Massachusetts Institute of Technology invites academe to collaborate on future of libraries

"Following the presidential election and the rise of racist incidents and protests across the country, libraries also need to consider how they can serve as 'town squares' to promote diversity and social justice, Bourg said.

'College and university libraries need to step up to the plate here,' Bourg said. 'They stand for intellectual freedom and the free exchange of ideas.'

Bourg said the task force effectively punted on two topics: library redesign and open access. The report only recommends that new groups be formed to look more specifically at those issues. While the task force on libraries was deliberating, MIT this summer announced a stand-alone committee to examine the future of its OpenCourseWare initiative. That committee is expected to issue its own recommendations before the new year, according to Sanjay Sarma, MIT’s vice president for open learning."