Info Icon This website uses cookies.

This website uses cookies. For more information, review our Privacy Policy. Questions? Please email [email protected].

Dalton State Library and Bandy Heritage Center to Host Open House

Dalton State’s Derrell C. Roberts Library and Bandy Heritage Center for Northwest Georgia are both open to the public again following renovations.

There will be an open house and reception on Thursday, Aug. 19 to celebrate the new space. The open house, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., will feature the renovations to the library, the Student Success and Advising Center, which is housed in the library, and the Bandy Heritage Center, which is adjacent to the library. The reception will be at the Bandy Center from 6 to 8 p.m. The events are free and open to the public, and masks are strongly encouraged.

Renovations began at the library in 2018 and were being completed in phases. A burst pipe and flooding last November sped up the third phase.

“The library has four video labs, 11 study rooms, a computer lab and three classrooms and provides community access to resources and services across the spectrum of instruction, research, public service programs and outreach,” said Melissa Whitesell, executive director of Library Services and Sponsored Programs. “We have added digital signs on the first and second floor to increase communication. Part of the renovation included adding an additional classroom on the first floor, which can also be used for meeting space. One of the biggest needs was more and upgraded collaborative space because so many student and community groups use the library to work on projects. We have also renovated our front desk and offices and workrooms. The shelving on the second floor has been reconfigured, and we have more seating. We invite the public to join us Thursday for a tour of the building, games, music and food.”

Renovation for the Bandy Center began in July 2018 and was finished in December 2020 when the campus was not yet fully open due to the pandemic.

“The center’s archival and preservation facility is new and better suits the mission to collect, preserve and interpret material and cultural history of Northwest Georgia”, said Dr. Adam Ware, director of the Bandy Heritage Center. The renovation includes a climate-secure archival storage space, lab for preservation work, reading room for research and small exhibit gallery. The Bandy Center’s collection has grown to more than 10 times the size it was just three years ago and includes 27,000 new acquisitions from individuals, businesses and organizations.

Both the library and the Bandy Center are fully open to the public once again, following health guidelines from the University System of Georgia, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Georgia Department of Public Health. Masks are strongly encouraged, as is socially distancing within the building.

Explore more posts

Stay up-to-date, Roadrunner Nation

Read the latest news, stories and events happening at Dalton State.
Jul 18, 2025

New mural by local artist welcomes visitors to Dalton State College

A vibrant new mural now greets visitors at the entrance of College Drive, offering a colorful and symbolic welcome to Dalton State College. The mural features a sweeping view of the north Georgia mountains, Dalton State’s iconic bell tower, a life-like Roadrunner—the college’s official mascot—and the words “Roadrunner Nation” set against a radiant sunrise. Roadrunner […]

Read More
Jul 16, 2025

Bandy Heritage Center launches summer series honoring Dalton author's legacy

The Bandy Heritage Center will launch its summer author series tomorrow, July 17, at 6:30 p.m. with a lecture by author Mark Warren in Room 141 of the Derrell C. Roberts Library at Dalton State College. A second event in the series is scheduled for August 14, featuring author Donna Coffey Little. The series commemorates […]

Read More
Jul 15, 2025

Dalton State celebrates donation of Civil War era journal to Bandy Heritage Center

Dalton State College hosted a special reception on Wednesday to celebrate the newest addition to the Bandy Heritage Center’s physical collection: the diary of William K. Pilsbury, a soldier who was wounded in the Battle of Chickamauga, journalist, and descendant of the Mouzon Huguenot family. “We talk a lot about the teaching aspect at Dalton […]

Read More