Events & Outreach
The Z. Smith Reynolds Library features a variety of events, workshops, and more. The library often partners with other units on campus to offer these programs. For more information, contact the library.
Upcoming Events
–ZSR Library, Special Collections & Archives Research Room (Room 625)Join ZSR’s Special Collections & Archives for the opening reception of “Reading the Revolution: Print Culture in the 18th Century.” Light refreshments will be served. The exhibit will be on display through December, 2026 (Monday-Friday, 10am – 4pm; other times by appointment). Special Collections & Archives, ZSR Library room 625. Curated by Megan Mulder.
–ZSR Library, Library Auditorium (Room 404)Journalist Lizzie Wade will talk about her recent book, Apocalypse, which was selected as a “best book of the year” by the New Yorker in 2025. In Apocalypse, Wade takes readers on a deep dive into the cataclysms of the past to show how moments of great disruption, upheaval, and loss shaped past people and their societies, created the world we live in, and continue to offer surprising opportunities for radical change. This event is sponsored by Anthropology and Journalism.
–ZSR Library, ZSR 665 (Faculty Commons Classroom)Thank you for your interest in this reading discussion. We have reached maximum registration. If you would like to buy your own book and participate, please email Kristi Verbeke at verbekkj@wfu.edu.
Join your colleagues for a discussion of Jennifer Breheny Wallace’s Never Enough: When Achievement Culture Becomes Toxic—and What We Can Do About It (2023). We will explore how the relentless pressure to perform impacts our students’ mental health and sense of “mattering.” During these sessions, we’ll examine Wallace’s research on the “achievement trap” and discuss practical ways we might work to shift our campus culture from high-pressure competition to healthy excellence. We’ll talk about reframing our pedagogical approaches to prioritize resilience, belonging, and the intrinsic value of learning over a narrow focus on grades and credentials.
Meets 3 times this semester (2/3, 2/17 & 3/3) on Tuesday from 2-3pm in ZSR 665 (Faculty Commons Classroom inside the Faculty Commons space in ZSR Wilson Wing). We will provide the book for the first 15 registrants. These discussions are very popular so we ask that you register only if you are available to attend all sessions.
–ZSR Library, 477Zotero is a powerful (and free!) tool for saving, organizing, and citing research sources. In this workshop, you’ll learn how to install Zotero, how to use it to build your own library of sources, and save yourself time when writing research papers. This hands-on session is oriented toward first-time users of Zotero. No familiarity with Zotero is required. Participants should bring their own Mac or Windows laptop (Chrome browser required). Register for a workshop here!
–ZSR Library, Library Auditorium (Room 404)In this chapter meeting, we will have the chance to talk with Natalia Drobnjak. She is currently a 2L at the University of Miami School of Law. She is interested in both litigation and transactional practice, and is a member of the Yvette Ostolaza Mock Trial Team. Natalia is also a Wake Forest Alum who is happy to answer any question you might have about law school, the law school application cycle, the LSAT, and so much more!
–ZSR Library, 425GSAS Students, celebrate being almost halfway through the semester with another Community Day! Enjoy FREE grab-and-go food all day long in the Grad Student Lounge, including coffee and breakfast in the morning, lunch at noon, and a sweet treat in the afternoon. Stay tuned for the caterers! Grab some food on your way to class, or stay and chat with other grad students for a while. We can’t wait to see you there!
–ZSR LibraryJoin historian Craig Thompson Friend, Alumni Distinguished Graduate Professor of History and Public History at North Carolina State University and a Wake Forest University alumnus (’83), for a special two-day exploration of the remarkable life of Lunsford Lane, the self-emancipated entrepreneur and author whose story challenges and enriches our understanding of freedom, identity, and resilience in nineteenth-century North Carolina.
These programs celebrate Friend’s acclaimed new book, Becoming Lunsford Lane (University of North Carolina Press), and are presented in partnership between the Wake Forest Historical Museum and the Z. Smith Reynolds Library Special Collections & Archives at Wake Forest University.
Please register for these events here.
