Our Collections

Rod Library offers a large variety of collections to meet your information needs. On this page, you'll find descriptions of these collections and their locations in the building.

Please note: Materials located in Rod Library's collections come from a broad range of sources and time periods. Some of these materials may contain offensive stereotypes, ideas, visuals, or language. Their presence should be viewed and considered within their historical context. They do not represent the views of the University of Northern University or the Library, which strives to create and maintain a welcoming and inclusive environment.

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Collections

General Collections

Stacks: Books with call numbers A-K are shelved in the open stacks on the third floor. Books with call numbers L-Z are shelved in the open stacks on the fourth floor.
Periodicals: Most periodicals are shelved in open stacks on the first floor.
Video Collection: The main Video Collection is located on the east side of the fourth floor. Other videos are located near the Book Bistro on the main floor, as part of the Cedar Falls Public Library Collection @ UNI, and in the Youth Collection on third floor.

Check OneSearch for book titles.

Culture & Intensive English Program (CIEP) & English as a Second Language (ESL) Collection

This collection, located on the west side of the third floor, consists of resources for students and community members who are learning English as a Second Language (ESL) and those who are planning to become Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Language (TESOL).

Resources include:

Materials to improve listening, speaking, reading and writing skills
Dictionaries in different languages
Thesauri
TOEFL and IELTS test preparation materials

Cedar Falls Public Library at UNI collection

The Cedar Falls Public Library @ UNI Collection includes a selection of recently published works of fiction and non-fiction, plus DVDs and Blu-rays. It is a joint venture of the Cedar Falls Public Library and Rod Library.
The Cedar Falls Public Library retains ownership of the collection.
You must have a Cedar Falls Public Library borrower’s card to check out books in the collection. If you do not have a Cedar Falls borrower’s card, you can obtain one at the Rod Library circulation desk.

Fine & Performing Arts Collection

The Fine and Performing Arts Collection houses various print and non-print materials in art, design, music and theatre. The collection includes reference materials, acting editions of playscripts, CDs, LPs, DVDs and plated art books.

Government Documents & Maps

Rod Library is a selective depository for federal publications and receives approximately 35% of the publications distributed by the U.S. Government Printing Office. We are a full depository for the State of Iowa Documents. This collection is located on the first floor of the library. See the Government Information research guide for more information.

HNI Corporation Instructional Resources & Technology Services (IRTS)

HNI Corporation Instructional Resources and Technology Services (IRTS) provides services and resources for teacher education students, faculty and staff. Many of the services are also available for N/K-12 grade teachers and administrators. IRTS offers resources and technological services for the pursuit of curriculum and instructional development. OneSearch can be used to search library catalog for curriculum resources in the IRTS collection. The IRTS facility provides an open space for creativity and collaboration.

Microforms Collection

The Library Services desk administers the microfiche/microfilm collection and provides location assistance and help using the microform machines. All microforms are stored in a set of metal cabinets located in the northeast corner of the first floor.

Collections

Newspapers on microfilm are arranged by title and located in the first set of cabinets. Newspaper microfilm cabinet labels are electric pink. Periodicals and books on microfilm are arranged by Library of Congress Call Number. Periodical and book microfilm cabinet labels are electric green. ERIC documents on microfiche are arranged numerically by ED number. The ERIC document cabinet labels are yellow. Other micro collections include:

PERB contracts on microfiche
William Gray Research on Reading collection on microfiche
Corporate Reports on microfiche
Three Centuries of English Drama (Larpent Collection) on Microcard
Three Centuries of American Drama on Microcard
Miscellaneous other microfiche and microcards

Readers

There are three digital microfilm reader/scanners in the northeast corner of the first floor.

Newspapers Collection

The Library subscribes to about eight print newspapers, including papers from selected Iowa and U.S. cities, as well as some international newspapers. New issues of these newspapers are located in the Book Bistro area. Older issues are located on the east side of the first floor near the Microforms Collection. Backfiles of some newspapers are available on microfilm. The Library provides access to the content of numerous U.S. and international newspapers in electronic format.

Iowa Historical Newspapers LibGuide

Rod Library Art Collection

The Rod Library Art Collection contains all artwork located in the building. This collection database is being migrated to a new website. Please direct questions about the art collection to the UNI Museum by phone at 319-273-2188.

Special Collections & University Archives

The Rod Library Special Collections & University Archives collects, preserves and provides access to rare, valuable and delicate collections of books, manuscripts and institutional records. The area is located on the third floor.

UNI Faculty Publications

The Library maintains a Faculty Publications Collection of materials published mostly within the last five years that were authored or edited by UNI faculty. The collection, which is based largely on donations, is housed in the ScholarSpace and does not circulate, although 3-hour in-library use only is permitted. The collection is regularly reviewed and older items are transferred to Special Collections and University Archives.

UNI Museum

The UNI Museum serves as an educational facility for museology and seeks to inspire critical thinking about world cultures and the natural world through original research, innovation technologies, educational programming and exhibits. Through the use of material culture, the museum encourages multi-disciplinary learning opportunities to foster student and community engagement resulting in a deep appreciation of diverse cultural groups.

UNI ScholarWorks

UNI ScholarWorks is a repository of research, creative and scholarly output from the UNI community.

Youth Collection

The Youth Collection, designed for the adult study of children's and young adult literature, contains more than 20,000 trade books, related reference sources and a growing number of materials in electronic formats. Although a small historical collection is maintained, the focus of the Youth Collection is on recently published materials representing many genres, curriculum areas and grades PK-12.