The Sturgis Library officially welcomed the public to tour its newly renovated floors with a ribbon-cutting ceremony Monday, June 6.
Renovations were completed in February, but the ceremony was held during the summer to accommodate the schedules of President Daniel S. Papp, his cabinet and several other faculty members.
Guests of the ceremony heard remarks from Papp along with Victoria Brock, the president of the Student Government Association, and the dean for Library Services David Evans. The ceremony concluded with a ribbon-cutting and tours of the two new renovated floors.
The $4.4 million renovations of the ground and first floors have taken a total of 2 1/2 years to complete since construction began in 2013.
“It may seem like a large sum of money, but it’s reasonable to upkeep a growing university like this,” Amy Lin, a junior biology major, said. “The library is something used by all students, so all 30,000 of us can benefit from this investment.”
Student comfort and space were some of the primary concerns kept in mind during the reconstruction.
The physical repairs are obvious, with new furniture, carpet, study space, and a quadrupled number of PCs between the two floors. There was also plenty of behind-the-scenes work as well, including upgrades to the air conditioning, electrical systems and Wi-Fi.
“As a student, all of these changes directly impact everything you need and want,” said Evans, the dean for Library Services. “Something that everyone involved in the project did a fantastic job of was getting things that meant something to you guys.”
SGA helped voice students’ input throughout the entire renovation process. They were present at meetings and helped in the pre-planning stages.
“[The renovations] will greatly impact student study habits,” said SGA President Brock. “Students in general have had issues with not having enough space while trying to work in the library. The collaboration spaces will be great for projects, meetings, and working in groups or individually.”
Papp also believes the new space will benefit student success. During his remarks, he commented on the importance of libraries.
“Historically, libraries have been at the center of every great university,” Papp said. “It is vitally important that great universities — and KSU is a great university — have first-class and up-to-date libraries.”
