Wolfpack Outfitters: More Than Just a Bookstore at North Carolina State University
North Carolina State University (NCSU) is a vibrant academic institution, and at its heart lies a crucial nexus for students, faculty, and the wider university community: its bookstore. For years, Wolfpack Outfitters has served as the authoritative source for academic essentials, technological necessities, and spirited university merchandise. More than just a retail space, it is an integral part of the NCSU experience, evolving alongside the university's commitment to innovation and student success. This article delves into the multifaceted role of Wolfpack Outfitters, exploring its offerings, its historical context within campus development, and its symbiotic relationship with the broader academic mission of NCSU, particularly as exemplified by the transformative initiatives of the NCSU Libraries.
The Core Offerings: Supplying the Wolfpack
Wolfpack Outfitters, prominently located within the Talley Student Union, has established itself as the premier destination for all things NCSU-related. Its primary function is to provide the essential tools for academic success. This includes a comprehensive selection of course materials, ensuring that students have access to the required textbooks and learning resources from the very first day of classes. The "Course Ready" initiative is a testament to this commitment, streamlining the process for students to acquire their necessary academic materials efficiently.
Beyond textbooks, the bookstore is a vital hub for school supplies, encompassing everything from basic stationery to specialized materials that support various academic disciplines. Recognizing the increasing reliance on technology, Wolfpack Outfitters also offers a curated selection of business-class computers from leading brands such as Apple, Dell, and Lenovo. These machines are specifically chosen to meet or exceed the university's stringent recommendations, ensuring that students and faculty have reliable and powerful tools for their academic and research endeavors.
Furthermore, Wolfpack Outfitters boasts the most extensive collection of officially licensed North Carolina State University merchandise available anywhere. This includes a wide array of apparel, accessories, and gifts that allow students, alumni, and supporters to proudly display their Wolfpack spirit. A unique facet of the bookstore is "The Design Den," a dedicated space for personalized apparel. Here, individuals can create custom-designed clothing, further enhancing the sense of community and individual expression within the university. This blend of academic necessity, technological provision, and spirited merchandise underscores Wolfpack Outfitters' central role in supporting the daily lives and the broader identity of the NCSU community.
A Legacy of Architectural Significance and Campus Evolution
The history of the NC State University bookstore is intertwined with the architectural evolution of the campus and the university's growth. The original bookstore building, designed by former NC State architecture professor Milton Small, was constructed in 1960. At the time of its opening, it was known as the Student Service Center and was a significant architectural statement, embodying modernist design principles. Its opening was met with considerable fanfare, with The Technician newspaper proclaiming, "Things Will Never Be The Same Again: gone are the old days, gone are the only ways, this is to tell you OUR DREAM HAS COME TRUE…". Described as "ultra modern," the building's construction was an estimated $350,000.
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Milton Small, Jr., a student of Henry L. Kamphoefner, the founder and first dean of NC State's School of Design, also designed other notable campus structures, including the Burlington Nuclear Laboratories Building and Carter-Finley Stadium. The Student Service Center, a 21,000 square foot structure, originally housed the Student Supply Store and a "fountain snack-bar." Its design, featuring zigzag canopies, reflected the Googie-style roadside architecture prevalent at the time, intended to attract attention and business. The building's perimeter was designed with pedestrian considerations, facilitating access across campus and contributing to an emerging "urban feel" for the university.
However, as NC State's enrollment more than doubled since the bookstore's opening over half a century ago, the original building faced challenges. Issues related to infrastructure, space quality, and outdated facilities led to a campus master plan that included the demolition of the existing bookstore. The plan called for integrating the bookstore into a renovated student center, thereby opening up green space where the old building stood. This decision, while driven by practical considerations of modernization and efficiency, sparked an online campaign by some students and preservationists who viewed the building as a campus landmark and an important example of modernist architecture. Historian and archivist Ruth Little had even placed the building on the Study List for the National Register of Historic Places in 2005. Despite these preservation efforts, the university proceeded with its plan to replace the bookstore as part of a broader renovation and expansion of the Talley Student Center. The demolition of the fifty-one-year-old bookstore occurred in the summer preceding the construction of the new $120 million Talley Student Center, which would eventually house the NC State Bookstores.
