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Dear Friends of the UCLA Library,
As we welcome Bruins to campus for a new academic year, Library leadership has begun to consider and plan for how best to leverage Library spaces to enhance the overall UCLA educational experience. Post- and mid-pandemic, we’ve observed how people’s use of our buildings has shifted, and this presents an opportunity for us to think about making changes. The pandemic also set in motion a shift to remote and hybrid work for some staff and accelerated the creation, acquisition, and use of digital resources, which also requires dedicated space.
Just as our collections meet different user needs, so to do our Library spaces. People may visit our libraries looking for a quiet place to work independently, while at other times of the day, they may seek smaller semi-private spaces for a study group, or they may want to collaborate over coffee at Café 451. Faculty may want to teach using primary source materials that require rooms with specialized equipment; a student group may need a conference room for an event.
What types of spaces do our students, faculty and staff need most, post- and mid-pandemic? How can we design flexible, agile spaces that can be adapted for new technologies and temporary or new uses? What Library programs need additional space to grow?
To better guide us in answering these important questions, the Library is commencing a space planning study with external experts this fall. We will begin by looking at spaces and operations within the Charles E. Young Research Library, including opportunities to expand both the East Asian Library and Library Special Collections.
The future of our Library spaces ultimately will be defined by the needs of our Bruin community and our quest to move knowledge forward. I thank you for your continued support and partnership in this important endeavor.
With warm regards,
Virginia Steel
Norman and Armena Powell University Librarian