Student backlash continues from slashed library hours

As more and more students discover the slashed library hours, the outrage grows.

Most students are upset over the lack of communication over the changes. Yet, the Dean of Library Services rejected the idea of informing students through email.

“An e-mail was sent to faculty and staff to notify the changes, but in my experience, the majority of students do not check their email,” Dr. Kathleen Miller said.

Many students, however, felt slighted by the school.

“I think it was horribly planned because they did not notify the students,” said Yvette Mesa, a sophomore biology major. “They should have notified students maybe an entire year in advance because this is a radical decision. A lot of commuters don’t have dorms to live in and their study time is in the library.”

Following a $300 million budget cut by the state of Florida with regard to higher education, many universities made a number of sacrifices. At FGCU, library hours were cut by almost 40 hours, only a semester after extending the hours.

Comparable state universities, however, have chosen not to cut their library hours. The University of North Florida, University of West Florida, and New College of Florida are three universities with similar enrollment to FGCU. These school’s libraries are open 118, 106, and 96 hours per week, respectively.

FGCU’s library is now open 69 ½ hours per week.

Eagle News surveyed 57 students to see if they believed the library effectively notified students about the change in library hours; 49 said no. Those that said yes tried to make sense of the cut.

“You’ve got to expect things like that with the budget cuts,” said Diego Fernandez, a senior anthropology major.

Anne Shively, a senior majoring in art, said the lack of notification caused her the greatest concern.

 “I thought it wasn’t fair,” she said. “I know a lot of people who go to the library on Saturday. If they had banked on going (to the library) on Saturdays, their whole day is shot.”