President Obama's Library Will Not Feature Hard Copies Of Documents

The initial plans for the Obama Presidential Center in Chicago have been released and not everybody is a fan. The biggest issue is that the Obama Foundation is planning to go all digital, and will not have hard copies of President Obama's records. According to Fox News, "the foundation’s goal is to create, with NARA, a new model for the next generation of presidential centers that reflects the way people access information in this digital age."

Peggy Glowacki, who works as manuscripts librarian, spoke with the Chicago Tribune and was concerned with how the foundation will digitize the records and ensure it is easy to search:

I think in this case it’s such a massive amount of material that it will be important to see how they are able to deliver it and make it easy to search

She says that there is a benefit to having primary sources physically in front of you:

There is something so important about young people, students, being exposed to primary sources. We have become so used to having information fed to us second hand — and that’s a wonderful way to learn, when someone summarizes something for you.

But there’s nothing like looking at the real thing, the actual record the president held in his hand.

The National Archives and Records Administration will still hold onto hard copies of all documents and is currently storing the documents at a facility in Washington D.C.

While the Presidential Center may not have physical copies on documents on hand, it will have a bevy of other unique features. In an effort to highlight Michelle Obama's focus on healthy eating, there are plans for a test kitchen and an outdoor garden. The center also has plans for a yoga room and basketball court. 

The Obama Presidential Center in Chicago will not open for at least four years. 

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