Dedication Ceremony * 11 a.m. March 25, 2013 * 2150 E Evans Ave * Weather permitting, the Celebration takes place outside the library entrance on the south side of the Anderson Academic Commons. In case of inclement weather, the ceremony will be indoors.

Speakers: Chancellor Coombe, Students Chloe Campbell and Sam Estenson, and University Libraries Dean, Nancy Allen

Free parking available at the Newman Center garage at the northeast corner of University Blvd and Wesley Ave, one block south of Iliff Avenue.

The following activities have been scheduled to help commemorate the opening of the Anderson Academic Commons.  Most are open to the public however some of the tours are tailored to a suggested audience.  Please rsvp for tours using the links provided.  All listed activities take place at the Anderson Academic Commons.

MONDAY, MARCH 25

• Mix-It-Up Registration: Campus-wide competition focused on healthy eating and sponsored by DU Human Resources. Learn more, register, and enter to win prizes. 10 am – 2 pm at the Front Porch Cafe (in the AAC).
• Undergraduate Student Tour, noon – 1 pm
• Graduate Student Tour, noon – 1pm
• General Audience Tour, noon – 1 pm
• Tour of Special (rare and valuable) Collections, 1 – 2 pm
• Preview of the Artists Books (works of art that are made by hand), 2-3 pm

TUESDAY, MARCH 26

• Technology Tour, 10-11 am
• Sustainability Tour, noon – 1 pm
• Undergraduate Student Tour, 4-5 pm
• Graduate Student Tour, 4-5 pm
• Undergraduate Student Government meeting 6 – 8 pm, Special Event Room, main level

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 27

• DU Faculty Tour, 9-10 am
• General Audience Tour, 10-11 am
• Technology Tour, 2-3 pm
• Arts, Humanities & Social Science Coffee Happy Hour at the Front Porch Cafe. AHSS faculty, staff and students are invited for free refreshments and an optional tour (at 3:30 pm) led by one of the AHSS librarians. No rsvp required.
• CME Faculty and Staff of Color Mixer, 5-8 pm, Special Event Room, main level  EVENT IS FULL

THURSDAY, MARCH 28

• University of Denver Staff Tour, 1-2 pm
• Tour of Artists Books (handmade books as works of art), 1-2 pm
• Tour of Exhibits “Mapping: From the Global to the Local,” 3-4 pm
• DUPB Screening of “Skyfall,” 8-10 pm, Special Event Room, Main level

FRIDAY, MARCH 29

• DU Faculty Tour, noon – 1 pm
• DUPB Screening of “Clue” 6-8 pm, Special Event Room, Main level
• Murder in the Stacks Scavenger Hunt (DU students only) 8-10 pm

For additional information, please contact Andrea Howland, External Relations Coordinator at Andrea.Howland@du.edu or 303-871-3958.

The University of Denver’s new library will be called the Anderson Academic Commons.  Besides traditional library services, a variety of academic support services will be co-located and collaborative with the library.  Exhibit spaces, events within an event area, and a restaurant with a spacious front porch, add to the amenities of this new facility.  We will no longer be called Penrose Library.  Instead, we will recognize the many contributions of the El Pomar Foundation, which was founded by Spencer and Julie Penrose, by naming the library’s collections, “The Penrose Collection” and acknowledging the collection name both in the Anderson Academic Commons and at the Hampden Center where some of the lesser-used materials are stored.  We are happy to celebrate our relationship with El Pomar by creating a permanent exhibit in the lower level of the Anderson Academic Commons to express appreciation to the El Pomar Foundation and to explain the important history the University of Denver shares with El Pomar and the Penrose family.  Like many individuals, the El Pomar Foundation generously supported the Academic Commons construction project.  El Pomar funded the library built forty years ago in this same heart-of-campus location, and helped the University of Denver achieve a level of success as an academic library with significant collection development that benefits not only current DU students, but countless patrons through our partner libraries with whom we share resources.  Statistics show that the University of Denver’s Penrose Library shares many more resources than we borrow from other lending libraries.  Just as the El Pomar gift helped elevate research and learning at DU during the last forty years, the Anderson gift will help transform the experience of DU students who will benefit from the Penrose Collection and high traffic academic support services in one beautiful, energy-efficient facility.  Come celebrate with us on March 25th!

The University of Denver received a naming gift from Boston venture capitalist and alumnus Ed Anderson and his wife, Linda Cabot.  The donation funds the University’s new library, the Anderson Academic Commons, an academic hub in the heart of campus, open March 25th.

