Renovations leave students without library next year

By Sarah Hansell Staff Writer hansell14@up.edu

The Library will be closed for the 2012-2013 academic year, from May 2012 to August 2013, for RISE campaign renovations.

President Bill Beauchamp, C.S.C., first announced plans for the Library renovation at the Opening Convocation last fall.

"The plan is to move out right after graduation in May and to move back in a year and three months after," Dean of the Library Drew Harrington said.

Although the cost of the Library has not been completely funded, there is a large enough percentage and enough support from foundations and donors for UP to move forward with building the Library next year, according to Harrington.

"We are confident that we will make the full amount," Harrington said.

Most of the Library's books will be put in storage in an area still to be decided.

The Library will have a checkout system where students will pre-order the books they want, either online or in person, and Library staff will retrieve them from storage. Typically it should take a few hours between the student ordering the book and the student receiving it, according to Harrington.

"The major challenge will just be that we're going to have to go and get the books for the students," library student staff member and senior Kati McConn said.

In addition to the books in storage, the Library plans on having about 1,000 or fewer high-use books, such as books for Biblical Tradition and Culture classes, readily available.

According to Harrington, the new side of The Commons is a possibility for where these high-use books as well as reference and instruction services will be available.

The Library is also in the process of deciding where alternative study spaces for students and members will be next year.

"We'll have all of the staff, they'll just be in different areas on campus," Harrington said.

Because books will be more difficult to access, students may have to rely more heavily on electronic resources next year.

"I think we have really strong electronic service already," Harrington said. "I think we probably will purchase more electronic books."

For the past four years, the Library has been gathering information from students about what they want in the new Library through focus groups, a student blog and from ASUP constituency reports.

"We're taking a really different approach," Harrington said. "It used to be academic libraries were really about the stuff. Now they're really about the user."

The Library is being designed by Soderstrom Architects, who also designed Franz Hall, Shiley Hall, Fields and Schoenfeldt Hall and The Bell Tower. According to Harrington, UP is aiming for the new Library to be a Silver LEED certified building.

The new library entrance will face the Academic Quad. The main floor will be called the "Learning Lab," and will have new movable seating and computers. The Library's hours will remain the same, but after the doors are locked, students will be able to gain access to the Learning Lab with their ID cards.

"We expect this (area) to be noisy, interactive," Harrington said.

The books will be relocated to the basement, the new "Study Lab," where the Media Lab is currently, into compact shelving, allowing the shelves to be pushed together and opened with the push of a button. This downstairs area will be a quiet space with new seating and a fireplace.

The upstairs floor will be the new "Media Lab," which will include a production studio, sound room and the information literacy classroom – where students learn to find, evaluate and use information – which is currently located in the Media Lab downstairs.

There will also be 20 study rooms as well as restrooms on every floor.

"Because we're stuck with this building, we've done the best we could to focus on the user. Now we really have the opportunity to make that happen in a more comprehensive way," Harrington said. "Now we have a chance to really make change."

Some students are worried about limited access to the Library next year.

"It'll be a little inconvenient," freshman Karyna Brandariz said. "If they could make a quiet zone then it'd be fine. That's the only reason I use the Library."

While students are excited about the new renovation, they worry about how long the Library will be out of commission.

"It sucks that it takes (that long), but it sounds like obviously better than it is right now," freshman Sean O'Hollearn said.

"I mean, the Library definitely needs to be renovated," junior Patrick Chapman said. "I just wish there was a way it could be during the summer."

Some juniors wish they could be here to experience the new Library.

"It needs to be done," junior Cady Anderson said. "I'm just sad I won't be here to see the new Library. It looks so nice."