The newly renovated Burke Library is now open to all on campus. As finals season came to a close this past spring, caution tape and a construction crew encircled the library for extensive remodeling. The renovation was completed over the summer, and students can discover functional and aesthetic changes in the backdrop of the original Burke library.

The remodeling focused primarily on the first floor, however the appearance and functionality of all three floors were enhanced. “We did a total rehaul of the first floor. It was taken right down. We also did some rearranging on the second and third floors,” said Kristin Strohmeyer, the research and outreach librarian.

The library — a popular destination for many students — now has more spaces and newer furniture for students to pursue their learning. The addition new technology and its design caters to a focused and creative environment.

Strohmeyer spoke about what these renovations consisted of and what this means to the Hamilton community. “We swapped out all of the old wooden chairs, or as many as we could because we had bought new furniture for the first floor…we also added some new shelving in the college archives,” she explained.

The librarian went on to describe the way in which the new and fully transformed spaces of the library will be utilized by Hamilton students. The classroom on the first floor was significantly expanded, along with a new project room that seats a dozen easily. The classroom is not merely a space for studying, she explained.

“We also built a new Makerspace which is going to house all of the 3D printers, VR equipment, drones and video equipment. It’s a really neat space and I’m excited about it,” Strohmeyer continued. “We want the Maker Space to be more of a space for students to come and play, and experience things, and try things that might not be academically related but of interest to them, because that’s part of our job: to give you opportunities.”

The administration planned to enact this renovation in 2020; however, due to Covid, these plans were delayed. Strohmeyer does not see this as a negative, since “when we came back to the program and back to the planning, we realized that a lot of what we had planned for initially in 2020 we didn’t want, so we had the opportunity to make some good changes.”

She emphasized the importance of the patience and planning that went into this transformation, as it has been the most meaningful change since the library’s founding. “The library was built in 1972 and not a lot has really changed since then. We’ve put up some fake walls and cubicles and so forth, but we have not really done a purposeful change,” she explained.

This construction process that was poured into this project was extensive and required a lot of resources and deconstruction. “The moment that finals ended in May, the library closed. They constructed a wall around the second floor so that the second floor was closed off from the first floor, so we couldn’t see anything. They taped over the doors of the existing offices and then they proceeded to take down walls, take down lights, lamps, pull up rugs and build walls,” said Strohmeyer.

Videos on the library’s Instagram page, @burkelibrary, track the progress of the renovation over the summer from those who had access to the inside of the building.

When asked how the renovations had an influence on the overall environment of the library, Strohmeyer circled back to place value on the importance of purposeful spaces. “We took into account the way that students study and the way that they like to study.”

“It was also very important to us that this is first and foremost a library,” she said. “The first thing now when you walk in is this new serpentine bookshelf, so the first thing you see when you walk in the building is books, so that sets the tone for what we are. You know, technology takes over our lives but books are still very important, and we didn’t want to forget about that.”

These changes to campus are on the path to fostering an environment that is even more conducive to learning and collaboration on the Hill.