Laura Sassi, Class of 1991, has been elected the new Chair of the Friends of Princeton University Library (FPUL), for the term July 1, 2025 - June 30, 2027. She assumes the role from W. Bruce Leslie, Class of 1966, who completed two consecutive two-year terms that began in July 2021.

Sassi has been a member of the Council since 2013 and was Secretary to the Friends from 2013 - 2015. Since 2022, she has served as liaison between the Friends and the Library’s Office of Communications, collaborating to raise awareness of the Friends by reaching new audiences via Friends and Princeton University Library (PUL) websites, the PUL newsletter, and various social media outlets. 

After Princeton, Sassi earned a master’s degree in education from the University of California, Los Angeles, and taught elementary school for almost a decade before stepping away to raise her two children. She has fond memories of spending countless hours at Firestone Library as an undergraduate and continues to be a lover of books and reading. She has developed a second career as a children’s writer and is the award-winning author of 11 children’s books, with a 12th due out this July.

How did you get involved with FPUL? 

I can’t remember through which avenue we first learned about the Friends, but the first event we went to was the Book Adoption party. It was a lovely event which took place in Chancellor Green. The librarians from Rare Books, Cotsen, Mudd, etc. were all there with items from their collections that Friends could sponsor or “adopt.” Talking to the curators of these special, rare items was fascinating. I loved the interaction and the curators and other Friends in attendance were so friendly (a good thing for a Friends group!). We started attending other events and each was as intellectually stimulating and great as the one before.   

Why the interest in FPUL in particular? Though not collectors ourselves, my husband and I both have an appreciation for books and manuscripts and we value libraries as an important keeper of these treasures. We’d been looking for a way to support our alma mater and the Friends seemed a great way that fit in nicely with our interests.  

What are you most looking forward to in your role as the new Chair?

The Friends is a special organization and I want to see it thrive. After being a Friend and Council member since 2013, I am looking forward to participating in this more central way as we continue to work together to carry out our almost 100-year-old mission to serve and support the Library by funding acquisitions, raising awareness of special collections, offering grants for scholars, and more. As an alum, I also look forward to welcoming and getting to know the next generation—our Student Friends—who will hopefully one day follow in the footsteps that so many of us have taken to become full-fledged Friends, ready to take the baton and keep us running and supporting Princeton University Library for another 100 years! 

What has been your favorite FPUL event and why? 

Okay, gosh, this is a tough one, so I think I will instead create a category of favorites. My favorite events are the ones where we get to interact with the curators from the various PUL departments in a setting where we get to see the artifacts firsthand. For example, I remember a couple of years ago, when the Special Collections reading room re-opened, the Friends had a special visit there with Eric White and Will Noel. They showed us the newly renovated space, and then the real treat:  we got to see some recently acquired tiny bibles! I think they were called thumb bibles. 

Why should someone join the Friends? 

Joining the Friends is a win-win proposition! First, it’s a great way to support a world-class library and see the results. Indeed, one of my favorite parts of being a Friend over the years has been viewing the acquisitions that we fund, hearing the scoop on who receives the research grants, and enjoying first-hand the amazing exhibits, often with catalogs that we help fund. 

The second win is the wonderful sense of community we have cultivated. There’s a lovely inter-generational quality to this group and I thoroughly enjoy getting to meet and know so many interesting people as we partake of an abundance of programs including dinner talks, exhibit openings, private tours, small talks, and more!

How has the Library changed since you attended Princeton?

Firestone Library has had a couple of major renovations since I was a student but it still has open stacks, which I loved exploring as an undergrad. I am also happy to report that it still has great nooks and crannies for reading and studying. As an undergrad, I did most of my studying and writing at the Library, and it looks like students still do that. 

One major change is that the card catalog has been replaced by the online catalog, though they kept many of the drawers and I love how they now fill a wall in Firestone — a wonderful bit of history to keep for posterity. And, of course, so much of the collection is digitized now—an amazing advancement. There’s also something new that I would have loved as an undergrad and that is the Tiger Tea Room. I still have to get there. Perhaps now, as Chair, I’ll have a good excuse to pop in for a nice cup of tea and pastry.

If you are interested in learning more about or joining the Friends, please visit the Friends' website. Friends’ events are on a brief hiatus for July and August, but will resume with monthly programs beginning September 2025.