For Stephen Roberts' major role in the transformation of the UB library system over the past 30 years, he was recently named associate vice president of University Libraries.
His career began when he joined the staff to help move books and materials from South Campus to the newly built North Campus in 1977. Since then, he directed the computerization of the libraries and developed the on-line catalog, as well as circulation and reserve systems.
"We're still moving from paper to electronic," Roberts said. "We spend about 50 percent of the budget on electronics."
Roberts explained that the University Libraries are continually adding more electronic resources and materials to their collections.
"Rather than buying books, you can subscribe to electronic books and resources," he said. "It's a whole different way of doing business. More than one person can use the same thing at the same time."
Currently, Roberts is overseeing the move of many library books and materials to the University Libraries Annex on Rensch Road.
The storage facility holds about 500,000 books. According to Roberts, it will take three years to fill and will hold nearly 1.2 million books when full.
"We're moving things out to the Annex to free up room on the campus," he said.
According to Roberts, all of the books and materials held in the Annex are available through the UB Libraries' online catalog. Journal articles can be requested on-line, scanned by the library and sent to students through e-mail. The facility also has a reading room where students can look at books and journals in storage.
Roberts is also involved in UB 2020's Heart of the Campus project.
"It's a demonstration effort for the comprehensive physical plan," he said. "We're looking at upgrading the library buildings, which are considered central to the campus."
More group study and lounge areas will be added. According to Roberts, the committee plans on enclosing the outside spaces around Lockwood Library to make it a completely indoor facility.
Roberts explained that the goal behind the planning is to make the libraries on campus more efficient and user-friendly. This requires looking into the current building layouts and potential on each campus, specifically Capen Hall and Lockwood Library on North Campus and Abbott Hall on South Campus.
"We want to make the libraries more attractive, useful (and) in tune with the needs of faculty and students," he said.
Roberts received his bachelor's degree in English from John Hopkins University and a master's degree in education from Brown University. He also earned a master's degree in library sciences from UB while working at the University. Roberts has lived in Buffalo for 35 years and taught English at Sweet Home High School before joining UB Libraries.
Photo: Courtesy of Laron Fomby
