The Friends of Fondren Library, founded in 1950, is dedicated to stimulating growth in library resources and facilities for the 21st century. The Friends seeks to heighten community and alumni interest in Fondren Library and to support academic programs at Rice University by funding library collections and facilities.
Membership comes with benefits, including borrowing privileges for a year, advance notice of lectures and events, and more. Benefits in full, and information on becoming a member is available online.
Friends of Fondren Library Board Members 2022-2023 | Fondren Library
Rice University Authors, Editors, Composers, and Artists Panel Discussion
The Friends of Fondren Library hosts an event each year honoring Rice related Authors, Editors, Composers, Artists, of works published the year prior. On February 23, 2023 the event was held in the Kyle Morrow Room and recorded. Peter C. Caldwell, the Samuel G. McCann Professor of History hosted the event and directed a panel discussion on immigration, inequality, and climate change. Panelists included Daniel Cohan, Associate Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering; Elizabeth Cummins Muñoz, Senior Lecturer in the Program in Writing and Communication; and Anna Rhodes, Assistant Professor of Sociology.
Melissa Kean Honored at Friends of Fondren Library Gala
Melissa Kean, former historian of Rice University, was honored at the 41st annual Friends of Fondren Library Gala. Kean is known for her dedication to the people of the university’s past and gathering pieces of the university’s history as if assembling a jigsaw puzzle.
This annual event is a fun night out for participants, offering a chance to talk with Rice professors, librarians, alumni, and other friends of the library. A live auction event is held along with discussion and speeches from the gala honorees. The 2024 gala will be held on March 15 at River Oaks Country Club.
Melissa Kean and family at the 2023 Friends of Fondren Gala.