Celebrating UMass Lowell Library

By Louise Peloquin

From 4 to 6 PM on October 20th, the UMass Lowell Library and Alumni Relations held an open house and gathering at the O’Leary on 61 Wilder Street.

At 4:30, Senior Vice Provost of Academic Affairs Julie Nash spoke to the 200-odd guests in attendance. She pointed out that the October 20th open house was “years germinating as a dream” in her mind given that the library was “the hub of the university” which, thanks to its outstanding team and student staff, “make everything possible and find a solution when you think there’s no solution.”

The Senior Vice Provost then thanked the Dean of the University Library Galadriel Chilton for her “leadership and persistence.”

Dean Chilton took the floor and thanked everyone for attending. Among her many colleagues, she especially thanked “the students and staff whose vision and work made this program possible such as…Tony Sampas, Sara Marks and Sarah Manchester who served on the event planning team.”

The Dean then specified that her priorities are: “the staff to champion learning; the collections; the library space” and ensuring that the library remain “a dynamic social organization.”

The UMass library employs 85 students. Several had the opportunity to speak.

Staff member Carisa Kolias introduced Connor Shaw who elaborated on his experience in the Archives and Special Collections department. Among his activities is working on the Paul Marion Papers Collection which he is undertaking with great enthusiasm.

Staff member Nikki Tatum then introduced Daranee Khoeun who classified Southeast Asian Digital Archives, Hellenic Digital Archives and more. Ms. Khoeun underlined the importance of the commitment to highlighting local history.

Staff member Steph Schweighardt introduced four students employed in Access Services – at the circulation desk and at research support for example. Speaking in turn, Maveen Faisal, Amelia Hanson; Lydia Yang and Mercy Reynoso-Germosen all agreed that their experience helped them develop their communication skills, boosted their self-confidence and heightened their satisfaction in the fact that they were “serving the local community.” All four expressed their gratitude for “the support of their supervisors.”

Monica Collier, a UMass Lowell 2026 English Studies graduate who received the Chancellor’s Medal for her academic achievement, then presented the series of stained-glass windows she has donated to the UMass Lowell O’Leary Library. In addition to being an educator and ESL teacher, she is an accomplished artist. Monica Collier explained that her four magnificent windows “are inspired by covers of books published in the early 1920’s Harlem Renaissance era when Black artists, musicians, writers, entrepreneurs, etc. … contributed so much to American culture.” The windows were on display at the gathering to the delight of the guests attending.

Dean of the University Library Galadriel Chilton gave closing remarks before inviting attendees to “mingle and enjoy the refreshments.” The UMass Lowell library, with its three locations, “has three hearts like an octopus” she said before adding that “it is also “a lighthouse to light the way” bringing clarity and guidance to all.

Exhibits and displays were open to the public on the 3rd and 4th floors of the O’Leary. We especially noticed items now part of the Franco-American Digital Archive Collection such as the first issue of “Le Journal de Lowell” which was published from 1975 to 1995.

The October 20th event demonstrated how the library continues to make a lasting impact on students, faculty, alumni and the broader community.