I disagree with the third floor's sotto voce policy. There are other places where students can go study in quit [sic]. Majority of 3rd floor students study in groups.
Interim Associate University Librarian for Public Services Barbara Anderson replies.....
I'm so glad that you have noticed our attempt to brand the Cabell Library's 3rd floor as a "sotto voce" floor! Clearly we have succeeded in attracting the attention of you and others who have submitted similar comments on behalf of "3rd floor regulars." Since designating the 4th floor as the "quiet floor," we have observed an increase in group study activity on the 3rd floor, and this often takes a very animated and enthusiastic form. While undoubtedly exciting and effective for the students engaged in this active manner of learning, it is not so popular with others who also have legitimate requests for more space where they can study individually or quietly in small groups.
Here's the deal with Cabell Library: quite simply, VCU's student population has completely outgrown the capacity of its libraries, both in terms of collections and study space. Facilities that were designed to hold 1 million volumes now hold 1.8 million. Cabell Library was built in 1975 when the university student population was 16,000. Today it is nearly 28,500 with growth projections for the future over 30,000. National guidelines recommend that university libraries be able to seat 25% of their student bodies. VCU libraries can house less than 5%!
VCU has long-term plans to expand Cabell Library, but in the meantime we are looking for ways to accommodate a variety of study needs and learning styles in an increasingly crowded space. Large groups studying in normal conversational voices are just not compatible in close proximity with individuals or small groups engaged in quiet, collaborative work. So we are trying to create spaces that are conducive to different styles of studying, including quiet, individual study on the 4th floor and individuals or small groups speaking in a subdued manner on the 3rd floor. The recent rearrangement of study furniture and signage on the 3rd floor was intended to support the needs of students who need that type of study space.
We are not trying to ban or in any way discourage group study in Cabell Library, but we are trying to encourage groups with lively discussions to use spaces that are designed more specifically for that purpose: group study rooms (with doors!) on the 1st and 3rd floors and a large open group study area on the 2nd floor (from the elevators go straight down the 2nd floor corridor until you reach the bound journal shelves and then take a hard right- you'll see the entrance to this large room with its many tables and some lounge furniture).
If you happen to be one of the "3rd floor regulars" studying in a group, please consider becoming a "2nd floor regular" instead!
It makes sense to make the third floor a sotto voce floor because there is an open stairway connecting to the quite fourth floor. Noise from the third floor floats up to the fourth. Good thinking!
I understand the third floor policy because of the open stairway between the third and fourth floos but there isnt always enough room in the library for all of the study groups to be in the group study rooms or the group study area on the first and second floors. I guess people don't think of going to the commons to study as a group in the evening. Since the library sometimes isnt big enough, the hours of the commons can be extended and students can use their IDs to enter the commons through the side where the library is through the doors in the cut (not the regular sliding doors but the other ones).