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Summary of Responses
1. What kind of place should the library be?
SA Exec Comm
- longer hours; open until at least midnight; 24/7 if possible
- 10-20 years from now most everything [books, journals, etc.] will be electronic
- more laptops to check-out
- café is good too; has brought more people into the library; has provided more space to work on group projects
- café can be improved by adding more couches, providing larger tables for group study (e.g., groups of 4-6 people
- café use is primarily in the evening
- more spaces like the café; ideal space for research (e.g., searching for and using online journals)
- library is used most from 6pm to 10pm; there is steady in/out flow during class hours; more people seem to stay in the building at night
- loss of group study room to the café was a negative
- primary use of library is for research and study/review; most material is online; find most of what is needed online; don’t use books much
- need more printers
- better access to online journals or more journals should be available online
- books seem like wasted space given Google’s effort to digitize print materials; public access to online journals via services like Google Scholar is the future
- 3rd floor is “stuffy;” feel isolated when on the third floor; need more spaces like lake effect café throughout the building (e.g., atmosphere and furnishings; not necessarily food).
- replace solid doors leading from main stairs into 3rd floor with glass doors
- incorporate a map or floor plan into the electronic catalog that shows where that particular book is located; difficult to find one’s way in the stacks; easy to get lost; feels like walking in circles
- library of future should not be a repository for books; need to create an atmosphere conducive to studying; make it relaxing and comfortable
- more comfortable chairs; more/better lighting
- better air quality; better air handling, temperature is either too cold or too hot
- more welcoming atmosphere; feels too cramped now; need to make the floor plan more open
- one student reported that until the first semester or his senior year he never needed to borrow a book from the library; most assignments require online sources
- can get more work done in the library
- force new students to use the library; make it part of introductory general education classes
Presidential Scholars
• use the computer labs
• use the library to find journals online; search online resources (journal articles) then print them out
• browse the “pop culture” books to see what new books are out
• haven’t needed to use the stacks much
• learned to use the library through class and tutorials
• go to library to use hard copy books
• like what has been done on 2nd floor; rearrangement of furniture; brighter, personal chairs
• 3rd floor is quiet; all business; much different feel than other floors; sometimes too quiet — almost intimidating; great if you like to study in quiet; not very comfortable nor very warm and inviting
• 1st floor is wide open; like that
• like the recent changes — furniture arrangements, Lake Effect Café; rearrangements on 1st floor — added WRVO and moved law resources
• use the library as a place to hang out and do work between classes
• adequate assistance is provided; can find help when needed
• off-campus student reported that he uses library computers during the day between classes; more convenient than going home or back at night
• central place for groups to meet; frequently use Lake Effect Café — convenient place to do group work
• online services — review what books are available or when books are due; journal searches; online catalog; inter-library loans; have found that some links to on-line full text articles do not work well, the links sometimes do not take you to full text
• not too many people (students) use books because they require more effort to retrieve; online resources are more convenient and easier to retrieve
• history classes need to use books; not online articles
• like the laptops that can be checked out at the circulation desk
• some lab workers don’t know how to perform basic maintenance tasks such as replacing toner; technicians need to be better trained to more fully assist in troubleshooting and responding to problems
2. What online services from the library are important?
SA Exec Comm
- better access to full-text journals
- ability to search across multiple databases simultaneously rather than searching each database separately; meta-searches;
- perception that the only online services offered now are book searches, journal searches and checking when a book is due back; need to offer more online services
- Google scholar
- a more robust Compustat
- statistical analysis programs
- pre-defined searches; lists of useful links by department/discipline compiled from a review of course syllabi
- build into 100 level survey courses 2 class periods that are spent in the library learning how to use online searches and other databases
- more information about and pictures of the librarians
- print out articles
- ability to tap into online sources available from outside the library
- access to library from off-campus is slow
Presidential Scholars
• warm lighting
• comfortable place to read and study
• lively and active
• more light on 3rd floor; windows at 2nd floor landing that look into 2nd floor are welcoming; the doors in at the 3rd floor landing that lead into 3rd floor make area too dark and uninviting.
• update furniture on 2nd and 3rd floors; better, more comfortable
• building doesn’t look much like a library; the library should look better from the outside; more welcoming
• students will rely even more on on-line resources in the future
• wireless capability throughout building; completely wireless
• need more computers spread throughout the stacks that provide access to on-line catalog
• more computers!
• open feel; more welcoming — like the Lake Effect Café
• current hours are generally OK
• don’t like the fact that some students will use the computer labs to play games during crunch times (e.g., finals week) and such behavior is not adequately monitored and rectified by the lab technicians
• a lot of people don’t like the Macintosh computers; Macs are good for art students but not good for other majors; Macs are used as last resort, if used at all
• find a more attractive way to arrange the stacks rather than row after row
• carpeting on 3rd floor in stack area
3. How have librarians helped you?
SA Exec Comm
- pointed me in right direction
- need to hunt them down; a means to identify librarians from patrons; difficult to find the specific librarian who is familiar with my discipline
- offer workshops; how to use databases; regularly occurring voluntary workshops on topics such as general database use
Presidential Scholars
• like the “Library Live Journal” RSS feed
• like having pictures of librarian as part of live chats?
4. How important is the library to you as a student?
SA Exec Comm
5 = Low importance 1 = High importance
Individual responses: 5, 2, 2, 2, 2.5, 2.5, 3, 2.5 average = 2.7
One student indicated that access to online journals was very important (1) and the physical library was of medium to low importance (3-4).
Presidential Scholars
• pointed in right direction to library resources
• training to access databases; class sessions held in library to learn how to use the library
5. What other ideas about the library do you want to share?
SA Exec Comm
- some students advocated for the need to bring other services/events into library (e.g., lectures, classes); if more things happened in the library more people would go there
- some students felt that having more people in the library using other services or attending events would have raise the noise level to an unacceptable level; they cited their need for a quiet place to study and the fact that the library provided that refuge
- students primarily go to the library for books, studying and quiet
Presidential Scholars
• like that the library has popular culture books
• like that the library is not just a research library
• like that DVDs are available to borrow
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