I would like to say that I have had great experiences at the library. There is one thing that I would like to suggest though. Currently I am at the TECH center studying because the library is now closed. The noise level here does not allow me to study and focus very well. I would like to suggest to the library and university personnel that the library stay open either later or also 24 hours as it would be a great be a great benefit to those students that focus best in a quiet atmosphere. Thank you for your consideration and I look forward to your response and what can be done in this matter.
We are pleased to know that you would describe your experience with Paley Library as “great”. Thanks for sharing that with us. We take the experience you and all the other members of the Temple community have at our libraries seriously, and we are always open to ideas for improvoing that experience. Requests for additional hours is a suggestion we do get from our user community from time to time. If the library offers a great experience, why not make that experience available for even more hours.
The library administration has discussed whether keeping the Paley Library open 24 hours every day or even five days is feasible. Adding more hours is primarily a budgetary matter. Not only would we need to keep Paley open, but Tuttleman as well, since that is the location of the circulation desk. Currently the Paley Library (including the Tuttleman service desk) is open 118 hours a week (Note: Our official opening hour M-F is 8 am, but we unofficially open the doors to students at 7 am). You can imagine the added cost of keeping the buildings open plus the added staff needed for the additional hours (50 of them).
Still, we understand the value of being open to students around the clock. If the University was to move ahead with plans to build a new library facility it is likely you would find a 24/7 or 24/5 section of the building. This allows for a smaller space for those students who are seeking a quiet study area at all hours of the night. We recently received a report compiled by another research library that collected data about the number of large research libraries that are open 24/7 (the Association of Research Libraries includes 113 of the largest research libraries in North America). Of the 66 libraries that responded only 6 reported being open 24/7. Another 17 reported being open 24/5 (same as the TECH Center). Another 24 reported being open 24/7 or 24/5 – but these libraries did have a separate facility or section of the main library dedicated to 24/7 or 24/5 hours.Another 13 libraries, like Paley, were open 24/7 only during finals. Yes, for an approximate 12-day period during reading week and finals Paley Library will remain open 24/7.
We will continue to monitor the usage of Paley Library to see what the late night hours traffic is like (currently – quite light). We will also consider the number of students requesting additional hours (currently – rare). We do appreciate your suggestion and use of Paley Library. Thank you.