The resources and the staff of the University of Washington Libraries are of the quality to win the award of the outstanding research library in the country in the 2003-04 academic year. The collection is already strong in materials focused on Hellenic Studies and expansion in particular areas related to Greece is in progress.
Currently the collection contains over 5,000 monographs focusing on Greece from antiquity to the present, on subjects ranging from History to Sociology, Literature to Statistics, Art and Architecture to travelers' accounts. In addition some 100 journals represent an equally wide array of subjects. The immigrant Greek community holdings are far smaller, numbering approximately 100 items but contributions from the local Hellenic-American community will substantially increase this category. Acquisition of Greek language materials is also a new priority to support the Hellenic Studies Program. Last year, the library staff procured a grant to acquire a large portion of a scholarly library devoted to modern Greece.
Other important materials at the University of Washington enhance the visual study of Greece. A slide library in the School of Art contains more than 330,000 slides that are available for use by faculty, teaching assistants, and students working on research assignments. Another fine resource is the already vast and constantly growing electronic collection of illustrations directed by Professor Meredith Clausen who holds joint appointments in the School of Art and the Department of Architecture.
The family of Gust Rakus deserves credit for aiding these new priorities. The initiative and contribution of both materials and financial support on the part Mrs. Anna Rakus, her son Thomas, and her daughters Jamée and Dianna are serving as a spur to others Hellenes of the Pacific Northwest to enlarge the resources available for study of modern Greece.
For more information see the University of Washington Library's Hellenic Studies resources web site.
