Background Information: Cal Poly Pomona and the Robert E. Kennedy Library

The California State Polytechnic Institute Pomona is located in San Luis Obispo, and is one of seven polytechnic institutes in the United States.  It employs more than 3,000 faculty for its 21,000 students.  Cal Poly Pomona features eight colleges: Agriculture; Business Administration; Collins College of Hospitality Management; Education and Integrative Studies; Engineering; Environmental Design; Letters, Arts and Social Sciences; and Science.  It prides itself on its "Learn by doing" philosophy, which focuses on preparing students for real-world experiences.  In 2008, it completed a $58.5 million expansion and renovation project on its Kennedy Library.  The focus of the renovation was to update technology and create a "people space" to support user-centered learning.

When plans for the update of the Kennedy Library began, the University kept users in mind throughout the process.  Important new Library areas include:

• a two-story Grand Reading Room
• a high-tech 53-workstation Productivity Center
• 43 Group Study Rooms to support collaborative learning
• a 24-hour lab with 78 computer stations
• a Special Events Room for seminars, symposia, and receptions
• six classrooms and
  
• a state of the art Learning Commons that encourages “search and discovery” through a 60-work station center.

The next blog post will focus on an article about the planning approach for the Library's Learning Commons.

California State Polytechnic Institute Pomona. (2011). "About Cal Poly Pomona".  Retrieved April 12, 2011 from http://www.csupomona.edu/about.php

California State Polytechnic Institute Pomona. (2010). "About the University Library".  Retrieved April 12, 2011 from http://www.csupomona.edu/~library/about/about.html

Images: http://www.rsconstruction.com/visit-our-projects/10-education/61-cal-poly-pomona-library-addition