Aidan Van Nynatten 

News Writer 

The UNCG Library and the McIver statue on a summer day. Photo credit: UNCG 

Whether you have a favorite quiet study spot or a preferred room for group meetings, or you just like to browse the shelves for a good read, the upcoming renovations to Jackson Library will affect all students. The project is scheduled to commence in the Spring 2025 semester, with expected completion in December 2027. The work will mean restricted access for the student body in certain areas of the library at certain times. I spoke with Michael Crumpton, Dean of University Libraries, about the renovation plans. 

To say this update is overdue would be an understatement. The last construction work to occur in the Jackson Library dates to the 1970s. Regulations regarding accessibility and fire safety have undergone serious updates since then. Crumpton said that UNCG has been awaiting approval and funding for renovations for the better part of 20 years. In the 2017-18 school year, a master plan was devised for the project, with a desired budget of up to $140 million. The actual budget granted by the North Carolina General Assembly came to $81 million as a baseline, with an additional $17 million to account for inflation, for a total of $98 million. The plan will initially focus on the tower for a year and a half, then shift operations to the main building for another year and a half before the library reopens fully in Spring 2028. 

Crumpton shared the specific concerns that the project, which will improve the library’s functionality and use to future students, will address. He stressed that safety and accessibility are the highest priorities. For instance, the elevators are a particular area of focus for improved accessibility. Other items in the plan are meant to rectify significant disability access issues, such as wider shelf aisles to accommodate wheelchairs and more entrances with ramps. Improving accessibility is not the only area needing improvement in Jackson Library’s infrastructure; fire safety is also pivotal to the agenda. Among other things, the sprinkler system is one of the most prominent features in the update plan.  

Of course, no conversation about public safety is complete unless coupled with public health. Fortunately, this component of the project is receiving its due diligence just as fire hazard and accessibility are. The plan addresses opportunities for more and better water fountains, including the addition of water bottle refilling stations. The bathroom setup is also a major target of renovation. As well as modernizing the bathrooms, with new plumbing to improve water efficiency, there will also be more single bathrooms to create a higher standard of privacy. 

While health and safety are the primary concerns, there are still plenty of improvements to the building’s utility to the student body on the itinerary. The vision for the project is not just to bring the library up to code, but also to reinvent it as a “hub for student services,” in Crumpton’s words. In keeping with this vision, both the IT Center and Academic Achievement Center will get improvements, and the building will gain a new student leisure hub and a family room. 

Energy and resource efficiency are also top priorities for the project. There is not sufficient funding to transition to a full Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification, which you may notice in most of the other major common use buildings on campus such as the Moran Commons and the Elliot University Center. However, the goal is still to get the library to the point that it will be ready for further updates to achieve LEED status in the future.  

This project is also not occurring in a vacuum. It coincides with a system-wide library renewal initiative, which includes updates to the Wilson Library at UNC-Chapel Hill and an entirely new library at UNC-Wilmington. 

While the renovations are much needed, some students and faculty have raised concerns about associated plans to reduce the library’s print collection. Reduced access to print sources could affect the graduate student and faculty scholarship, and petitions to that effect circulated in Spring 2022. Crumpton and the rest of the library administration have a tentative town hall meeting planned for late February to go into further detail about the library’s plans going forward.