FHSL’s Move to Begin in June
With classroom construction scheduled to begin in the Medical Sciences building on June 15, Fordham’s last official day to be open to the public will be Friday, June 12. At that time, Fordham’s course reserves, reference, and AV collections will be moved to the Dunbar Library. Over the summer, Fordham’s computers will be moved to Dunbar and will be ready for use beginning fall quarter. Fordham’s book collection will be relocated to Dunbar over the next 12-14 months; in the meantime, books can be requested using the Library’s online catalog and then picked up at Dunbar Library the following day. Throughout this transition, our goal is to maintain all library services with as little disruption and inconvenience as possible to our library users.
I think that the consolidation of the two libraries doesn’t seem probable whatsoever. The reasons hat I visit the Fordham Library are for reasons that Dunbar cannot and will not possibly accomodate. Dunbar is a pleasant place to be if you want to use a computer, meet your tutor or have a study group, but for studying purposes, nowhere can compare to Fordham. The service at Fordham can’t be found at any other place on campus too. Solomon and the other employees, including most of the student workers, will stop anything they are doing to assist me in any way that they can. I never have to bring my headphones to drown out the noise like at Dunbar, because there is next to none.
I just don’t understand how all of the books will fit in Dunbar. It seems pretty packed as it is. I’ve also passed an archives in the basement by the study rooms. I don’t know how large that is but where will they go? Are they planning to turn some of the 24hr computer labs to silent study rooms? From what I understand, those are used way too much for that. How will I be able to find a Course Reserves book when all I know is that it is green? At Fordham, they would be able to find it where I feel that consolidation would just make our Medical books even harder to find and use.
I have a lot more to say and I know from talking to others that I am definately NOT the only one. I think that a e-mail should NOT be required. It’s stopping people from saying anything. It’s pointless to have a blog when everyone is afraid to blog in it.
Thanks for sharing your concerns. Many of these have been on our minds as well. In terms of study environment, please know that we are working to create additional quiet study areas in Dunbar. For example, we have recently designated Room 315 for “silent study” every Sun-Thurs after 6 p.m.
Physically consolidating the Fordham and Dunbar collections is a challenge. That is why we are allowing 12-14 months to completely move Fordham’s books and journals to Dunbar. During this time, collections at both libraries will be evaluated, and older and infrequently used items may be permanently removed from the collection or sent to our depository where they can be retrieved as needed. The archives that you noticed in the Fordham basement will remain in their current location at this time.
We are glad to know that you have been so well served by staff at Fordham, and we believe that you will find ALL of our staff members to be equally helpful as the libraries are consolidated. All course reserves will be available through the Dunbar circulation desk, and I’m confident that any staff member there will be glad to help you.
Please know that in response to your suggestion, we are making the email address optional on all replies.
what a rotten idea. It’s a sad day for Wright State. How do the accreditation folks feel about this?
We anticipate that we will continue to meet all accreditation criteria. For example, the Liaison Committee on Medical Education that defines the standards for accreditation of medical education programs states that a medical school must have: space for student use, including student study space, and space and equipment for library and information access. It also states that there should be physical and electronic access to leading biomedical, clinical and other relevant resources and professional staff to supervise library and information services. Although the library consolidation poses challenges for us, we will continue to provide all of the requirements outlined by the different accreditation organizations that assess WSU’s many programs.
I wish Fordham had been considered for inclusion in the medical school during the renovation of Fred White. The librarians at Fordham are extremely helpful in navigating the often overwhelming medical literature. Fordham Library has been an integral part of my medical education at Wright State. I hope there will be a special section at Dunbar with the medical journals and references as well as access to the reference librarians who know the medical databases and journals we use. The medical school has made major advances in recent years with a new building and improvements in our curriculum, but the loss of our medical library is a major step backward.
For the record, I’d like to say that the staff at Forham has always been excellent and helpful. In particular, Brian Olesko provided valuable guidance in using the research tools available at Fordham in my three years of graduate training in psychology thus far.
I agree with the many others that it is a shame that Fordham Library is closing. The location is convenient as it is close to where the graduate psychology classes are offered and it is not a far walk from some of the less crowded parking lots. The staff are always helpful and I particularly have found the services that Brian Olesko contributes to be extremely valuable in terms of helping me navigate search engines and sift through the massive amounts of information that are out there. I have also appreciated having a quiet study space that is available 24 hours, and one in which you can find an empty place to sit, which is unlike my experiences at Dunbar.