A Look Inside: the Reeder Media Center

As part of William & Mary’s official guided tour of campus, some prospects and their families will step foot into the Earl Gregg Swem Library for the first time. Passing Aroma’s on their left, they will be welcomed to the first floor, and made aware of our noise ‘hierarchy’ system within the library; third floor renowned for being the quietest, and the basement for being the most active. As an employee of the Media Center, I’d like to highlight the features of Swem’s basement that many don’t come to appreciate until years into their academic career.

The basement of Swem doubles as a great hangout location, but is valued most for their creative arts suite; the Reeder Media Center. With nine Apple desktops equip with the entire Adobe Suite, and countless photo/video programs, students can book these computers for both academic and personal projects. Additionally, we have a range of DSLR cameras, camcorders, projectors, audio recorders, lenses, and so much more for both the amateur, and the experienced.

Providing the tools is great, but what’s more is that we also provide the fundamental knowledge by offering one-on-one training sessions, and having media specialists who are available M-F 8am-12am, Saturday 11am-5pm, and Sunday 11am-12am. The employees who I have the opportunity to work alongside are not all film & media studies majors, yet we all have an underlying appreciation for the arts.

As a liberal arts college, it is William & Mary’s responsibility to provide students with a well-rounded education, but ultimately the choice of any given student to pursue innovative ideas, engage in thoughtful discussion, and utilize Media Center equiptment. As a proud employee of the Reeder Media Center, I highly believe that this unique space provides students with the resources necessary to create videos, develop portfolios, and complete academic projects. Why W&M? This is just one of many reasons.