The NCSU Libraries: A Partner in Academic Excellence and Innovation
The North Carolina State University Libraries stand as a beacon of academic support and a driver of innovation, working in concert with the university's broader mission. The Libraries' commitment to providing a competitive advantage for NCSU, attracting and retaining top faculty and students, is evident in their strategic approach to service delivery and their continuous adaptation to the evolving digital landscape. Their vision is to be a "major factor in attracting the best faculty and students to this institution and in making them want to stay."
This forward-thinking philosophy is demonstrated through their proactive engagement with the university community. By maintaining continuous interactions with faculty and students, utilizing user surveys, and employing other assessment tools, the library staff stays acutely informed about information needs. This allows them to apply their expertise creatively and anticipate future requirements. The ultimate goal is to enable the user community to obtain information and assistance "when and where they need it, as conveniently as possible." This dedication has resulted in tremendous support from all segments of the university, with library services consistently receiving the highest overall satisfaction ratings among NCSU's academic areas in recent surveys of sophomores and graduating seniors.
The Libraries engage in an iterative planning process, working closely with university administrators to ensure their programs directly align with both the institution's short-term priorities and its long-term educational mission. A significant indicator of the NCSU Libraries' transformation over the past decade is their dramatic improvement in the Association of Research Libraries (ARL) index. From being ranked 101st out of 107 ARL members ten years prior, they ascended to 37th out of 111 in the latest index. This remarkable progress even led to an invitation for membership in the prestigious Digital Library Federation, a testament to their accomplishments in the digital arena.
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Embracing the Digital Age: Innovative Services and Technologies
The NCSU Libraries have been at the forefront of adopting and developing new technologies to enhance user experience and academic support. One notable innovation is a personalized Web interface that allows each user to create a front page populated with library resources, contact persons, and services specific to their individual interests. This feature was recognized as a "Top Technology Trend" by the Library and Information Technology Association for its customization, interactivity, and customer support for users, and is actively used by over 1,000 faculty and students on campus.
To extend access and convenience, the Libraries significantly increased their operating hours, now open 146 hours per week, a 36% increase. This expansion led to nearly 17,000 students utilizing the library during its overnight hours in the 1998/99 academic year alone. Recognizing the critical need for seamless access to digital resources, the library assigned high priority to developing a proxy service and enhancing its information system. This resulted in the implementation of the first and only proxy service at NCSU, enabling authenticated access to digital collections through its website for users both on and off campus. The adoption of DRA Web2 further improved accessibility, providing 24-hour access to an online catalog with sophisticated search capabilities, including multi-institutional searching.
Usability testing with various user groups informed the redesign of the Libraries' homepage by the Web Development Librarian, leading to a doubling of connections to their website in the preceding two years. Complementing these digital advancements, the Libraries introduced TRIPSaver, a unique interlibrary loan service within the Triangle Research Libraries Network (TRLN), which includes Duke, N.C. Central, and UNC-Chapel Hill. This service allows NCSU users to request items not held by NCSU and receive them on campus within 48 hours or less, facilitated by students on other campuses who retrieve and deliver materials. In its inaugural year, TRIPSaver successfully fulfilled 75% of user requests within 24 hours and 85% within 48 hours.
Enhancing Research Skills and User Support
The NCSU Libraries are deeply invested in equipping students with the research skills necessary for academic success. Their redesigned research skills instruction program emphasizes user convenience, featuring shorter "QuickStart" sessions, expanded evening and weekend classes, and a strengthened curriculum focused on electronic resources. A key development in this area was the creation of LOBO (Library Online Basic Orientation), a web-based, multimedia instructional program developed by a team of reference and systems staff. This online tutorial provides convenient web access to library research skills for all students, and has been integrated into coursework, notably by the English Department for first-year English classes. The creation of a dedicated librarian for undergraduate research further enhanced services tailored to this student population. These instructional efforts led to a significant 66% increase in individuals reached through instructional sessions.
The commitment to providing cutting-edge technology extends to the Laptop Lending Service, which offers 100 high-performance, multimedia-capable laptop computers for use within the main and branch libraries. Both PCs and Macs are available, supporting the university's priority of ubiquitous computing, and the library has been recognized by NCSU as a leader in providing such an environment. Demonstrating an early adoption of emerging technologies, the library began offering SoftBook readers and Rocket eBooks for checkout in the fall of 1999. Each device was pre-loaded with select titles, and all devices and individual titles were cataloged and accessible through the library's information system. This initiative not only provided users with access to new reading formats but also informed vendors about library-specific issues related to product usage, with preliminary surveys indicating positive user reception.
