Library hours should be extended

Letter to the Editor written by Joshua von Herrmann, sophomore political science major from Hattiesburg, Miss.

As a resident of a fraternity house on campus, I can personally attest to having trouble studying after 6 p.m. on weekends. This is why I am writing to you. I believe an issue deserves more campus attention: the current hours of Cook Library. Cook Library is open until 2 a.m. Sunday through Thursday but only until 6 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, when many students do a significant amount of their schoolwork. This is why the library should extend its hours until 2 a.m. on the weekends. Many students here at USM, such as myself, utilize Cook Library for a large portion of our study time. However, the current hours of the library are often inconvenient for average college students’ study habits, which are usually late at night or at odd hours throughout the weekend.

The University is usually very good about providing basic services for its students and is especially helpful around finals when the library is open 24 hours a day for a few days. We appreciate that. However, students like myself will continue to be inconvenienced by the automated woman repeating, “Cook Library will be closing in 15 minutes,” every night. Students will take advantage of this opportunity, especially because their own living conditions are often difficult to study in. Finally, paying someone to watch students study late at night on weekends would cost very little, and a student worker would proudly cover that shift at $7.25 an hour. The educational benefits far outweigh the marginal cost. I believe the Senate or the campus administration should look into this issue within the next semester and take action as soon as possible.