Creating a signature space for Social Science students

November 17, 2016

Western maintains a commitment to delivering the premiere academic experience in Canada—The Western Experience. The Western Experience develops leaders, creates a global context for learning, and values research and the discovery of new knowledge that has a tangible impact on society.

Collaboration, community and support are key to student success.

Western is committed to finding innovative solutions to enable students to realize their academic goals. One of these solutions involves renovating space, formerly home to the map library, to create the Faculty of Social Science Student Reading Room.

A new space, the Social Science Student Reading Room, will open in January, providing the faculty’s large student population a modern, dedicated and quiet space to call their own. The new reading room will be located on the ground level of SSC where the former Map and Data Centre library resided, before moving over to the D.B. Weldon Library.

Dan Shrubsole, Professor in the Department of Geography and Assistant Dean of the Faculty of Social Science spoke to Western News about the project. 

From the article:

Home to the largest student, staff and faculty population on campus, the building currently accommodates two-to-three times the number of bodies it was originally designed for, said Dan Shrubsole, Geography professor and Assistant Dean of Social Science.

Consider the packed SSC alongside an ever-growing campus population and a resultant increased demand for dedicated study spaces across all faculties and libraries. It’s no surprise Social Science students are in need of a dedicated study space of their own. Meeting this student need is essential if Western is to deliver Canada’s best student experience, Shrubsole added.

To fund the room, the students’ council put forward $200,000 and central administration took on the remainder of the tab, he added.

“This reflects a great partnership with the students and the faculty and the senior administration. It’s going to be great; it really is. The students just love it. Right now, the expectation is the furniture will arrive mid-December. There will be an opening event in January,” Shrubsole said.

“Everyone’s needs were able to be met – this is really Phase One of the (renovation) project, which is focused on the reading room. We’re also making a push to improve our teaching areas. Students know it’s coming up. We are looking to upgrade everything we can,” he said.

Read the full Western News article