Built on the site of the former Penrose Library, the Anderson Academic Commons will facilitate collaboration. It will house the Main Library, consisting of the Penrose Collection and traditional library services, as well as the library’s Research Center and Digital Media Center.  Further, the Academic Commons will house key high-use academic support services including the Writing Center and the Writing Program offices, the Math Center, the Technology help center and the University’s Office of Teaching and Learning.  The grouping of library collections and services with these academic success centers will facilitate cross-disciplinary interaction to increase the depth and effectiveness of student learning.

The light-filled, 154,223 gross square foot energy-efficient space will feature numerous rooms for group study and project work, seating for at least 1,864 patrons (remember DU was founded in 1864), quiet study areas, and technologically-advanced services and support.  The Anderson Academic Commons enables a new learning model—one based on connectivity and collaboration.

“It’s a great place for students to come together in a very elegant building, with incredible views of the mountains—the soul of Colorado,” says Anderson. “They will be able to do great reading, great research, attend great seminars and discuss both in class and casual setting what they’ve learned. It will hopefully open up new opportunities for them.”

Ed Anderson and Linda Cabot

Nancy Allen, dean and director of University Libraries said, “The Anderson Academic Commons will truly enable the University of Denver to bring the library of the future to today’s students and faculty, supporting learning in many ways, and highlighting collaborative programs featuring research and information services, writing, technology, math, and the best of pedagogy support for teaching and learning.”

Anderson, founder of Boston’s North Bridge Venture Partners, is a University of Denver trustee and a 1971 graduate of the University of Denver in Advertising Design and a graduate of the Columbia University Graduate School of Business.  He has served as an investor and director in some of the communications industry’s most successful start-up companies.  Anderson and his wife, Linda Cabot, an artist and documentary filmmaker, are supporters of many educational causes, including summer enrichment programs for underprivileged children, and charter and secondary schools.  Anderson hopes that their gift to the Academic Commons project will motivate his University of Denver peers to give meaningful gifts as well.

The Anderson Academic Commons will open to the University of Denver community and the public beginning March 25th.  Details will be announced soon for a ribbon cutting and opening week celebratory activities.

The Academic Commons looks all shiny and new, thanks to a facade gilded with copper.  Like many buildings on the University of Denver campus, the new library has architectural elements featuring this decorative metal.  The former Penrose Library building didn’t quite fit in with its surroundings, but the Academic Commons has been designed to compliment and echo architectural features from around the DU campus.

Some people have expressed concern about the use of copper, fearing that the University was wasting money on an expensive decoration, or that its extraction was harmful to the environment.   Fear not! The copper used to make our copper sheeting has been recycled at least once.  It isn’t pure copper, as in wiring, where the purity is essential for function.  It’s made from copper scrap.  It is 100% recyclable, so it can be used more than once, and DU has used the copper sheeting from one project again in another project.  It’s estimated that 80% of the copper ever mined is still in use today.

Copper is easy to repair and maintain, and when properly installed, it will last for centuries. So, while it can cost about half again more than a manufactured metal roof, it is far more effective over the life of a building. Essentially, for the library project, it was a high quality and cost effective covering for the vertical walls — it is less expensive than brick veneer.

Come see for yourself!  We welcome you to the Academic Commons; our new doors open on Monday, March 25, 2013.

To recognize the fortieth anniversary of the opening of Penrose Library, here are forty things to look forward to in the Academic Commons.

