Watzek Library, a haven for students who want a quiet place to study without the distractions of a dorm, is also known for its many services. From navigating the mercurial personalities of the printers, to checking out equipment at the IT Service Desk there is something for everyone’s academic and personal needs. But beneath the surface of Watzek’s operations is a trove of knowledge and tools that is even more fascinating.
E.J. Carter, a research and instruction librarian at Lewis & Clark for the past 12 years, serves as liaison to multiple academic departments, including history, religious studies, classics, political science, economics and international affairs. He describes Watzek as having “a pretty amazing array of digital sources,” particularly for a small college.
One of Carter’s main areas of work is in Watzek’s department of Special Collections and Archives, which contain records pertaining to the college’s history, materials about the Lewis and Clark expedition and an impressive array of historical documents, photos, and other printed media. Students can access these materials for research purposes. It is especially helpful for classes that use historical research, where students may need maps or documents that would be otherwise hard to find.
Materials from the Special Collections department are also used in the exhibits found on the second floor of the library, which are often partly curated by students. The archives about the college’s history include many important documents such as letters from times like Lewis and Clark’s expedition and past yearbooks, as well as photographs of LC’s former campus — the college was once known as the Albany Collegiate Institute, and was located in the town of Albany, Oregon, before moving to the Frank Manor Estate.
The Special Collections have a broader scope than solely local history, also containing medieval manuscript leaves — single pages torn from old books and resold in the 19th and 20th centuries — which were recently used in the exhibit “Shaping the Soul: Books in Medieval Life.” It also holds information on conscientious objectors during World War II, as well as the Oregon Ephemera Collection. Carter described the collection as hosting an array of unusual items from the state’s early settlement days, such as journals from Susan B. Anthony’s visits to Oregon and documents and photos of local hotels from 1923.
“What I like about our Special Collections is it’s got a lot of small but unique and quirky things,” Carter said.
The Special Collections is not the only collection on campus curated by library staff. Parvaneh Abbaspour, a science and data services librarian specializing in digital initiatives as well as research services, is working on a multi-year effort to organize the college’s Natural History Collections. Abbaspour is the subject liaison for all natural science departments such as biology, chemistry, neuroscience and physics. She gets assistance in this from students enrolled in research practicum, which are individual two- credit courses for students conducting research. Housed in BoDine, the natural history collections grow larger every year as more students add their research projects.
“A typical project would be curating a certain family of plants that they would collect on campus, or fungi is a popular one,” Abbaspour said.
When asked about what Watzek offers students, Abbaspour described the calm atmosphere and sense of community in the building.
“It can’t be overstated the value of the space that we have, and that there’s such a variety of spaces within the building on an otherwise small campus,” Abbaspour said.
Though the building itself is certainly a pleasant place for students to focus, Watzek’s opportunities reach far beyond its walls. Talie Bocci, who works in access services and serves as the acquisition specialist, works very closely with the interlibrary loan program, also known as Summit. Through Summit, LC students can requestprintanddigitalmediafrom the collections of other colleges throughout Washington, Oregon and Idaho. Delivery (including digital resources) generally can take three to four business days, however for students on a time crunch, that is not the only option.
“If there’s a book that you really need, and you don’t want to wait three or four days for it, you can go and get it,” Bocci said.
She named Portland State University and Reed as examples of other colleges where LC students have retrieved materials in person.
Even more convenient, there is no need to make a second journey across town when your materials are due for return. Students can simply return the book to Watzek, and the circulation desk will then return it to its rightful college. Summit also offers a backdating process to prevent overdue fees.
“It is awesomely convenient for you guys,” Bocci said, referring to students.
This is not to say that Watzek’s collection of materials is anything to sneeze at. By Bocci’s estimate, the library has over 300,000 books and periodical items, as well as links from 150 electronic databases. The collection is so vast that Erica Jensen, a research and instruction librarian, is sometimes contacted by researchers from far-flung corners of the globe. Recently, Jensen received a phone call from a graduate student in Strasbourg, France and was able to provide them with both of the sources they requested.
