CCC, and members of the local community access to 20 3D printers, electronic prototyping equipment, design resources, and more. Learning spaces include a 400-seat Assembly Hall for classes and events as well as the Learning Studio, a highly configurable 70-seat advanced technology classroom designed to support innovative teaching and learning methods.
Special Collections and Archives offers access to millions of photographs, manuscripts, moving images, maps, and oral histories documenting the rich human and natural history of the Colorado Plateau as well as the institutional history of Northern Arizona University.
Scholars’ Corner Café serves Starbucks coffee, beverages, and light snacks during the academic year. Users can also find snacks and cold beverages in vending machines throughout the library. Select furnishings feature wood and granite salvaged during recent library projects for reuse. Energy-saving features include a plumbing system with low-flow faucets and toilets to reduce water use, an optimized heating and cooling system, and an energy-reducing lighting system.
Art Accordion Closed
Upon entering the library, users will see a Limestone and bronze sculpture in front of the library, “1996: The Year of Science” created by Budapest artist Peter Parkanyi Raab during his appointment as an NAU visiting artist. Above the Jean Collins Reading Room, Stained glass windows were a gift to the library and the university from Jean Collins, Emeritus Dean and University Librarian, upon her retirement. Local artist Vickie Belman created the windows from a joint design with Dean Collins. A showcase piece titled Monument Symphony, a giclee’ print of an original painting by Shonto Begay, 2011 is located on the 2nd floor of the library near our Writing Commons.