Members of the Carnegie Mellon community and architecture enthusiasts from around Pittsburgh gathered in Hunt Library on May 23 to experience the Architecture Archives, as well as celebrate the opening of the University Libraries’ exhibition: “Here to Stay: Celebrating 40 Years at the Architecture Archives 1984-2024.”
Related: Events and Exhibits, Archives and CMU History
Thanks to Pamela McCorduck’s personal collection, gifted to Special Collections in 2018, the Libraries is home to a significant collection of AI art by groundbreaking artists Harold Cohen and Lillian Schwartz. The 19 pieces held in the collection are early, unique examples of the potential for creativity and innovation at the intersection of computer science and the humanities.
Related: Archives and CMU History, Special Collections, AI
| Duration | June 20, 2026 15:41 - June 20, 2026 15:41 |
The Carnegie Mellon University Archives is home to more than 100 years of CMU history — but it doesn’t tell the full story of the university. Founded in 1988, the Archives is relatively new compared to other academic archives at similar institutions, and is still missing documentation of various student groups and campus initiatives. In addition, traditional collecting methods have led to a collection of materials, records, and artifacts that skews predominantly straight, white, and male.
Related: Archives and CMU History, University Archives, Using the Libraries
On March 1, American Library Association magazine “American Libraries” highlighted the Robotics Project, a multi-phase, multi-year partnership between the University Libraries and the School of Computer Science to create a home for the past, present, and future of robotics. The piece explores the work that the University Archives has done to collect, organize, and preserve CMU’s collection in the Digital Robotics Archive.
Related: Archives and CMU History, About us, Using the Libraries
I may not be the oldest library employee in years, but I am in years served. 41 years ago, I applied for a job at CMU Libraries. This was before the Internet, so I answered a Help Wanted newspaper ad. Human Resources required a typing test, and I think I impressed them with my 80 words-per-minute, accurate typing - especially when I showed them my right hand. I’d accidentally and painfully closed my thumb in a car door a week before. It was past the point of hurting, but my blue thumbnail still looked ugly enough that the interviewer recoiled in disgust and respect.
Related: Archives and CMU History, About us
On October 20 and 21, current and former faculty, staff, and students gathered to reminisce about their time at the Field Robotics Center (FRC) at “The Robotics Project Celebrates Field Robotics at 40” during the FRC’s 40th anniversary celebration.
Related: Events, Archives and CMU History
On November 15, the University Libraries and Vice Provost for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion and Chief Diversity Officer Wanda Heading-Grant hosted "Heading to the Point: A Journey through History, Exploring the Black Urban Experience in Pittsburgh." The event featured a conversation between Heading-Grant and Giant Eagle University Professor of History and Social Justice Joe William Trotter, Jr. A recording of the event is now available.
Related: Diversity Equity & Inclusion, Events, Archives and CMU History
This fall, the Carnegie Mellon University Archives is processing the academic papers of Giant Eagle University Professor of History and Social Justice Joe William Trotter, Jr. With the addition of this collection to the Archives, Trotter’s research on social justice and the Black urban experience will become accessible for a new generation of scholars working to build a more equitable future for all.
Related: Archives and CMU History, Diversity Equity & Inclusion
Current and former faculty, staff, and students gathered to reminisce about their time at the Field Robotics Center (FRC) at “The Robotics Project Celebrates Field Robotics at 40” during the FRC’s 40th anniversary celebration.
Related: Archives and CMU History, Events and Exhibits