Jensen explained that her favorite part of her job is student research consultations, a well-known, but underutilized opportunity for students working on their thesis or other big projects. Students can receive one-on-one advice on how to find or include documents and suggestions for next steps on major research assignments from a research librarian. Jensen explained that helping students overcome obstacles in their work is often the most rewarding aspect of her job.
“Getting to help someone untangle a knot or make even a small breakthrough is very satisfying,” Jensen said. “I’d be very happy for that to be a bigger part of my job.”
Carter echoed Jensen’s sentiments, mentioning history and international affairs as some of his favorite majors to consult on.
“I feel like I’m constantly learning new stuff about the world that I knew nothing about in the past,” Carter said. He added that the librarians of Watzek “really like having lots of people in the library using (its resources), and we’re always eager to answer questions.”
Along with the loan program, the LC library also houses other resources, such as the Resource Lab Printing or RLab where students can print a variety of media in paper, poster and sticker form. They also offer 3D printing services in many colors. Students get $20 on their account to use at RLab, and after that, they are allowed to pay with a card for additional printing. Students can email projects they want printed to rlab@lclark.edu and the process is efficient, taking two to three days for processing before pickup.
Watzek Library is also home to the Writing Center, where students can go either during drop-in hours or by appointment to get help on papers from various subjects. The Writing Center is operated almost fully by peer tutors under the direction of Assistant Professor of Political Science with Term John Holzwarth.
Holzwarth also offers hours himself; however these hours are limited this year and only by appointment. The students in the Writing Center have experience in different academic areas, providing coverage for a wide variety of written assignments. Students are encouraged to come at any point in the writing process, from the planning stagetothefinaldraft.
Holzwarth enjoys being the director of the Writing Center and furthering the mission of making every student on this campus a better writer, he told The Mossy Log over email.
“(Through writing) we develop skills in analysis, imagination, and critical reasoning that are a part of any good life and which are essential to earning a voice in conversations that matter to us. And that’s really our top goal: we want students to leave LC intellectually prepared to contribute to the things in life that matter most to them, and able to communicate in a voice that makes people want to listen,” he wrote.
Another key aspect of the Writing Center is the fact that peer tutoring can be less intimidating than consulting with a professor.
“Peers understand the stresses of being a student, the feeling of being evaluated by professors, and the difficulties of trying to excel at something you’re still just learning to do,” Holzwarth said.
Grace Hart ’26 is a history major and French studies minor — and a peer tutor at the writing center. Hart enjoys the variety of papers and encourages students to come in for all of them.
“The Writing Center is a wonderful resource for students to improve their writing and become more confident writers. We help with any type of writing, from creative fiction to lab reports to history essays to scholarship applications,” Hart said in an email to The Mossy Log.
Maggie O’Leary ’26 is a political science major and English minor who said she truly enjoys the process of assisting students as they come through the Writing Center, helping them with anything free of judgment.
“I love talking to my peers about the projects they are working on, and how honing specific writing skills can empower them to create a product they can be really proud of. Even if you just want to find out once and for all how to properly use a semicolon, my fellow tutors and I would love to talk to you! It can be really scary to ask for writing help (I used to be terrified of the Writing Center), but all of us tutors are always excited to talk to you about writing and are never here to be harsh or judgmental,” she wrote over email.
The Writing Center is a great place for students to receive assistance with writing. Also, for those interested on being on the other side of things as a peer tutor, now is the perfect time. You can help students develop their own writing skills and watch people grow, as well as being able to receive feedback on your own writing. For those interested in working as a peer tutor, applications are due April 17 and can be found on their website.
“My hope is that students will embrace that collaborative spirit and startvisitingtheWritingCenterearly and often as partners in their own intellectual development,” Holzwarth said in an email statement.
The last major resource that the library is home to is the IT Service Desk, where students can get help with their technology-related problems or rent a wide range of items like a computer charger, digital camera or microphone. Additionally, they assist with network and Wi-Fi issues as well as login assistance for LC accounts. The IT department is also helpful for professors struggling with classroom projectors or even their own websites.
Watzek Library, a piece of living history where research roadblocks go to die, is full of valuable one-of-a-kind resources and is staffed by a team of knowledgeable, enthusiastic librarians. More information can be found at library.lclark.edu.
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