When those plans were drawn up, studied and approved, Marymount College was a Catholic Junior College.
As you all know by now, Marymount College offers four-year degrees in addition to the Associate of Arts degrees it has long provided.
So with that in mind, I sought out how many books might be required for the two different types of higher learning centers.
In my search, I used a Catholic Junior College, