"I have had a lifelong love of libraries and reading. As a student I spent many hours studying and writing papers in Neilson Library. It was a wonderful place for quiet study. Additionally, I was a student worker at Neilson, shelving books and working the circulation desk. I went on to become an academic librarian. I give to the Friends of the Libraries so that future generations of Smithies can experience all that the Libraries can offer, whether it's the joy of research discovery or a comfy place to take a break from studies."
— Barbara Rodgers Maratos '92
Students look through Hillyer Art Library stacks to find hidden clues during the Library Crawl.
Photo by Samm Smith
Dear Friends,
Everyone is back on campus for fall semester and there are incredible things happening at the Smith College Libraries! Library orientation brought hundreds of new students in to learn about the wealth of resources available to them. There are exciting events and exhibits this semester and a new rare book collection has just been cataloged and made available for research! If you are on campus for Come Home to Smith, make sure to swing by Neilson to say hello.
Sincerely,
Brandy King '01, Chair
Friends of the Smith College Libraries Executive Committee
"Neilson Library was a wonderful place for quiet study."
If you have given to the Libraries in the past year, we'd love to hear from you. Use this form to tell us about what the Smith College Libraries meant to you as a student, and why you support the Friends today. In doing so, you will help us get to know our members better, and guide us as we plan future Friends activities and outreach.
Orientation 2026
First year students received one of three original posters designed by Communications Manager Samm Smith as part of their orientation welcome packets.
When new students arrived on campus, the Libraries were ready! First Years' Engagement and Humanities Librarian Xochitl Quiroz provided a wealth of information through presentations and the Resource Fair to help students get situated, while Special Collections hosted a Move-In Day welcome session with button making in the Reading Room.
Each year, the Friends sponsor a gift that first year students receive in their welcome packets to encourage their attendance at upcoming Library orientation events. For 2026, the Libraries offered one-of-a-kind posters illuminating the many ways the Libraries act as "third spaces" on campus — From ukuleles to collage kits, to digital media equipment and zines, we want students to know that we are much more than just books!
Copies of the posters will be available at Come Home to Smith on October 24.
Adventure Abounds at the Library Crawl
Above: Students make collages in the Neilson Library Learning Commons.
Below: A student sings during Josten Library's open mic; Special Collections Head of Public Services Leslie Fields demonstrates ways to engage with a book found in Special Collections; Students pose in the Library Crawl photo booth.
Photos by Samm Smith
All three branches and Special Collections welcomed both new and returning students at the second annual Library Crawl. At Neilson, Hillyer, and Josten Libraries, attendees had the chance to meet our librarians, explore the spaces, and sample each location’s offerings: Josten hosted an open-mic with a live piano accompanist; Hillyer provided space for collaging and geocaching in the stacks; Special Collections showcased student-curated items from all its repositories; and Neilson turned the Learning Commons into a maker space, complete with bookmark making and a photo booth!
Participants were each handed a passport full of library information, and those who had their passport stamped at all four locations received our exclusive Smith College Libraries bear bag charm.
Love the bear charm? There will be an opportunity to get your own during Come Home to Smith on October 24.
Banned Books Week Film Screening:
"The Librarians"
The Friends are pleased to sponsor a screening of the 2026 Emmy Award-winning documentary "The Librarians," a film the New York Times describes as “gripping… as well-crafted as it is profoundly alarming.” After the film, a Q&A will be offered with Executive Producer Amber Alonso, Dean of Libraries Nancy S. Kirkpatrick, and banned books activist and Smith student Julia Garnett ’28. If you live in the area, join us for this in-person event!
Learn more about the film and Banned Books Week.
Come Home to Smith
October 24, 2026
Alums are invited to Come Home to Smith for a day of special events! Read below to see what the Libraries have to offer:
Friends Welcome Table
Neilson Library First Floor1-4 p.m.
Stop by to chat with Library Development Officer Mary Irwin and learn about all the great library benefits available to Smith alums! Our adorable new bear bag charms, posters, stickers, and other fun Libraries swag will be available.
Relaxation Station
Neilson Library Browsing Room1-4 p.m.
Need a place to recharge yourself and your phone? Come pull up a chair and take a breather at our relaxation station! Refreshments, puzzles, light music, and device chargers will be available to help you feel refreshed for the rest of the afternoon.
Uniquely Smith: Connecting Past, Present, and Future Scholars in Special Collections
Neilson Library Third Floor10 a.m.-12 p.m., 1-4:45 p.m.
How do Smith students use Special Collections? Come engage with the same primary sources students use in their classes – rare books and scrapbooks, women’s health manuals and lesbian pulp fiction, activist photos and Smithie yearbooks, and so much more!
Stacks tours will take place 10:30 a.m., 11:30 a.m., 1:30 p.m., 2:30 p.m., and 3:30 p.m.
Enid Mark Lecture:
Editing the Poems of Sylvia Plath
November 12, 2026
4:30 p.m.
