Transforming a Traditional Library Into a Technology-Rich Learning Commons

The University of Denver saw its library renovation as an opportunity for a fundamental rethinking of the use of space and technology to support the new ways people work and learn in a digital environment.

2014 Campus Technology Innovators Awards

Category: IT Infrastructure and Systems
Institution: University of Denver
Project: Anderson Academic Commons (Penrose Library) Renovation
Project lead: Nancy Allen, dean and director, Anderson Academic Commons
Tech vendors/partners:

When the University of Denver embarked on a major interior renovation of Penrose Library, the institution's main library for more than 40 years, what it had in mind was more than the modernization of brick and mortar structures, and more than the incorporation of new technology into updated physical spaces. The institution saw an opportunity for a fundamental rethinking of the use of space in order to provide the technology-enhanced services that support the new ways people work and learn in a digital environment.

University of Denver Anderson Academic Commons
The University of Denver’s Anderson Academic Commons is full of collaborative spaces, support centers, social areas and more. (photo courtesy of H+L Architecture)

Nancy Allen, university librarian and dean and director of the University of Denver's new Anderson Academic Commons, led the effort to transform the old physical space into a learning commons that has become the intellectual heart of the campus, chock-full of collaborative spaces, high-tech meeting rooms, academic support centers, social areas and more. Opened in 2013, the facility offers ample technology-infused spaces for collaboration, increasing the number of group study areas — all complete with flat panels and other collaborative technology — from seven to 32, and providing larger meeting and conferencing spaces that feature high-quality image capacity, built-in camera and recording technologies and motion-directed acoustics. The new academic commons hosts exhibits and conferences, enhancing its importance as a community centerpiece.


Go on a tour of the University of Denver’s Anderson Academic Commons. (video courtesy of University of Denver)

The Anderson Academic Commons also recognizes the importance of traditional, paper-based materials, maintaining about 40k linear feet of shelving within the commons for very select collections while moving the vast majority of its tangible resources to an off-campus facility. Delivery of requested materials is offered on a fast-turnaround basis, several times a day, giving users the same or better access to those materials than before the renovation.

An array of academic support centers have found their home in the commons, including the Writing Program, the University Technology Services help desk and a tutorial center (with the growing participation of math, physics, chemistry and engineering groups). A full-service café inside the building is a welcome feature for students who spend long hours at Anderson. And the Office of Teaching and Learning, the organization serving faculty with pedagogical support, is also located in the facility.

The extensive renovation involved work with several architectural and technology consultants as well as product vendors and contractors too numerous to mention. Major architectural and technology design consultants and contractors on the project included H+L Architecture, Martin/Martin Consulting Engineers, ME Engineers, Cator Ruma & Associates and Rimrock, a BCER Group. Significant technology and vendor contractors included Atlas Sound, Biamp Systems, Chatsworth Products, CommScope, Crestron, Gallun Snow, Listen Technologies, Panasonic, Sharp and Shure.

Beyond the enhanced digital services and student support centers at Anderson, there's an important element of student comfort tied into the design of workspaces. As Allen explained, "Students can choose where they want to be — whether they want to sit in social seating or solo seating … if they want quiet seating or if they want to listen to the buzz of the espresso machine … or if they'd like to sit by the fire…. They get to choose, and there's enough seating throughout the building in different categories that satisfy individual student needs, that they are happy with their use of the space, and ultimately, they succeed."

For more information on the Campus Technology Innovators program, visit the awards site.

Featured

  • From Fire TV to Signage Stick: University of Utah's Digital Signage Evolution

    Jake Sorensen, who oversees sponsorship and advertising and Student Media in Auxiliary Business Development at the University of Utah, has navigated the digital signage landscape for nearly 15 years. He was managing hundreds of devices on campus that were incompatible with digital signage requirements and needed a solution that was reliable and lowered labor costs. The Amazon Signage Stick, specifically engineered for digital signage applications, gave him the stability and design functionality the University of Utah needed, along with the assurance of long-term support.

  • Abstract geometric shapes including hexagons, circles, and triangles in blue, silver, and white

    Google Launches Its Most Advanced AI Model Yet

    Google has introduced Gemini 2.5 Pro Experimental, a new artificial intelligence model designed to reason through problems before delivering answers, a shift that marks a major leap in AI capability, according to the company.

  • Training the Next Generation of Space Cybersecurity Experts

    CT asked Scott Shackelford, Indiana University professor of law and director of the Ostrom Workshop Program on Cybersecurity and Internet Governance, about the possible emergence of space cybersecurity as a separate field that would support changing practices and foster future space cybersecurity leaders.

  • Two stylized glowing spheres with swirling particles and binary code are connected by light beams in a futuristic, gradient space

    New Boston-Based Research Center to Advance Quantum Computing with AI

    NVIDIA is establishing a research hub dedicated to advancing quantum computing through artificial intelligence (AI) and accelerated computing technologies.