Student Senate plants trees, tours library

This week, the Student Senate meeting was moved to the Reta King Library, as senate members were taken on a tour around the main and basement floors. Some members were a little tired, as they had arrived right after participating in “100 trees for 100 years.” The project made much headway on Monday, but is still in progress.

Milton Wolf, library director and Shawn Hartman, library assistant director of public services, led the tour. Senate members were led around the main floor, while premature plans for library renovations were described to them.

Wolf explained that the east side of the main floor will be an area for the teachers to convene and work on their items of business. However, the students will be able to mingle with the professors and maybe even help them with some technological issues as well.

On the opposite side, students will be provided with new, movable furniture and periodicals will sit on chest-high shelves for readers to browse. The main floor will be a place for students to socialize with a bit of studying, and those who mainly want to study will be provided with accommodations on the second floor. Another addition will be a coffee shop, located just past the elevator on the west side.

A coffee shop once resided in the King Library, but due to the fact that bonus bucks were not accepted, business was not sufficient to keep running. Hartman said that they would like to incorporate the library’s coffee shop into student’s meal plans, making it more financially possible for students to purchase items from the coffee shop. Vending machines containing both food and drinks will also be provided for students to use as an alternate to the coffee shop.

There will also be an art gallery on the main floor, filled with artwork from Memorial hall. There is enough artwork to rotate out every four to six weeks, keeping a constant variety in the library, Wolf said.

Both Wolf and Hartman stressed the fact that the library renovations are meant for the students. “The main goal of this is to make it as student friendly as possible,” said Wolf. They both encourage students to visit and voice their opinions on what they would like to see happen before renovations begin. Wolf also encouraged people to work together in order to see change occur.

“Your voice can be heard if you speak together,” Wolf said.