Published 2013-04-17T06:00:00Z”/>
Kayla Smith
Interior design students are teaming up with Chico State’s provost to revamp Meriam Library’s first-floor laptop lounge to make it more comfortable.
Students in the American Society of Interior Design will compete to design the winning layout for the new area.
Belle Wei, provost and vice president for academic affairs at Chico State, initially came up with the idea for the remodel when she noticed the lack of activity at the library during night hours, in addition to the unappealing nature of the laptop lounge, which stays open until 2 a.m.
“It’s important to have students helping with the design because they know their fellow students and can sense needs, preferences and usage,” she said.
Wei also noted Chico State’s apparent alcohol issues as a reason for leading the project aimed toward providing students with a welcoming place that doesn’t involve partying.
“If students don’t drink and don’t go to bars, where else could they go?” Wei asked the group of students who gathered to brainstorm for the project.
There should be a safe, inviting and attractive place for students to go, she said.
“We want to match bar hours,” Wei said.
Kijeong Jeon, a professor and coordinator of the interior design program at Chico State, would like his students to execute case studies and collect information in teams to get the project started, he said.
“We need to find out what students like to do while they are in the library,” he said. “Our main goal is to keep them in the library and have them do all of their activities there, while still having fun.”
During the initial steps of the project, students are measuring the space, taking inventory of existing furniture, observing how students use the lounge and taking photographs.
The students should take multiple pictures of the area and put them together to form a panoramic shot in order to see what the space looks like as a whole, said Rouben Mohiuddin, an interior design professor.
There is no set budget for the project, but finances shouldn’t have any bearing on good design, Jeon said.
“Some of my best work has developed from having a tight budget,” he said.
Construction for the project should not interrupt study time because it will take place during summer, Jeon said.
So far, the interior design students have suggested changes such as adding more color, incorporating artwork and implementing different seating strategies, such as the addition of bean bags.
“We want to give students a good reason to come and spend time in the library,” Jeon said.
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