When Marywood University opens its new library, most of the books will not be visible.
School officials are finalizing plans for a building that will be called the "Learning Commons." The new structure, which will be adjacent to the current library, will feature a cafe, group study areas and plenty of spots to charge electronics. And 98 percent of books will not be on shelves visible to students, said Jim Frutchey, the library's interim director.
A groundbreaking is tentatively scheduled for spring, with an opening expected for 2015. Total cost has not yet been determined, said Kenny Luck, university spokesman.
Planning for the library has been a multiyear process, with the construction scheduled after several years of poor rankings by the Princeton Review. In 2011, the company ranked the university as having the 20th-worst college library in the nation.
More than 10 years of research on how students study and use libraries has been used in the planning, Mr. Luck said. The library will be located between the current library, called the Learning Resources Center, and the university's Memorial Commons.
"It will be intellectual and social space for the campus," Mr. Luck said.
Even the name for it - the "Learning Commons" instead of library - will hopefully evoke a different image, Mr. Luck said.
Instead of rows of bookshelves, the books will be located within an automatic storage and retrieval system. Students will be able to use a computer or other electronic device to access the library's catalog and then order a book, which will be automatically brought to a main desk, Mr. Frutchey said.
Various sizes of group work rooms will be open to students, and students will be able to buy food in the building's cafe and take it to spaces designated for group or quiet study. Many windows will provide natural light.
The building will also hold classrooms, the university's honors college, office of information technology and tutoring program.
"It's not just a library," Mr. Frutchey said. "It's a learning commons."
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