The Friends of the Academy Library, established in 1930, help to maintain the vitality of the Library. Their annual support provides funds for acquisitions beyond the regular budget, for outside speakers and concerts, for essential supplies and useful luxuries. The special collections speak to the extraordinary generosity of individuals, and the yearly gifts of the entire group underwrite new programs and equipment. Many of the Friends have also endowed permanent funds for collections and programs.
In a report to the Friends in 1941, English instructor and then-Secretary of the Friends Chilson H. Leonard summed up the moving force behind their devotion: “Good students are insatiable. Their demand for knowledge is always much greater than the supply. All those who teach and those who learn are engaged in a task that has the joy of being eternal. The Friends ... can do much to help in this task." These observations are equally true today, for the Friends and the staff are still engaged in making the Academy Library a place where endless discovery and enthusiastic learning can occur.