Oberlin Group
| Formation | November 1986[2] |
|---|---|
| 82-2943816[3] | |
| Legal status | 501(c)(3)[3] |
| Purpose | To advance the critical role of libraries in transformative liberal arts education.[4] |
| Headquarters | Lansing, Michigan, U.S.[3] |
| KT Vaughan[5] | |
| Website | oberlingroup |
The Oberlin Group of Libraries, also known as the Oberlin Group, is an American 501(c)(3) organization[3] of 92 liberal arts colleges and small private universities in the United States.[6] The group aims to provide a forum for member directors and staff to discuss issues of common concern, particularly those pertaining to best practices in library and publishing services and liberal arts education.[6][7] As such, members of the Oberlin group cooperate in inter-library lending agreements,[8] consortium-wide vendor contracts,[9] open publishing,[10] and open access initiatives.[11]
Background
The Oberlin Group was founded out of two conferences attended by the presidents of 50 liberal arts colleges at Oberlin College in 1985 and 1986.[2] Following a conference on the importance of liberal arts colleges for scientific education, Bill Moffett, then library director at Oberlin, formed a steering committee comprised of himself and library directors from Amherst College, Colorado College, Franklin and Marshall College, Grinnell College, Kalamazoo College, Reed College, and Trinity University to plan a meeting of 60 liberal arts college library directors.[2] The first official Oberlin Group meeting convened in November 1986 under the "Oberlin Group of Libraries" title.[2][12]
The consortium initially functioned informally, consisting primarily of annual conventions.[12] However, the Oberlin Group has developed substantially since its founding, with its first cooperative projects launched in the 1990s, a formal organizational structure introduced in 2011, and a formal incorporation in 2016.[2]
As of 2026, all members of the Oberlin Group are also members of the Annapolis Group, founded in 1993 to expand upon the Oberlin Group.[13] Membership to the Oberlin Group is by invitation only.[9]
Presidents are elected to one-year terms.[5] The current president is K. T. Vaughan, elected in 2025 to serve for the 2026 year.[5]
Member institutions
| Institution[14] | Religious affiliation | Location | Region |
|---|---|---|---|
| Allegheny College | Methodist (UMC) | Meadville, Pennsylvania | Northeast |
| Amherst College | None | Amherst, Massachusetts | Northeast |
| Bard College | Episcopalian | Annandale-on-Hudson, New York | Northeast |
| Bates College | None | Lewiston, Maine | Northeast |
| Bowdoin College | None | Brunswick, Maine | Northeast |
| Bryn Mawr College | None (formerly Quaker) | Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania | Northeast |
| Bucknell University | None (formerly Baptist) | Lewisburg, Pennsylvania | Northeast |
| Colby College | None | Waterville, Maine | Northeast |
| Colgate University | None (formerly Baptist) | Hamilton Villiage, New York | Northeast |
| College of the Holy Cross | Catholic (Jesuit) | Worcester, Massachusetts | Northeast |
| Connecticut College | None | New London, Connecticut | Northeast |
| Dickinson College | None | Carlisle, Pennsylvania | Northeast |
| Drew University | Methodist (UMC) | Madison, New Jersey | Northeast |
| Franklin and Marshall College | None (formerly Reformed) | Lancaster, Pennsylvania | Northeast |
| Gettysburg College | Lutheran (ELCA) | Gettysburg, Pennsylvania | Northeast |
| Hamilton College | None | Clinton, New York | Northeast |
| Haverford College | None (formerly Quaker) | Haverford, Pennsylvania | Northeast |
| Hobart and William Smith Colleges | None | Geneva, New York | Northeast |
| Lafayette College | None (formerly Presbyterian) | Easton, Pennsylvania | Northeast |
| Manhattan University | Catholic (Lasallian) | New York City, New York | Northeast |
| Mount Holyoke College | None | South Hadley, Massachusetts | Northeast |
