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--> --> Hannon says funds likely for SOU library expansion By Vickie Aldous Ashland Daily Tidings Southern Oregon University likely will win $15 million in state funding for a doubling of the campus library, Sen. Lenn Hannon, R-Ashland, said today. The total cost of the 65,000 square foot expansion is estimated at $20 million, with the university planning to raise the remaining $5 million, according to SOU officials. The university plans to name the library after Hannon, The Tidings learned today from a university source. However, SOU President Sara Hopkins-Powell said officials have not named the building yet, according to university spokesperson Katie Bazylewicz. The $15 million is included in a $400 million capital construction package for the Oregon University System. The package is expected to go to the Legislature's Joint Ways and Means Committee on Thursday and then will move to the floors of the House and Senate for final votes, Hannon said. Hannon, elected to the Senate in 1974, is co-chair of the Joint Ways and Means Committee, the Legislature's budgeting committee. Hopkins-Powell said Hannon has been instrumental in advancing the university's $15 million request through the Legislature. Prior to the beginning of the session, she discussed SOU's capital construction priorities with Hannon. "The university had requested that as one of their top priorities," Hannon said. "That's what we've been working for all session." Hannon said the library renovation will benefit not only SOU students, but provides a regional resource for all Southern Oregon residents, who will be able to access information and computer technology. Advances in technology over the past three decades have created an overwhelming demand for computer work stations, digital media resources and advanced research facilities in libraries, university officials said. The library now lacks sufficient space for people to study, read and work in groups, and the number of library users continues to grow each year, officials said. The expansion will add space for electronic and multimedia classrooms, a multimedia area, an information commons, a technology lab with technical services, reading areas, study and seminar rooms, a large meeting room, special collections, archives, an expanded main lobby and a coffee bar and study area, SOU officials said. The coffee shop could include a patio area with outside seating, according to Sue Burkholder, library director. Laptop computer ports will be installed throughout the complex. "For our students, the expansion means they will be getting a 21st century education in terms of access to library resources, whether those are books or electronic information," Burkholder said. "The library has an important role to help students understand, select and critique electronic information. We're going to have a building now that allows us to do that." The expansion also provides increased space for the general collection, reference materials, government publications, maps and periodicals, according to SOU officials. Email your... Technical questions & comments to: WebMaster Daily Tidings editorial comments & questions to: Editor Visit our other Oregon Newspapers... | Albany Democrat-Herald | Ashland Daily Tidings | Corvallis Gazette-Times | | Lebanon Express | Newport News-Times | Springfield News | Cottage Grove Sentinel | Ashland Daily Tidings 1661 Siskiyou Blvd. Ashland, OR 97520 Telephone 541-482-3456 © Copyright 2001 Lee Northwest Publishing