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Spelman Spotlight Page 3 February 1982 Robert W. Woodruff Library Reactions To A New Library Bv Learned Dees Contributing Writer When the Robert W. Woodruff Library opened in January of 1982, you may have found that the building itself was very beautiful, inside and out, but you may also have found that there was one very important thing that was lacking books. All persons involved in the project agree now that the building is complete, the ac quisition of resources will become a priority. A recent survey of college libraries in the Atlanta area revealed that Georgia State and Georgia Tech libraries hold well over two million volumes. However, the new AUC library may hold less than one- fourth that number. “When we open in January, it is estimated that our library will house between 300,000 and 600,000 volumes. I think we will be doing well if we have 450,000 volumes once duplications, etc. have been weeded out,” accor ding to Prince Rivers, the Robert W. Woodruff Library project coordinator. “Each of the six institutions will contribute their holdings,” River added. The library will have to seek outside help to fill its shelves. The current estimates show that the shelves will be only 30 to 50 percent full. “The library is dynamic,” Atlanta University Center Inc. Chancellor Charles Meredith said. “An acquisition program for additional resources will be ongoing. It will take a long time, perhaps twenty years, before we can fill the shelves with the target number of books- one million.” A Dream Come True? The $18 million, co- operative project known as the Robert W Woodruff Library is a culmina tion of 10 years of planning. All six Atlanta University institutions have contributed in the effort to establish the new library. The dream did not become a reality until Robert W. Woodruff, former president of Coca-Cola and well known Atlanta philanthropist, donated $7 million to aid in the construc tion cost of the building. Since the actual construction phase got underway in late 1979, there have been various . problems involving adequate financial resources. AUC Provost and project director, Prince Rivers, acknowledged that mak ing ends meet has been a rough task. In a recent interview, Rivers stated that, "Once the initial construction was underway, we realized that there would not be enough funds to complete the lower level. It was too much space to leave vacant so we decided to lease the space to the Clark College Department of Mass Communication. This turn ed out to be beneficial to all involved.” The deal that was struck between the library and the Clark College Mass Com munications department was in the form of a 20 year, non renewable lease, according to Rivers. Sources close to the project estimate that the 99.000 square feet of space will cost Clark College $1.63 million. Having the Clark College Mass Communications department as tenants in the new library building has helped ease the many financial worries tem porarily. Consulting architect, Carl Trimble noted that many of the financial problems were brought on by the building committee which gave the final apprpval for the materials to be used for construction. "A lot of the items used go beyond functionalism,” Trimble said. "A library is not measured by how it looks, but by the resources it contains,” he added. “The marble floors, the special skylight and atrium, the carpeted walls, the fountain and the electric flagpole are a few of the items that could be considered beyond the realm of essential items.” Atlanta University Center, Inc. Chancellor Charles Meredith denies any financial im proprieties. “I am surprised that anyone would say that certain things in this library are ex travagant,” said Meredith. “When the materials were chosen we weighed the durabili ty and the maintenance factors involved. This library is intended to last 50 years and durability and low maintenance will pay off for themselves. The carpet on the wall is a prime example. If we had left the walls bare, we would have to paint them every couple of years. This way will eliminate painting altogether.” He also added, "The skylight was chosen to give natural light and it is aesthetically pleasing. The foun tain also has aesthetic qualities. We cut as few corners as necessary.” When asked if the money j some of the “aesthetically pleas- I ing” items is interesting. A reliable source has disclosed that the marble used in construction cost about one-half million dollars, the skylight and its specially cut glass- almost one million, and the fountain almost $300,000. The electric flagpole, which Meredith initially denied knowledge of, is estimated to 4 cost $3,00 and the list goes on. photo by Whitney Young spentonthe“aesthetically pleas ing” items might have been better spent for essential items such as books, Meredith stated that there was no choice. "It was a capital project. The money was donated by individuals and was intended for the actual building itself, not books. There was only one grant from a corporation for book acquisition. That corpora tion gave the money to convert the current holdings to machine readable for,.” While there are no questions of financial improprieties con cerning materials, the cost of "and I think that the public has a right to know how the $15 million was spent whether it be wisely or otherwise." Library officials declined to make available a copy of the budget with its itemized listing. They said that the cost may be misleading. The shortage of books, however, remains, and accor ding to an instructor who asked not to be identified, “the library is not complete because without adequate resources all you have is a pretty building.” by Karen Burroughs Veronica Green In January 1982, after a year ot construction, the Woodruff Library, serving all of the schools in the Atlanta University Center, was opened to students. Students had mixed reactions about the new library, though most are in agreement about its unique structure. The many responses to the new library were: "It’s a beautiful structure, but at the same time, we don't have the necessary materials, then it’s no good-it’s just a beautiful structure,” saysMadelyn Rogers, a sophomore at Spelman. “I like it,” agrees Dorthy Forman, also of Spelman. “However, they could have put money into the resources and books rather than the ex travagance.” A major complaint about the library is its location and the possible dangers it presents. “ The only thing I don’t like is that it is kind of far away and rather dangerous for students who are by themselves,” agrees Sonia Bell, a Spelman freshman. Students also feel that the library should not have opened before it was completed, as there are sections which are not yet open to students, and students are not allowed to check out books. “I don’t think they should have opened it right now,” says Princess Cooper. “They should have waited until it was better equipped for all of us.” The main advantage men tioned by students was the unifying effect that the library brings to the AUC. "It was a good idea to put all of the libraries in one building,” says Yetta Harvey. “It gives the AUC students a much needed chance to get reacquainted with each other.” “I’m a computer science major and the computer room is now located in the basement of the new library,”saysTerri Bradley,a sophomore at Spelman. photo by Whitney Young