Riddell Library breaks ground
Out with the old: Riddell Library and Learning Centre to offer students a richer learning environment
Dayla Brown
News Editor
A donation of $85.5 million from the government and the Riddell family has lead to the development of the Riddell Library and Learning Centre (RLLC), which is expected to open early 2017.
According to Carol Shepstone, the university librarian, this centre will bring several improvements to campus.
“Our current space is lovely in many ways but very outdated in design, quite inadequate in terms of overall space and of course, not the type of learning space we need as a university,” said Shepstone.
The building will have a wide range of new types of learning and study spaces, from stand-up and treadmill desks to media production rooms with greenscreens and sound equipment. It will also have “maker space” with specialized equipment like 3D printers.
“The new facility will offer exciting new learning spaces, and opportunities to work in new and creative ways with resources and technologies,” says Shepstone.
The additional space will allow more room for students to study. The current library has 600 seats, but the RLLC will have 1500.
“The new building is four floors so it is a significant addition of space.”
According to the Mount Royal University website, collaboration between several of MRU’s services such as the Student Learning Services, the Academic Development Centre and START (Student Technicians and Resource Tutors) to name a few are critical to the success of the project.
“The old space will be reviewed as part of a renewed campus master planning process,” says Shepstone.
University President David Docherty says, “Students need a space where they can study, think, exchange ideas and create new ones, where they can experiment and fail before they succeed.
“The library is where it happens. It’s where our students evolve into the young, bright adults they become when they leave Mount Royal and go on to be future leaders and great citizens of tomorrow.”
For more information on the development of the RLLC, visit mtroyal.ca.