By Kailan Manandic in Life
Clark officials are developing plans to make Cannell Library more functional for students.
Dean of Libraries Michelle Bagley said Clark officials recognized the need to modernize the building and formed a planning committee that has been working to improve the library’s current space.
“We want to potentially expand the library and accommodate these issues,” Bagley said.
The committee consists of faculty representatives from student affairs, IT services and almost every other academic department. “We tried to make sure that we were getting input from people who use the library,” Bagley said.
The committee’s goal is to study how the students use the building.
“This part of the planning stage is to inform us what kind of spaces we need to plan,” Bagley said.
Psychology Instructor Mika Maruyama, a member of the committee, said, “My goal is to make a more friendly environment for students.”
Geography Instructor Heather McAfee is working with the committee to map the current space. McAfee’s students will be participating in a “ReImagine and ReDesign our Library” project this term.
“They will be mental mapping, interviewing and researching how the space is being used and could be used better,” McAfee said.
The students’ projects will directly influence the library remodeling plan. “They will use the students’ ideas to inform some of their concrete planning,” Bagley said.
Once the plan is established, President Bob Knight and the Clark College Foundation will raise funds for the project. “That’s something we don’t have yet,” Bagley said. “We need to have a plan in place to know how much money we would need to raise.”
It is likely that students will still be able to access library resources once construction begins.
“Based on my experiences with other library directors, we will either move the library functions to a different place or adapt the library space to be constructed in phases,” Bagley said.
The committee hopes to have the remodeling plan in place within the year for the administration to review. While it is unclear when remodeling construction will begin, “the library building is on Clark’s facilities master plan for modernization,” Bagley said.
