When archivist Weckea Lilly is sifting through the Slaughter collection, he often finds a photograph, memo, or some other item that pairs perfectly with a particular moment.

It is the start of a new year and academic semester at the University of Rochester. Also, it’s National Hot Tea Month! As our senses for renewal are set in motion, this month’s recognition begs us to slow down and be intentionally meditative, which is what is expected with a cup of hot tea.

Boxes, boxes, and you guessed it, more boxes. Some are filled with memos, others are brimming with congressional papers and meeting notes. There are a lot of typed transcripts of speeches, some photos, and a whole lot of manilla folders.

Welcome to the archivist's office.

Libraries have always been a place of inspiration, innovation, and imagination. A place that welcomes all disciplines, where people can come together to share ideas. For that reason, Rush Rhees Library is the perfect place to house the Barbara J. Burger iZone that has opened this fall. The 12,000-square-foot space is named after University Trustee Barbara J.

The City of Rochester and the University of Rochester lost a luminary when Catherine Breslin Carlson died on September 27. Catherine devoted most of her adult life in service to the legacy of Chester F. Carlson, the inventor of the transformative technology, xerography. Xerography’s first transformation was to change the Haloid Company into Xerox, which with Joseph C. Wilson, was a major socio-economic force in the Rochester community. 

As part of the 200th anniversary of the birth of Frederick Douglass, the Department of Rare Books, Special Collections acquired four pieces of contemporary art by the internationally renowned artist Meleko Mokgosi, Untitled (Drawings for Frederick Douglass, 2018, graphite on paper). These works bring the artist’s textual editing practice to bear on the four monument panels that appear on the Douglass statue plinth.

Julia Maddox, director of the Barbara J. Burger iZone, is the 2018 recipient of the Martin E. Messinger Libraries Recognition Award for her outstanding leadership in developing the programming, staffing, and team for the newly created iZone, including university and community engagement, and  contributing to the  planning and implementation of the new iZone space.

Located within Rush Rhees Library, the Barbara J. Burger iZone is named after University Trustee Barbara J. Burger ’83, whose lifelong passion for libraries and innovation inspired her $1 million lead gift.

Beginning in the spring of 2017, four librarians from the River Campus Libraries partnered with five colleagues from SUNY Geneseo’s Milne Library and two gaming masterminds from Genesee Valley (GV) BOCES created an escape room “experience” that would teach information literacy skills using this fun, challenging, and on-trend format.