A newly renovated study area devoted to graduate students and faculty members has opened in the Bizzell Memorial Library.
The Zarrow Family Faculty and Graduate Student Center is on lower level two of Bizzell and has a variety of spaces dedicated to research and collaboration, according to the university libraries website.
University libraries communication coordinator Chelsea Julian said the new space is part of the library’s master plan to become more accessible to students and faculty by providing updated spaces for studying and collaboration. Other recent improvements to the library included a new search interface and renovated staircases.
“The old model really locked down the availability and accessibility of the library for graduate students,” she said. “The library is working towards being an intellectual commons for the university, and we felt this was the best way to serve the community.”
The new space features a lounge, focus rooms for faculty and graduate students accessible only by a graduate or faculty OU ID, meeting rooms, consultation rooms and access to the Oklahoma Canyon Garden for the public, according to the university libraries website.
“This space should hopefully create a sense of collaboration for graduate students and faculty to enable projects that may not have otherwise occurred,” Julian said. “This is a fairly unique space, and we can create this space in a way specific colleges maybe couldn’t.”
This renovation was sponsored by the Zarrow Family Foundation, Julian said.