1. Look forward to books!  Nearly eight miles of books will be housed in the Academic Commons, representing most books published since 1983, books that circulate the most, and “browsing” books – those that include a lot of visual images.
2. Look forward to abundant natural light, thanks to the Frederic C. and Jane M.  Hamilton Atrium opening on to the main and upper levels, as well as to walls of windows where they previously didn’t exist — on the lower level, and interior glass walls that allow light to flow through the interior.
3. Look forward to new furniture!  The Academic Commons will have a seat for everyone, whether you want an upright chair, a cushy reading chair, or a cozy booth perfect for collaborating students.  DU alum Daniel Strawn’s custom-built, one-of-a kind tables will be found throughout the building.
4. Feel good about old furniture!  Penrose Library took about 4,000 pieces of high quality furniture out of the original building and has had them cleaned, repaired, and/or re-upholstered so that we recycle valuable and functional pieces rather than replace them. And of course, you fans of mid-century modern design can say hello again to your favorite white bubble chairs, orange and white round carrels, and more!
5. Be prepared to have a place where you can spread out Penrose treasures and work comfortably with these unique materials.  The Fogel Special Collections Reading Room in the Academic Commons will encourage exploration of Penrose’s rare resources, including the civil war collections; documents, photographs, and textiles relating to the Jewish experience in the Rocky Mountain West; the Carson-Brierly Dance Library’s collection representing the history of dance; and one of the largest collections of cookery in the country.  Students and scholars, visitors and advocates may use these unique and rare resources.  The reading room will include exhibit and display cases to celebrate the primary resources of the library.
6. Anticipate finding all of the academic support units you need, under one roof.  This is why we call it the Academic Commons – because in addition to traditional library services, you will also find help in research, writing, math, digital media, and computer hardware and software.  Faculty will be supported by the Office of Teaching and Learning where staff offers creative programs, award-winning technology, and course management software and systems to help DU professors be better teachers. 
7. If you sometimes struggle to balance parenting responsibilities with your role as a graduate student, look forward to the Family Study Room in the Academic Common, a large enclosed space equipped with children’s furniture, toys, books, puzzles and a TV with earphones, where kids will pass time while their parents study.
8. Count on efficiency.  During the construction project, Penrose patrons have been pleased to find that the books and materials they need and request from the storage facility are delivered quickly.  In the rare case that you will want one of the items that stays at the Hampden Center storage, Penrose will continue to offer delivery at high speed, usually in less than two hours.
9. Gather with your group.  In response to student interest, the Academic Commons will have dozens of rooms for small and large groups to work together. Soundproofing will limit conversation to the group inside, and a floor-to-ceiling window will enable a view. Technology will allow students to share laptop, phone, or tablet screens on the wall-hung flat panels.
10. Plan to be well fed.  The Front Porch Café at the Academic Commons will serve breakfast, lunch and dinner, all in a setting meant to embody the neighborliness and comfort that donor and trustee Doug Scrivner enjoyed on his family’s front porch, growing up in Wisconsin.  There will be 75 seats in the café and more on the adjacent patio. We’ll even have rocking chairs, like every front porch should.
11. Check out the latest magazine or newspaper while sipping some coffee or tea.  The current issues of a variety of paper journals and news will be conveniently located next to comfy chairs in the Front Porch Café. 
12. Foresee the latest technology.  The Academic Commons will have forty computers for research instruction, sixty PCs for general use, twenty Macs for general use, twelve Macs in the Digital Media Center, plus additional PCs on each floor as look-up stations.
13. Be glad for instruction.  The Academic Commons will not only be an impressive brick and mortar space.  Instruction and guidance about how to use the technology and how to research, write, solve math, and incorporate digital media will be available to everyone.
14. Be energized.  Gone are the days when patrons would bring extension cords in to Penrose in order to be connected.  With a power outlet corresponding to every chair in the Academic Commons, everyone (and every laptop or tablet or phone) should stay charged.
15. Prepare for the unexpected.  The Academic Commons will have two fireplaces. Combat homesickness and homework dread by settling in to the cozy fireplaced living rooms in this comprehensive academic library.
16. Take comfort in the thoughtful décor that builds on your DU pride in a subtle way.  Much thought and careful preparation have gone in to choosing furniture fabrics, carpet palettes and wall colors that relate to the DU crimson and gold.
17. Look forward to having a heart for all of DU, a place, a central campus hub of student and faculty activity and engagement.
18. Recognize the importance of a place for DU faculty exclusively, and share their delight about having a large, faculty-only reading room, on the upper level overlooking the Carnegie Green.
19. Imagine the reaction of DU’s founder John Evans, if he were to see the Academic Commons, given that his mission was to “help civilize” the new city of Denver, which consisted of little more than a mining camp back in 1864.  This is civilization!
20. Be excited about exhibits!  The new library will offer many more opportunities than the original Penrose to showcase its collections as well as the research and creative works of DU’s faculty and students.
21. Assume that the helpful and capable Penrose staff that you have come to count on will be there for you in the Academic Commons.  Amidst a lot of change, you can rely on familiar, friendly faces. We are still here to connect people to ideas. 
22. Count on a vibrant series of events in the technology-rich, flexible Special Event space at the Academic Commons where Penrose will feature author lectures, celebrations of students’ creative work, and more.
23. Plan to make yourself comfortable in any of the Open Reading Areas where students have their choice of study tables, carrels, booths, or soft seating.
24. Appreciate convenience.  Under one roof you will find books, newspapers and journals, technology, help and instruction, food, art, events, vending machines full of student supplies, as well as faculty and friends, all at the center of DU’s campus. 
25. Egg chairs!  Rejoice that the original and a new “egg” chair will be in the Academic Commons, to remind anyone who knew the 1972-era Penrose that in some important ways, this is still the same, genuine place.
26. Predict consistency: Penrose Library will be open 24 hours, from Sunday early morning  through Friday night, with slightly reduced hours on weekends.
27. Look forward to the Writing Center, bigger and better than before: a consultation service, staffed by trained, skilled communicators who know how to teach writing as well as the theories of composition and language use, enabling every student to excel in written expression for any medium.
28. Get to know alumni.  Every year, hundreds of DU alums borrow materials from Penrose.
29. Count on a measurably nicer Math Center where staff helps students with assignments on a drop-in basis.
30. Expect camaraderie.  Meet your friends. Even in the original Penrose, thousands of people visited daily, and patron visits will probably double in the new facility.
31. Take advantage of the expertise available to you at the Crossley Research Center.  Choosing sources requires critical thinking and an understanding of the process of contemporary research to navigate and emerge with a well-crafted set of authentic, valid resources to support a paper or presentation.
32. Daydream.  Look forward to enjoying the variety of views from the Academic Commons.  Views of Denver’s urban skyline.  Views of the Front Range.  Views of majestic Rocky Mountains.
33. Imagine being the envy of your friends who don’t get to be students in the Perched Classroom that hangs between the skylight and the main floor.  This room will be home to a compelling program that partners library faculty with faculty from all DU disciplines to teach every student how to be an expert information manager.
34. Look forward to the most recent Penrose acquisitions being on prominent display in the center of the main level.
35. Tradition.  Look forward to some touches of the old amidst all that is new, like the return of the Gottesfeld Room and the Chan classroom, as well as signage that calls out the names of donors who helped make this fabulous facility possible.
36. Deep quiet.  The Academic Commons will offer study areas for a variety of needs, including social places and silent spaces. Shhhhhh. 
37. Settle in to your own spot.  There will be a quiet study room with a mountain view where you can sign up to share a carrel and locker for a whole quarter if you have a long-term writing project and want to focus your energies and materials in one place. 
38. A new website.  The Penrose Library website will have a new look after the opening of the Academic Commons.
39. Online scheduling.  Study rooms and meeting spaces in the Academic Commons will be available to schedule remotely from online or from your smartphone.
40. Take advantage of the newest service available at Penrose: Digital Media Services will help with creation and editing of digital images, videos, audio files and more, and will help incorporate them into academic and extracurricular projects.