Event 1: Lunsford Lane in Wake CountyTuesday, March 3, 2026, 6:00 p.m.Wake Forest Historical Museum, 414 N. Main Street, Wake Forest, NCIn this lecture, Dr. Craig Thompson Friend will focus on Lunsford Lane’s early life and experiences in Wake County, exploring how local communities, institutions, and racial hierarchies shaped his journey toward self-emancipation. Drawing on years of archival research, Friend will illuminate how Lane’s story reflects both the constraints and possibilities of life for enslaved North Carolinians in the early 19th century.
This event is free and open to the public. A book signing will follow the presentation.
Event 2: Becoming Lunsford Lane — Rewriting a LifeWednesday, March 4, 2026, 4:00 p.m.Z. Smith Reynolds Library, Special Collections & Archives (Room 625)At this campus lecture, Dr. Friend will present a broader discussion of Becoming Lunsford Lane, highlighting how he reconstructed Lane’s life and legacy through historical detective work and critical engagement with older narratives. He will discuss the process of separating myth from memory and the challenges of writing biography within the context of race, freedom, and authorship in the antebellum South.
Presented by the ZSR Library’s Special Collections & Archives in partnership with the Wake Forest Historical Museum. Free and open to the public.
Livestream available here.
–ZSR Library, 426Find it hard to focus? Want to wrap up your week right? Join the Graduate School of Arts & Sciences and the Writing Center every Thursday for graduate student coworking hours! You bring whatever it is you need to get done, and we’ll bring the free coffee and bagels. Don’t have time to stay? Stop by and grab some treats on your way. See you there!
ZSR Library, Library Auditorium (Room 404)Join us for a public lecture by Katerina Gordeeva, one of the most influential. independent voices in contemporary Russia and award-winning journalist,. documentary writer, and author. Katerina worked as a war correspondent in.
Chechnya, Afghanistan, and Iraq before leaving Russia in 2014 in protest against.
Russia’s annexation of Crimea, and since 2020, she has produced Tell Gordeeva,.
one of the most viewed independent Russian-language media channels with over 2.
million subscribers. Renowned for her deep, personal interviewing style, Katerina’s.
work explores complex issues ranging from the impact of state violence and war to.
issues of gender, violence, and family in Russia and the former Soviet Union.
–ZSR LibraryRelax, recharge, and make something fun! Swing by the ZSR atrium for snacks and craft kits to make or take for later, while supplies last. March 9: WakerSpace Kit.
–ZSR Library, 425Calling all graduate students! Take a break and grab some FREE coffee and treats in the Graduate Student Lounge, courtesy of GSAS and ZSR Library. Hang out and chat with other graduate students, or grab and go on the way to class.
ZSR Library, Library Auditorium (Room 404)Šumit Ganguly is a senior fellow at the Hoover Institution and director of its Huntington Program on Strengthening US-India Relations.- –ZSR Library, 426Find it hard to focus? Want to wrap up your week right? Join the Graduate School of Arts & Sciences and the Writing Center every Thursday for graduate student coworking hours! You bring whatever it is you need to get done, and we’ll bring the free coffee and bagels. Don’t have time to stay? Stop by and grab some treats on your way. See you there!
- –ZSR Library, 401 (Ammons Gallery)The Humanities Institute, the Office of Research and Sponsored Programs, Wake the Arts, and ZSR Library invite all Reynolda Campus faculty to a reception to celebrate faculty authors and artists who have authored books or produced creative works. Please join us in the Ammons Gallery, Room 401 in ZSR Library, from 3:30-5:30pm on Thursday, March 19. A selection of drinks and hors d’oeuvres will be served.
–ZSR Library, The Studio 262Digital Portfolio Creation is a part of The Studio Open Lab Series.
A digital portfolio is more than a résumé. It shows your skills, projects, and growth in action. This open lab is a space to work on your portfolio at your own pace while getting feedback and guidance along the way. Whether you are preparing for career fairs, internships, or job applications, you can drop in to curate your best work, clarify your professional identity, and refine a polished digital portfolio that helps employers see what you can do.
