My college library, the continuing adventures

[killing_rose]

Because the library stairs are steep, I've noticed that I have more of a tendency to nearly fall while using them than I do on other stairs on campus.  I've had a number of increasingly close calls in the past several weeks, primarily because my balance has been more shot than normal. I can live with the pain that using stairs creates for me; however, I figured that it wasn't really bright to keep risking my life for books.

As previously detailed, back in October or some such, the librarians don't allow students use the elevator. My hope was that they would be willing to let people use the elevator anyway, if they (I) actually needed to.

Today, I finally braved talking to the librarian. (Mostly because it was one who hasn't screamed at me in the past.)

And she said, "Well, we can check out an elevator key to you. But well, not today." 

"Oh?"

"The elevator's broken. We're not letting anyone use it, though we have been sending books back and forth."

This makes sense to me, so I nod in agreement--I can stay on the first floor for a while. Or go up and down carefully.

Apparently, I can check out the key on Monday, probably.

This, however, is not the fail. I'm counting it as a accessibility win, albeit with caveats.

The fail is that, to talk to the nice woman at the desk, I had to walk up a flight of stairs to reach the first floor at all.

Oh, humans.

Comments

[jesse_the_k]

Oh, the wrongness of it all!

Perhaps one of your classmates could be hornswoggled into staking out the joint. Xie would watch for the UPS delivery truck, and follow the muscular delivery person in. I'm betting the librarians want to keep on xir good side, and that won't require the delivery person to hump boxes of books up two flights of stairs.

[killing_rose]

I can personally live with the fact that there's no actual accessible dorms, though it pisses me off when that fact's generalized to everyone. (Jesus, and people wonder why there's no one with visible mobility impairments who enter as freshmen?) But the continuing state of my library makes me more visibly annoyed. (Though my dean, who has heard an Earful on both topics would dispute the last portion.)

Possibly. On the other hand, I work in the student mailroom, so I could just *ask* Bruce the UPS dude tomorrow.

[laughingrat]

You do realize that the "librarian" (who was, from the sound of it, probably a Circ flunky and not someone in Reference) did not design the building, correct?

Have you spoken to the library director about this? Because desk staff, even full librarians, are often not empowered to make changes in policy--not even for really, really benighted policies like the one to not let students in need of accommodation use the elevator.

[killing_rose]

The first was, indeed, at the Circ desk. The second--who I dealt with later in the day--was a Reference librarian. And I do recognize that. I'm going in on Monday to talk to the director for that very reason.

I also realize that since the building's something like 50 years old, it would be absolutely impossible for *anyone* on this campus to have been the architect.

That said, my "oh humans" was aimed more at the (probably) long-dead architect and the fact that one of the reasons the administration--not the librarians--give as to why the library's issues haven't been fixed is because "the next library's going to have more accessibility!" As a campus, we've been waiting on New Library for five years, and it looks like it'll be another 10 at this rate.

I promise, I like librarians. You all keep me in books without bankrupting my bank account. My research librarians help me find books on esoteric topics and don't comment on the state of sanity. And my college library has Sandman. What's *not* to like?

It is the library-as-a-building and policies that have probably stayed the same for 50 years (if other issues I've had on campus are any indication) that frustrates me, not the people.

[exor674]

This may be the cynical side of me talking, and I guess it could be just getting stuck occasionally, and they don't want a *person* stuck inside it -- but "The elevator's broken. We're not letting anyone use it, though we have been sending books back and forth." sounds like a brushoff to me. "Broken" generally means a state of non-workingness, sending books back and fourth generally implies that it is actually functioning.

[killing_rose]

I heard it from both Circ and Reference, at such points that they couldn't have actually *discussed* the issue. (That, and I have friends who work there who attest that no, this is actually how they function when the elevator is on its deathbed for the eighth or ninth time this year. The thing's almost as old as the building, which enters its 5th decade this year.)

I'm still skeptical, but I'm going to go in on Monday when the director's there and talk to her. And if that doesn't work...my dean loves me.

[grimreality]

So there is no lift to the first floor, where you had to ask for the key? Or was that the lift you need a key for? Also, if it's broken how are they using it to send books back and forth I wonder?

*deep sigh*

Thankfully my college has lifts in the library, and there is only one place in there I can't seem to access. Of course I have yet to attempt using one of the elevators to the stacks that my friend referred to as "super tiny."

[killing_rose]

The ground floor, where you enter, has minimal access to the elevator. You can only access this elevator if a) you already have a key or b) you go up the flight of stairs to the first floor to obtain the key.

Once you are in the library, there is still only the one elevator; it's several decades old, and rapidly disintegrating. And, as previously noted, students can only access it if they have a key.

The disintegration's why I can believe the "we can put books in it, but..." line. If it weren't for the fact that I've watched my ex grit her teeth before going in the elevator while she worked at the library, I probably wouldn't.

I'd like to note that no one I know of was aware of the fact that you could get a key prior to yesterday when I finally asked.

[grimreality]

Yeah, getting stuck in an *old* elevator doesn't seem like much fun.

They should just give keys to students with mobility disabilities upon request once (if?) they fix it. I hope it works out soon.