The University of South Carolina Bicentennial Campaign will meet the growing needs and challenges of the University as it enters its third century. The goal of the campaign is to create permanent endowments and other lasting contributions to the areas of undergraduate scholarships, graduate and professional fellowships, faculty chairs and professorships, program enhancement, and capital projects.

The Bicentennial Campaign will contribute significantly to enhancing the overall quality of our programs and facilities. By creating permanent funding, it will also sustain that higher quality. Additionally, as we achieve a comprehensive level of excellence, the campaign will help position USC for membership in the Association of American Universities, which recognizes the finest American universities, public or private.

As part of the Bicentennial Campaign, the University of South Carolina Libraries have a goal of $7.5 milli0n, including a $5 million endowment dedicated to the enhancement of the library system and $2.5 million in gifts-in-kind. The endowment will be used to sustain and augment three basic areas of library operation:

Acquisitions ($2.5 million) — Materials must constantly be purchased to meet the demands of the University's evolving curriculum and research needs. In addition to strengthening areas most heavily used by undergraduates, several interdisciplinary areas are especially targeted for growth: African-American studies; environmental studies; Latin-American and Eastern European studies; and women's studies.

Preservation ($1.5 million) — Building collections would be an exercise in futility if they could not be preserved for use by future generations. The University's commitment to the conservation of materials covers items as old as 15th-century maps and those first three books purchased in 1802 to Twentieth Century Fox Movietonews film reels that document the nation's history and culture during the first half of this century.

Electronic Resources ($1 million) — For years, USC has been a leader in the use of information technology through its pioneering work in distance education, its on-line library catalog, and other delivery services. Today, a computer network brings the resources of the libraries to students and faculty at their desktops and lab sites across the state, and new technologies are emerging that will transform the nature of higher education in the coming century.

Gifts-in-Kind ($2.5 million) — Contributions of books, manuscripts, papers, and other materials allow the libraries to build their collections by providing texts that could not be purchased. Generous donors benefit by making a charitable contribution, and the libraries benefit by building their collections.