–ZSR Library, The Studio @ 262Pocket Photography – Powerful Images on your Phone is a part of The Studio Workshop Series.
This workshop introduces attendees to the fundamentals of taking professional-quality photos using their iPhone. We’ll cover key concepts including lighting, composition, built-in camera settings, and basic editing techniques that can significantly improve image quality without additional equipment. Participants will be asked to bring their phones and, following a brief presentation, will be sent out for 10–15 minutes to take photos using the techniques discussed. Upon returning, each attendee will select three images they feel strongest about. As a group, we’ll review these selections, discuss what works and what could be improved, and use built-in editing tools to refine the tone and quality of each participant’s final image.
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This program is led by Katelyn Lacor, a second-year MFA student in Wake Forest University’s Documentary Film Program. Her work centers on using digital storytelling to make under-discussed aspects of cultural history more accessible to broader audiences. She focuses on synthesizing archival materials into long-form nonfiction projects and brings technical expertise in Adobe Premiere Pro and color correction.
- –ZSR LibraryRelax, recharge, and make something fun! Swing by the ZSR atrium for snacks and craft kits to make or take for later, while supplies last. March 23: DIY Desk Plant.
- –ZSR Library, 477Zotero is a powerful (and free!) tool for saving, organizing, and citing research sources. In this workshop, you’ll learn how to install Zotero, how to use it to build your own library of sources, and save yourself time when writing research papers. This hands-on session is oriented toward first-time users of Zotero. No familiarity with Zotero is required. Participants should bring their own Mac or Windows laptop (Chrome browser required). Register for a workshop here!
–ZSR Library, Room 204To register for the required 3 sessions, visit: ResilientWake Spring 2026 on Workday.
IF YOU ARE INTERESTED, YOU MUST ATTEND AND ENGAGE IN ALL THREE IN PERSON SESSIONS (11:30 AM – 1:00 PM: March 24, March 31, and April 7, 2026) in the the Z Smith Library, Room 204. Beverages and light snacks will be provided.
Resilience is our ability to face those inevitable challenges and changes we all have, with grace. You might have heard people talking about resilience as “bouncing back”, “overcoming obstacles”, or “finding a silver lining” – resilience consists of a range of skills that improve as you practice.
The ResilientWake Workshop Series is an opportunity for faculty and staff to learn how to develop and integrate resilience skills into our everyday life using a cohort model.
Each session will take place in the ZSR Library Room 204. Beverages and light snacks will be included. If you need an accommodation, please notify Paige Edwards-Werhan via werhanp@wfu.edu.
To enroll in the course, you will need to attend all 3 sessions:.
Tuesday, March 24 at 11:30 AM – 1:00 PM.
Tuesday, March 31 at 11:30 AM – 1:00 PM.
Tuesday, April 7 at 11:30 AM – 1:00 PM.
–ZSR Library, Library Auditorium (Room 404)The Program in African American Studies will be hosting a book talk and public conversation with Dr. Beverly Guy-Sheftall. Dr.Guy-Sheftall is a trailblazing Black feminist scholar, whose passion for the many communities she encompasses is evident in her work and friendships she has built over the last 55 years . She is the visionary architect of The Women’s Research and Resource Center at Spelman College, the first for an HBCU. Since its founding in 1981, she has served as the Anna Julia Cooper Professor of Women’s Studies, exposing her students and the broader public to the intellectual contributions of Black feminists throughout history.
At the age of sixteen, Dr. Guy-Sheftall began her matriculation at Spelman College where she majored in English and minored in secondary education. Upon graduating with honors, she attended Wellesley College for a fifth year of study. In 1968, she began pursuing her Master’s Degree in English at Atlanta University. A year later Dr. Guy-Sheftall began teaching at Alabama State University in the Department of English. But it was her return to Spelman in 1971 that ignited her true mission— to disrupt the silences surrounding Black women’s interconnected experiences. Within the traditional confines of Spelman that had once educated her, she has pushed boundaries, demanded space for Black feminist thought, and laid the foundation for future generations of radical scholarship.