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Fostering a Culture of Support and Philanthropy
Recognizing that state appropriations alone cannot sustain the level of enhancement required for a leading research library, the NCSU Libraries have actively cultivated private funding and community support. An innovative approach to philanthropy is the Incubator Endowment, established in 1993. This program allows individuals to contribute to the library with an initial account of just $1,000, offering a more accessible entry point for those unable to make a larger investment.
A pioneering initiative is the Author-in-Residence program, created in 1987, which established a formal relationship between a writer and an academic library. Raleigh author Kaye Gibbons has held this position since its inception, enjoying visiting lecturer status, a private office, and computer access. Gibbons has become an integral part of the library's "Friends" programs, speaking to area audiences and significantly contributing to the growth of the Friends organization, including the establishment of a library endowment. Her involvement has also attracted celebrated authors to campus, such as Dominick Dunne, John Grisham, Joseph Heller, George Plimpton, and Amy Tan. This engagement has fueled a remarkable increase in membership for the Friends of the Library, which has grown by 200% over the last decade, with annual gifts increasing four-fold.
The Libraries have also implemented the NCSU Libraries Faculty Award, presented annually at the Friends' Fall Luncheon. Nominations are solicited campus-wide and reviewed by a library committee, recognizing faculty who are primary contributors to the library through advocacy and donations. These award recipients remain engaged, informed about library developments, and serve as valuable resources for special events and key personnel interviews. For faculty, this award signifies tangible recognition for excellence in their extension and outreach activities.
To foster an inclusive and welcoming environment, the NCSU Libraries hired a diversity and staff development librarian to establish a formal diversity program, working in conjunction with a Library Diversity Committee. The goal is to create a climate where all students, staff, and users, regardless of ethnicity, culture, gender, or socioeconomic background, feel welcomed and respected. Initial sessions in 1998/99 focused on assessing the library climate for diversity and raising staff awareness. The Libraries also invited nationally recognized consultants to lead discussions on diversity and to assess services for users with visual and physical disabilities.
Strategic Resource Management and Future Development
The NCSU Libraries have demonstrated a remarkable ability to adapt and thrive, even in the face of budget constraints. During budget cutbacks in the early 1990s, the Libraries proactively educated the campus community about the "collections crisis." This outreach yielded an overwhelming response, with new collection endowments established by individuals, faculty groups, student groups (both undergraduate and graduate), parents, and retired faculty. Donors also established endowments to support library faculty and student positions. This concerted effort resulted in the Libraries now possessing 46 endowments, primarily for collections support, representing an 800% growth in the total endowment value. An endowment established by an NCSU professor emeritus specifically aims to fund and recognize the recruitment and retention of key library faculty, enabling the hiring of an outstanding candidate for The Donald E. Moreland Associate Director for Public Services. Furthermore, a planned gift is set to establish a library internship endowment to fund undergraduate student employment within the Libraries.
Library staff meticulously laid the groundwork for years to ensure that NCSU's continued strength was recognized as being intrinsically linked to the robustness of its library. This involved earning the understanding and support of campus administrators, faculty, students, Friends members, the NCSU Board of Trustees, and the N.C. legislature. This sustained advocacy was instrumental in securing vital funding. The N.C. legislature allocated monies not only towards financial aid and faculty salaries but also significantly to the Libraries. The Faculty Senate also generously voted to forgo a portion of their allocated funds, and the Board of Trustees directed half of the increased funds to the library. This resulted in an unprecedented $4.1 million addition to the library budget, a 35% increase in the annual state-appropriated budget. This infusion of resources allowed for the reinstatement of previously canceled journal subscriptions and, for the first time in a decade, the addition of new subscriptions without having to cancel others. Monographic acquisitions were also restored to previous high levels.
In direct response to student requests, services such as the 24-hour library were established, and the Learning and Research Center for the Digital Age was launched. In 1992, the Libraries enlisted faculty and student support by creating a Scholarly Communication Subcommittee within the University Library Committee. This subcommittee investigated serials pricing issues and cosponsored annual colloquia to raise awareness about scholarly communication challenges, featuring prominent speakers in the field.
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