This is a very good suggestion. When library facilities manager and the computer support team manager read it, they put their full support behind it. They are now seeking funding to upgrade these outlets. The work has not yet been scheduled, but the replacement of the two-prong plugs with three-prong plugs on the first floor of the Purdy/Kresge Library should be forthcoming. More information about this will be posted to this blog as it becomes available.

The old two-prong plugs in the first floor study areas of the Purdy/Kresge Library were converted to three-prong plugs during December 2007 and were ready for use at the beginning of the Winter 2008 semester.

Our cleaning staff works very hard to keep the library buildings clean. To assist them in their work, the University Libraries has also instituted some new policies and re-emphasizing other policies of long standing.
No beverage may be brought or consumed in any of our Libraries unless it is in a covered container. There is a strict no eating policy in effect in the Neef Law, the Purdy/Kresge, and the Science and Engineering Libraries as well as on the third floor of the Undergraduate Library. In those areas in which our customers may eat, there is a strict policy against eating at Library computer workstations.

But let’s be frank. Almost 2,000,000 visits were paid to the University Libraries last year. Unless the WSU community comes to the realization that keeping the Libraries clean is a responsibility they share with the library staff, we will be fighting a losing battle. At present, far too many people feel they can simply walk away from their messes and someone else will clean them up. The student community needs to assert some positive peer pressure.

This also affects the staff working in the libraries so you can be certain we try to adjust building temperatures whenever they go awry. The truth of the matter is that heating and cooling large public buildings is very tricky. These problems are even worse in the older building, which have been reconfigured and remodeled in ways that were unanticipated when the climate control systems were designed. The Library Building Coordinators work closely with the building engineers asking them to tweak and adjust the equipment and, with luck, create more pleasant environments. Recently, there have been some significant upgrades to library heating and cooling systems, and we anticipate further upgrades in the future.

Our mission is to provide our students and faculty with libraries where they will want to spend time. We are continually involved in projects to make the buildings more comfortable, safe, and appealing.

One of our major projects in this area took place last summer. With generous support from the Provost, we were able to recarpet the first floor of the Purdy/Kresge Library. We also took advantage of this recarpeting to make some other major changes. In the Kresge wing, we shifted the serials collection to the second floor and transformed the first floor into a quiet study area. On the Purdy side, we shrunk the size of our reference collection and repositioned furniture to provide as much study space as possible. One benefit of this is that we are now taking full advantage of the natural light available through the many windows in both the Kresge and Purdy wings.

Last academic year, the lighting on the first floor of Purdy was also completely refurbished, and we created a comfortable and well lit study area on the second floor of Purdy.