The Alvin Sherman Library, Research, and Information Technology Center, is one of the largest

library A library is a collection of Book, books, and possibly other Document, materials and Media (communication), media, that is accessible for use by its members and members of allied institutions. Libraries provide physical (hard copies) or electron ...

buildings in the state of

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

. The Alvin Sherman Library is a unique joint-use facility serving the residents of

Broward County Broward County ( ) is a County (United States), county in Florida, United States, located in the Miami metropolitan area. It is Florida's second-most populous county after Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County and the List of the most ...

as well as

Nova Southeastern University Nova Southeastern University (NSU) is a Private university, private research university in Florida with its main campus in Fort Lauderdale-Davie, Florida, Davie, Florida, United States. The university consists of 14 colleges, offering over ...

students, faculty, and staff members. Thanks to an agreement between the Broward County Board of County Commissioners and NSU, the Alvin Sherman Library offers traditional

public library A public library is a library, most often a lending library, that is accessible by the general public and is usually funded from public sources, such as taxes. It is operated by librarians and library paraprofessionals, who are also Civil servic ...

services as well as the full academic resources.

History

On December 14, 1999, the Nova Southeastern University Board of Trustees and the Broward County Board of County Commissioners approved a forty-year agreement between Broward County and Nova Southeastern University to build a joint-use library that serves both Broward County and NSU patrons. This library was opened to the public on December 8, 2001 as a 325,000 square foot full service library located on NSU's main campus in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. In 2003, South Florida real estate developer and World War II pilot veteran, Alvin Sherman, donated $7 million for the library building which was named for him. Sherman stated he donated these funds because, "I witnessed the beginning of Nova Southeastern University and knew its founders. . . . This is my home town and this is my way of saying thanks.'' On December 6, 2021, the Alvin Sherman Library celebrated 20 years of operation, in addition to celebrating the library's continuing role as a Broward County Library and the NSU Campus Library. The Alvin Sherman Library became a user of the Patron Point system, announced by Patron Point just 4 days after the 20th year anniversary celebrations, with the stated goal of increasing patron awareness of library offerings and activities.

Present Day

The building is five stories high with wireless access throughout the building for NSU patrons and guests; reading niches; 23 study rooms; collaborative study room; family study room; the Cotilla Gallery with ongoing exhibits; programs for all ages; permanent artwork including a unique piece from artist Dale Chihuly and a Buddhist Prayer Wheel that has been blessed by the Dalai Lama; the Craig and Barbara Weiner Holocaust Museum; 1,000 user seats, and a café. It contains research materials, specialized databases, popular fiction and nonfiction books, magazines and journals, CDs, DVDs. Because of its unique affiliation with both Broward County Libraries and Nova Southeastern University, the Alvin Sherman Library's membership card is also unique to the library; patrons seeking to use the library's services must apply for and obtain an Alvin Sherman Library card in addition to maintaining their Broward County Library system card. A collaborative group study room was opened in late 2015 by the Alvin Sherman Librar
Circle of Friends
The 2,500 square foot room expansion serves as a platform for students working on group projects, presentations and study groups. Unlike other areas of the library, the collaborative study room was specifically designed to allow students to talk openly. The library hosts special programs for children and teens, book discussion groups, author readings, and classes on using research tools and resources. The Library also hosts events for Nova Southeastern University, for example, hosting a brunch celebrating the work of Julian Pleasants, PhD, about NSU's history with details on the Alvin Sherman Library itself. The Alvin Sherman LRITC building also contains the

Rose and Alfred Miniaci Performing Arts Center The Rose and Alfred Miniaci Performing Arts Center is part of the Alvin Sherman Library, Research, and Information Technology Center on the Nova Southeastern University campus in Florida, USA.https://www.miniacipac.com/about/about-1 The theater is ...

Permanent art collection

The Alvin Sherman Library holds a permanent collection of fine art featuring works by several prominent artists including

Salvador Dalí Salvador Domingo Felipe Jacinto Dalí i Domènech, Marquess of Dalí of Púbol (11 May 190423 January 1989), known as Salvador Dalí ( ; ; ), was a Spanish Surrealism, surrealist artist renowned for his technical skill, precise draftsmanship, ...

Dale Chihuly Dale Chihuly ( ; born September 20, 1941) is an American glass artist and entrepreneur. He is well known in the field of Glassblowing, blown glass, "moving it into the realm of large-scale sculpture". Early life Dale Patrick Chihuly was born on ...

Peter Max Peter Max (born Peter Max Finkelstein, October 19, 1937) is a German-American artist known for using bright colors in his work. Works by Max are associated with the visual arts and culture of the 1960s, particularly psychedelic art and pop art. ...

Beverly Pepper Beverly Pepper (née Stoll; December 20, 1922 – February 5, 2020) was an American sculptor known for her monumental works, site specific and land art. She remained independent from any particular art movement. She lived in Italy, primarily in ...

, Therman Statom, and Franck Louissaint. In 2024, the library established the Marta Permuy Legacy Collection within its permanent collection following a donation of twelve original works in honor of late South Florida art patron

Marta Permuy Marta Cazañas Permuy (September 22, 1938 – October 4, 2017) was a Cuban-American fine art patron, art collector, curator, art dealer, and promoter based in Coral Gables, Florida. She was an influential figure in the establishment of the Latin ...

. The donations, made by her grandson Antonio Permuy, featured works by several notable artists including Neith Nevelson, Pedro Hernandez, Miguel Fleitas,

Mario Torroella Mario Torroella (born March 30, 1935) is a Cuban-American visual artist and architect based in Cambridge, Massachusetts. He is a co-founder of the firm HMFH Architects and a Fellow of the American Institute of Architects. His art is closely asso ...

Adriano Nicot Adriano Adolfo Fernandez Nicot is a Cuban-American painter and poet based in Miami, Florida. He is known for a distinctive Neo-Expressionist style and is closely associated with the prominent Cuban artists Antonia Eiriz, Manuel Vidal Fernández, ...

, Edel Alvarez Galban, Yamilet Sempe and Margarita Cano. The works were unveiled in an exhibition at the library in October 2024.

References

{{authority control University and college academic libraries in the United States Public libraries in Florida Nova Southeastern University Library buildings completed in 2001 Buildings and structures in Fort Lauderdale, Florida Education in Fort Lauderdale, Florida 2001 establishments in Florida Libraries established in 2001 Holocaust museums Holocaust museums in Florida Holocaust museums in the United States