The Claremont Colleges Library is happy to announce the Training the Trainers: Materiality of Ming Books and Manuscripts program. Presented in partnership with UCLA Library and Columbia University Libraries, and with funding from the James P. Geiss & Margaret Y. Hsu Foundation, the Ju-Yen & Linnar Teng Initiative (JLT) of Global Knowledge Initiative and a Title IV grant from the UCLA Asian Pacific Center, this program aims to build primary source expertise among East Asian librarians in North America and Europe. Participants will gain the skills necessary to interpret Ming materials, teach effectively with primary sources and collaborate across institutional boundaries.
Twenty-four East Asian studies librarians from North America and Europe have been selected to participate in the program and engage in a dual-phase learning experience:
- Online Lectures: 13 Zoom lectures led by international scholars are taking place on Mondays between May 4 and July 27, 2026. While selected participants are required to attend or review the recordings, these sessions are open to all interested colleagues. These lectures provide the historical and practical foundation necessary for the in-person workshop.
- In-Person Workshop: A hands-on, immersive program hosted at UCLA and The Claremont Colleges will take place August 24-29, 2026. This part of the program allows participants to apply knowledge from the lectures to rare materials, fostering expertise in physical interpretation and pedagogy.
The program is co-organized by Su Chen, Head of the East Asian Library at UCLA, Xiuying Zou, Head of the Asian Library at The Claremont Colleges, and Chengzhi Wang, the Chinese Studies Librarian at the C.V. Starr East Asian Library at Columbia University.