Posts Tagged ‘academic commons’

Faculty Use Teaching Spaces in the AAC

Tuesday, May 28th, 2013

The new Anderson Academic Commons has already become a popular place for faculty to meet with their students, be it at the Front Porch Café for office hours, at an academic event in the Special Events Room, or in The Loft classroom during a library instruction session.

Some faculty are also utilizing group study rooms as meeting places for special class sessions during the quarter that focus on library research.  Group study rooms can accommodate smaller groups, with the largest room (AAC 112) holding 16.

Other faculty are embracing the opportunity to bring classes to the library to work with our rare and one-of-a-kind collections.  In the Schayer Seminar Room, adjacent to the Special Collections and Archives reading room on the Lower Level of the Academic Commons, students can work hands-on with manuscripts, rare books, photographs and more.  The Gottesfeld Room, on the Upper Level, features a display of Artists’ Books – handmade books that are themselves works of art.  The room is outfitted with a large table and chairs and priority use of this room is for students or scholars working with the Artist Book Collection.

So how do faculty reserve these spaces?

  • The Café is a drop-in space, with 75 seats inside and another 50 outside on the patio.  The Café serves breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
  • The AAC boasts 32 group study rooms which can be booked online or at the door – unlike the other reservable spaces in the library, the reservation request is automatically approved.
  • Other teaching spaces in the library can be requested online but require a confirmation:
    • The Loft (AAC 340) and the Herold computer lab (AAC 275) are used for librarian-led instruction sessions tailored by librarians to meet the needs of your class and assignment.  More information on instruction sessions can be found here or by contacting the librarian liaison for your department.  Other academic events are also held in the Loft.  Please see the Room Reservations page for details, including links to Policies and Fees for this space.
    • The Special Events Room (AAC 290) seats up to 200 lecture style and can also host meal events.   Academic events sponsored by units across campus are held in this room.  Please see the Room Reservations page for details, including links to Policies and Fees for this space.
    • The Schayer Room and Gottesfeld Room can also be requested from the Room Reservations page.  Contact Archivist Kate Crowe or University Historian Steve Fisher, if you would like to learn more about the archives and special collections.  Kate Crowe is also available to show the Artist Book collections to interested students, faculty and classes.

Video: Book Delivery at High Speed

Monday, April 2nd, 2012

Do you wonder how a book gets from your online request to your hands during the Academic Commons at Penrose Library construction project?  Well, now there’s a video of the entire process, at lightning speed. Check it out!

Books are retrieved from the Hampden Center throughout the day in the library’s hybrid Prius and are generally delivered within 2 hours (from 7am-11pm Monday – Sunday).  You will receive an email when your request is ready for pickup at Penrose@Driscoll. Library Hours.

Display of New Book Covers

Monday, December 12th, 2011

Penrose Library continues to purchase thousands of print books a year to add to our collection.  These books were formerly on display in a new books area near the Bookdrop Cafe in the old Penrose Library building.  Plans are to have a new book browsing area in the Academic Commons at Penrose Library as well.  During the construction phase, however, librarians wanted to give students and faculty a sample of new books to browse and have done so through a display of new book covers on the south wall of Penrose@Driscoll.

Additional new book covers are available for browsing in a box in the Research Center.   Book covers on display and in the browsing box will be updated about once a week.

Note that you can also browse new books online by month purchased and general Library of Congress classification on our New Books page:

We hope these two “virtual” displays will help you discover interesting and useful new books at Penrose, much as our new book browsing area will in the future Academic Commons.

General Contractor for Academic Commons Project

Wednesday, November 23rd, 2011

We are very pleased to announce that the University of Denver has selected G.H. Phipps as the General Contractor for the Academic Commons project. The construction portion of the project will begin at the beginning of December, 2011 once the abatement and demolition phase that is now underway has been completed.

As we begin the process of building the Academic Commons at Penrose Library, we can celebrate almost a decade of planning, beginning with feasibility and program plans done early on with the Office of the Architect here at DU (Mark Rodgers and Jane Loefgren), Shepley Bulfinch Richardson and Abbott (SBRA) of Boston and H+L Architecture, here in Denver. From that early work, we developed the current program plan, and construction documents with the DU Office of the Architect and the Architect of Record, H+L Architecture, along with the advice of many consultants for specialty areas such as electrical and lighting, technology, acoustics, furniture, mechanical and structure engineering, and more.

