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UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
Thursday, November 9, 1995
7A
Library tabulates surveys
Students cite lack of parking, limited hours as problems
By Jack Birmingham Special to the Kansan
Many students want to spend more time buried in books at the library.
Results from a student survey released this week evaluating the services provided by the University of Kansas libraries show a need for improved access to the libraries.
"There is no magic solution to parking," said William Crowe, dean of libraries.
One of the main concerns expressed by the surveyed students was access to library services. The main barrier was the lack of parking.
KU's Office of Institutional Research and Planning sent 2,000 surveys to random students on Feb. 27. They received 418 responses.
Crowe said that although the parking problem was somewhat out of the library's hands, there were ways to improve the problem. The addition of book drops at various locations on campus and the creation of a new on-line system are two examples. The on-line system would allow books to be renewed over the Internet. Also, recall notices could be given to people through the system, reducing the hassle of mailing the notices and the waste of paper. Crowe said the system would be initiated next year.
A variety of other barriers to access were cited by students, including limited library hours, too few copy and microform machines, not enough copies of books and confusion about how the library works.
"I wish it were open Sunday mornings and longer hours during breaks," a surveyed graduate student wrote.
Watson Library is open Monday through Thursday from 8 a.m. to midnight, Friday from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., Saturday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Sunday from noon to midnight. Between semesters, the library is open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and is closed on weekends. Crowe said that he would like to extend the hours of the library, but that the staff was pressed as it was, and that it would be hard to find people willing to work until 2 or 3 a.m.
"Most students are only beginning to study when the libraries are closing," an undergraduate wrote. "Not only that, but certain services close down even earlier."
The libraries already have taken some action based on results of the survey. They have bought three new microform printing machines, allocated money for extra copies of books and started a new system for reshelving to speed up the process.
"This is my second year here, and it has taken this long for me to feel comfortable there, and yet I still have a hard time finding things once in a while," a surveyed undergraduate wrote.
For some students, the libraries can be difficult to get used to.
Crowe said that he hoped that
access to library materials could be improved so students could focus on the materials rather than the search for them.
"People didn't come here to learn how to use the libraries, they came here to get an education," he said.
Crowe said that he foresaw technological advances as the main source of changes in the libraries. He said that reserve-desk materials probably would be available electronically at some point. He also said that libraries of other universities would be searchable, and materials could be ordered from them and sent to KU.
"I was surprised that we were not getting more insistence on electronic information." Crowe said.
Although on-line access to all library materials was the second-highest spending priority of students, it only represented 6.1 percent of the total responses. Crowe attributed this to limited knowledge about technology.
"The electronic devices are hard to figure out for people who do not have time to do it themselves," a surveyed undergraduate said.
"The library is important no matter how much technology we have," he said.
Crowe said that increased technology would not reduce the need for libraries.
Crowe said that a university's library system was a gauge of the quality of the university.
"We're one of the factors that always influence people about choosing KU," he said. "Keeping in touch with students and faculty, who are the heart of the University, is our job."
Theatre, football vie for attention
By Novelda Sommers
Kansan staff writer
If English Alternative Theatre is lucky, the people who go to plays are not the same people who go to football games.
The theater company will present a play by Ken Willard, Urbana, Ill., graduate student at 8 p.m. tonight, tomorrow and Saturday and 2:30 p.m. on Sunday at the Lawrence Arts Center, 200 W. Ninth St. Admission is $5. And on Saturday, a judge from the Kennedy Center American College Theater will review the play to determine whether it should compete at the regional festival in St. Louis in January.
The home football game between the University of Kansas and the University of Nebraska also will be on Saturday.
"I'm afraid if there are not very many people there, it could
affect the way the judge thinks about the play," said Paul Lim, professor of English and adviser to English Alternative Theatre.
Willard said his play, "Topple the World," was about people who never seemed to fit in.
"For mostly economic reasons, they have no real chance in life," Willard said. He calls them throwaway people.
"The play doesn't necessarily have a message; it's an observation." he said.
One of the observations that compelled Willard to write the play was that more people were graduating from college and taking jobs in the service industry, often at minimum wage.
"I guess it is kind of a warning," he said.
The story was inspired by experiences he had living in rural Idaho, including one when an old woman was screaming at a young girl for accepting a prom
ise ring from a boy. Willard was stunned by the incident.
she had a complete lack of control," he said. "I just couldn't believe what I was seeing."
The play centers around the character Naomi, who is a throwaway person. She is a bitter character who ruled her home so tyrannically that her children ran away. The first act takes place in a fabric shop with Naomi, the shop owner and a girl who is a senior in high school. Through their interactions, they reveal secrets and hidden lives.
The second act takes place at Naomi's trailer home in the woods. Outside her home, she has placed headless, armless dressmaker dummies. She purposely broke them at work so her boss would throw them away and she could have them.
"The dummies are expressions of her alienation." Willard said. "They are part of her isolation."
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