General Information

Shelton State  Community College provides library services in the Brooks-Cork Library on the Dr. Harold C. and Evelyn Martin Campus and in the Lewis Library on the C. A. Fredd Campus to serve all students, regardless of the programs in which they are enrolled.  While the College views the libraries and related services as one entity, the Lewis Library retains its original designation in recognition of the historically black status of the Fredd Campus.  Upon moving to the Martin Campus on Old Greensboro Road, the library was named for Karen Phifer Brooks and Susan Phifer Cork, two members of the J. Reese Phifer family, which has been supportive of the College in a number of ways for many years.  The Books-Cork Library was dedicated on May 27, 1998.  The branch library on the Fredd Campus was officially named the Louise Boyd Lewis Library on May 4, 2006.  For more information on the naming of the Brooks-Cork Library, visit Brooks-Cork Library Naming.  For more information on the naming of the Lewis Library, visit the Lewis Library Naming.

The Brooks-Cork Library serves as the main College library.  Its holdings provide support for both academic and technical programs.  A special collection, the Lon Alexander, Sr., Employee Publications Collection, named in memory of a member of the faculty, is housed in this library.  The library is designed loosely on the “Information Commons” principle, in which all electronic or mediated information sources (e.g. computer databases, videos, slides, etc.) are centralized — literally and figuratively — in the library.  Custom-designed tables facilitate the use of these resources and provide space for students and librarians to work collaboratively when seeking information.  Other special features include group study rooms, which students may use when studying together or working on group assignments, and divided circulation services.  The Circulation Desk, located at the entrance of the library, is the primary site for information and circulation of books and materials that leave the library.  The Audiovisuals/Reserves Desk, located deep within the library, is the site for in-house circulation of materials.  Finally, a “silent study” area is located at the rear of the library to provide a place for quiet study and concentration that is separate from the busier areas of the Information Commons, the circulation desks, and the current periodicals section.

The Lewis Library is housed in the Administration Building on the Fredd Campus and supports the programs based on the Fredd Campus.  In addition, the Lewis Library’s collection includes program-specific materials, basic reference, and a small section on black history and culture to support its status as an Historically Black College and University (HBCU) campus.  It includes one office for library staff and one storage closet for equipment and other materials.  The library is furnished with reading tables, lounge furniture, computer workstations, and library shelving for books and other curricular materials.  It is connected to the main library through the College network and through the electronic library catalog so that all information about library resources is available on the Fredd Campus.

Shelton State’s library initiated its online system in 1994 using a Dynix library system.  This system has undergone numerous changes over the years, most recently, from Innovative Interfaces Sierra to OCLC’s WMS. This system includes circulation, cataloging, reserves, public access, and media components.  Library users may access the catalog in the library on each campus or through the internet from off-site.

Current information is available on both campuses in print and electronic format.  Current subscriptions to periodicals as well as to computer databases provide information for students in a number of general and specific subject areas.  Information and articles can be printed directly through the computers on which the databases are accessed.

The library provides access to AV materials through several databases.

Karen Phifer Brooks

Karen Phifer Brooks is the daughter of Phifer Wire Products co-founders Reese and Sue Phifer.  She is a lifelong member of the Phifer Wire Products, Inc. Board of Directors and Trustee of the Reese Phifer, Jr. Memorial Foundation.  Married to James Sawyer Books, she is the mother of Reese, Madge, and Louise.  (1998)

Susan Phifer Cork

Susan Phifer Cork is the daughter of Phifer Wire Products co-founders Reese and Sue Phifer.  She is a lifelong member of the Phifer Wire Products, Inc. Board of Directors and Trustee of the Reese Phifer, Jr. Memorial Foundation.  Married to Dennis Bradly Cork, she is the mother of Katherine, William, Beverly, and Suzanna.  (1998)

Phifer Wire Products, Inc.

Phifer Wire Products was established in 1952 in Tuscaloosa by J. Reese Phifer as a weaver of aluminum insect screening.  The production of Phifer insect screening more than doubled with the company entered the fiberglass insect screening field in the late 1960s.  By 1998, the family-owned company manufactured and supplied a broad line of precision woven products and aluminum products through the United States and in over 125 countries world-wide.

Phifer warehouses and sales offices are located in California, Texas, Florida, and Illinois to serve the U. S. market and are located in Germany, France, Italy, and China to serve markets abroad.  Phifer products are produced in state-of-the-art facilities by Americans dedicated to the principles of quality, safety, and service.  For more information, visit Phifer Wire Products, Inc.

Louise Boyd Lewis served in many capacities at C. A. Fredd State Technical College from 1971 through 2000, including Title III Director and Assistant Director of the Fredd Campus. She received her BA from Alabama State University and her MA from the University of Alabama, where she also did post-graduate work in educational leadership. She is a graduate of the Advanced Public Policy Institute of the Kettering Foundation and the NIF Public Policy Institute of the University of Miami. She is married to Rev. Robert Lewis. (2006)