Survey Time!

Do you like us? Yes or Yes

If you haven’t had a chance to take the Library survey, take six minutes and help us help you: Take the Library Survey.  From now until April 24th, the annual library survey is your chance to suggest changes, recommend new services or collections, and/or lodge complaints about the temperature.

Not convinced it does any good?  Here’s a list of changes the library has made this year based on actual student, staff, and faculty comments on last year’s survey:

“Make it easier to know what rooms are available to be reserved for group study.

In the past, study room reservations were managed using old-fashioned, quaint methods like telephone reservation.  Last November, the library completely overhauled the reservation system and instituted the “Book It” online system.  Want to reserve a study room?  Click on a green square, log in, and now you’re done.  You receive an email confirmation of the booking, and your green square has now turned red, alerting other users that your room is now reserved.

Screenshot of Bookit

“EVERY survey EVERY year I ask that the library consider adding the HeinOnline database, which would benefit business, communication, history, and political science.”

We heard you, and now—until October 2017—we are running a trial of HeinOnline’s Government Politics and Law for Academics.  This database the world’s largest government documents and legal research database.  You can learn more about it here.

The library receives requests to add new databases all the time.  Sometimes we can accommodate, but sometimes we cannot (for a variety of reasons, cost being only one of them).  A trial is often an excellent way to gauge the databases that will be used heavily and those that may not meet the needs of the students, faculty, and staff as well as another, competitive database.  For example, we already subscribe to LexisNexis Academic, another large legal, business, and government document resource.  Is it better than HeinOnline?  You be the judge and tell us at Ask A Librarian.

“I would like to see more database access”

Say no more—the library has added several new databases in the past year, including many in STEM fields.  Here’s just a few:

“Open up more rooms for private study groups.”

We did it!  Adding more study rooms has been a top issue in just about every survey since we started making surveys.  In the past, the Library’s study rooms were often targeted as swing space for other departments while other buildings were under construction and the campus grew.  This year, with the removal of TRIO offices to the new Brown Building, we were able to reclaim some of our old study rooms, bringing the total number available to nine.  Thanks in part to your survey responses, the Library was able show how important these study rooms were to our students, thus saving them from further repurposing by outside offices.  Finally, the study rooms are back serving their original purpose: study rooms for the students.

“Tutoring available for all majors at the library, not Doc Bryan.”

Done.  The Library has partnered with the office of Student Success to host tutoring on the second floor of the Ross Pendergraft Library, each Thursday and Sunday night from 5-9 p.m.  Read more about it at Tech News or see the complete tutoring schedule from ATU Office of Student Success.

“Updated furniture. The atmosphere has much to do with how I learn, and I get distracted by the old, worn furniture.”

Yes!  We agreed.  That’s why, last January, the Library replaced most of the older computer chairs & floral patterned couches with newer, more functional, more attractive, and more comfortable seating.

“Perhaps add a few more computer stations.”

Coming soon!  The first floor is in the process of adding 12 additional computer stations.  Right now, the computer desks are there, but the computers are on the way.  Stay tuned!

“Make library always 24 hours”

We did this—a little bit.  The library still opens 24 hours during finals, and we’ve extended our hours during the week, until 1:00 AM.

We would love to extend our hours further, but, in order to do this, we need more staff, more safety, and more students taking advantage of the late hours we already offer.

But keep asking!  Let us know that this issue and other issues are important to you.  We may not be able to make the changes you want right now, but each voice helps guide our decisions and strengthen our requests to the campus administration.  Your opinions matters—and we are listening.  This is YOUR library so tell us how to make it better.

Tell Us!