Cumberlands Plan on New Library or New "Learning Center?"

            

An exterior look at the old University of the Cumberlands Library. Photo Credits: University of the Cumberlands

       
           The University of the Cumberlands has been slowly renovating the campus over the years, especially concerning dorms and athletic facilities, however one facility that has been slightly controversial are the new plans for the library. The student body can agree that the library needs an upgrade with the material that is stored there, the facilities, and student study areas. What is unexpected is that the college is planning on making the library more of a “hang-out” area than a new improved place to obtain research information and to study. 

            The plans for the library are written in an article by The Sentinel Echo called, “Cumberlands receives $5 million grant for 21^st Century Learning Center,” which stated, “The proposed architectural design…includes a first floor filled with technology booths, a coffee bar and café, computer areas, rooms for quiet study, and a portion of the library’s media collection. The concept plan for the second floor includes the bulk of the library’s collection, in addition to a couple classrooms and plenty of seating and study areas.”

            One of the largest means for concern for the library’s new updates are in the fact that a large amount of the books that were once in the library will no longer be there. Samantha Rayburn, a work study at the library, said that a majority of the books the library has kept since the move from the old library to Luecker include: reference books, children’s books, books written before the 1900s, and yearbooks. This is of concern, because though digital databases are available, there’s something about physically turning pages in a book and being able to walk down through columns that should be kept in future libraries to come. If the college were to have gotten rid of some of the books students do not use that are also not collectables and they replace those books with books students will use, then that would be a different situation. 

            Another point for concern is the idea that in the plans for the library, there is a plan to put in another coffee shop. There’s nothing like drinking coffee and reading a good book or studying, but the campus already has a Starbucks where students can get coffee all day long on meal swipes. If the college were to plan a different, healthier option into the library, like a fresh fruit smoothie bar, that would benefit the college more than another coffee shop to waste a whole meal swipe. The college already has a problem with unhealthy food options, so this new option would be healthier. In addition, if smoothies were prepared in advance then students would not have to wait in long lines, and they would be easy to eat while on the go or studying.        

   

A digital rendering of what the new library will look like once completed. Photo Credits: The University of the Cumberlands Alumni Facebook Page

     
            Finally, the last reason for concern about the new library plan is that the college is stressing more than any other aspect of the library that it will be a fun, new study area for students with “21^st century” accommodations. This is good, because the old library was very hard to study in with its uncomfortable chairs and low tables, but the Cumberlands needs to also think about how students will study, instead of solely focusing on where they will study. Then the library would be able to furnish students with study tools that they may need like physical books. According to The Univerisity of the Cumberlands Alumni Facebook Page, this was all “Because of a $5 million grant from the Grover Hermann Foundation…” If the college was gifted $5 million, they should be able to equally focus on student study areas and physical study tools for students.

The new college library is definitely a reason to be excited for the upcoming years as a Cumberlands student. The updates will be something to look forward to, so that students can go to a place to study while also having the equipment to do so. If the University of the Cumberlands could look at what they already have, what they do not have, and what students need, then they would be able to make better more equitable decisions on how the new library should be built.