Mudd Library will open to students for the first time since construction started over the summer Dec. 15. The library was initially set to be opened after Thanksgiving break but was pushed back due to construction delays. Faculty and staff will have the chance to tour the new space Thursday, and it will formally open to students Friday at lunch.
President Rick Commons said the library experienced a large transformation in terms of design and layout.
“The redesigned library is striking at every turn, both in terms of its form and functionality,” Commons said. “There are wonderful meeting rooms for students who want to study together, carrels for students who want to study alone and silent study carrels, which are elegant and really quiet. The Learning Center has got all different kinds of seating and ways for people to be comfortable. It’s the most exciting transformation of a space that I’ve seen in a long time.”
Head of Upper School Beth Slattery said the new library will allow students to be more productive while they work because of the various study areas.
“The idea was to have [the library] be a more useful space,” Slattery said. “[There are] study rooms that people can reserve if they want to work together and in groups, and silent study is much more pleasant. It goes from being louder and more social on one end and then gradually gets quieter as you go through. It’ll just be a more comfortable place for people to do different kinds of work and can actually get work done.”
Ava Hakakha ’25 said she is most looking forward to the silent study spaces in the new library.
“Being on campus without access to a library wasn’t too difficult,” Hakakha said. “I was able to find areas like the quad and the lounge to get my work done. But I’m super excited to see the new library just to have a designated quiet space to study. The main thing I’ve missed while the library has been under construction is silent study, and I’m looking forward to utilizing it when it opens.”
Librarian Edith Darling said that although the old library was a useful space, the librarians are excited to make full use of the new and improved library.
“The old library was a college-level library,” Darling said. “ What we’re doing now is going from a great building to something that has [an] intentional purpose to each space. We hope that the new changes in the library will result in students getting use and value out of the new spaces. We hope that the renovation will also garner more engagement for the library space overall.”
