The University of West Georgia has announced Dr. Beth Sheppard as the new dean of Ingram Library.

Sheppard currently serves as director of the Divinity School Library at Duke University. She will begin her new role at UWG July 1.

Dr. Myrna Gantner, associate provost at UWG, said Sheppard will help lead the library’s “continual evolution” to better engage and serve students.

“Dr. Sheppard will bring a wealth of expertise and experience that will help build on the excellent foundation that’s been built here at Ingram Library so far,” Gantner said. “I’m excited to watch the continued growth of Ingram Library during her tenure and give my full support to make sure the faculty and staff members at Ingram Library can fulfill all their goals.”

The announcement came during the library’s 50th anniversary celebration, held on the ground floor of the library building that opened in 1968.

Nearly a dozen students, staff members, alumni and community members offered memories and reflections of Ingram Library during the event, including Dr. John Ferling, a professor emeritus in the Department of History.

“When I interviewed for a position at what was then West Georgia College, one of the first questions I asked was if I could see the library,” Ferling said. “When I visited campus before I was offered the position, I came to the library and combed through the section of the library where the books on the American Revolution were housed. I walked away from the library that day knowing that if they offered me the job, I would gladly accept.”

Ferling served more than three decades at UWG as a professor, spending three or four hours every weekday in the library researching.

“Ingram Library to me was really a kind of second home,” Ferling said. “It wasn’t just the books and the microfilm that were important, but it was the people who were so helpful in so many ways. I’m so grateful for all the help I’ve received over the years.”

Chris Huff, interim dean of Ingram Library, spoke on how much has changed since the library opened in 1968 — when West Georgia College had 3,300 students and the library had a staff of seven employees.

“Ingram Library has accomplished many great things over the past 50 years, but I think it’s wise to focus our attention, instead, on the present and our future,” Huff said. “Just as this library and its staff from the past 50 years were astute enough to seize opportunities that came their way, I’m confident the staff will continue to do the same to serve the students, faculty, staff and broader community as best as they can.”

Gantner also focused on the sweeping changes at Ingram Library since it was built in 1968 and expanded in 2011-12, now housing more than 400,000 print volumes and more than a half-million units of microfilm.

“The way the space has been reconfigured and re-conceptualized makes Ingram Library a very inviting place for students, faculty and staff members and the community at large,” Gantner said. “Whether you’re taking advantage of the larger, more collaborative spaces on the first floor, individual study rooms for small groups to use on the second floor or you’re looking for more privacy and solitude on the silent third floor, you’ll always find a space at Ingram Library where you can think, reflect and research.”

Dr. Phyllis Snipes, a professor of school library media in the College of Education and a former Ingram Library staff member, said the history of Ingram Library is one of community, conversation and collaboration.

“I wanted to be here all the time as a student, both during my undergraduate and graduate studies,” Snipes said. “Ingram Library really is a world all its own, serving a multitude of patrons. When I think of all the information, opportunities and memories that are housed in this place, there’s no other way to describe it than the heart of our institution.”

Also speaking during the event were Mia Bennafield, former staff member of Ingram Library; Elly Flippen, niece of artist Ingo Swann, who has a collection housed at Ingram Library; Betsy Griffies, a former staff member in cataloging at Ingram Library; Michelle Morgan, Carroll County commissioner who worked at Ingram Library while she attended UWG; Carol Murphy, daughter-in-law of Thomas B. Murphy, former speaker of the Georgia House of Representatives; Timothy Q. Penn, a former West Georgia College student; and Doug Vassy, solicitor general of Carroll County and former UWG student.

Closing the program was Joshua Lester, a junior at UWG who was recently elected to serve as president of the Student Government Association next academic year. Lester summed up all the speaker’s reflections, mentioning a couple of key themes that ran through all the remarks.

“The first theme I noticed emerge was one of change — whether it was through technological advancements taking place or different staff members coming and going, the library has changed so much over the past 50 years,” Lester said. “But another theme I noticed was what has stayed the same. The Ingram Library has remained the heart of this institution and a hub of critical thinking where people can come to learn, connect and build memorable relationships for the rest of their lives.”