Friends of the UNCG Libraries

Lynda Kellam Kelsey Cheshire Lynda Kellam is the recipient of the 2015 NewsBank/Readex/GODORT/ALA Catharine J. Reynolds Award. This award provides funding for research in the field of documents librarianship, or in a related area that would benefit the individual's performance as a documents librarian or make a contribution to the field. Lynda’s work with the North Carolina Library Association’s Government Resources Section (GRS) certainly makes a significant contribution to our profession. The GRS webinar series “Help! I’m an Accidental Government Information Librarian” has been a valuable source of instruction for accidental and non-accidental government information librarians alike for the past three years. This grant will allow Lynda and GRS to purchase software that will be used to preserve these webinars and make them more accessible through channels such as YouTube and embeddable in LibGuides. Lynda’s work to make these valuable webinars more accessible to governmen...

Rosemary Wander Camille Payton The Friends of the UNCG Libraries elected new officers at their recent annual meeting, which featured Kathy Reichs, best-selling author, forensic anthropologist, and originator fo the Bones TV series.  Outgoing chair Karl Schleunes served as master of ceremonies at the event, attended by nearly 300 members and other attendees.  Funds raised at the dinner support the University Libraries. The new Chair of the Friends is Camille Payton of Greensboro.  Payton has been practicing law since 1993. She is a shareholder of Ward Black Law in Greensboro, where she heads the firm's workers' compensation department. A native of Kinston, North Carolina, Payton graduated from UNC Chapel Hill with a degree in journalism. After working as a reporter and then a copy editor in New York at the Rochester Democrat & Chronicle , she began work as a copy editor for the Austin American Statesman in Texas until 1990, when she left the newspaper p...

Portrait of Randall Jarrell, by Betty Watson The University Libraries at UNC Greensboro contain art and artifacts in their collections that create a pleasing visual space for visitors, make a visit a worthwhile experience, and stimulate and inspire the creative and scholarly pursuits for which academic libraries are known.  A catalog of the art collection may be found in the Art in the University Libraries LibGuide . Jackson Library opened in 1950 and was named a National Literary Landmark by Friends of Libraries USA in 2002.  An Art Committee consisting of members of the University Libraries faculty and staff maintains and cares for the collection and decides where individual pieces will hang.   The University Libraries are proud to be among those campus groups which promote both the literary and visual arts on a UNCG campus which is known for its contribution to the arts throughout the region and the nation.

Jackson Library hawk 10-17-11 photo by Suzanne Angel, former colleague in the University Libraries For what it’s worth: it’s never too late or, in my case, too early to be whoever you want to be. There’s no time limit, stop whenever you want. You can change or stay the same; there are no rules to this thing. We can make the best or the worst of it. I hope you make the best of it. And I hope you see things that startle you. I hope you feel things you never felt before. I hope you meet people with a different point of view. I hope you live a life you’re proud of. If you find that you’re not, I hope you have the courage to start all over again. --Often falsely attributed to F. Scott Fitzgerald on the Internet but actually written by Eric Roth, who wrote “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button Screenplay” based on the F. Scott Fitzgerald short story This quotation caught my attention one day when a friend posted a version of it on a social media account.  I liked it, but as is my ...

(L-R) Dean of University Libraries Rosann Bazirjian, Gerald Holmes, American Library Association President Courtney Young First Diversity Resident Jason Alston, Gerald Holmes, current Diversity Resident Orolando Duffus Gerald Holmes of the University Libraries at UNCG was honored with a reception on March 20th in the Jackson Library Reading Room to celebrate Gerald's being named  the 2014 ALA Achievement in Library Diversity honoree. Courtney Young, the President of the American Library Association,  joined in the celebration, and also spoke that day at UNCG on "The Importance of Libraries in Student Success."

In November, we began a series of programs examining the topic "What is College For?"  It’s a subject that has much significance for our future, both within the academe and outside it.  We need to hear from lots of stakeholders in this enterprise, and every single citizen is a stakeholder to one degree or another.  In Rich DeMillo and Andrew Delbanco , we’re inviting speakers who are leading national figures to weigh in on the subject, and we are screening a major documentary film, Ivory Tower , which has drawn much attention, especially with regard to the rising cost of higher education. The recent program at UNCG with U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan and students from our iSchool program illustrated the message of Rich DeMillo earlier in the same week, that technology offers remarkable potential to bring education and learning to those who might not be able to get it in more traditional ways.  I don't usually introduce a personal perspective in these po...

April 27, 2015  March 30, 2015 February 23, 2015 all at 6 pm Digital Media Commons, Lower Level, Jackson Library The Digital Media Commons and the Digital ACT Studio are hosting a New Short Film Festival (NSFF) on the last Monday of every month this semester. The events take place on the Lower Level of Jackson Library, and start at 6 p.m. The series is meant to inspire UNCG filmmakers to create, experiment, and make films that capture alternative viewpoints, display moving narratives, and embrace new filmmaking techniques. The gathering is meant to encourage filmmakers and enthusiasts to create experimental films that offer new perspectives, create inventive narratives, and make use of a variety of visual materials. Part two of the four-part series was hosted by Media Studies Department Professor, Dr. Michael Frierson, on February 23rd.  Frierson screened his own work, along with the work of other students. The next part of the series will occur on March 30, and will...