With recent additions to Baker-Berry Library proving popular among students, upcoming construction projects including a new information research desk and three glass study rooms will contribute to the first floor's modern atmosphere and focus on student work spaces, according to College librarian and project manager Laura Braunstein. Electrical work in the renovation area began Monday and construction of the new rooms and desk will start within the coming weeks, according to Braunstein.
The new information research desk will be constructed next to the Berry first floor security gates and will replace the now-separate information and reference desks, Braunstein said.
"We felt that having two service desks to go to for information didn't really make sense," deputy librarian Cyndy Pawlek said. "Sometimes people were confused on which desk to go to. We also wanted to make the reference desk more visible and accessible to people."
The three entirely translucent study rooms will be constructed directly behind the information research desk and will each include a 42-inch plasma television and whiteboards, according to Braunstein. Two of the rooms will feature conference tables and chairs, while the other room will include lounge-style seating, Braunstein said.
Students will be able to reserve two of the three rooms through the library website, according to Braunstein. The other room will be used by library staff for meetings and consultations, but will be open for student use when not reserved for library purposes, Braunstein said.
"We know we don't have enough group study space, and we wanted to create some more group study for students," Pawlek said. "We wanted to bring technology such as plasma televisions in which students would be able to connect their computers so that they could work collaboratively within the space."
Although the renovation may "inconvenience" students working in the library, most construction will be performed during mornings, when library activity is generally lower, Braunstein said.
"We'll do everything we can to minimize the impact on people's studying," she said.
Alyson Wood, the study rooms' designer said her initial plan to install glazed glass for the study rooms was rejected during a meeting with librarians. "What's interesting is I initially wanted to glaze the glass, but [librarians] wanted clear glass," Wood, who works for Office Interior Limited, said in an interview with The Dartmouth. "They said, People come to this library because they want to be seen.'" The design for the new information research desk includes a higher platform where students can ask quick "general information" questions and a table-height counter where students can sit and discuss in-depth questions with librarians, according to Wood.
The space that currently houses the information desk will be converted to a scan and print station, which will provide a centralized location for the two GreenPrint printers and two scanners already located on first floor Berry.
The current reference desk area will be filled with tables with outlets, Braunstein said.
Library officials made the decision to renovate after realizing the "design flaws" of the two information desks, Braunstein said. The distance of the security gates from the current information desks poses problems for students, since people are often "confused" as to where to go to if the security alarm rings, Pawlek said.
The current reference desk was designed when the library was built and is unfit for students' needs today, according to Braunstein.
"Before people used the internet to use basic reference questions, the librarians usually answered them," she said. "During the 1990s, we used to have two librarians sitting at the reference desk till 10 p.m. We don't need as big of a reference desk for librarians to help people." To gather ideas for the design of the library's first floor, Braunstein said she collaborated with studio art professor Karolina Kawiaka, who assigned a project to students in her Architecture II course during Winter 2010 that required them to create a new floor design for first floor Berry. Students who completed the project asked their peers for recommendations before creating a final layout, Braunstein said. "Some of these students' ideas made it to the final design," she said. Braunstein said she also surveyed library staff for feedback and examined libraries at Dartmouth's peer institutions for ideas for the new design. Students interviewed by The Dartmouth had mixed reactions to the renovation plans. "More space for group study would be great," Dipo Fasawe '14 said. "Although we already have a lot, it's good to have more because [current study rooms] are always booked really quick." Keith Chapman GR'12 described the addition of study rooms as "unnecessary," however. "People are more willing to share desks than rooms so we need as much open space as possible," he said. Library employee Daraiha Greene '12 said she did not think the integration of the information and reference desks would be beneficial since "people usually already know where to go." She added that the timing of the construction is inconvenient, since many students have exams within the next few weeks. Braunstein encouraged students to be patient with the renovations and said she expects the changes to be productive in the long run. "We understand people might be inconvenienced for a little while, but we hope the end results will be something they'll be pleased with," she said. Kawiaka could not be reached for comment by press time.
