Walter W. Stiern Library: Library News & History

About the Walter W. Stiern Library

The Walter W. Stiern Library opened in 1994 and is the largest building on the California State University, Bakersfield campus. The 150,000 square-foot building houses nearly half a million volumes and provides electronic access to thousands of periodical titles and over a million ebooks over 200 databases. The Library is managed and operated by 29 staff members and faculty librarians. The Library also maintains a branch library at the CSUB Antelope Valley campus in Lancaster. The Dean of Libraries oversees all operations and services.

The Building: Its Collections and Services

The five-story Library building is divided into a lower level and four upper levels. On the lower level, a large computer lab provides students with access to a variety of software applications. In addition to the lab, the lower level has five computer classrooms, three instructional television studios, a multi-media production lab, and a 24-hour study room.

The Library’s upper four levels are divided into service areas, collections and offices.

On the main level, students can check out books, videos and equipment; obtain research help from a librarian at the research desk, borrow reserve materials, or use the computers and laptop study area to study and do research. The Resource Sharing Department, is located on the first floor as are the reference, California History., Multicultural, career and student success, law, and popular reading collections. The Dezember Reading Room, administration and librarian offices are found on Level 1, in addition to Walter’s Cafe.

The library's collection of print periodicals, government documents, juvenile collection, microfilm and The Historical Research Center as well as several group study areas for students are located on the 2nd floor. The Historical Research contains the Campus Archives, Special Collections, and the Gallery. 

The third and fourth levels house the main book collection. This circulation collection is the largest academic book collection in the southern San Joaquin Valley. Group and individual study rooms are also found on these levels.

Librarians

Librarians provide research services in person at the research desk and by appointment, through email, phone, and chat. They also offer in-depth help to students through the Individual Research Assistance Program. Our librarians, all of whom hold advanced degrees in library science, teach information competency courses and subject orientations.

Namesakes and Associates

The Library is named for Walter W. Stiern (1914-1987), a Kern County veterinarian who served 28 years in the State Senate and was instrumental in the establishment of CSUB. The Stiern Library Associates and our benefactors have helped make possible the Library’s substantial contribution to the university and community. Areas and collections in the library bear the names of some of our most generous benefactors, such as the late Dr. George and Millie Ablin, Rayburn and Joan Dezember, Dolores Cerro, and Peter R. Harbach.