In the fall of 2013, University of Iowa students will discover a tech-infused, 24-hour, comfy study space and one-stop academic help center\u2026with good coffee.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Designed with significant student input, the new Learning Commons will provide an \u201cintellectual hub\u201d with room for 500-plus students. The 37,000-square-foot facility in the Main Library is the product of a unique partnership among Information Technology Services (ITS), University Libraries, and the Office of the Provost.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe Learning Commons is focused, first and foremost, on furthering the academic success of students,\u201d says Nancy Baker, university librarian. \u201cThe staff will provide students with a \u2018concierge\u2019 experience. They\u2019ll answer common academic, library, and technology questions and point students to the resources they need to succeed, like help with their research, writing, or tutoring.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
VIDEO: Learning Commons Walkthrough<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cOur design team spent a lot of time watching how students study, and particularly noticed how much they leveraged technology in their daily work habits,” says Chris Clark, ITS learning spaces director. “This space, with its multimedia resources, collaboration technologies, and wall-to-wall wireless, reflects the way today\u2019s students integrate technology into their lives.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n Features of the project include 18 group study spaces, 100 desktop and laptop computers, a 45-seat TILE (Transform, Interact, Learn, Engage) classroom with glass walls and sliding doors, printers and scanners, TVs and projectors, and multimedia resources.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The design team also considered students\u2019 stomachs, because students can\u2019t concentrate on their studies when they\u2019re hungry. The Food for Thought caf\u00e9 will offer an expanded menu that includes hot panini sandwiches, fruit smoothies, and other snacks, as well as espresso and gourmet coffees.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe want to create an ambience that welcomes students,\u201d Clark says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n According to Beth Ingram, associate provost for undergraduate education, the most important feature of the space is its flexibility.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe Learning Commons is many different kinds of study spaces and services rolled into one,\u201d she says. \u201cWith technology, information, and expertise combined in one location, it\u2019s a space where students can study with a group or by themselves; where they can have a coffee with friends and then go to a workshop on stress management; where they know they can get answers to questions about information resources, technology, or tutoring services.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Of course, part of the challenge in creating such a massive space for students is minimizing the impact the construction process will have on daily student life. Hope Barton, associate university librarian, says the impact on current study spaces will be minimal, since the area being remodeled was office space.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThis will really be a fantastic resource for University of Iowa students,\u201d Ingram says. \u201cWe\u2019re excited to see the project come to completion so students can start making the most of the new space.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" In the fall of 2013, University of Iowa students will discover a tech-infused, 24-hour, comfy study space and one-stop academic help center\u2026with good coffee. Designed with significant student input, the new Learning Commons will provide an \u201cintellectual hub\u201d with room for 500-plus students. The 37,000-square-foot facility in the Main Library is the product of aContinue reading “Learning Commons @ your library”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":26,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[27,14,15,3],"tags":[],"syndication":[33],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.lib.uiowa.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2369"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.lib.uiowa.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.lib.uiowa.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.lib.uiowa.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/26"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.lib.uiowa.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2369"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/blog.lib.uiowa.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2369\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5977,"href":"https:\/\/blog.lib.uiowa.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2369\/revisions\/5977"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.lib.uiowa.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2369"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.lib.uiowa.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2369"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.lib.uiowa.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2369"},{"taxonomy":"syndication","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.lib.uiowa.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/syndication?post=2369"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}