New collection of UPB scrapbooks document over 50 years of entertainment at JMU

Posted May 20, 2024 in Special Collections News

James Madison University Special Collections is pleased to announce that the University Program Board (UPB) Records are now fully processed and available for research. The collection comprises 26 scrapbooks of photographs, newspaper clippings, and ephemera as well as posters, fliers, and event paperwork documenting concerts, comedy shows, lectures, and more.

The University Program Board was first established as the Campus Program Board (CPB) in 1971. The name was updated in 1977 to coincide with the change from Madison College to James Madison University. Charged with providing educational, social, and cultural events on campus, UPB has been responsible for bringing Fleetwood Mac, Hall and Oates, Vincent Price, Maya Angelou, Third Eye Blind (twice!), Aziz Ansari, and Wiz Khalifa to JMU, just to name a few.

The scrapbooks are chock full of nostalgia and offer a unique perspective of university history. For example, late 1990s Dukes may recall that Wyclef Jean and John Forté performed an impromptu concert in the Howard Johnson’s parking lot before their March 1, 1998 concert at the Convocation Center. (The motel served as a dormitory at the time, but that’s a story for another day.)

Review the collection’s finding aid for a more complete description of the collection and its contents.

Information about visiting Special Collections and making appointments for in-person research is available on our Plan A Visit page.

Contact us at library-special@jmu.edu or (540) 568-3612 with any questions about this collection or about visiting Special Collections.