Romeo P. Ariniego, MD, AFSC Library
A new chapter was written in De La Salle Medical and Health Sciences Institute’s history with the opening of the brand new Romeo P. Ariniego, MD, AFSC Library on January 3, 2010. The new Library replaces the former Medicine Library at the basement of Angelo King Medical Research Center Building and the Satellite Libraries at the sixth floor of Academic Center for the Health Sciences (Wang Building), which had been serving DLSMHSI students, faculty members, hospital and academics staff, and other visiting researchers since 1994. In 2008, when Br. Gus Boquer unveiled the construction plans, the news was welcomed by the whole academic community as the previous library was almost bursting at the seams coping with the increasing campus population.
Located conveniently between the Wang Building and the College of Medicine Building, the new library building looks set to become another focal point for the entire DLSMHSI population.
Aptly called the Romeo P. Ariniego, MD, AFSC Library, the building sits on one of the high points in the Institute, flanked by greenery on its side and trees both at the front and rear. The building itself brings in natural sunlight and adds a touch of nature and breath of fresh air to the entire surroundings. It is a modern seven-storey building that houses the print and online collections of the Library as well as the art collections of Dr. Ariniego. Four of its floors are dedicated to the Library services and offices. The fifth and seventh floor serves as classrooms for the undergraduate programs while the sixth floor is home to the Romeo P. Ariniego, MD, AFSC Gallery.
In February 2022, the groundbreaking ceremony was held to mark the start of the construction of the Learning Commons Expansion, a four-storey building that shall house more learning spaces and an auditorium. It was opened on December 2023.
The Library received the Innovative Library Design Award 2019 conferred by the Philippine Association of Academic/Research Librarians, Inc. The award recognizes excellence and innovation in library design that supports learning, teaching, and research in terms of functionality, adaptability, accessibility, variety, safety and security, efficiency, and suitability for information technology. The space also has to be interactive, conducive, and environmentally suitable. PAARL is the country’s premier association of librarians that work together towards the development of scholarly research and formal education in the tertiary level and advancement of the profession of librarianship.