The Academic Commons at Penrose Library is the official name of our new facility and it is scheduled to open to the DU community at the start of spring quarter 2013.  The building project should finish by the end of January, and then we will move 40,000 linear feet of books, hundreds of computers, and furniture, and prepare the library cafe for opening.

The name Academic Commons refers to the fact that much more than traditional library services will be available here.  Free academic support services will be provided in writing, math, research, computers/technology (both hardware and software), and digital media.  Digital media is a completely new service to DU students, and will include equipment and staff assistance for students who are incorporating digital media in their academic and extracurricular work.  Another support service, the Office of Teaching and Learning, is for faculty to help them incorporate technology and the latest teaching methods into their courses.

There will be lots of Books in the Academic Commons.  On the main level, a book display will feature the most recent six months of new acquisitions.  On the lower level will be nearly all of the books from the Penrose collection that were published in the most recent 30 years, and most of the books that have been checked out at least twice (ever), and the books that have a high density of visual images, for example art, cartography, and archaeology.  All Penrose materials that do not fall within these criteria will be available from off-site storage and delivered to campus in 2 hours or less from the time the request for materials is made.

This project was the result of many years of research, and in response to developments in technology, and reacting to changes in how teachers teach and how students learn.  The new facility incorporates suggestions made over a decade by DU students and faculty about what they wanted in their library, including a variety of types of study spaces.  In addition to academic support services, the Academic Commons will have small and large group study rooms that are equipped with the latest technology.  There will be deep-quiet study rooms, a family study room for students with children, a special event space, abundant natural light from new, additional windows and the Hamilton Atrium, and the Front Porch Cafe serving breakfast, lunch and dinner.  The Academic Commons is designed to accommodate the new ways faculty teach and the new ways students learn, which is different from the prevalent educational methods of 1972 when the original Penrose Library was built.  Now students and faculty collaborate, and students do group projects, and technology has changed everything. 

Finally, the library is not paid for with student tuition.  DU student tuition does not even cover the cost to educate students.  Funds for the Academic Commons building project come mostly from gifts from alumni, parents and friends of DU.  To all of them, we say thank you!

If you were to walk through the Academic Commons construction site, you would not recognize this as the original Penrose Library. The abundance of natural light from the central atrium and the addition of windows in the stairwells and lower level changes the space dramatically. While the footprint of the original Penrose remains, the Academic Commons adds significant space along the south and west sides of the building. Many interior walls, a new roof, and an elevator shaft have been completed, while details of the café are being finalized.

Opening in the Spring of 2013, the Academic Commons will be the campus hub, supporting students in many aspects of student life.  It will be the center of student and faculty collaboration around learning, and a place that symbolizes the University of Denver’s strength in research, teaching, and service with a mission that serves the public good.

A recent view of the Academic Commons at Penrose Library construction