History of Rodgers Library
The Eric and Sara Rodgers Library for Science and Engineering is the first departmental library at The University of Alabama built with the intent of taking maximum advantage of computer-based information systems for research. Representatives from IBM's national library research team and other library consultants from across the country met to design the floor plan of the building in order to accommodate new as well as traditional forms of information storage and retrieval.
In anticipation of the electronic publication of library materials, planners studied and prepared for the use of digital information technology in the new facility. A scientific communications laboratory (later renamed Scholars' Station) helps faculty teach students how to use special databases, the Internet, and other electronic information systems.
Aesthetically, the new library is compatible with existing Greek Revival buildings on the Quadrangle. The Library at the University of Virginia designed by Thomas Jefferson was the inspiration for the original University of Alabama Library, which was burned during the Civil War. Rodgers Library for Science and Engineering incorporates dome and rotunda elements reminiscent of this earlier library. While the building's exterior is traditional in appearance, its interior is distinctly high-tech.
Rodgers Library for Science and Engineering is conveniently located immediately south of Shelby Hall and the Science and Engineering Complex, north of the Biology Building, and one building west of the Campus Drive Parking Deck. Find Rodgers Library on standard campus map or check the interactive campus map.
Welcome to Rodgers Library
Transcript of audio.