SCELC Vendor Day/Hannon Library @ Loyola Marymount University, March 3

Each year, the Statewide California Electronic Library Consortium (SCELC) holds a vendor day.  This is the databases purchasing group for most of the private universities in the state.  It is analogous to the Community College League Consortium, of which Oxnard College is a member.  The SCELC folks graciously invite public college/university librarians to their vendor shindig each year.  This was my first time, and I came away with a new understanding of a fundamental change coming to academic libraries: 
"discovery searching".  More about this in my next post.

While at SCELC, I had the opportunity to view the Hannon Library at Loyola.  This round structure opened about 1.5 years ago.  It comprises three stories and offers beautiful views of Los Angeles from its hilltop perch.  The second and third levels have rings of student group study rooms.  LMU was having its spring break that week, which limited some of my  observations, but also made chatting with staff easier.

Group study rooms all look alike and my cell phone couldn't do the views justice.  However, the assignable rooms in the library (and elsewhere at LMU) have an online reservation system, as shown here.  The student/faculty/staff member asks for the room and their name appears on it for their time, such as "Jane Student & Colleagues, Econ. 101".

The third floor contains archives and special collections.  I had the pleasure of meeting Christine Megowan, Special Collections Librarian and viewing a student-curated exhibit of movie memorabilia.  I asked Christine:  what advice do you have for anyone building a library in the round?  She said that noise carries a lot in a round structure, both between and among the group study spaces, for example.  She suggested paying close attention to sound insulation, baffles and other techniques to reduce echoes.  Changes were made based on student input regarding noise issues collected via Facebook.  Like all libraries, LMU must balance the desires of students to collaborate (often loudly) with solo researchers' need for silence.  Compatible scheduling is important, as evidenced by a poetry reading being put next door to a student games night, for example (ouch). 

Thanks to Christine and her colleagues for sharing their "showpiece" library with me.