As we move ahead, we will continue to benefit from the work of University Facilities, and the Facilities Project Manager, Linda Lautenbach, as well as the library’s Assistant Director and Owner’s Representative, Theresa Hernandez.

We know that our new partners at G.H.Phipps will enjoy working with this dedicated and talented project team. Floor plans as well as internal and external views of the new Academic Commons are now on the library’s website, and we encourage everyone to watch as the new building takes shape between now and opening day, which will be in about a year.

New Quiet and Group Study Spaces Available Across Campus

Monday, October 3rd, 2011

We are very pleased to announce over 20 new designated group and quiet study spaces throughout campus to supplement the study spaces available in Penrose@Driscoll!  These include six Sturm classrooms available for quiet study until midnight Monday – Saturday and the designation of the Driscoll Pub as a quiet study area overnight (from 11pm-8am weekdays).

The complete list of  Study Spaces on Campus can be found online on the Students page of the library’s website.  This chart allows you to look for space based on the type study (group or quiet) and lists amenities available in each area such as food services and printing.

Note that the entire Driscoll building is open library hours, including 24 hours a day from 10 a.m. Sunday to 8 p.m. Friday and on Saturday from 9 a.m.–8 p.m. (complete hours).

During the renovation of Penrose Library and the move of most library services to the Driscoll Ballroom and Gallery, study space is at a premium.  The library recognizes this and our Dean and Director, Nancy Allen, has been working with others on campus to open up additional spaces for group and quiet study.  We hope that you take advantage of these new study areas and let us know if you have any questions!

Penrose Library Final Moves

Monday, July 11th, 2011

As the Academic Commons Penrose Library Building Project continues, we wanted to give an update on all the final moves that happened last week (July 5-8, 2011).

Penrose@Driscoll
Most Penrose Library services (Circulation, Reserves, Research Center, Writing Center, computer lab, study space) are available at the interim location, Penrose@Driscoll in the north part of the Driscoll Student Center, just west of the Penrose Library building.

Additional Library Services

For help with personal computers and equipment, visit the UTS Help Desk at 2100 South High St., located on the southeast corner of High and Evans streets.

Penrose Library Special Collections and Archives have moved to Aspen Hall North, 2nd floor. Please schedule a research appointment to request materials during this transitional time (archives@du.edu or 303.871.3428).

Returning Books – The book drops at the Penrose Library building closed on July 5. Books and other materials should be returned to the Access Desk at Penrose@Driscoll or to two new book drops located on the south side of Driscoll near the Lot E parking structure and the north side by Race St. Books and materials can be renewed online or by visiting Penrose@Driscoll.

Who’s moved?
Most library services, books, and materials have already moved out of the building. The move remains on schedule, and everything will be out by July 12, 2011. All Penrose Library phone numbers, mailing addresses, and email addresses will remain the same during the building project.

Classroom Support is now located in Aspen Hall South, ground floor. You may continue to contact them at (303) 871-3595 for classroom technology questions or reservations.

The Reference Librarians have moved to Aspen Hall Central, 2nd floor. Students, faculty, and staff seeking research assistance can continue to meet with the reference librarians at the Research Center in Penrose@Driscoll.

The Center for Teaching and Learning is now located in Aspen Hall North, 1st Floor. Please see http://ctl.du.edu/ for contact information and the complete list of services.

The Library’s Digital Initiatives unit is located in Aspen Hall Central, 3rd floor. Technical Services units (Cataloging, Serials, Acquisitions) have moved to Aspen Hall North, ground floor.

The Penrose Library Dean’s office is located in Aspen Hall Central, 1st floor.

Quick Copy Services will be moving to their new permanent location in the DU Bookstore.

As always it is possible to request books and other items using the “Request It” button in the online Library catalog record: http://library.du.edu.

For continuing updates about the library building project, please see the library home page http://library.du.edu. If you still have questions, click the “Ask Us” button on the library home page to find all the ways to contact us.