HUNTER COLLEGE LIBRARY: TO LOUNGE OR NOT TO LOUNGE?

   Hunter College students walking into the library mid-day hoping to get some work done will have a hard time finding a place to sit. The Leon and Toby Cooperman Library located in Hunter College East is always filled with students, some studying and many lounging, putting others -- who want to take advantage of the library to get work done -- out. 

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   According to Sophomore Arlyn Cabrera, “Students take advantage of the library. They are always on their phones watching videos, but I can’t lie I do it too.” When a student enters the Hunter library, they’re greeted with a carpet adorning neon colorful lines that lead to different areas of the library.  A student who follows the line straight forward from the entrance will enter the third-floor reading room. There, around 50-100 students sit in their bright clothes hunched over their computers, some watching tv shows and listening to music with the occasional muffled sound sneaking out of headphones. Others lie across couches or chairs taking naps. 

Some students disagree with Cabrera, according to Junior Janice James, “I don’t  believe students are taking advantage of the space, they just need a place to chill.” 

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    There is plenty of room in the Hunter library for students to work. “Including B1 and B2, the library has nine floors,” says Senior Shaliza Ally who works as a Library Student Aid. “Most students like the sixth and seventh floors a lot because they have couches.” Despite these nine levels, students still have difficulty finding space in the library. Perhaps it’s a budget issue, and more money should be put aside to giving students a place for studying and a place for lounging. A request for comment from CUNY Rising Alliance about Hunter College’s budget was not returned by press time.