Dr. Shanna Greene Benjamin, Reynolds Professor of African American Studies at Wake Forest University, will lead the conversation with Dr. Sheftall. A reception and book signing will follow. Books will be available for purchase at the event.
- –ZSR Library, The Studio @ 626
From Idea to Impact – An Adobe Express Workshop is a part of The Studio Workshop Series.
In this hands-on workshop, participants will learn the fundamentals of content creation through Adobe Express, a design platform that allows users to create digital content quickly. We will go over the different tools, functions, and design fundamentals within Express. Participants will have the opportunity to create their own graphic, video, or other social content. It is asked that participants bring a laptop with Adobe Express already installed. A link to install Adobe for free through Wake Forest can be found here.
Necessary equipment: laptop with Adobe Creative Cloud installed.
*In preparation for the workshop, go to software.wfu.edu, click on Adobe CC. Enter your WF credentials. You will be sent an email. Follow the prompts to install.
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This program is led by Sarah Kenvin, a junior at Wake Forest University studying Psychology, Marketing, and Film and Media. Her background centers on short-form media, photography, and videography. She brings experience in creative platforms including CapCut, Canva, Adobe Premiere Pro, and Adobe Lightroom.
–ZSR Library, Faculty Commons Classroom 665Please Note: This session is intended for faculty who are looking to refresh an already-existing FYS. Facilitators: Kristi Verbeke & Melissa Maffeo.
Are you looking to refresh your current First Year Seminar (FYS)? Join us to explore strategies for enhancing discussion and reimagining assignments to align with FYS core competencies in the current landscape (including the impact of AI). You will have time to talk through current challenges and opportunities with colleagues to generate concrete ideas and revisions that strengthen your course and create engaging, relevant learning experiences.
–ZSR Library, The Studio @ 262Deed-Mapping Training Session is a part of The Studio Workshop Series.
This session combines a brief historical and technical orientation with hands-on practice. The first half introduces the historical background of housing discrimination in Forsyth County and walks participants through platform navigation. The second half allows participants to actively transcribe deeds with guided supervision.
Participants will learn:.
How housing discrimination shaped urban development in Forsyth CountyHow to identify restrictive clauses in primary source documentsHow to accurately transcribe and categorize covenant languageHow individual contributions help build a searchable public datasetBest practices for efficient and accurate archival workThis format balances education and productivity and is especially well-suited for first-time groups who want to leave with completed, meaningful contributions.
Equipment & Preparation:.
Participants should bring:.
A laptop (strongly recommended for ease of transcription)Access to Wi-FiZooniverse runs in a web browser, and creating an account prior to the session is encouraged.
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This program is led by Studio intern Roksanna Keyvan, whose interdisciplinary background in Environmental and Social Justice focuses on strategy, governance, and public impact. She has experience developing digital tools and leading workshops that support data-driven social justice initiatives, including work connected to Mapping Prejudice in Forsyth County.
- –ZSR Library, 426Find it hard to focus? Want to wrap up your week right? Join the Graduate School of Arts & Sciences and the Writing Center every Thursday for graduate student coworking hours! You bring whatever it is you need to get done, and we’ll bring the free coffee and bagels. Don’t have time to stay? Stop by and grab some treats on your way. See you there!
–ZSR Library, Library Auditorium (Room 404)Join the Department of Sociology and co-sponsors (Program for Leadership and Character and Sabin Center for Environment and Sustainability) for an invited talk with Professor Hillary Angelo (UC Santa Cruz) where she will discuss her current research on public lands in the American West:.
It is a common (aspirational) refrain that climate change “changes everything,” and equally common to note that climate-related transitions seem to be changing very little at all. What climate-related changes are happening now? And how might we grasp emergent trajectories while we’re in the midst of these transitions? With a substantive focus on the city-hinterland relationship and the American West, and based on five years of fieldwork related to renewable energy, conservation, and housing development on public lands in Nevada and Utah, this talk gets purchase on these questions by presenting climate change as a form of macro-social change. I draw on classical and contemporary macro-historical sociology and critical geography to show how this framework provides new insights on climate transitions and describe its implications for understanding contemporary climate politics, policy, and visions of a just transition.
