NCSU Libraries Focus Online
Volume 26 number 2 - Winter 2006
Carousel
of Knowledge Campaign Revs Up
By Anna Dahlstein, External Relations
On September 23, 2005, NC State announced the public phase of
its largest fund-raising campaign in university history--Achieve!
The Campaign for NC State. Six days later, the NCSU
Libraries celebrated the kick-off of its participation in that
broader effort with a memorable event in the Brickyard, at the
heart of the campus.
Dubbed the “Carousel of Knowledge,” this festive event
invited NCSU students, faculty, and staff to learn more about the
campaign while celebrating the encouraging progress that has already
been made. Thanks to the generosity and vision of its supporters,
the library has raised almost $7.5 million toward the overall campaign
goal of $10 million and ensured that “a truly great library
is within our grasp,” to paraphrase Vice Provost and Director
of Libraries Susan K. Nutter’s campaign slogan.
These happy tidings gave students and staff good reason to take
a break from their research or stop by between classes to enjoy
a whimsical carousel ride. Many tried their luck shooting hoops
with members of the men’s and women’s Wolfpack basketball
teams or entered a free raffle with prizes donated by Raleigh businesses
and members of the Friends of the Library (FOL). [The list of sponsors
appears on the Web site at www.lib.ncsu.edu/support/capital/donors.html.]
Free popcorn, cotton candy, and other refreshments also attracted
a hungry student crowd. Chancellor James L. Oblinger, Provost Larry
A. Nielsen, and Basketball Coach Herb Sendek joined Susan Nutter
and FOL Vice President and Campaign Steering Committee Co-chair
Cyma Rubin in the prize drawings, delighting students with their
approachability and good humor. Will Quick, a junior in biomedical
engineering and political science who recruited student volunteers
to staff the cotton candy and lemonade stands, said, “It’s
not often the library can be shown off in such an extravagant way,
and I thought it was a great idea.”
Under the Carousel of Knowledge tent on the Brickyard, visitors
found an educational component that raised awareness of the Libraries’ priorities
for the future and of several current initiatives. Librarians and
FOL volunteers staffed booths highlighting the library’s
technology-rich Learning Commons and the Special Collections Research
Center, both opening next fall; the University Archives’ growing
database of searchable digital images; upcoming literary events
sponsored by the FOL; and more. The booths were well attended by
students, allowing librarians and volunteers to demonstrate concrete
examples of the improvements that are being supported by the campaign.
The Libraries’ $10 million campaign will help fund initiatives
supporting NC State students and faculty by
1. improving and expanding library space ($3 million),
2. building outstanding collections ($3 million),
3. advancing digital library services ($2 million),
4. recruiting and retaining excellent librarians ($1 million),
and
5. applying unrestricted funds toward these and emerging priorities
($1 million).
A few examples of the gifts and endowments made over the past
four and one-half years illustrate how the Libraries’ forward-thinking
benefactors are lending invaluable support to the five priority
areas of the campaign.
1. Improving and Expanding Library Space
The Wolfpack Club, known formally as the NC State Student Aid
Association, Inc., not only provides scholarships for individual
NC State student athletes but also has made two major gifts to
the Libraries that will augment the resources available to all
of the university’s students, faculty, staff, and alumni:
• $100,000 that will be used to enhance
the quality of public spaces that will be completed in the D. H.
Hill Library during 2006.
• $100,000 to create the Wolfpack
Endowment for the Enhancement of the Student Library Experience,
supporting the NCSU Libraries’ vision of the library as
the centerpiece of every student’s learning environment.
Private funds such as these will allow the library not only to
ameliorate chronic overcrowding but also to offer new learning
environments that meet the needs of the Internet generation with
wireless networking and collaboration and presentation practice
spaces.
2. Building Outstanding Collections
Recognizing that strong research collections are critical for
the success of the university’s mission, former FOL board
president and Professor Emeritus J. Lawrence Apple and his wife
Ella founded an endowment to support the NCSU Libraries’ collections
in all subjects and formats. In 2005 the Apples pledged a $148,250
gift to boost their unrestricted endowment.
Meanwhile, NC State alumni Ann and Jim Goodnight established the Goodnight
Education Foundation Library Endowment for Special Collections with
a particular interest in supporting exhibits that showcase the
Libraries’ rare books and unique primary materials. By
exposing a greater number of undergraduates to these holdings,
the Special Collections Research Center fosters their independent
research skills and provides a historical context for their chosen
fields of study.
The Apples, the Goodnights, and others make an important difference
for NC State at a time when research libraries across the country
are seeing their purchasing power eroded by the disproportionately
high annual price increases charged by publishers for indispensable
journals and databases. The NCSU Libraries has responded to the
crisis in scholarly communication with advocacy work at the national
level, such as promoting open access publishing; but the library
needs to maintain its outstanding collections. Endowments for the
collections and in-kind gifts contribute resources that are shared
across the university.
3. Advancing Digital Library Services
John T. Stephenson, a 1992 graduate of NC State’s College
of Management, is excited about his alma mater’s leadership
in the digital library arena. NC State librarians are integrating
advances in information technology into library collections, services,
delivery of resources, outreach, and instruction. Stephenson decided
to purchase a life insurance policy that names the NCSU Libraries
as a beneficiary. The funds will create an endowment in honor of
his parents, John H. and Sandra C. Stephenson, that will provide
unrestricted support for technological improvements. It is one
of the few gifts specifically designating technology as a priority.
Shanika Mack, a junior in education who attended the campaign
kickoff, agrees with Stephenson on the need to keep “library
technology advanced. Not all students actually have their own computers.
The Libraries’ laptop lending service is incredibly helpful
for writing papers or searching online when all the other computers
in the building are occupied.”
Today’s college students need to have ready access to the
Internet as well as a full range of computer applications in all
of their learning spaces, whether they are in the classroom, at
home, or in the library. The renovation of the first floor of the
D. H. Hill Library provides a unique opportunity to make great
progress toward this ambitious goal. The Libraries is building
a highly visible, showpiece space called the Learning Commons to
support student learning across the spectrum of research, collaboration,
and use of technology. It is included among the campaign’s
naming opportunities (see the article “Making a
Mark on the Libraries,” in this issue) and is still available
for naming by a donor.
4. Recruiting and Retaining Excellent Librarians
Professor Emeritus Donald E. Moreland and NC State alumna Cyma
Rubin share a keen sense of appreciation for academic librarians
and the work they do. Both have established endowments designed
to develop a new generation of leaders of the profession for NC
State. Moreland’s endowment for recruiting and retaining
highly talented librarians was a milestone, the very first to provide
support for key positions. The position of associate vice provost
and deputy director of libraries bears his name. In 2003 Rubin
established an endowment for the NCSU Libraries Fellows Program,
and additional donors contributed generously to it. Annual income
from the endowment provides a professional development stipend
for one of the Fellows, helping to attract the nation’s top
library school graduates to the Libraries. Endowments that support
positions and innovative career development enable the Libraries
to compete with other academic institutions and with a growing
demand from the private sector for librarians, especially those
with science and engineering backgrounds, information technology
experience, and leadership skills.
5. Unrestricted Support for Emerging Priorities
The silent phase of the campaign for the NCSU Libraries actually
started with a bang when a couple from North Carolina anonymously
gave the library its first million dollar gift in 2002. The donors
established a charitable remainder trust worth $1.1 million to
fund an unrestricted endowment that will provide flexible funding
to meet future needs of the Libraries. As Susan Nutter noted, the
gift offered “a vote of high confidence in our collection,
services, and staff.”
Such votes of confidence have also been made by Georgie B. Tilley
and the late W. Lester Woodall, among other donors. Unrestricted
giving provides the library with an unparalleled ability to seize
on opportunities as they arise and to move quickly to ensure that
NC State maintains its reputation for excellence.
Learn more about the campaign for the Libraries at www.lib.ncsu.edu/support/capital
and for NC State at campaign.ncsu.edu/priorities/libraries.html.
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