Library Notes

March 18, 2006 marks ten years since the completion of the Galter Library’s $10 million renovation and expansion project. The renovation took two years of planning and a further two years of construction. For those of who us who lived through the experience, it still seems like yesterday. As the library continues to evolve, some of the original planning decisions have made it easy to keep pace with necessary changes.

What are some of the changes library staff and users have faced during the past ten years? Probably the biggest change is the realization that more and more of the library’s collections are now in digital format. Journal and book stacks continue to be weeded to make way for some growth in print books, but the vast majority of the journal collection is totally electronic and continues to expand. In 1996 the library had 2,100 journal subscriptions. Today, we claim over 3,000 titles, and our online journal list has climbed to over 4,500 items. In addition, our vision of the library being anywhere the user wants it to be is truly a reality today.

The old reference area, circa 1995, now the site of the current Learning Resources Center (LRC)
Photo: Galter Library

In the past ten years while the shift in publishing has moved to digital formats, the library has increased its role in the medical school and the university as an important people space. The Galter Library is now both classroom and research lab. The group study rooms serve as mini-classrooms for the MD curriculum and are in heavy use the rest of the time the library is open. Prior to the renovation, the library had fewer than 200 seats for medical, dental and graduate students. Today, with over 400 seats, the library is critical as a student space for study and research. Students still look to the library as a quiet place to work, but would prefer to see more and better seats and a greater variety of study options.

The newly-created Learning Resources Center (LRC)
Photo: Jon Miller, Hedrich Blessing

In the ten years since the library was renovated, the computer revolution has not abated. Technology continues to impact on library work and how users take advantage of the library’s collections and services. While the total number of staff has remained constant, the mix of professional and paraprofessional staff has shifted up and down over the past ten years, with a greater emphasis on staff who can support the library's technology needs. Staff tasks have changed dramatically. Today, staff members are developing services like the Health SmartLibrary that add value to the electronic information users seek from the library. Ten years ago Google and Yahoo did not exist; today, they and other free resources like PubMed and PubMed Central are critical to our daily professional lives.

Other changes that have occurred include the following:

Wireless access have been added to all the major areas of the library with the exception of the first and mezzanine level stacks.

More computers have been distributed throughout the library and have been upgraded three times since 1996.

The reference room is becoming more of a work and research area, while the Learning Resources Center (LRC) is becoming more of a study center.

The second floor is receiving new carpeting because the old has become a safety issue.

The library roof above the mezzanine stacks is finally being repaired. Several leaks have occurred over the years whenever Chicago receives a heavy snowfall. Fortunately, no materials have ever been damaged due to the leaks.

Photocopiers have dwindled from ten to four. The old second floor copy room is now a group study room. Printers are now more critical than copiers. The cost of printing and photocopying is being reduced due to better leasing contracts.

Reference work has shifted to more education programs. The old first floor photocopy room has been converted into a classroom to support small group instruction on using library resources and services and for learning about information management; it is equipped with laptop computers.

What do we think will happen to the library space in the future? Staff members continue to listen to students to learn how the library is used and what space issues are important to our users. Focus groups have been held in the past and more are planned for the coming year. As noted above, students want more and better seats. This issue will be added to future budget requests. Students also want more group study rooms, which is the one request that will be hardest to fulfill. As for more study options, the library staff, in conjunction with Office of Medical Education faculty, continues to study ways to provide a 24-hour space. Another plan under review is looking at how to provide better computerized instruction space. We also plan to re-organize the reference room in the coming year to better utilize the current shelving and furniture.

The Galter Library continues to change in positive ways well after completing its major renovation in 1996. The plans made ten years ago continue to serve us well as library staff work to adapt the library’s physical space to meet the needs of a new generation of students. Library staff plan on marking the renovation project’s tenth anniversary with special treats on March 17 in the library atrium: watch the Web site for details of that event. As always, comments and suggestions on how best to improve the library are most welcome.