The PUC Library

In the article "The PUC Library may not have it all," which ran the week of Oct. 19, discussed the PUC library and how the students' needs weren't being met in terms of research facilities and material availability. In addition to the students, some professors also have been sharing their frustrations.

Many of the professors on campus use the PUC library for their own research and often recommend that students peruse the library for materials before looking at other options such as Interlibrary Loan and visiting other area libraries. For English students and professors, finding the material needed is like searching for a very fine needle in a haystack.

English composition professor Carolyn Boiarsky uses the PUC library for her own scholarship. While doing her research, Boiarsky stated she "would need to do Interlibrary Loan, which can be fine sometimes and other times very, very slow. I've gone to other libraries when I've needed something quickly."

PUC English professor Mita Choudhury mentioned lacking material isn't the administration's fault, but is due to the nature of the university. Choudhury stated "there isn't a PhD program on any of the PUC campuses; that is why we have what we have-one floor of a building that houses materials for many departments."

With the above considered, PUC currently has over 100 hundred degree programs available.

"In terms of my classes, I've made sure the library orders the books I need, and I've tried to keep up over the years," Boiarsky stated. "The major problem I have is that the library does not carry some of the journals I need. That has meant that I've ordered them and paid for them myself, and they are part of my own library."

"It's very important for students to have a standalone structure," Choudhury said. "It would be attractive to create an environment where students feel comfortable to browse resources and books."

Purdue Lafayette has the Hicks Undergraduate Library, a standalone complex housing many materials for the areas of study available there. Many of the Interlibrary Loan orders come from Purdue Lafayette. Granted that Lafayette is the larger campus, why can't PUC have a standalone library to cater to its ever-growing population?

"Students deserve a stand-alone structure within the next 10 to 15 years," Choudhury stated. "Without a standalone and user-friendly environment for lounging and doing research, if students aren't attracted to the library, they'll ask why they need to research there."

For class research, if necessary materials cannot be found at the PUC library, Choudhury suggested that students visit the Valparaiso University library or Notre Dame, which is a government depository, meaning that Indiana residents are welcome.

If students are willing to commute, Choudhury also recommended using the University of Chicago library, but students are not guaranteed to get in because they are students in Indiana.

In terms of fulfilling needs, Choudhury and others encourage students to talk to the chancellor about improvements that need to be made to the library.

In the short-term, there is a national campaign called "The Right to Research." The Right to Research campaign is an online petition that students and professors are encouraged to sign in order to make scholarly academic journals more widely available on college campuses.

According to the mission statement, "students on campuses across the country are in danger of losing access to journals that provide them with cutting edge research- research crucial for a complete education in any field of study."

The document also mentions how taxpayers pay for articles in the journal to be written and published; therefore, students should have access to these journals for no charge.

By participating in the campaign, students can begin improving research needs nationally. On the PUC campus, however, each student needs to take a step in order to improve their PUC library experiences now and in the future.