Anecdotal evidence implies that students use library spaces for spiritual practices at many colleges and universities. Using focus groups, the authors investigated students' prayer behaviors on four regional campuses of a large research university, asking questions about students' frequency of prayer, campus areas used for devotions, and students'…

This paper investigated how libraries can support the transition of first-year international undergraduate students to a large research university. The research explored the students' use of libraries, their use of information to learn, and their academic and information literacy learning needs. The methods were a survey (with 135 responses) and…

As libraries adjust to the needs of the 21st century, there needs to be a different way of thinking in regards to its design. School libraries have traditionally been designed as large rooms for the storage of materials for research and pleasure reading. As more and more districts focus their attention on digital acquisitions, the need for storage…

The current ARL report summarizes a multi-year effort that captures evidence in the form of narrative profiles as it delivers the message of the value and contributions of research libraries during transformative times. When ARL library directors were interviewed in 2005 and asked to describe a research library in the 21st century, there was…

The innovative designs of three libraries are described: the Tempe (Arizona) Public Library, which emphasizes services for children and students; an underground library at Park College, Missouri; and a public library located in the Vancouver (Washington) Mall. The fourth article describes the work going on to restore the Los Angeles (California)…

Outline of the development of a university library serving approximately 5,232 faculty, staff, and students covers goals and projections, library facilities and space utilization, personnel requirements, administration changes, collection development, materials budgets, library services, adoption of online systems, and library organization…

Universities worldwide are reconfiguring their campus environments to respond to the emerging pedagogy within higher education with its emphasis on self-directed, collaborative, and problem-solving approaches to learning. In particular, there is an emphasis on forming "learning communities." In this context libraries are increasingly…

The first of five chapters in this master's thesis examines the current status of media facilities and historical factors that have contributed to their development. An analysis of the design of media facilities following the principle of "form follows function" begins in the second chapter, which expounds a theoretical model of the…

The strategic plan for the James White Library of Andrews University uses the phrase "beyond walls," rather than the catchphrase "library without walls," to acknowledge that printed matter is here to stay but that the paradigm in which it operates is open to innovation and exploration. The fundamental changes taking place in…