The recent addition of a cafe to the Cullom-Davis Library has been touted by administrators as a great addition to the campus.
And it is. It’s great that students can use the cafe as a gathering point and are able to grab a quick caffeine boost when studying late for an exam.
However, lattes, mochas and macchiatos do not a library make.
The library is still outdated, and students still have complaints about everything from uncomfortable temperatures to a lack of outlets.
While it’s great administrators have taken the first step to fixing the library, it’s time to prove they’re serious about improving the facility by changing other areas.
This week, the Executive Director of the Library Barbara Galik told a Scout reporter there aren’t any concrete plans to make more improvements to the library this year.
She didn’t say she didn’t want to better the building, and she has already proven her dedication to fixing the issues that exist. She said there was a chance “cozier” furniture may be added, but there aren’t currently funds or definite plans for it.
In response to that, there’s only one question we can ask at this point: Why not?
Seniors have been hearing since their freshmen years of the library’s poor ratings in the Princeton Review. And it doesn’t take too long inside the building to see why.
The Library Student Advisory Committee has drafted plans, which is a step in the right direction. Administrators, library staff, faculty and students all agree things in Cullom-Davis need to change.
So how long is it going to take the university to allocate substantial funds and efforts to its betterment?
We understand this is a difficult economic time, but this question needs to be asked – can Bradley afford another year of a poor Princeton Review rating?
It’s an embarrassment to the institution, its students and its faculty. Bradley is continually rated as one of the best schools in the country, but it can’t seem to shake that “This is a library?” rating.
It’s sad that potential students may still open next year’s Review, a widely used college search tool, see that rating and not look at Bradley as the great school that it is.
All the schools Bradley is compared to on the Princeton Review’s Web site have beautiful, newer libraries, including DePaul University, Illinois Wesleyan University and Marquette University. It’s time Bradley’s is looked at the same way.
While students are visibly using the cafe and enjoying its many perks, it is still a puzzle as to why it doesn’t open until 10 a.m.
It would have also been nice to see the cafe offer something new on campus, whereas now it is only a clone to the Starbucks in the Michel Student Center, with the same packaged pastries but no credit card machine and rigid seating.
Don’t get us wrong, it was a solid first step, and it instilled confidence in the administration, but we need to ensure that it isn’t the last step.
The cafe should have been added years ago. Bradley was behind the times by not having one before this year.
Let’s hope students aren’t continuing to say this about other amenities 10 years down the road.
Now’s the time, Bradley.
The administration has the plan that Galik and her committee worked hard on last year, and we truly do appreciate the step that has been made, but it’s simply not enough.
And now’s the time for students, too. If you’re passionate about bettering the library, do something about it. Join LSAC. It has three openings.
Help us voice what we want, what we need and what we deserve.
