Shatford Library @ Pasadena City College, Feb. 17

At the invitation of Library Director Mary Ann Laun, I toured the Shatford Library with Systems/Web Librarian Dan Haley.  There is a nice atrium where snacks are allowed, as well as group study rooms that double as storage for collections devoted to the ethnic groups of Pasadena (African-Americans and Asian-Americans, for example). 

 Here is a unique architectural feature:  a vaulted ceiling with skylight.  Mary Ann explained that the original design called for lots of natural light with panes in the entire vault structure.  It became obvious that this was impractical, as it let it too much light and heat.  The translucent panels you see here were the compromise and give the room's light a warm quality.

This image shows 1920s-era friezes that were found during planning for the Shatford structure.  They reminded this visitor of similar artwork at the Central Library in Los Angeles, where I worked in the late 80s.  Mary Ann explained that the originals were too fragile, so were replicated by moldings done by the college's own fine arts department and its students.  A panel acknowledging donors to the library construction is part of this wall.

I was pleased to be invited to attend a staff meeting, held in the student orientation room.  The tables with integrated laptops in drawers allow multiple uses of the space in an aesthetically pleasing way...much more so than desktop machines, I'd say.  This is an idea worth considering for lab space in the new OC Library.

Heartfelt thanks to Mary Ann and her faculty/staff for their hospitality and generosity with their experiences at Shatford Library.

 

Self-Service in Libraries: Lessons to be Learned from the Retail World, Feb. 17

http://event.on24.com/r.htm?e=279449&s=1&k=759559BA63A747AFCC06B71EFCA21A2B  Please contact me if a password is required and I'll send that via private message.

Cuesta College Library, Feb. 16

Dave Dowell is the retired director of Cuesta College's Library/LRC.  He also helped to found Cuesta's Library/Information Technology Program, which trains library and media center technicians (aka library paraprofessionals) at the certificate level.  In his retirement, he continues as adjunct faculty in L/ITP.  He graciously took me on a tour of the Library/LRC at Cuesta's San Luis Obispo main campus.  We also visited the construction site of the North County Campus library in Paso Robles.

Dave Dowell, Ph.D.

Here are some views of the main campus library:

 This building is the library....

...and this side houses LRC and other campus functions.

 View 1 from back patio

View 2 from back patio

And, of course, an espresso cart!   Many college libraries (e.g., Santa Barbara) have given up enforcing rules against coffee and food in the library.  Pasadena (next post) allows such in an atrium area only.  Cuesta continues its long-standing food-and-drink ban.





On to the North Campus.  SLO County is quite large.  Cuesta maintains two campuses and two centers to cover its service population.

The North Campus is large, flat and contains a mixture of temporary and permanent structures.  It looks much like photographs of Oxnard College in its early days.

A couple views of the Library/LRC construction site.  We were unable to go in the construction zone and look closer.  The plans I was shown reflect the mix of group study rooms, tutoring facilities and other amenities found in modern academic libraries.

Renderings of OC's New Library/LRC

Aerial View

Gentle readers--here are the renderings of what the new building will look like when it's completed.  A lot of the interior will be redesigned to account for changes in College and student needs since the plans were first created.  However, the exterior will look very much like these drawings.

West View

South View

East View

Northeast View

First Floor Plan

Second Floor Plan

North Wing from Quad

Reception Terrace

West Wing

Entry Collonade

Circulation Desk

Computer Hub

Tutorial Seating

Second Floor Mezzanine

Back @ the home campus, Jan. 31

While at Oxnard to attend a Library & Learning Resources Advisory Committee meeting, I was pleased to see the progress on the new Library/LRC.  It now has a "skin" in the form of insulation.  (Photos added Feb. 7).

Voskuyl Library @ Westmont College, Santa Barbara, Jan. 31

Voskuyl Library director Debra Quast took me on a tour of her newly-renovated building.  Here's a shot of the first floor reading room:

 And the view from it:

Debra was given full creative control of the renovation and completed it without consulting architects.  The color schemes were chosen by votes of student and faculty patrons. 

The seating was designed to allow for comfort, movement and collaboration.  Because many people are kinesthetic learners, several slow treadmills were added to the floor:

Notice that there is a table for books, magazines or laptops.  These aren't fitness machines; 2 mph tops.  They are very popular with library users.

Westmont has a unique take on its combination help/reference desk:

Student IT technicians sit back-to-back with librarians.  This way, students can receive technical and content-based assistance in the same location and each group of employees learns from the other.  I think this is a service idea worth serious consideration at Oxnard College.

Another idea I hadn't seen before:  all the desktop terminals are Macs with dual-boot capability to run Windows 7.  This facility has the usual mix of open computer lab and group study spaces that are de rigeur for modern academic libraries.

Besides the FF&E shown here, phase one of the renovation including tearing down many walls on the first floor to make the space more open, inviting and attractive.  Gate counts have tripled since completion.  Phase two will incorporate further improvements, especially on the other two levels of Voskuyl. 

Here's a blog with much better photos than my cell phone:  http://blogs.westmont.edu/magazine/2010/09/22/it%E2%80%99s-not-your-mother%E2%80%99s-library-anymore/ 

And a video:  http://westmontimpact.org/?s=library