After meeting with more than 30 students last week about the possibility of ending McKeldin Library’s late-night study, Interim Dean of Libraries Desider Vikor said he had “a fuller appreciation” of the service.
“I think I have a fuller understanding and appreciation of the concerns of the students and in particular, the value they associate with the late-night study service,” said Vikor, who took over July 1 as interim dean of libraries.
However, a final decision on the future of late-night study can only be made by Provost Nariman Farvardin, who is currently out of the state. Interim Associate Provost Mahlon Straszheim could not say what Farvardin’s decision would be but said the decision would be made before the end of the summer.
Library officials told late-night study’s student employees last month they should find other jobs in case the university cut the library’s 11 p.m. to 8 a.m. hours of operation. Word quickly spread on Facebook and by word of mouth that administrators were considering that option.
The university is looking to trim costs to pay for pricier journal subscriptions. A recent report said the libraries have a resource crisis.
In response to an onslaught of student e-mails protesting any decision to end late-night study, university officials organized a public forum, held last Thursday, during which students spoke about the usefulness of a refuge from rowdy dorms and off-campus power outages and of the necessity of 24-hour availability of reference works and software applications.
“It’s a place I can go where I don’t have to worry about distractions,” said sophomore mechanical engineering major Zev Schramm.
But although the students present at the forum demonstrated strong support of late-night study, none of the university officials present will make the final decision on whether or not the service will continue. That man, Provost Nariman Farvardin, is out of town. Vikor, Libraries Public Services Director Tanner Wray and Interim Associate Provost Mahlon Straszheim will communicate their impressions of the meeting to Farvardin.
Student Government Association President Jonathan Sachs said later that the provost’s presence would have helped calm some students who were sharply critical of the officials who were not authorized to give them the answers they wanted.
Students also criticized the three officials present after they said they had never gone to late-night and wouldn’t reveal library attendance figures or the cost savings estimates.
“You don’t know how many people go there, you don’t know how much it would save, and none of you have ever been there. Don’t you think that’s an odd way of making a decision?” asked sophomore English and government and politics major Malcolm Harris.
The question was one of many stated during a public forum that university officials had intended to be their own fact-finding mission about student use of the library. However, Sachs said the forum seemed more like a press conference, with the students asking hard-hitting questions and criticizing officials when they felt their questions hadn’t been answered.
“There’s a lot of frustration about the entire issue,” Sachs said. “Naturally, that was going to come out during the forum. Naturally, a lot of people are skeptical because this seemed – as much as there’s been controversy on it – that the only way anybody found out about this was through a leak.”
There had been no public announcement that university officials were considering discontinuing late-night study, and they had only publicized last Thursday’s forum in personal responses to e-mails. Most students, however, said they were there because of the 703-member “Save McKeldin Library’s Late Night Study” Facebook group and slammed officials for what they considered “secrecy” surrounding the entire proceedings, which Vikor apologized for.
“I would have handled this differently if I had a better sense of how students were with respect to late-night,” he said. He later asked, in apparent earnest, “Could one of you tell me what studying is like within residential facilities?” meeting widespread laughter and dozens of raised hands.
At one point, Straszheim said he had heard enough from students to communicate to Provost Farvardin, when someone proposed another forum during the school year.
“I don’t feel I need to listen to 200 more students,” he said. “Many of you have spoken with the same voice. We have gotten the message.”
He could not say what Farvardin’s decision would be but said the decision would be made before the end of the summer.
But students were already planning ahead for the possibility of late-night study ending. Some said they would do sit-ins at the library, refusing to leave at 11 p.m.
“It’s not going to go down easy. When the fall comes, and if late night is not there, there are going to be people protesting,” said one student. “If you’re going to keep giving us answers that aren’t answers, you’re going to have to deal with the backlash.”
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