| Muhlenberg College | Lutheran (ELCA) | Allentown, Pennsylvania | Northeast |
| Sarah Lawrence College | None | Yonkers, New York | Northeast |
| Skidmore College | None | Saratoga Springs, New York | Northeast |
| Smith College | None | Northampton, Massachusetts | Northeast |
| St. Lawrence University | None (formerly Universalist) | Canton, New York | Northeast |
| Swarthmore College | None (formerly Quaker) | Swarthmore, Pennsylvania | Northeast |
| Trinity College | None (formerly Episcopalian) | Hartford, Connecticut | Northeast |
| Union College | None | Schenectady, New York | Northeast |
| Vassar College | None | Poughkeepsie, New York | Northeast |
| Wellesley College | None | Wellesley, Massachusetts | Northeast |
| Wesleyan University | None (formerly Methodist) | Middletown, Connecticut | Northeast |
| Williams College | None | Williamstown, Massachusetts | Northeast |
| Albion College | None (formerly Methodist) | Albion, Michigan | Midwest |
| Alma College | Presbyterian (PCUSA) | Alma, Michigan | Midwest |
| Augustana College | Lutheran (ELCA) | Rock Island, Illinois | Midwest |
| Beloit College | None (formerly Congregational) | Beloit, Wisconsin | Midwest |
| Carleton College | None (formerly Congregational) | Northfield, Minnesota | Midwest |
| Coe College | Presbyterian (PCUSA) | Cedar Rapids, Iowa | Midwest |
| College of Saint Benedict and Saint John's University | Catholic (Benedictine) | St. Joseph, Minnesota | Midwest |
| College of Wooster | None (formerly Presbyterian) | Wooster, Ohio | Midwest |
| Colorado College | None (formerly Presbyterian) | Colorado Springs, Colorado | Midwest |
| Denison University | None (formerly Baptist) | Granville, Ohio | Midwest |
| DePauw University | None (formerly Methodist) | Greencastle, Indiana | Midwest |
| Earlham College | Quakers | Richmond, Indiana | Midwest |
| Grinnell College | None (formerly Congregational) | Grinnell, Iowa | Midwest |
| Gustavus Adolphus College | Lutheran (ELCA) | St. Peter, Minnesota | Midwest |
| Hope College | Reformed (RCA) | Holland, Michigan | Midwest |
| Kalamazoo College | None (formerly Baptist) | Kalamazoo, Michigan | Midwest |
| Kenyon College | None (formerly Episcopalian) | Gambier, Ohio | Midwest |
| Knox College | None (formerly Calvinist) | Galesburg, Illinois | Midwest |
| Lake Forest College | None (formerly Presbyterian) | Lake Forest, Illinois | Midwest |
| Lawrence University | None (formerly Universalist) | Appleton, Wisconsin | Midwest |
| Luther College | Lutheran (ELCA) | Decorah, Iowa | Midwest |
| Macalester College | None | Saint Paul, Minnesota | Midwest |
| Oberlin College | None | Oberlin, Ohio | Midwest |
| Ohio Wesleyan University | Methodist (UMC) | Delaware, Ohio | Midwest |
| St. Olaf College | Lutheran (ELCA) | Northfield, Minnesota | Midwest |
| Wabash College | None | Crawfordsville, Indiana | Midwest |
| Agnes Scott College | Presbyterian (PCUSA) | Decartur, Georgia | South |
| Berea College | None | Berea, Kentucky | South |
| Centre College | Presbyterian (PCUSA) | Danville, Kentucky | South |
| Davidson College | Presbyterian (PCUSA) | Davidson, North Carolina | South |
| Eckerd College | Presbyterian (PCUSA) | St. Petersburg, Florida | South |
| Furman University | None (historically Baptist) | Greenville, South Carolina | South |
| Hampden–Sydney College | Presbyterian (PCUSA) | Hampden Sydney, Virginia | South |
| Hendrix College | Methodist (UMC) | Conway, Arkansas | South |
| Morehouse College | None (formerly Baptist) | Atlanta, Georgia | South |
| Randolph–Macon College | Methodist (UMC) | Ashland, Virginia | South |
| Rhodes College | Presbyterian (PCUSA) | Memphis, Tennessee | South |
| Rollins College | None (formerly Congregational) | Winter Park, Florida | South |
| Sewanee: The University of the South | Episcopalian | Sewanee, Tennessee | South |
| Trinity University | Presbyterian (PCUSA) | San Antonio, Texas | South |
