Fondren Library
Located at the center of the academic quad, Fondren Library serves as a hub of learning in Rice’s educational community, providing access to scholarly information, research support, library instruction, and computing and study facilities. Fondren is the home of books, journals, and print materials, as well as of a wide range of audio-visual media, sound recordings, data sets, and rare and unique collections of books, photographs, manuscripts, and maps. The library also links users to a world of scholarly information available through licensed online databases and journals and a vast network of reciprocal borrowing agreements with libraries around the world.
Library Resources
Fondren currently holds more than 2.5 million print volumes, more than 172,000 print and electronic serial titles, and over 100,000 audio and video recordings covering a wide range of topics in art, architecture, history, literature, music, philosophy, languages, economics, social sciences, natural sciences, and engineering. More than 1,230,794 items are shelved at the Library Service Center (LSC), Fondren’s high density off-site storage facility.
The Kelley Center for Government Information, Data, and Geospatial Services is a Federal Depository Library for the 7th Congressional District of Texas, and a Patent and Trademark Resource Center that provides access to government information, patents and trademarks, microform materials, and maps.
Also of note is the Brown Fine Arts Library, which offers access to a rich collection of materials on art and architectural history, film and photography, music scores, sound and video recordings, periodicals, books on music, and a range of archival holdings.
The Woodson Research Center—Special Collections & Archives
The Woodson Research Center collects, organizes, and describes the Rice University archives, rare books, and special collections. Notable research collections are held in the history of science, the Archives of the Impossible, and Judaic studies.
Library Services
With 64 professional staff and 40 support staff, Fondren provides robust research assistance and library services in person, over the phone, and online. Live help is available during all hours that Fondren is open. More specialized support services—such as workshops, webinars, and research consultations—are available every weekday. Our online research guides and FAQ knowledgebase are there to support researchers wherever they are and whenever they have questions.
Rice academic departments and research centers have a dedicated Fondren subject specialist, who liaises with their area offering teaching and research support. Services include orientations to Fondren’s collections, services, and spaces; instruction on research resources and strategies, customized for a specific course or lab group; development of research guides and learning resources; purchase or assistance with access to research materials; help with navigating Fondren’s open access publishing support; and referrals to additional Fondren specialists and services.
The Digital Media Commons (DMC), located in Fondren’s basement, offers services, workshops, and equipment to support the design and use of multimedia in education, scholarship, and creative expression, including soundproofed audio and video studios. Likewise, the GIS Data Center provides access to geographic information software and supporting hardware and data resources and offers short courses and one-on-one assistance.
Fondren's Research Data Services (RDS) team supports Rice researchers by providing training and consultation throughout the research data lifecycle. RDS is a collaboration between multiple library departments and the Center for Research Computing, providing strong technical and research expertise to facilitate the findability, accessibility, interoperability, and reuse of research data. The team provides a single contact point for researchers seeking technical and administrative support for data management and sharing plans, including federal funders' data sharing requirements, and it offers many free workshops, including two-day Software Carpentry workshops on fundamentals of research computing and more specialized workshops on Python, R, data visualization, and use of high-performance computing systems for research.
Fondren works to ensure that library spaces support and advance learning, research, and collaboration. Rice’s growing campus population makes heavy use of Fondren Library spaces. The library’s new strategic plan includes multiple objectives designed to optimize learning and research environments, including partnerships with service providers such as Rice’ Center for Academic & Professional Communication. Fondren regularly showcases faculty scholarship as well as student research and creative practice. Open study areas are located throughout the library, and open and closed study carrels are located on the second through fourth floors throughout the library’s general stacks. The locked study rooms are available for four hours at a time. The library also offers designated areas for viewing or creating audio/visual material, and has a music study practice room. Copiers, printers, and scanners are located throughout the library.
Websites:
Information was gathered and text excerpted from the Fondren Library website (http://library.rice.edu/), as well as the following affiliated websites:
· Brown Fine Arts Library: https://brownfineartslibrary.wordpress.com/
· Digital Media Commons: http://library.rice.edu/dmc
· Digital Scholarship Services: https://library.rice.edu/dss
· Federal Depository Library: https://www.gpo.gov/libraries/
· GIS/Data Center: https://library.rice.edu/gdc
· The TMC Library: http://library.tmc.edu/about/
· Introduction to Fondren: https://library.rice.edu/introduction
· Kelley Center for Government Information: https://library.rice.edu/gov
· LibGuides: http://libguides.rice.edu/index.php.
· Library Services Center: http://www.library.rice.edu/lsc
· Patent and Trademark Resource Center: http://www.uspto.gov/learning-and-resources/support-centers/patent-and-trademark-resource-centers-ptrcs
· Research Data Services: https://library.rice.edu/places/research-data-services
Source: Sara Lowman, Vice Provost and University Librarian
Last updated: December 2025