In a few short weeks, NMU will renovate Harden Hall to include many more features designed to create the best space possible for students. This will include more electrical outlets, better acoustics to stop sound from traveling, better insulated windows, and even a partial fourth floor. In turn, the Lydia M. Olson Library will be closed off for two years, leaving campus without one of its biggest social hubs. During that time, the library will operate in a smaller capacity from Gries Hall. The majority of their catalog will be in storage, accessible by putting in a request for a staff member to retrieve the book for the lender.
With all these changes on the horizon, Northern’s student body is sure to feel the effects. This week, the North Wind Editorial Board sat down to discuss the positive consequences of a newly renovated Harden Hall, and the negatives of a campus without a proper library.
No surprise, the lack of proper space for the library is less than favorable. Many of us have retreated to the library to study in a comfortable, well-spaced area. The ease of walking up to a shelf and grabbing a book also cannot be paralleled. Confining the library to limited capacity in Gries hall will be a bit uncomfortable for everyone, student and staff alike.
The lack of the library’s printers may be an issue. While we don’t know exactly where the printer area will be moved to, if it’s anywhere beyond Harden Hall, it may feel a tad “out of the way” for students. The changed area of a printing area may create a semi-sizeable detour for students who need to print in a hurry, or those who simply don’t enjoy walking across campus.
While libraries as a whole should be conscious of sound, it’s quite obvious to most students that Olson Library was a great place to meet up with friends and classmates, study between classes, or to just get away from your dorm for a little while.
This will be especially noticeable as the library will be displaced for two years. For this semester’s freshmen, this will be the last time they see a proper library on campus for quite some time. Other than the study rooms in the dorm halls, study space will be a bit more limited on campus, as many students prefer to study outside of their dorms.
However, gripes with the displacement should not be mistaken as disagreement towards the project as a whole. This renovation will bring plenty of good things. For instance, changing the library’s ceilings to stop sound from traveling is an excellent idea to keep noise down in an area where plenty of students are either socializing or studying.
This goes for the addition of extra electrical outlets. Having to worry about charging your laptop while chipping away at essays, homework and exams, shouldn’t be a reality.
Also, there are plans to add an entire tutoring section in the library where students can receive whatever help they need, for any class. Keeping them together in space rather than spread out will be a welcome addition to campus.
The library is old and it needs to be renovated. It won’t be fun, but it’s time to rip the bandage off. All the changes are welcome, even if it will be uncomfortable for quite some time.
