Georgia Writers Hall of Fame

Deborah Blum, celebrated author of The Poisoner’s Handbook and The Poison Squad, will return to Athens, where her investigative journalism career began, for a discussion about the science and safety of food.

The Sept. 23 event, which has been designated as a University of Georgia Signature Lecture, will serve as Blum’s induction into the Georgia Writers Hall of Fame, as well as the annual Food, Power, and Politics Lecture sponsored by the Russell Library for Political Research and Studies.

The newest members of the Georgia Writers Hall of Fame have broken barriers across genres — from journalism to fiction to poetry — and all three have inspired the next generation of writers through teaching and mentoring.

The 2025 class includes Tina McElroy Ansa, novelist and founder of DownSouth Press; Deborah Blum, Pulitzer Prize-winning science writer; and Tony M. Grooms, poet, novelist, and co-founder of the Georgia Writers Association. Events will be held throughout the year at the University of Georgia Special Collections Libraries in Athens to celebrate each of the honorees.

Take a tour through Georgia musical history, with a special free curator-led event at the University of Georgia Libraries’ Georgia Music Collections exhibit, now on display at the Akins Ford Arena at the Classic Center.

Ryan Lewis, Georgia music curator for the Special Collections Libraries at UGA, will lead visitors through a display that features more than 200 legendary artists, from Arrested Development to Whisperin’ Bill Anderson. The free tours of the exhibit are part of the city’s Third Thursday activities this month, and will begin at 6:30 p.m. and 7:15 p.m. on Thursday, February 20.

This Black History Month, two events at the UGA Special Collections Libraries highlight Black voices in history and journalism.

The events include a discussion with author Michael Thurmond on his book about Georgia’s founder and a panel discussion about Black publishing in Georgia in honor of the Georgia Writers Hall of Fame induction of Robert Sengstacke Abbott, the founder of The Chicago Defender.

On Thursday, Feb. 13, Thurmond will discuss his book James Oglethorpe, Father of Georgia: A Founder’s Journey from Slave Trader to Abolitionist, published by the UGA Press. The book explores Oglethorpe’s relationships with Ayuba Suleiman Diallo and Olaudah Equiano, two of 18th-century England's most influential Black men, and how they influenced his philosophy on the issue of enslavement.

This article also appears on UGA Today at news.uga.edu/barrows-receive-first-dooley-friends-of-the-uga-libraries-award/.

A new award named after the University of Georgia’s legendary head football coach Vince Dooley and his wife Barbara honors those who share another passion with the beloved family — support for the UGA Libraries.

UPDATE: UGA Libraries will resume normal operational schedules at 10 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 28. The Miller Learning Center, Main Library, and McBay Science Library will reopen at that time, and other facilities will reopen on their normal schedules. For full hours visit libs.uga.edu/all-hours. 

Previously: All University of Georgia Libraries facilities will be closed Thursday, Sept. 26, and Friday, Sept. 27, in accordance with the campus closure due to inclement weather.

The Miller Learning Center and Main and McBay Libraries will close at midnight Wednesday night and, as of now, plan to reopen on Saturday. All events currently scheduled for Thursday and Friday have been canceled, including the Special Collections Libraries' Georgia Writers Hall of Fame event featuring Barbara Brown Taylor and John Bell.

During a two week stretch this September, University of Georgia Libraries will host three acclaimed authors (and some notable musicians) for fun, free events open to the community, as well as UGA students, faculty, and staff.

The first event celebrates Pulitzer Prize-winning poet Brandon Som and acclaimed Jordanian writer Siwar Masannat to campus to celebrate their recent publications with the Georgia Review Books, an imprint by the Georgia Review with the University of Georgia Press. Som's book Tripas was a finalist for the National Book Award before winning the 2024 Pulitzer Prize for Poetry. Masannat's book cue was released in the spring of 2024.

A trailblazing newspaper founder, an influential teacher and poet, and an inspirational author/priest have been selected as the newest members of the Georgia Writers Hall of Fame.

The 2024 class of honorees include Robert Sengstacke Abbott, publisher and editor of one of the most influential Black-owned newspapers of the early 20^th century; Wyatt Prunty, founding director of the Sewanee Writers’ Conference and the Tennessee Williams Fellowship Program; and Barbara Brown Taylor, an author and Episcopal priest.

Prunty and Taylor will inducted into the Georgia Writers Hall of Fame, administered by the Hargrett Rare Book and Manuscript Library at the University of Georgia, at separate events this fall. The celebration of Abbott’s posthumous induction is slated for early 2025.

The University of Georgia Libraries are pleased to announce the naming of three new leaders who join University Librarian and Associate Provost Toby Graham in providing direction-setting and oversight for the libraries.

Newest to UGA is Sara Wright who started her role as Associate University Librarian for Learning Services and Academic Engagement in January. Wright formerly served as director of Cornell University’s Mann & Science Cluster Libraries, and her career at Cornell included stints as Academic Technology Librarian; Head of User Services and Engagement; and Head of Learning, Spaces, and Technology.