Gifts in Action

The University of Maryland Libraries are excited to announce the acquisition of two 19th-century iron Washington hand presses donated to Special Collections and University Archives by Christopher and Patricia Manson of Rockville, MD and Ellie Denker of Potomac, MD. These gifts will be the foundation for a new letterpress printing studio on the ground floor of Hornbake Library, set to open in 2025.

A collection of works by notable American graphic artist J. J. Lankes (1884–1960) has been donated to the University of Maryland Libraries’ Special Collections and University Archives (SCUA) by alum and Lankes scholar Welford D. Taylor Ph.D. ‘66, and his wife, Carole W. Taylor. The collection comprises over 600 woodcut prints, dozens of books, and myriad periodicals illustrated by Lankes, as well as correspondences and books from Lankes’s personal library.

Marcus Ortiz and Alona Norwood, the two inaugural Fisher Family Library Faculty Fellows for Inclusive Excellence, arrived at UMD Libraries this fall to get started on their two-year appointments, and they have hit the ground running.

The White House Correspondents’ Association (WHCA) was founded in 1914 to promote excellence in journalism, robust reporting on the U. S. presidency, and support democracy through a free press. The White House Press Corps is made up of journalists credentialed by WHCA. This press pool provides reporting on the President’s daily activities and events. The UMD Libraries’ WHCA Pool Reports Collection consists of email pool reports created while covering the U.S. President and Vice President dating back to June 2020.

The University of Maryland Libraries is pleased to announce a generous $2.225 million bequest from JoAnne Barry ’89 and Ken Boulton ’86/’97 that will preserve and expand the International Piano Archives at Maryland (IPAM) and pay tribute to Neil Ratliff, the inspirational leader of the Music Library at the University of Maryland from 1980 to 1994.

The University of Maryland Libraries is pleased to announce a generous gift from the sons of Abe and Irene Pollin to bolster the Capital Centre Community Archive, part of Special Collections and University Archives. The gift will fund the Abe and Irene Pollin Graduate Assistant, who will research and promote awareness of the collection and it will also establish the Abe and Irene Pollin Endowed Program Support Fund to provide lasting stability.

The University of Maryland Libraries is grateful for the generous commitment of Sonya E. Shooshan, MLS ’95, to establish the Library Student Workforce Endowed Operating Fund through the University of Maryland College Park Foundation, Inc. With this new commitment of $50,000, the endowed fund will provide operating support to subsidize the cost of employing, training, and mentoring student assistants employed by the University of Maryland Libraries.

The University of Maryland Libraries is pleased to announce the generous commitment of the McKeldin and Wayner families to establish the McKeldin-Wayner Family Student Success Fund for the Libraries.This endowed fund will bolster the work done by the Libraries to provide outreach and instruction in information literacy, using strategies that reach all students.

The University of Maryland Libraries is pleased to announce the generous commitment of Christine '91 and Todd Fisher to establish the Fisher Family Library Faculty Fellows for Inclusive Excellence. 

The University of Maryland Libraries is pleased to announce the generous commitment of Sarah M. Pritchard ‘75 to establish both the Sarah M. Pritchard Endowment and the Sarah M. Pritchard Fund for Librarian Professional Development. These gifts will support the professional growth of UMD library faculty and their engagement in a wide range of scholarly activities. Preference will be given to faculty members’ research initiatives and continuing education related to promoting inclusion, diversity, equity, and interdisciplinarity within their practice of librarianship.