Reading and studying is the primary use of the North Reading Room in Schauerman Library for most students, but constant high noise levels may affect the availability of the room.

When searching for silent solace, many students choose the library to study and read in a quiet environment. During this semester however students as well as library staff have found that the quietness is becoming less common. Primarily in the North Reading Room, formally known as the quiet room, there is an influx of students going against obvious rules of being loud in the library.

With the noise being a common problem, it would only make sense that those in charge of the library would want to take action in fixing the problem. Closing the room, which would be temporary, is what the library staff will be forced to do.

“We’ve been told that’s what we can do and that’s the only way to do it,” Ed Martinez, Public Access Librarian said. “We have a choice of either closing down the room or just letting it go.”

The Schauerman Library staff have had the difficult task of dealing with this particular disturbance which has forced them into different roles other than librarians. Having to constantly enforce rules and regulations have taken the staff beyond their actual job titles.

“The library staff have been challenged by the noise level,” Martinez said. “It forces us to be policemen. I didn’t sign up to be a librarian to be a policeman.”

Students have noticed the loudness and are not very pleased with what has been happening. The noise has been constantly distracting for students are trying to utilize the library for its intended use.

“It has been louder lately, it can really be distracting when people are trying to actually study,” Myra Vazquez, 21, English major, said. “It’s ridiculous. I mean school is hard enough and then you can’t even get a real moment to concentrate.”

Much like the students who want to study in a quiet atmosphere, the staff has taken notice to the increase in the noise levels. New additions of a snack area hasn’t made it any easier in dealing with the noise and distractions that go along with it.

“Its gotten dramatically louder and busier,” Martinez said. “Its always been busy but it’s much louder since the creation of the snack bar area.”

While the problem is that people are being loud within the library, a reason as to why students are socializing there is because there is nowhere else to go.

“Ever since the campus did away with the official cafeteria, students no longer have a place to just lounge and talk,” Martinez said. “So there’s really just no place for students to hang out and thats why that room has come by default that the hangout for the campus.”

As the semester has been progressing, the North Reading Room has become the host of different groups of students who use it as their personal talking area. With groups rotating in and out of the room it becomes a hectic routine for the staff.

“Its always random groups that come and just keep talking and talking like they’re not even in a library,” Michael Williams, 23, communications major, said. “It’s a library, it should be a universal understanding that you don’t go there to just chill and talk.”

Though it has been difficult this semester in maintaining the intended purpose of the library, to provide a quiet area for students to study, read, and work, the closing would only be temporary.

“We don’t envision ever closing it permanently, that’s not something we’d do,” Martinez said. “Its temporary just to remind students it’s out of control and we have to do something about it.”