Neilson Library Browsing Room
Co-Editors Amanda Golden and Karen V. Kukil will discuss editing The Poems of Sylvia Plath (Faber & Faber, 2026), a new, annotated, scholarly edition that draws extensively on the manuscripts, typescripts, and other artifacts in Smith College Special Collections. This event also commemorates the thirtieth anniversary of About Sylvia, a book published by Plath’s friend and classmate Enid Epstein Mark '54 for the ELM Press. Plath dedicated three poems to Enid, who generously placed the manuscripts in Special Collections; their contents were a vital contribution to The Poems of Sylvia Plath.
Read more on Karen and Amanda's work.
FSCL Newsletter Survey Results
Over 170 of you took the survey we sent, and 75% of you had given to the Friends within the past three years. We sincerely appreciate the time you took to tell us about your experiences, and are grateful for your continued dedication to supporting the Friends.
Among the many things we learned, we will be focusing in on one very clear message: There is a strong desire for more virtual events, whether it's a chat with the Dean of Libraries, a virtual tour of Neilson, or a live-streamed event. We will be taking action on this, so stay tuned for announcements!
Edwin W. Pauley Foundation to Support A.I. Education at the Libraries
The Edwin W. Pauley Foundation has committed funding to help the Libraries launch a new program focused on AI education across campus. The initiative will explore both the possibilities and the challenges of AI, with programming designed to help students, faculty, and staff use these tools thoughtfully and effectively. Dean of Libraries Nancy Kirkpatrick welcomed the foundation’s timely support: “This initiative will highlight how AI can support creativity, research, teaching, and accessibility, while also helping our community understand what they need to know to use AI critically and responsibly.” The three-year grant was made in honor of Elsa Pauley Johnson '66.
Julie Pascoe Joins FSCL Executive Committee
Welcome to Julie Hur Pascoe '90, of Houston, Texas! Julie enjoyed a 20-year career at Shell Oil Company, where she worked in corporate communications, community relations, and social investment. She also has a background in higher education through her marketing work in Development and Alumnae Relations at Rice University. She is a docent at the Museum of Fine Arts Houston and Rienzi, the city's European Decorative Arts house museum.
Julie was energized by her 35th reunion last year and is eager to serve her beloved alma mater now that she is retired. Julie has been an interviewer for the Admissions Office and supports the south and southwest region. She looks forward to joining and contributing to this Smithie community.
Former FSCL Chair Ann Edwards Shanahan Passes Away
Ann Edwards Shanahan '59 passed away peacefully on August 21, 2026. Few people knew Smith better than Ann, who stayed in step with the evolution of the campus for over five decades. In the 1970s-80s, she worked as the college's news director, and then returned to campus in the late 90s to serve as the chief public relations officer until her retirement in 2004, when she received the John M. Greene Award for outstanding service to the college.
The Libraries were honored when Ann agreed to chair the Friends Executive Committee from 2007-2013. As she had with her professional engagements, Ann approached the role in an organized, collegial, and thoughtful manner, and was appreciated by all who served with her. Her obituary can be found here.
A Rare Book Room of One’s Own
Neilson Library, 3rd floor
On view through December 11, 2026
Have you ever wondered why Smith has a rare book collection? What purpose does it serve at a historic women's college, and why do we continue to collect when so many books are available on the internet? Curator of Rare Books Erin McGuirl seeks to answer these questions in this ongoing exhibit.
“This exhibit gave me an opportunity to tell the story of the MRBC," says McGuirl. "Smith’s rare books are so much more than a lot of old volumes – the collection was and still is assembled by and for Smith women."
Libraries Collab with Mwangi Center for Heritage Months Book Displays
The Libraries and the Mwangi Cultural Center are excited to collaborate and offer heritage month book displays this academic year, available on mobile book carts at the Mwangi Cultural Center! Each heritage month, a selection of specially-curated books will be available for checkout. The collaboration kicked off with a collection for Latine Heritage Month, curated by First Years' Engagement and Humanities Librarian Xochitl Quiroz and Mwangi students.
Learn more about the collaboration and upcoming displays.
The Judith and Robert Raymo Chaucer Collection Opens to Researchers
The Judith and Robert Raymo Chaucer Collection is now open for research. Over 500 rare volumes, including early editions from the 16th century and fine press editions with distinctive illustrations, have been cataloged and integrated into the Mortimer Rare Book Collection. This rich trove of Chaucerean scholarship can be explored by the Smith community and external researchers through our online catalog and consulted in person in the Gloria Steinem '56 Special Collections Reading Room in Neilson Library.
In addition to donating the collection, Judith Raymo '53 has funded a fellowship award to bring Chaucerians to Northampton to engage with the collection. Candace Barrington of Central Connecticut State University received the 2026 inaugural Raymo Fellowship.
Read more about the collection.
Your annual support is essential to the vitality of library operations, allowing the Dean and library staff to adapt to a range of needs every year. When you support the Libraries, you support teaching, discovery, learning, and research. Make a gift to the Friends, to Special Collections, or another library fund today.
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Thank you for being a Friend!
Friends of the Smith College Libraries
Alumnae Gymnasium, 83 Green Street
Northampton, MA 01063
