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The Columbia FLI Partnership Library is a collection of textbooks and other course materials available for extended (semester-long) loan periods to undergraduate students who identify as first-generation or low-income.

• Register by completing the FLI Partnership Libraries Access Form.

• Search for your course materials in CLIO.

• If your course materials are in the Columbia FLI Library, you can either physically retrieve them from Butler Library, Room 303A or use the paging and pick-up service.

• Check out your books at the third-floor circulation desk in Butler Library or use the self-checkout service.

• Email us at columbiaflipartnership@library.columbia.edu

• Or use the following form: Columbia FLI Partnership Library Course Materials Information Collection Form

Columbia students can also check out material from the Barnard FLI Partnership Library.

Request that copies of your course materials be added to the FLI Library (in addition to Course Reserves) by emailing columbiaflipartnership@library.columbia.edu with your textbook information.

If you are interested in making a financial donation or a gift of books, please email us at: columbiaflipartnership@library.columbia.edu. Please also see the FLI Library collection development policy.

At Columbia, a first-generation college student is identified as a student whose parent(s)/guardian(s) have not received a four-year U.S. bachelor’s degree or completed a four-year U.S. bachelor’s degree later in life. Any student who self-identifies in this way, or who may have limited support in navigating an institution like Columbia, is welcome to use the lending library.

There is no specific income level that determines eligibility for students to check out materials from the FLI Partnership Libraries. However, low-income students typically have little to no expected parental contribution as part of their financial aid package.

Currently, the FLI library is available only to undergraduate students in Columbia College (CC), the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS), and General Studies (GS), as well as students from Barnard College.

Search CLIO. You can also browse the titles in the collection by searching by location for "Columbia FLI Partnership Library" or "Barnard FLI Partnership Library." Browse both collections by searching just for "FLI Partnership Library."

Search CLIO or see the list of the Libraries’ holdings for LitHum and CC (LionMail access only).

The Barnard College Library maintains its own FLI Partnership Library, located on the fourth floor of the Library within The Milstein Center for Teaching and Learning. Open to both Barnard and Columbia undergraduates who identify as FLI students, Barnard's collection contains mostly textbooks and other course materials required for Barnard College majors. For more information, please visit the Barnard FLI Partnership page. 

The First-Generation, Low-Income Network (FLI Net) is a recognized student club at Columbia University. The FLI Partnership Library is a collaboration between FLI Net and the Columbia University Libraries. The group primarily builds community for students who identify as first-generation and/or low-income, actively creates and advertises resources needed by FLI students, and advocates for and implements institutional change with the help of administrators. To learn more, check out the group's Instagram account and the group's other resources. If you have questions regarding food insecurity, joining the board, attending general body meetings, or other resources the FLI Partnership offers students, please contact them at flipcolumbia@gmail.com.

The FLI Partnership Library is coordinated and maintained by a team of Columbia University Libraries staff, led by:

Sydni Meyer, Teaching & Undergraduate Services Librarian (primary liaison and selector for undergraduate collections)

Jeremiah Mercurio, Head, Humanities & History

For questions regarding resources and services, please contact us at columbiaflipartnership@library.columbia.edu.

Many members of the FLI community at Columbia University have and continue to work with the Libraries on the FLI Partnership lending library, with valuable assistance from community members at Barnard College.