In August, Grambling State University, in Louisiana, made history when it opened its state-of-the-art, 50,000 square foot digital library, making it the first Historically Black College and University (HBCU) and first institution in Louisiana to have such a facility. The library has 150 computer stations, 17,000 square feet of study space and multipurpose space for events, meetings and seminars.
This massive, innovative project was more than five years in the making, overseen by the university's first Dean of the Digital Library and Learning Commons, Adrienne C. Webber, who has more than two decades of experience managing libraries and information innovation.
“We've often at our HBCUs been underfunded, but we have expectations placed on our institutions to perform at a level that we're not funded for or our students are expected to have the same outcomes, but they've not had the same types of resources that other institutions have had,” says Webber. “That fuels me to want to have an environment like this so that our students will now see that it is attainable to study in an environment just like they see at [predominantly white institutions (PWIs)].”
Vision
“This project was important because in the HBCU world we needed … to step out and do something different, do something that many institutions have not done, to build what would be a digital library that's meeting the needs of our students,” says Webber, whose dream was to build a library that truly served student needs.
The Digital Library and Learning Commons, says Webber, transforms how students acquire information. It was designed to not be in the same configuration all the time, so it gives students the opportunity to be fluid in how they set up their work environments. This allows students to have their study space be reflective of how they feel best.
There are no physical books, but rather, digital access to books and other materials. Digital resources enable students and faculty to have access to brand new materials as they are released.
The second floor of the library has a faculty-student collaboration center. There is an interactive classroom. The building also has exhibit space. There is maker space where students can conceive an idea, create it, investigate to make sure it is original, design it and produce it.
“Opportunities are growing here,” says Webber. “Other things are to come.”
Implementation
When Webber first heard that Grambling State University was considering a digital library, she knew she wanted to be a part of setting the standard of what digital libraries should have. She emphasized the benefits of a digital library, which puts Grambling students at the forefront of transformative education.
“Through our information literacy courses, the classes we have when faculty members request us to work with their programs, we teach students how to research information,” Webber says. “They're learning how to hone down. … We want them to come back with what is desired to complete the assignment.”
The only materials that the library will physically contain will be special collections. These include student theses and dissertations, newspapers, yearbooks and a special collection of books about African American history and life. Archival materials acquired and amassed by Grambling State University will also be housed there.
There are more than 15 group study rooms with smart boards and connectivity that accommodate up to six students each. Webber notes that the students can work collectively and collaboratively. The library even has a laptop vending machine for students whose computers may be having an issue, so they can borrow a computer for class.
Future
“I go to conferences because I want to see what the future looks like for libraries,” says Webber. “If I know what the future looks like, I can apply it in the environment that I'm in.”
Webber is well aware that everybody doesn't embrace change or think about change the way she does. So, she has become adept at speaking about it and showing how the proposed changes work. Grambling students have welcomed this change and feel the sense of purpose it brings them.
“We're preparing our students for what is to come,” says Webber. “Their instructors know what students will need when they leave the institution, so they are prepared at a different level.”
Webber is especially pleased for this year's seniors to experience this new digital library because they previously made do with a makeshift space. When students graduate from Grambling State University, they go into the work world or onto graduate school with a thorough command of sophisticated digital technology.
“I get the question all the time, ‘Are libraries still relevant?’ Absolutely,” Webber says. “I envision the future to be constantly moving. … You adapt to what's going on and you transform. The future for the Grambling State University Digital Library and Learning Commons is to be the kind of space that will adapt to the trends of learning styles, teaching styles and service models in education.
“We must be ready to transform so that our students will always be ready to meet the demands of society whatever their chosen major is,” she adds.