USC Upstate Library News - LibGuides at University of South Carolina Upstate

The University of South Carolina Upstate's #DayOfGiving is officially on! This year's Day of Giving starts at 12 noon on Tuesday, April 1 (no foolin') and continues until 12 noon on Wednesday, April 2.

We would appreciate your support of the University Libraries Excellence Fund, which we use to develop our collections, provide services, and offer programs and activities at the USC Upstate Library.

To encourage your contributions, we have two special offers for you.

The Dean of the Library, John Barnett, challenges you to give to the University Libraries Excellence Fund. He will match your contributions up to a total of $250. Just make your contribution here. When the total contributions reach $250 or more, the Dean will contribute a matching amount.
While a donation of $75 will get you a snazzy pair of USC Upstate socks, for a contribution of $50 or more to the library's Excellence Fund, we will send you a stylin' Goostavo tote bag! It's the perfect shade of green for a USC Upstate spring. And did you know the Goostavo logo was designed for the library by students in the Art Studio Graphic Design program at USC Upstate? 'Tis true!

We look forward to seeing you around campus with your snazz-tastic USC Upstate socks and style-licious Goostavo tote bag!

The USC Upstate Library is pleased to present “Picturing Women Inventors,” a poster exhibit that explores the inventions of 19 highly accomplished American women. This poster exhibit will be on view through March and April in the library's cafe and study room area on the 1st floor.

“Picturing Women Inventors” is distributed by the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service (SITES) in collaboration with the Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation and the United States Patent and Trademark Office. The exhibit is sponsored by Lyda Hill Philanthropies IF/THEN Initiative and Ericsson.

About the exhibit

Throughout American history, women with diverse backgrounds and interests created inventions that changed lives every day. But women haven’t always had equal opportunities to be inventors or received as much recognition.

“Picturing Women Inventors” showcases the breakthroughs, motivations, and challenges women encountered while pursuing their goals as inventors. The poster exhibit highlights stories of inventors like Marilyn Hamilton (see picture), who after a hang-gliding accident in 1978 left her paralyzed, invented a lightweight wheelchair that was easy to maneuver. Diversity of background and age are showcased including inventor Alexis Lewis, who at 12-years-old in 2011 was inspired to adapt a traditional Native American sled, called a travois, by adding wheels to create a simpler way to transport families and their belongings in Somalia.

Inventors featured include astronauts, computer pioneers, businesswomen, athletes, engineers, and students, among others.

Image showing A. Philip Randolph and Fannie Lou Hamer honoring African Americans and labor

On display now in the 1st floor library study room area is a series of posters celebrating African American labor, the theme for Black History Month 2025.

Many of the posters are provided by the Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH), the founders of Black History Month. According to the ASALH, this year's Black History Month theme focuses on "the various and profound ways that work and working of all kinds--free and unfree, skilled, and unskilled, vocational and voluntary--intersect with the collective experiences of Black people."

The exhibit is supplemented by other posters featuring a small selection of African American leaders in civil rights and labor, including Martin Luther King, Jr., Rosa Parks, and Fannie Lou Hamer. Another poster features an inspirational quote from late Hip Hop icon, Tupac Shakur.

The added posters are courtesy of Mr. Johnson Paints.

Please stop by the library in February to view the exhibit and learn more about the important and far-reaching contributions of African American labor.

Are you up for the Day of Giving challenge?

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