Purpose & Goals

This paper addresses the issue of college students’ utilization of an academic library building space for individual and group study and related activities after the impact of COVID-19. In the 2018–19 academic year, elements of ethnographic research were employed by librarians at Emporia State University, Emporia, Kansas to learn more about the use of the William Allen White Library building in terms of its physical space and to obtain quantitative and qualitative evidence for future library building projects. The COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020 negatively affected the numbers of patrons using the physical library building for several years, and it has only been in the 2023-24 academic year that the WAW Library has seen a gate count increase in patrons entering and exiting the building. In addition, the Kansas Board of Regents adopted in June 2021 a policy framework for its universities, including Emporia State University, to report annually on campus building space utilization efficiencies. As a result, the initial 2018–19 study was replicated in 2023–24 by librarians in order to identify possible changes in the last five years in students’ library space preferences for research, recreation, and other aspects of academic life.

Design & Methodology

The 2023–24 project employed a mixed-methods approach that replicated much of the original research design while adding one element. The study received ESU Institutional Research Board approval in September 2023. A literature review in Summer 2023 by the co-researchers reviewed published library and information science journal articles about library building space research following the COVID-19 pandemic. In Fall 2023, an online survey was provided to ESU students to establish their familiarity with and use of the library’s four floors, decks, and the 24/7 Library Learning Commons. The survey contained the same questions as an online survey in the first study. There were 324 respondents to the second survey, an increase of 77% from the 248 respondents to the first study. Individual interviews and focus groups of students were conducted in Fall 2023 and Spring 2024 to gain insight into those students’ use or non-use of the library building. The new element in the 2023-24 study was a face to face focus group who participated in an adapted design charrette of library floor models to offer collaborative suggestions for rearrangements of furniture, tables, and other movable items. In February 2024, questions on whiteboards on the four floors and the Library Learning Commons were rotated weekly, asking students about furniture, lighting, noise levels, and related factors to their decisions to use those spaces. Finally, unobtrusive observations were conducted in Spring 2024 in two week intervals at assigned times on the floors and the Learning Commons. Floor plans were employed to map patrons’ preferred gathering spots in these areas. The Learning Commons and 1st floor, both open to ESU students as 24/7 spaces, were also checked at midnight in the unobtrusive observations to see how those spaces were used by students after the rest of the library building was closed.

Findings

Preliminary qualitative and quantitative data indicate that the library building is perceived by ESU students as a quiet and relaxing place for study and research. Students indicated quite often that they value the physical surroundings of the floors to reinforce their focus upon their classwork as opposed to distractions in their apartments or residence hall rooms. The survey and charrette activity revealed that students prefer movable furniture such as small tables and chairs that they can rearrange to create their own customized study spaces. Input from students who live locally in Emporia but do not use the library building showed that these students tend to stay where they are once their face to face classes are finished and they have returned to their homes. A significant finding, similar to the 2018–19 study, is that student activity in the library building increases in the late afternoons and early evenings, but this activity is not necessarily correlated with the need for research assistance. Instead, students are seeking a place for individual and group work and the 24/7 areas of the Learning Commons and the 1st floor remain popular as a result.

Action & Impact

The co-researchers will compare all results of the 2023–24 project to data from the 2018–19 project in order to evaluate longitudinal changes. Next, they will collaborate with the librarians and the Dean of the ESU Libraries and Archives to determine priorities for updates and rearrangements in furniture, lighting, and other easily customizable items on the library floors and the Learning Commons. The Dean will also share the study’s findings and conclusions with administrators such as the Provost and Vice President of Academic Affairs, the Vice President of Student Life, the Vice President for Enrollment Services, and the Director of Facility Planning for long-term considerations of library building remodelings.

Practical Implications & Value

In a time of expanded competition among colleges and universities for residential student enrollment, the academic library as a whole is also challenged to demonstrate its value to and its impacts upon student enrollment, recruitment, and retention. This research, especially since it encompasses quantitative and qualitative evidence from students pre- and post-COVID, contributes to the library community’s greater understanding of student attitudes and beliefs about physical library building spaces. In addition, the Kansas Board of Regents’ policy framework concerning campus building space utilization efficiencies is not unique to this state. Both public and private universities increasingly are asked to justify uses and expenses in physical building maintenance. Library assessment research which draws upon students’ input can assist greatly to illustrate to administrators the positive influence of the academic library upon student success.