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.