Over the Summer: New Study Spaces

New second floor seating

While crews are obviously making preparations for some major construction work on top of the library, a number of separately funded improvements were made inside the library over the summer to make the lower floors of the building an even better place to study.

Specifically, all the old wooden carrel seating on the first and second floors was replaced by new, more comfortable and functional furniture similar to that provided in the popular 3rd floor Selley Study Commons, which was opened in Fall 2011. Today in the first floor stacks area, students will find 26 new seats in double carrels along the front-facing windows of the building. On the second floor, they’ll find 88 new seats in clusters of 4 units each. On both floors each new workspace is separated from its neighboring unit by a 5-ft high facing divider and a 3-ft high divider to the side.

All the new workspaces have individual power outlets and lighting. Wireless access to the Tulane network is available throughout the building.

A critical component in the plans to add to more floors to the library building is that the contractor must make provisions for the library to remain in continuous operation during the construction period. Any interior work required on the lower floors must be staged to reduce disruption or noise, and work involving noise or building vibration will be curtailed during exams. Moreover, on workdays no construction work is expected after 5 pm.