Hale Library is in the process of a major transformation. The first floor opening was only one milestone on the road to rebuilding.
After a major remodel, the difference before and after are like night and day, and Kansas State students say they like the updates.
Abby Bozarth, freshman in family science, first toured the old Hale as a junior in high school.
“I love it so much, I study here everyday,” Bozarth said. “I really love the little study pods. Before it looked like a typical library, but now it’s super updated and just better for all students.”
More updates will come to the lower floor, and the second level will open in the spring. Lori Goetsch, dean of Hale, described the upcoming features on the second floor.
“The entrance to the second floor will be relocated closer to the building entrance,” Goetsch said. “We’ll also have a new service desk shared by the libraries and ITAC, the Information Technology Assistance Center, so you only need to go to one place for help.”
Related:
Hale yeah: Students react to Hale Library renovations
Books will return to the third and fourth floors after more facilities open, and Goetsch said the library is expected to have most of the building reopened by the fall 2020. Goetsch said it is likely the Great Room will still be closed.
Darchelle Martin, public information officer for Hale, said as the floors reopen and offices become available, staff will begin trickle back in.
Martin said coming back to Hale was the light at the end of the tunnel.
“It felt really good because it was a very visual representation of the progress that we made to have something finished that we can have students come back in,” Martin said. “For us, just to be back here and seeing students, we really missed that.”
More information about progress, pictures and updates can be found on the Hale Library blog.
