We are pleased to announce that the Library has received a grant to participate in programming in support of WWI and America, a two-year initiative coinciding with the 100th anniversary of the nation’s entry into the war in 1917. The project is sponsored by Library of America with generous financial support from the National Endowment for the Humanities.
The purpose of WWI and America is to provide scholar-moderated opportunities for those who served in more recent conflicts in Korea, Vietnam, Iraq, and Afghanistan to bring their experiences to bear on historical events and texts and to illuminate for a wide audience the lasting legacies of World War I, and the similarities and differences between past and present.
The first of these opportunities takes place Thursday, September 28 at 6:30pm in the Harry S. Downs Center for Continuing Education, room 101. (Building 11 on this map.) Attendees will have the opportunity to hear from and engage in a facilitated discussion with a panel of veterans. The selected themes for Thursday’s event are “Why Fight?,” “Race and WWI,” and “America on the World Stage.” Selected readings for each theme are available on the event website. 
The grant also includes a copy of World War I and America: Told by the Americans Who Lived It, a collection of writings and speeches by soldiers, nurses, activists, and others who experienced the War. This resource is available in the Clayton State Library at the Circulation & Reserves Desk on the lower level and online. Discussion event attendees are encouraged to read the themed selections prior to the event.
“We are pleased to receive this grant from Library of America and the National Endowment for the Humanities to provide programming around these historical sources. We hope participants will be inspired to further explore the impact of war on America throughout history, the present, and into the future,” said Gordon Baker, Dean of Libraries.
All WWI & America programming offered by the Clayton State Library is free and open to the public. Veterans and non-veterans alike are welcome to attend. Faculty are encouraged to offer credit for attendance or related special assignments. The library will feature resources to supplement student research into the topics covered during the events.
For more information about these events and to stay up to date with future WWI & America programming, please visit http://clayton.libguides.com/wwiamerica or contact Erin Nagel at (678) 466-4330 or ErinNagel@clayton.edu.
This program is part of World War I and America, a two-year national initiative of The Library of America presented in partnership with The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History, the National World War I Museum and Memorial, and other organizations, with generous support from The National Endowment for the Humanities. Visit http://wwiamerica.org.
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