Free and open to the public.
- –ZSR Library, 477Zotero is a powerful (and free!) tool for saving, organizing, and citing research sources. In this workshop, you’ll learn how to install Zotero, how to use it to build your own library of sources, and save yourself time when writing research papers. This hands-on session is oriented toward first-time users of Zotero. No familiarity with Zotero is required. Participants should bring their own Mac or Windows laptop (Chrome browser required). Register for a workshop here!
- –ZSR Library, 426Find it hard to focus? Want to wrap up your week right? Join the Graduate School of Arts & Sciences and the Writing Center every Thursday for graduate student coworking hours! You bring whatever it is you need to get done, and we’ll bring the free coffee and bagels. Don’t have time to stay? Stop by and grab some treats on your way. See you there!
- –ZSR Library, 425Calling all graduate students! Take a break and grab some FREE coffee and treats in the Graduate Student Lounge, courtesy of GSAS and ZSR Library. Hang out and chat with other graduate students, or grab and go on the way to class.
- –ZSR Library, 426Find it hard to focus? Want to wrap up your week right? Join the Graduate School of Arts & Sciences and the Writing Center every Thursday for graduate student coworking hours! You bring whatever it is you need to get done, and we’ll bring the free coffee and bagels. Don’t have time to stay? Stop by and grab some treats on your way. See you there!
- –ZSR LibraryRelax, recharge, and make something fun! Swing by the ZSR atrium for snacks and craft kits to make or take for later, while supplies last. April 13: WakerSpace Kit.
- –ZSR Library, 426Find it hard to focus? Want to wrap up your week right? Join the Graduate School of Arts & Sciences and the Writing Center every Thursday for graduate student coworking hours! You bring whatever it is you need to get done, and we’ll bring the free coffee and bagels. Don’t have time to stay? Stop by and grab some treats on your way. See you there!
- –ZSR Library, 426Find it hard to focus? Want to wrap up your week right? Join the Graduate School of Arts & Sciences and the Writing Center every Thursday for graduate student coworking hours! You bring whatever it is you need to get done, and we’ll bring the free coffee and bagels. Don’t have time to stay? Stop by and grab some treats on your way. See you there!
–ZSR Library, ZSR Library 665 CAT ClassroomJoin us for casual monthly meetups to share and discover artificial intelligence together in this new conversation series. Join colleagues to share ideas, seek advice, and explore the potential of AI together. Attendees may add or review topics in an AI Café collaborative agenda (restricted to WFU faculty and staff).
AI Café is held monthly on the fourth Friday, on an alternating schedule of Zoom and in-person. Online: July, September, November, January, March, May. In person, August, October, December, February, April.
See all AI Café events and add to your calendar.
- –ZSR LibraryRelax, recharge, and make something fun! Swing by the ZSR atrium for snacks and craft kits to make or take for later, while supplies last. April 27: Sun Catcher.
- –ZSR Library, 426Find it hard to focus? Want to wrap up your week right? Join the Graduate School of Arts & Sciences and the Writing Center every Thursday for graduate student coworking hours! You bring whatever it is you need to get done, and we’ll bring the free coffee and bagels. Don’t have time to stay? Stop by and grab some treats on your way. See you there!
- –ZSR LibraryRelax, recharge, and make something fun! Swing by the ZSR atrium for snacks and craft kits to make or take for later, while supplies last. May 4: DIY Study Buddies.
–ZSR Library, Faculty Commons Classroom 665 (6th floor, Wilson Wing)Following the momentum of our recent AI discussions, please join faculty from across the World Language programs for a collaborative sharing session. As we wrap up the semester, we invite you to a roundtable discussion focused on sharing new assessment designs developed as part of the Spanish Department’s curriculum review and the lessons learned from our recent classes.
This is a space to celebrate our collective expertise, exchange innovative ideas, and kickstart a new tradition of cross-language collaboration at Wake Forest. We look forward to seeing the diverse ways our programs are evolving! This workshop is facilitated by Daniel Jung, Lauren Miller, and Rebekah Morris.