Most libraries cut back on operating hours this year
Hayden closes at 11, to lose extended weekend hours
MIT Libraries drastically cut hours for the new 2010-2011 academic year. The libraries Hayden, Barker, Dewey, Lewis, and Rotch lost a combined 27.5 hours of service per week. Most libraries will open half-an-hour later and some, including Hayden, will close an hour earlier.
These hours will be effective starting today. Reductions were decided using data showing hours of most use by students via record of daily door counts in each library.
MIT has mandated that libraries must reduce the Fiscal Year 2011 budget by $2 million, a policy that is accelerating the Libraries’ 2008 reorganization initiative.
Over the summer, MIT libraries were closed from July 2 to July 10 and library staff were forced to take unpaid vacations to help cut costs.
In the last academic year two MIT libraries were closed — the Aeronautics and Astronautics Library and the Lindgren Library. During exam week last semester, Hayden Library closed at 2 a.m. every day instead of staying open 24-hours as it has in the past.
Hayden Library underwent renovations this summer. Improvements include new energy-efficient lighting, sprinkler system upgrades, new carpet, acoustical ceiling tiles, and paint.