Dr. Samuel (Sam) T. Gladding (1945-2021) was a very special Wake Forester. He received a Bachelor of Arts in history at Wake Forest, a Master of Arts in religion at Yale, a Master of Arts in counseling at Wake Forest and a Ph.D. in family relations at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. Dr. Gladding was very proud of being a Double Deac.

He was a Counseling Professor who wrote numerous books (including the History of Wake Forest, Volume 6), book chapters, articles, and poems. He was a WFU administrator. He served as a mental health responder for 9/11 and the mass shooting at Virginia Tech. He was a researcher, a writer, a husband, and a father and as one of his colleagues described him, a gentleman and a scholar. He was a supporter of Special Collections & Archives (SCA) and before he passed away, he left a generous donation for SCA. This endowment, which we are using to support humanities programming, allows us to honor Sam and give back to WFU students, staff, and faculty as well the Winston-Salem community.

The American Counseling Association (ACA) Samuel T. Gladding Unsung Heroes Award and WFU’s The Gladding Authors, Editors, and Artists Faculty Award are also named in his honor.

Samuel T. Gladding Fellows and Humanities Programming

“Wake up to Zines: A Celebration of Zines and Zine Pedagogy” (2026)

High Point University’s Justin Cook (Director of HPU Writing Center, Assistant Professor of English) and Lauren Ksa (Assistant Director, Head of Reference Services).

A two part, day long event including “Zine Fest” a friendly, no-pressure environment in which students can showcase their zines, and “A Celebration of Zine Pedagogy: A Workshop” facilitated by High Point University’s Justin Cook (Director of HPU Writing Center, Assistant Professor of English) and Lauren Ksa (Assistant Director, Head of Reference Services).

Dr. Craig Friend (2026)

Becoming Lunsford Lane: The Lives of an American Aeneas involves an 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.

Dominique Luster (2025)

“We Lost the House, but Not the Home” When the waters rise and walls fall, what anchors us to who we are? For those who lose every tangible trace, the archive lives on in breath and memory — in the voices that refuse to be silenced. Dominique Luster is the CEO and Principal Archivist for the Luster Company. She is a Professional Archivist, Researcher, and Storyteller based in Richmond, Virginia.

Sauda Mitchell (2024-2025)

“Making Meaning: Reimagining Archival Engagement through Creative Connections.” (2024) Having trained as both an artist and an archivist, Sauda Mitchell is uniquely qualified to create works that convey artistic reinterpretations of historic texts and records.

“To Tell Her Glories with a Faithful Tongue” (2025) which pays homage to the literary and cultural contributions of Black Women Writers through the lens of archival material analysis and letterpress printing.

Dr. Zelda Lockhart (2024)

An Evening with Dr. Zelda Lockhart: Stories Heal & Build Community”, where Dr. Lockhart shared about her book “Trinity” which delves deep into the intricate and poignant themes of trauma and violence, examining their profound effects across three generations of a family.

Amy Catanzano (2024)

Amy Catanzano, an associate professor of English and the poet-in-residence at Wake Forest University, discussed her independent poetry projects as well as her collaborations with scientists that explore some of the most cutting-edge physics and technologies of our time such as high-energy particle colliders, dark energy astrophysics, quantum computing, and artificial intelligence.

Joseph Bathanti and Abrea Armstrong (2024)

A Poetry Conversation with Professor Joseph Bathanti (Appalachian State) and Poet Abrea Armstrong (Triad Cultural Arts, Inc).

Dr. Margaret (Peggy) Supplee Smith (2022)

Harold W. Tribble Professor Emerita Margaret (Peggy) Supplee Smith (Department of Art), discussed her new book Great Houses and Their Stories: Winston-Salem’s Era of Success, 1912-1940