McConnell Library

McConnell Library is the one academic resource utilized by every student and scholar at Radford University .  As such, it faces the tremendous challenge of building and maintaining collections and services capable of supporting the breadth and quality of the University’s myriad curricula and research programs. 

Each year McConnell Library acquires a number of unique and valuable items through the generosity of special friends. Collective gifts to the Annual Fund, individual gifts of endowed funds, and in-kind contributions provide valuable resources that strengthen the Library’s outstanding collections. These resources make the difference between an ordinary library and one that is extraordinary in the depth and scope of its holdings.  On this page, we take the opportunity to celebrate a few of the ways that gifts to the Library have been used.

Electronic Resources
The traditional notion of a library as a repository for dusty stacks of books no longer accurately describes the mission and role of an academic library. Today, libraries are vibrant, fast–paced nerve centers where knowledge is created, accessed, and maintained.

Annual Fund Gifts to the Library help ensure that the University has the best resources in both electronic and paper form.  McConnell Library has used donations to purchase archive collections of electronic journals that include all previous issues of certain titles. Electronic journals also allow the Library to conserve space and protect collections in the event of a disaster. The library has also purchased collections of electronic books.

Acquisitions
Materials must constantly be purchased to meet the demands of the University’s evolving curriculum and research needs. Donations to McConnell Library allow these purchases  that supplement the library budget to be made. Through a bequest to the University, the Anthony P. Werrell Memorial Endowed Book Fund allows the Library to purchase additional books each year for Political Science, Criminal Justice, Philosophy, and Religion Departments. 

Popular Reading Library
Each year, McConnell Library uses gifts to lease a collection of popular fiction and non-fiction books for the campus community. This collection of books is not the traditional type of material that the Library would buy on a permanent basis. However, it is a service to library readers to have access to popular material. Three hundred books are leased each year and ensure that the collection is current with new titles being added on a regular basis. 

Student Recognition
The Winesett Awards for Library Research recognize creative and original library research completed by Radford University undergraduate students. Prizes are awarded to students who best illustrate exemplary use of McConnell Library tools and resources and demonstrate personal development in the process of collecting data and gathering information. The Winesett Awards are named in honor of Hazel Grove Winesett, whose generosity resulted in the largest gift to McConnell Library in its history. Meet the winners of this year’s Winesett Awards.

Events
The Library staff also hosts several events during the year for the entire campus community.  A relatively new, and now annual event, McConnell Day, is a celebration of Radford University ’s history. This year’s event was an entertaining presentation on life in Radford in 1932.  In previous years the Library hosted performers such as Slash Coleman, RU alum and writer/performer of the play Neon Man, and provided a Stress Buster room with snacks, drinks, games, and crafts for students before final exams. 

Added Amenities
Collective gifts to McConnell Library have provided “extra” amenities such as comfortable and informal furniture, small group study rooms, and artwork: all of which create a stress-free ambience and more productive environment. 

Private gifts received by the Radford University Foundation for McConnell Library do not replace other sources of university revenue, but rather serve to help fulfill the mission of providing the best possible educational experience for students.