| University of Richmond | None (formerly Baptist) | Richmond, Virginia | South |
| Washington and Lee University | None | Lexington, Virginia | South |
| Claremont McKenna College (as a Claremont College) | None | Claremont, California | West |
| Harvey Mudd College (as a Claremont College) | None | Claremont, California | West |
| Lewis & Clark College | None (formerly Presbyterian) | Portland, Oregon | West |
| Occidental College | None (formerly Presbyterian) | Los Angeles, California | West |
| Pitzer College (as a Claremont College) | None | Claremont, California | West |
| Pomona College (as a Claremont College) | None | Claremont, California | West |
| Reed College | None | Portland, Oregon | West |
| Scripps College (as a Claremont College) | None | Claremont, California | West |
| University of Puget Sound | Methodist (UMC) | Tacoma, Washington | West |
| Whitman College | None | Walla Walla, Washington | West |
| Willamette University | None (formerly Methodist) | Salem, Oregon | West |
References
- ↑ "Governance". Oberlin Group. Retrieved May 9, 2026. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help) - ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 "History". Oberlin Group. Retrieved May 9, 2026. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help) - ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Suozzo, Andrea; Glassford, Alec; Ngu, Ash; Roberts, Brandon (May 9, 2026). "Oberlin Group Of Libraries". ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer. Retrieved May 9, 2013. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help) - ↑ Aiwuyor, Jessica (June 5, 2020). "ARL, ACRL, Oberlin Group of Libraries Urge Library Vendors to Continue Free Access, Hold Subscription Prices Steady during COVID-19 Pandemic". Association of Research Libraries. Retrieved May 12, 2026. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help) - ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Laubscher, Brian (October 20, 2025). "KT Vaughan Initiated as Next President of the Oberlin Group of Libraries". The Columns. Retrieved May 12, 2026. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help) - ↑ 6.0 6.1 "About". Oberlin Group. Retrieved May 9, 2026. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help) - ↑ "Wyndham Robertson Library Joins Organization of America's Leading Liberal Arts College Libraries". Hollins University. October 11, 2024. Retrieved May 12, 2026. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help) - ↑ Beckendorf, Andrea (September 4, 2007). "Interlibrary Loan Staffing in Liberal Arts College Libraries". Journal of Interlibrary Loan, Document Delivery & Electronic Reserve. 17 (4): 15–32. doi:10.1300/J474v17n04_04. ISSN 1072-303X. Retrieved May 12, 2026 – via Education Research Complete.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 Wickenden, Andrew (August 26, 2024). "HWS Library joins Oberlin Group". Hobart and William Smith News. Retrieved May 12, 2026. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help) - ↑ Free, David (February 2016). "Oberlin Group, partners launch Lever Press". College & Research Libraries News. 77 (2): 58–59 – via Academic Search Complete.
- ↑ "ISI Launches ShopISI, Provides Web of Science Data to Oberlin Group". Information Today. 17 (3): 35, 37. March 2000 – via Gale in Context: College.
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 American Library Association (December 1989). "Oberlin Group meets for the fourth time". College & Research Libraries News. 50 (11). doi:10.5860/crln.50.11.981. Retrieved May 12, 2026.
- ↑ "Jewell Joins Prestigious Annapolis Group". William Jewell College. 2003. Archived from the original on September 28, 2007. Retrieved May 12, 2026. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help) - ↑ "Oberlin Group Institution Members". Oberlin Group. Retrieved May 9, 2026. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help)
External links
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