General Library News

This Black History Month, two events at the UGA Special Collections Libraries highlight Black voices in history and journalism.

The events include a discussion with author Michael Thurmond on his book about Georgia’s founder and a panel discussion about Black publishing in Georgia in honor of the Georgia Writers Hall of Fame induction of Robert Sengstacke Abbott, the founder of The Chicago Defender.

On Thursday, Feb. 13, Thurmond will discuss his book James Oglethorpe, Father of Georgia: A Founder’s Journey from Slave Trader to Abolitionist, published by the UGA Press. The book explores Oglethorpe’s relationships with Ayuba Suleiman Diallo and Olaudah Equiano, two of 18th-century England's most influential Black men, and how they influenced his philosophy on the issue of enslavement.

Join us for Love Data Week, a series of events led by experts from UGA, the University of Liverpool, and Ludwig Maximillian University, Germany, coming up just in time for Valentine’s Day. 

UGA students, faculty, and staff are invited to a series of free workshops celebrating data and teaching researchers at all stages how to plan out their data strategies, organize, analyze, and share their results. The workshops, many of which are available online via Zoom, will be held Feb. 10-14. 

A new exhibit at the University of Georgia Special Collections Libraries tells the history of clothing, but not through fads like hoop skirts and bell bottoms. Instead, the display outlines the technology, economics and cultural changes that have led to today’s conveniences and consequences of “fast fashion.”

The exhibit, entitled “From Farms to Fast Fashion: Unraveling the Need for Sustainable Style,” weaves together the complicated history of fashion and clothing production from the days of spinning cotton into cloth and hand-sewing at home to today’s consumer lifestyle that often values novelty over durability and craftsmanship.

WEDNESDAY UPDATE: As UGA's campus reopens tomorrow at 10 a.m., all Libraries locations will open at the same time. This includes the Miller Learning Center, the Main and McBay Libraries, the Special Collections Building and others.

Please visit libs.uga.edu/all-hours for complete hours for all locations.

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UPDATE: As UGA's campus remains closed due to winter weather, all UGA Libraries locations, including the Miller Learning Center, will be closed on Wednesday, Jan. 22. 

Digital resources — including access to e-books, online journals, and millions of database resources — will remain available at libs.uga.edu. Log in with your UGA ID to access these academic resources.

Continue to follow this account for information about reopening plans.

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The Georgia Review is pleased to announce it has been approved by the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) for a Grants for Arts Projects award of $12,500. This grant will support publication of issues of The Georgia Review. The NEA awarded 1,127 Grants for Arts Projects awards nationwide, totaling more than $31.8 million as part of the recent announcement of fiscal year 2025 grants.  

“The NEA is proud to continue our nearly 60 years of supporting the efforts of organizations and artists that help to shape our country’s vibrant arts sector and communities of all types across our nation,” said NEA Chair Maria Rosario Jackson, PhD.  

“I'm grateful for the NEA’s continued support,” added Georgia Review director and editor Gerald Maa. “We are a non-profit run by a small, tight-knit office. It's such an honor for the NEA to recognize and support us.” 

New parking procedures are in place for visiting researchers and gallery patrons at the UGA Special Collections Libraries Building.

For those community members planning to use the Hull Street Deck before 5 p.m., please consider contacting us in advance at 706-542-6331 or sclib@uga.edu  for a one-time code to enter into the deck’s payment station. Otherwise, code access will be available at the building’s front desk, but patrons must return to the parking deck to enter their information before returning to the building.

Parking validation codes are not available for UGA faculty, staff, and students, but they may pay to park at the Hull Street Deck after 1 p.m. or take advantage of hourly parking at the nearby Tate Center Deck.

Information for visitors can be found at https://www.libs.uga.edu/scl/visit

SATURDAY UPDATE: Three popular UGA Libraries study spots will reopen Saturday, Jan. 11 after the winter weather event on Jan. 10. Main and McBay Libraries and the Miller Learning Center will all open at noon, thanks to work from UGA's facilities division to de-ice entrances.

We encourage patrons to practice caution if they plan to visit, as areas of ice may not be visible. 

Main and McBay Libraries will close at 7 p.m., and MLC will close at 9 p.m. We expect to return to normal operations on Sunday.

ORIGINAL ARTICLE: The University of Georgia Libraries will close as part of the UGA campus closure announced for Friday, Jan. 10 due to a winter weather warning. 

The Miller Learning Center and Main and McBay Libraries will close at midnight Thursday, Jan. 9, and all facilities at the Athens campus will remain closed on Friday, Jan. 10. 

Librarians and others from across the Atlantic Ocean came together virtually for a two-day symposium this December, engaging in a rich exchange of professional knowledge and ideas. Co-organized by the University of Georgia Libraries and the University of Liverpool Libraries, Museums, and Galleries, the symposium marked the latest milestone in the decade-long collaboration between these sister universities.

The symposium began with a report on the recently signed agreement naming Liverpool University Press as the exclusive distributor for UGA Press books in the United Kingdom and Europe, and a non-exclusive distributor for other parts of the world.

Visitors to the new Akins Ford Arena at the Classic Center in Athens can explore Georgia music history, thanks to a new display installed Dec. 19 by the University of Georgia Special Collections Libraries.

On a larger-than-life video board, The B-52s member and Athens resident Cindy Wilson welcomes visitors to peruse the memorabilia on display, representing more than 200 legendary artists, from Whisperin’ Bill Anderson to Run the Jewels. 

Display cases share memories of concerts, stories about the recording process, fan merchandise and interactions, behind-the-scenes moments, and more. For example, a cold medicine bottle Duane Allman used to make his distinctive slide guitar sounds is on display alongside the Gibson Les Paul he played while recording “Statesboro Blues.”

This article also appears on UGA Today at news.uga.edu/barrows-receive-first-dooley-friends-of-the-uga-libraries-award/.

A new award named after the University of Georgia’s legendary head football coach Vince Dooley and his wife Barbara honors those who share another passion with the beloved family — support for the UGA Libraries.