Library
Campus Libraries
Saul Silber Memorial Library Main Library (Skokie Campus)
The Saul Silber Memorial Library is the prime academic library that supports curricula and research of faculty and students at Hebrew Theological College. The library has cataloged over 50,000 items that include books in Hebrew, English, and other languages; periodicals, pamphlets, museum objects, microforms, computer CD-ROMs, music CDs, manuscripts, and artwork, as well as general studies materials that support the curriculum. These items are housed in three separate locations: Main Library, Chadar Iyun and the Blitstein Institute, and are accessed through our online catalog. The library has a significant collection on the history of Jews in Chicago.
Electronic resources are provided to students for their research needs on both campuses. Both the Main Library and the Blitstein Library provide multiple computers devoted to student/faculty use as well as computers serving the reference desks. The Touro University Library System provides full access to its online databases to our students.
The Beis Midrash (study hall) and Chadar Iyun (study/research room) collections on the Skokie campus are an integral part of the library system of Hebrew Theological College. These collections total approximately 4,500 volumes above and beyond those in the Saul Silber Library.
Sarah Hartman Women's College of Touro Library (Chicago Campus)
The library division at the Sarah Hartman Women's College serves to support the curriculum and the research needs of the students and faculty. The Blitstein Institute Library contains about 7,200 items, including books, periodicals, and DVD’s, including both Judaic and secular materials.
Circulation Policies
Students, faculty, and other HTC staff have full borrowing privileges. The standard loan period for books is three weeks. Faculty may request to borrow books for a semester. Periodicals circulate at the discretion of the library staff. Reference books are non-circulating and for room use only. Students on either campus can arrange with the librarian to borrow materials from the other campus.
Additional Resources and Reciprocal Agreements
HTC is a member of the Reach Across Illinois Library System (RAILS), which enables students and faculty to borrow materials from college libraries across the state of Illinois. HTC also has long-standing reciprocity agreements with Loyola University of Chicago and the Spertus Institute of Judaic Studies.
To further aid our students, a collection of library research guides is available for our students.