Can A Library Make Or Break A College Experience?

Kelly Alice Robinson, who works at the Career Center Library at Boston College, tells all prospective college students one undeniable truth: "The library is the backbone of a college or university's academic environment."

Students who are undecided about a university are prompted to spend time in their potential library. Can they imagine themselves in this environment for the next four years? Stereotypically, no one really thinks that a library could make or break their college experience, but as Temple University's dean of libraries, it is Joe Lucia's job to understand.

Six years ago, when Mr. Lucia came to Temple specifically for the task of helping with the new library, he knew one thing: he wanted the building to be an "inspirational space" to foster creativity in Temple's students. He wanted them to be able to easily identify Charles Library as a welcoming, go-to study space.

When you think of an ordinary library, the first images that come to mind are dull buildings, endless shelves of books, and cranky librarians telling even the smallest whisper to hush. This description perfectly fits Temple University's old, outdated Paley Library. Paley, with its dim lighting and many staircases, is the perfect embodiment of the stereotypical library of the past.

"Temple [was] probably one of the only universities of its size in the country that hadn't either substantially renovated or built a new library from 1966 to the present," Mr. Lucia explained, "So there was a feeling that we should start from scratch and build something for the 21st century."

Mr. Lucia and his team spent most of 2013 speaking to faculty, students, and others about what the new library should be in relation to the traditional one. They listened and valued feedback, hearing from key constituents that they still wanted the library to have books, but they wanted it to do much more.

"...So we ended up with the decision to put all the things in Paley in the new building, but really compress the storage by using a high-density storage system," said Lucia.

And thus, the Bookbot retrieval system, the real star of the show, was born. The Bookbot is a small robot that pulls books requested by students from Charles' large collection of stored away books. For the first few days of the fall semester, the robot consumed social media and conversations throughout campus by faculty and students alike.

Mr. Lucia watches every day as students bask in the new building, equipped with stunningly innovative architecture, advanced technology, and a friendly atmosphere. He knows that this is not just a building, but a precedent for what all libraries should be like.

Mr. Lucia, the expert on all things library, can answer any questions related to this project. But how exactly does Charles Library affect Temple's students, and what does its existence mean for the future of the university? Not only is this massive, communal space beneficial to students, but it has paved the way for Temple University's campus-wide reformation to begin. From the skywalk at the business school, to the new quad on the horizon, Temple's administration is utilizing student and faculty opinions to attract future owls.

Charles has put Temple back on the map. Mr. Lucia's expertise in speaking about the library stems from the fact that a large portion of his recent time is dedicated to attending conferences and speaking about Charles Library's design and construction as well as its "genesis". "The library is gaining a lot of national attention," Lucia explained. Even though Temple originated as a university for commuters and night students, the renovations have proven that the school is stepping up its game for its students.

At the end of the day, Mr. Lucia reminds himself that everything he is doing is for the students of Temple. He often relays that "Charles is not finished, because we always will take into account the feedback that the students will give us."