Thursday, November 29, 2012

Library Renovation Updates!

Library Renovation Update

By Caitlyn Morris ‘14

Chatham Hall’s latest and exciting endeavor has officially been put into motion: a completely revamped library! Last year, a group of faculty met to discuss changing the library tin a way that would integrate technology effectively, promote Chatham Hall’s sense of community by incorporating collaborative study, but not lose the library “feel”. At one of the meetings, three students volunteered their ideas to the discussion. With simply a blueprint and some plastic, color-coded chips, the students and the faculty worked together to restructure how the library would function, allowing for group study areas, quiet study areas, places for books and computers, and a small café to top it off. Once the meeting was over Dr. Spearman immediately went to work to find books that hadn’t been checked out in years, piled them up, and sold them to the Chatham Hall community. Meanwhile, the faculty involved were picking out versatile furniture to allow for dynamic study spaces such as “potato-chip chairs” and movable white boards.

So much has already changed in the library: the Rector’s Room has been turned into the Pub room for Columns and into the design lab, empty bookshelves have been moved out and replaced with desks and chairs, and our Young Adult reading section is growing as more and more students offer suggestions to Ms. Stenzel and recommend books to their fellow classmates. The atmosphere in the library has also somehow changed. Instead of a constantly quiet place of individual study, it has now become a more open place for students to work together to learn more effectively. This is an exciting new improvement that will go through changes in phases and will finally embody what Chatham Hall is all about: learning together as a close-knit community.

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