Hanna Chu
Staff Writer
Mark Roosa
A new stop sign, a new university Web site and theater renovations — Pepperdine has recently made many efforts to improve campus life for students. And students can expect to see more at Pepperdine’s own Payson Library.
The library kicks off the new school year with a variety of its own changes including a new dean of libraries, Mark Roosa. Roosa brings extensive experience to the position, having worked both at the Huntington Library for a year and the Library of Congress for six years. His deanship, a new position on campus, puts him in charge of all Pepperdine libraries including the Payson Library, as well as the libraries at the Drescher campus, Pepperdine’s five satellite schools and at International Programs facilities.
Ben Young / Photo Editor
The DVD collection at Payson Library contains a wide range of old classics and new releases availible for student rental.
At Payson Library, Roosa said he is motivated to make it “more a center of the university and a place that is comfortable for learning, teaching and studying.” In undertaking this task, the administration will focus on improving the library’s collection, services and sense of community during the next 12 to 18 months. Roosa said his main objective is to make sure “the teaching and learning needs of faculty and students are met,” whether that requires adding more study rooms or extending library hours.
One question on the table is whether Payson Library should be open later, or even 24 hours a day. Many students said they would support such a change.
“It’s a hassle having to pack up all my stuff at midnight and move upstairs or anywhere else when I’m in the middle of cramming for a big test or finishing a paper,” said junior political science major Daniel Ysabel.
Roosa said he realizes there are students up late studying, but at this point, he is unsure of what services could be provided in the middle of the night if the library were to extend its hours.
He said he will consider all options to meet students’ needs, and in the meantime, he would appreciate students’ opinions on the matter.
In the quest to improve the library’s sense of community, the administration has already created a brand new DVD collection available for students to check out free for seven day periods.
“This way, the students won’t have to drive to Blockbuster or wherever they rent movies,” Roosa said.
Senior business major Xavier Muniz is already enjoying this new addition.
“It’s the best thing that has happened to the library in a long time,” Muniz said.
The initial DVD collection was made possible through a $10,000 donation from President Andrew K. Benton, who has made library improvements a top priority. The collection includes a wide range of old and new movies and will continue to grow slowly.
“I thought that the school would get educational movies like The History Channel or National Geographic, but I’m really surprised at how many popular movie selections there are,” said junior sociology major Minda Miyamoto.
Students can e-mail Roosa to make any further movie suggestions.
Roosa also has many ideas that he will be working on in the coming months to also build ties with the surrounding community, including a possible lecture series with various authors, filmmakers and musicians.
Roosa said he is also focusing on making sure that the library is providing the best electronic and print resources available. He has had a passion for the preservation of resources since his junior year of undergraduate studies at the University of Minnesota when he had the opportunity to research New Orleans music. He was looking through materials at the Tulane University jazz archives and realized that research materials needed to be preserved. He interned at the Library of Congress, before he became the director and chief of the facility. He then worked on preservation of the library collection at the University of Delaware, then took post as the head of preservation programs at the Huntington Library. Roosa has also worked on developing a media collection for the Santa Monica Historical Society.
After working at more prominent establishments, Roosa is “proud to be working at Pepperdine.” He said he respects the Pepperdine ideal of developing the student more than just academically and is pleased to return “back into the academic world.”
Other changes for the University libraries will be coming in the months ahead after an assessment of what is needed. Roosa said he realizes that “there is more that we can be doing” for all the libraries.
09-16-2004
