A New Library/Learning Commons Is Coming
During FY2016, the University of Houston-Victoria began the process of selecting architects and contractors and developing floor plans for a new student center/library learning commons. The new commons, scheduled to open late fall 2018, will be located on Ben Wilson Street, directly across from the University Center.
New library and learning commons spaces are not designed to be warehouses for books. They are designed to emphasize other aspects of research, study, and learning. The new library and learning commons will be in the student center—a place envisioned to house the Student Success Center, Student Services department, as well as spaces for student government and student organizations. We are excited that preliminary floor plans of the new library space showcases our Maker Space, group study and collaboration rooms, while also embracing the traditional library paradigm of quiet, reflective study and reading areas.
Long-range planning of moving library collections, equipment, and services has begun within the library. The professional literature advises that the process cannot begin to soon. Libraries seldom move so there is no better time to evaluate collections and equipment. We are aware that not all of the collections will fit intact in the new space. Some will inevitably go to a storage facility also in the planning stages It is our chance to have the best and most used parts of our collections front and center with the less used things available on call if needed.
We have already communicated with faculty about our de-selection of VHS tapes and bound periodical backfiles. Most of the VHS collection was replaced with video streaming collections represented by Academic Video Online (AVON), Kanopy, and others. We removed bound periodicals that were duplicated by online resources.
As the Texas documents depository program was discontinued over 5 years ago, we evaluated that collection, selecting the best materials to save and merge with other collections and removing others.
In coming months we will be looking and microfilm and microfiche collections, evaluating them for future needs.
It is a long process - one that is not always easy to do - but we are building a stronger library for the future.
