By Lucy Campbell

At the NewSchool of Architecture and Design, library alumni relations are being more tightly integrated into our outreach activities.  We began by partnering with the NSAD Alumni Association to find out how we could better serve them. Many recent alumni are young professionals seeking to pass the Architectural Registration Examinations (AREs), and one need they identified was for study resources. ARE study guides can be expensive, but the association agreed to acquire guides and gift them to the library for alumni use so that the guides could be used by more people. Over $2,000 of the study materials are now available and have proved very popular. In fact, an Alumni Study Group has formed which meets one evening each week in the library.

The ARE study guides are a great resource for our alumni.  Not only are they a savings for us emerging professionals, but the library offers a variety of formats – from flashcards to manuals and practice vignettes – both Kaplan and Ballast!  They helped me pass my first exam within a year of graduating.

-Lauren Pasion, class of 2013

We then looked to our Director of Alumni Relations for fresh ideas and together organized an Alumni Book Drive. Held in honor of our Librarian who was retiring after 9 years, the Book Drive was hugely successful, culminating in a beautiful reception. Over $2,500 worth of books was received, representing a significant addition to the library and giving alumni a sense of ownership in our collection. Each book includes a book plate with the donor’s name, class year and an inscription that offers an institutional memory.

The library in an architecture and design school is a special place for students, a place to escape the hubbub of studio and the criticism of juries.  As an alum many of my happiest memories are of poring over large-format books in the library, absorbing art and architecture away from my desk and computer.  As the school has grown, so has the library facility, and many alumni have been thrilled to see the growth of their favorite book nook into a fantastic and well-stocked resource.  From book drives to support a retiring librarian to ARE study events at the library, alumni have enjoyed giving back to their school and to a place from which they’ve received so much. 

-Peter Soutowood, President of the NSAD Alumni Association

These initiatives are not only mutually beneficial for libraries and graduates, but also serve to strengthen ties between the institution and the professionals. We are excited to continue the relationship and maintain the momentum to develop new partnerships.

The library’s support of NewSchool of Architecture + Design’s Alumni  is invaluable and allows for continued learning and knowledge acquisition, providing access to information, services and resources which is a pivotal part of the Alumni’s continued education.

-Megan Francis, NSAD Alumni Services

The library hopes to make the alumni book drive an annual event, and is dedicated to ensuring we serve every student, whether past or current.