Rare Book School Virginia receives US$1 million donation aimed at increasing scholarships

Rare Book School (RBS) is an independent nonprofit organization dedicated to the study of book history, printing, and related subjects. Established in 1983, RBS has been based at the University of Virginia since 1992 and operates under the guidance of its own board of directors.
Throughout the year, RBS offers approximately 40 intensive, five-day courses focused on rare books, manuscripts, and special collections. While most classes are held in Charlottesville, additional sessions take place in locations such as New York City, Philadelphia, Bloomington, New Haven, and Washington, D.C.

Course offerings cater to a diverse range of participants, including antiquarian booksellers, collectors, conservators, and bookbinders, as well as educators and those interested in the history of books and printing. Other programs are designed specifically for archivists, curators, and librarians working with rare books and special collections.

Many ILAB booksellers will have attended those seminars, often led by Terry Belanger, a dedicated educator who has taught more courses than any other faculty member. His course "Book Illustration Processes" has been part of the curricula since 1983, sometimes taught two or three times during a summer.

The Miranker Family’s pledge will now kickstart a dollar-for-dollar matching-gift challenge to establish the Terry Belanger Endowed Scholarship, a fund that will provide full-cost tuition scholarships and travel stipends to RBS students with financial need.

RBS' full announcement can be viewed here: https://rarebookschool.org/sup...

A series of videos was produced by Macbeth Studio in 2022 to commemorate RBS’s 40th anniversary in 2023 and gives insights into RBS' work and its faculty.

Terry Belanger on the origins of RBS

Bruce McKittrick, Antiquarian Bookseller (ABAA, ILAB)

Barbara Heritage, Miranker Family Director of Collections, Exhibitions & Scholarly Initiatives

For more information about RBS Virginia and its programme, please visit the website >> HERE

RBS Virginia offers a broad range of scholarship opportunities >> VIEW HERE

Image above: Terry Belanger with students in a Summer 2013 RBS course, copyright: RBS