In recognition of the Academic Committee’s proposal that hours at the Robert L. Carothers Library be extended for finals week and the two weeks prior, Karim B. Boughida, the Dean of University Libraries, came to address the concerns of the Student Senate during public forum. Boughida said that this proposal, while being legitimate, was not made well in advance of the requested time, and that opening the library for the specific hours of 7 a.m. to 2 a.m. needs a lot of time and resources, and thus the outcome has not yet been determined.
The library will maintain the 7 a.m. to 2 a.m. hours from Tuesday, Dec. 13 to Friday, Dec. 23.
Boughida said that the process for extending hours is a long one, as they have to complete extensive staff hires, which also ties in with union concerns. Also, the high cost of extending library hours needs to be justified by student use, which he believes is not there yet.
Lastly, Boughida addressed other concerns about the library, specifically with more outlets in study rooms, stations for filtered water, more chairs and tables, more computers in the 24 Hour Room, and a vending machine for office supplies. He said these ideas were all within the realm of possibility.
SOARC introduced two bills which would recognize Rhody Archery and the URI Theme Park Engineering and Design Club as student-funded organizations.
To finish the meeting, Senate filled two vacant positions through a vote. Freshman Yasmin Hussein was confirmed as an Off-Campus Representative and current senator Shannon McIsaac was confirmed as the College of Nursing Liaison.