Library Hours: Open 24/7?
Kelle Craft
Mrs. Nyawalo
English 1101
29 October 2012
Library 24/7: To Be Or Not To Be Open
Many universities in today’s society have their share of problems, but sometimes the problems affect the students even more. At Shawnee State University (SSU), and other schools as well, the students tend to struggle on many issues. Some students have problems with fighting diversity that schools try to maintain. Others have issues with rising tuition rates and other fees that make college hard to afford. Deciding whether to live on or off campus, which classes to take, or even deciding to get a job or not, but I think one major problem that lies within especially SSU’s policies are the hours of our library. School libraries are made to serve the student, allowing them to work in peace and quiet on homework, projects, research, and other school activities, which should not change during any time of the day. If we ask students if they are able to finish his/her work in the allotted time, one may say, “Sure, of course, the library helps me to complete my work,” which may be great, but what about the students that do not get their work completed before the library closes? What are they to do? For some universities around America, keeping the library available to the students whenever necessary is not a problem. At schools like the University of Tennessee, the Ohio State University, Duke, Kent State and many other schools have libraries open 24/7. As mentioned before, the policies that the libraries support should not change throughout the day just because it becomes late. At SSU, the hours of Clark Memorial Library are actually quite pathetic. Every weekday, it opens at 8am. Monday through Thursday it closes at 11pm and on Friday, it closes at a disappointing 5 pm. On Saturdays, the shortest period in the entire week where one can access the library, it opens at 10am and closes early again at 6pm. Sunday it opens at noon and closes at midnight, making this the latest
Mrs. Nyawalo
English 1101
29 October 2012
Library 24/7: To Be Or Not To Be Open
Many universities in today’s society have their share of problems, but sometimes the problems affect the students even more. At Shawnee State University (SSU), and other schools as well, the students tend to struggle on many issues. Some students have problems with fighting diversity that schools try to maintain. Others have issues with rising tuition rates and other fees that make college hard to afford. Deciding whether to live on or off campus, which classes to take, or even deciding to get a job or not, but I think one major problem that lies within especially SSU’s policies are the hours of our library. School libraries are made to serve the student, allowing them to work in peace and quiet on homework, projects, research, and other school activities, which should not change during any time of the day. If we ask students if they are able to finish his/her work in the allotted time, one may say, “Sure, of course, the library helps me to complete my work,” which may be great, but what about the students that do not get their work completed before the library closes? What are they to do? For some universities around America, keeping the library available to the students whenever necessary is not a problem. At schools like the University of Tennessee, the Ohio State University, Duke, Kent State and many other schools have libraries open 24/7. As mentioned before, the policies that the libraries support should not change throughout the day just because it becomes late. At SSU, the hours of Clark Memorial Library are actually quite pathetic. Every weekday, it opens at 8am. Monday through Thursday it closes at 11pm and on Friday, it closes at a disappointing 5 pm. On Saturdays, the shortest period in the entire week where one can access the library, it opens at 10am and closes early again at 6pm. Sunday it opens at noon and closes at midnight, making this the latest
Cited: Curry, A. "Opening Hours: The Contest between Diminishing Resources and a 24/7 World." TheJournal of Academic Librarianship 29.6 (2003): 375-85. Print. Laaker, Sarah. "Keeping the Doors Open: Exploring 24-Hour Library Access at Washington University in St. Louis." Library, Information Science and Technology Abstracts with Full Text. EBSCO, Dec. 2011. Web. 23 Oct. 2012. <http://ehis.ebscohost.com/eds/detail?vid=2&hid=5&sid=c65aaa20-40fd-417f-85fb- c626760b49da%40sessionmgr4&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWRzLWxpdmU%3d#db=lih&AN= 70050475>. Schuker, Daniel J. T. "Students Demand Longer Library Hours." The Harvard Crimson. N.p., 5 Jan. 2005. Web. 27 Oct. 2012. <http://www.thecrimson.com/article/2005/1/5/students-demand-longer- library-hours-when/>. Shawnee State University Website.