By Roya Ghorbani-Elizeh
Junior Jamie Kluth has trouble studying in the library. According to Kluth, studying seems impossible, due in part to the vibrating cell phones and whispers of conversation that seem to plague the library.
These disruptive distractions are a constant frustration to students who believe the library should have a focused and studious atmosphere.
For two weeks, the library, with the use of a new online forum, asked students to "Speak UP: 14 days to speak UP about the library."
With over 1,100 students coming and going from the library everyday, the staff and librarians at the library wanted student input on how to make the library better.
"We have just completed a long range plan and we wanted to get an up-to-date assessment on the library," said Drew Harrington, dean of the library. "We just didn't want to do something boring like a survey."
The forum Speak UP, which was modeled after a similar forum from Western Washington University, has been used by over 85 students during the two-week period.
Students as well as faculty and staff at the University were asked to brainstorm ideas about how to make the library better.
"It's important for us to have services and facilities that meet our users' needs and we don't know those needs until we've asked them," librarian Heidi Senior said. "It gives people an opportunity to speak and know that they will be heard."
Comments featured in the forum have ranged from more outlets in the library to better noise control in main areas.
Students' blog posts on Speak UP have their names attached to their suggestions and other students were able to reply and rate the suggestions with a five- star system.
As an incentive for students, the library has 20 $10 iTunes gift cards that will be in a random drawing for those who participated in the forum.
The names of the winners for the last iTunes gift cards will be posted tonight.
While the forum ended today, months of preparation went into designing the Web site for student discussion.
Using the blog capabilities that came with the Portal software, the library worked closely with Information Services to implement the forum.
Since the forum has been underway for the past two weeks, the staff at the library have been monitoring the student discussion.
The staff agreed that they would not participate to avoid stifling discussion among students.
"Everyone on the library staff has been reading Speak UP and we are already talking about what we can do," Senior said. "Most of it we were aware of, like students wanting longer hours and more study rooms, but we have been surprised by a few things."
According to Senior, one surprise was that students didn't know what the library has or how the library works.
Senior believes that because of this, the library can work with students to "communicate our policies and services more effectively."
Students have been excited to participate in this forum because of their past experiences in the library.
"I posted a short blurb on the Speak UP after having the worst time attempting to study in the library," senior Elizabeth Evans said. "People complain about the library a lot, but this is actually giving them a chance to voice those concerns."
Evans' blog post centered on the noise levels in the library. Before the forum began, the library initiated a Quiet Study Floor in the basement of the library.
The administration at the library hopes to discuss future plans and responses to the Speak UP in the coming weeks.
"We empathize with students and are trying to fix things to make it better," Harrington said. "We need to figure out how to respond to what students have said so that we know that we are listening."
In the upcoming weeks, some students from the Communication Studies Department will look through the blog posts from Speak UP and split posts into themes.
The administration and the library staff will then be able to change problems or have subsequent surveys for specific themes.
Four years ago, the library conducted a survey about what students need from the library. According to Harrington, the summary from the survey pointed to the necessity of a new building.
"We keep working really hard to make a new building happen," Harrington said. "Whether it is a new building or a renovation, this would be our ultimate goal."
The library currently has $6 million saved for a new library. Harrington projects that $18 to $20 million would be needed for a new library.
While the new library building plans seem to be idle for now, the suggestions from the Speak UP forum gave students the opportunity to voice their concerns.
The library staff believes that changes and policies will be enacted based on student feedback.
"We have a lot of students come into the library a day," Harrington said. "We know the library affects a lot of people so we went to fix it and make it better for everyone."
