Thank you for taking my suggestions which are: (1) have a drop box for the return of items after hours at the Inwood location. Many students use this facility and it would be of good service to provide a measure for return of borrowed materials after hours instead of driving to Denton. Rationale for this suggestion is that most students who utilize the Inwood location are Distance Learning Students. To have to drive to Denton to return a book is very costly especially when students have limited resources. (2) have Sunday hours. Currently, myself and others have to use the UTSW Library on Sundays because the Inwood location is not available. If there are a lot of students at UTSW, then we are not able to use the facility. If you will not consider Sunday hours, consider a consortium with UTSW for TWU students to use their facilities. Without access to a library, quiet areas to study and work on dissertations, student success can not be accomplished. Most students set aside times to study on the weekend and I am certain these students would treasure a place on Sunday to go and study that is closer than drivign to Denton. (3) stay open later on Saturdays. Graduate students working on their dissertations use the Inwood location on the weekends but have to pack up and go find a second location when the library closes early on Saturday. Yes, the lab is open but the quality of study locations in the lab area is not the same. Most students on Saturday utilizing the lab are on Facebook pages, checking Twitter accounts, holding conversations inside the lab with their outside voices. This is a major distraction. Please consider having a dialogue regarding these suggestions and again, thank you for any consideration provided.
Response:
Thank you for taking the time to share your suggestions. Excellent student support is one of the library’s top priorities. Our Dallas librarians are exploring book drop options with TWU’s Assistant Director of Design Services.
Library hours in Dallas are restricted to building hours. On Saturdays when the library closes at 2:00 pm you have an option to move to the unmanned portion of library that remains open for quiet study until the building closes at 7:00 pm. TWU students who show their university ids may use the UTSW library on Sundays between 1:00 pm and 5:00 pm. I understand UTSW may be reviewing their access policies; however, I would not expect you to encounter a limit on the number of students as long as you show your TWU identification. We will continue to assess service issues and the need for longer hours in Dallas.
Sincerely,
Sherilyn Bird
Dean of Libraries
