Purpose of the Endowment
To provide long-term support for the University of Washington Music Library for purchase of materials in all formats: artwork, furniture, equipment, preservation, conservation, programs, and activities focusing on music.
Betty L. Wagner, Architecture and Urban Planning Librarian, established the Performing Arts Endowment in February of 2003 to encourage others to contribute to this fund to create three individual library endowments for the performing arts: Dance, Drama, and Music. The Music Library Endowed Fund was established in July 2004 from this and many other matching donations.
Betty graduated form the UW School of Librarianship on June 9, 1951 and began her appointment as head of the Architecture Library on June 11 of the same year. When the original endowment was created, Betty stated, "This is my first and only professional position and is likely to be my last. One of the thrills of working in an academic environment is working both with the students that we serve and the students who work for us. Working with young people is the next best thing to a fountain of youth."
Betty retired in June 2004, after 53 years of exemplary service to the Architecture and Urban Planning Library, the University Libraries, and the University of Washington .