The concept of an Information Commons (IC) is part of a national trend which has three objectives:
- First, focusing on the needs of undergraduates
- Second, providing a one-stop shopping experience for all types of information needs: library research, technology, and more, and
- Third, considering how and why we access and use information.
The Information Commons idea is also a response by libraries to the current trends of technology in higher education, globalization as it relates to information, e-learning, and the need for flexible hours by students.
In the past decade, librarians have observed that students need and expect to have
- A. spaces to meet and work together
- B. access to up-to-date technology
- C. the ability to communicate easily with friends, family, classmates, etc.
For universities to be competitive for students, these needs must be addressed.
The Loyola Information Commons project attempts to respond to these needs along with addressing a critical need for new library space. Our students ask for, and expect, more and better study space, more computers, more quiet areas, group work space, etc., in short, a better learning environment. Our proposed Information Commons will meet those needs in an architecturally stunning, technologically advanced facility which will be flexible, open, comfortable, and conducive to serious study and research.
The best way to explain what we are trying to accomplish is to describe what we call the Three C’s: Collaboration, Connectivity, and Community.
Learning is a social activity and a trend in higher education today is students working in groups: team learning, collaborative projects and presentations, study groups, etc. Students are both required to work together on class assignments and projects, and they like to study informally in groups with their friends.
Our response in the Information Commons is to provide spaces and tools to aid group work. Specifically, the Information Commons will include 35 group study rooms, numerous group computing work stations, several classrooms and seminar rooms, flexible furniture, and software packages aimed at facilitating collaboration.
B. Connectivity
Students today are multitaskers, in constant communication with others via their cell phones, email, and the Internet; plugged into music everywhere they go; playing video games alone and in groups; watching TV and videos, and DVDs; often simultaneously!
These are the Net Generation Students, or Millenials, most of which have very high levels of technological literacy and expect, among other things, that the university will provide anytime, anywhere high-speed internet access. This is something many schools offer, including universities in this area. For Loyola to be competitive, we need to do the same.
Therefore, our response in the Information Commons is to provide 300 internet-connected computers; offer wireless networking throughout the building; circulate 30-50 wireless laptops; provide a website or portal which connects users with a myriad of online library resources and technology tools; and offer services which facilitate connections with the world.
C. Community
Students need a place to gather which is not home (or their dorm room) or class or work. They want a comfortable, safe place to meet friends, to relax, to read, to study and conduct research, and to take part in any number of group activities of an informal nature.
Our response in the Information Commons is to offer a variety of seating areas and furniture to accommodate different study and reading habits and which encourage group interaction; provide a café for food, relaxation, and informal meetings; designate the third floor as a quiet study area including a no-computing reading room/study lounge; offer longer hours of operation; and have an area for gaming.
In the future, we will provide new services and equipment as technologies advance. The building is designed to be as flexible as possible, providing the perfect environment for our students to study, do research, and relax. We also plan to develop a parallel virtual library of electronic resources that can be accessed on-site or remotely.
The Information Commons will be a partnership between the University Libraries and Information Services (and perhaps other stakeholders in the future). Thus, the IC will bring together information seekers (students, faculty, staff) and information providers (librarians and technology specialists) in a synergistic relationship that will result in better service for students as their needs will be met quickly and more fully (without the “run around”) in one convenient, centrally-located facility. This is parallel to the one-stop-shopping concept embodied in the Sullivan Center. In the case of the Information Commons, this will be fulfilled in large measure at a central, Super Help Desk staffed by librarians and technology people, a place where all types of questions can be answered.
The Information Commons is just phase I of our library facilities master plan.
Phase II is the revisioning and remodeling of the Cudahy Library on the Lakeshore Campus. While the IC focuses on the needs of undergraduates, Cudahy in the future will focus on the needs of graduate students and faculty. Cudahy is outdated, inefficient, and lacking in quality study space. Work areas are run down and in need of reorganization. The building needs, in TV lingo, an “extreme makeover.” The Information Commons and the new Cudahy library will be physically linked and therefore should be considered one unified library facility serving all user needs on the Lakeshore Campus.
Phase III of the facilities plan will be the relocation and repurposing of the Lewis Library within 25 East Pearson. The space will be updated to meet 21st century needs and to better respond to the growing student population here at the Water Tower Campus.
These three projects together will position our libraries at the forefront of academic librarianship here in the first decade of the 21st century. The new facilities, along with an anticipated major boost in funding for collections, will give our students the necessary tools to succeed, to prepare them "to lead extraordinary lives."
