Extensive Library Renovations
The Marvin Library building is currently undergoing extensive renovations, including the addition of a café, the building of a different main entrance, the merging of the Writing Center and Reference Desk, and the shifting of librarian offices and library resources. Completion of all renovations is set for the end of this summer, but until then the disarray in the library is expected to increase as work continues. A comprehensive list of where library resources have temporarily moved to is available on the first floor.
According to Brenda Hazard, Library Director, “The new students who come in here for the start of the fall semester, they should walk in to a beautiful, renovated building. They’re going to be amazed.” During the renovation, a café will be added to the first floor, in the space immediately inside the current entrance. “We want to give students a place where they can come in and do their studies…and while they’re here they can have a cup of coffee and they can have something else, a small snack or something to eat or drink,” said Hazard. The new main entrance will be located in the spot between the main library building and the Marvin faculty offices building, where a large window is currently located.
One side of that window, the side closer to the current entrance, will become the main entrance to the library, while the other side will become the main exit door. “We’re going to put our service desk right there, so when you walk in there’ll be library staff immediately there and can provide assistance. Part of the whole renovation is we’re trying to put services and people who provide services in more convenient locations,” said Hazard. It is planned that the whole first floor of the library will be converted into a kind of “green zone” where students can talk and study more casually in groups. The second floor will then become the designated “red zone” area for quiet, individual academic activities. On the second floor, a major change taking place will be the merging of the first floor Reference Desk with the second floor Writing Center. This will allow students to seek help with research and writing in the same spot.Hazard said, “We’ve decided to merge those services so students can get the research help while they’re getting the writing help and they will have computers available with a full suite of functionality so they can get everything done at once without having to give up their seat.”
In addition to these changes, the librarian offices will also be moved to make them more accessible to students.
“We’re moving all the librarian offices from a back office space that wasn’t available to students. When the renovations are over, all of us will be in an area where students can come up and meet with one of us right there,” said Hazard. With the renovations now started and the construction crew on site, the library has already been forced to undergo a lot of temporary changes. “Oh my gosh, it’s chaotic, it’s all topsy-turvy. Everybody’s like ‘where are things?’” said Hazard. Library staff members who worked in the areas under renovation have been displaced to the basement, where the magazine and journal collection used to be, and also to the second floor. The circulation staff has been moved to where there was formerly the reference desk, which has been moved to the Computer Learning Center area. A complete list of the temporary changes, to guide students, is available at the new circulation desk on the first floor of the library.
Hazard does not expect the disorganization and displacement situation to get any better as the construction proceeds. “It’s going to get a little worse this semester. It’s definitely going to get noisier,” she said. Addressing the issue of students navigating the library while it is in disarray, Hazard said, “The best thing to do is just go to a service point and ask, if you can’t find something.” The renovation of the library was in planning stages for about two years before it officially began a couple of weeks ago. Since the library was originally built in the early 1970s, students’ needs have changed sufficiently to make the renovations necessary. “Certainly the way students use space has changed a lot in 40 years, the way that libraries provide services has changed tremendously,” said Hazard.
Other changes will also be made during the renovations. More power outlets will be added throughout the library and a designated area for personal laptop use will be created. According to Hazard, “The building will be more student-centered than it is right now. We’re focused more on what student’s need.” The library staff members request students to be patient if they are inconvenienced by the renovations and to ask them for assistance, if needed.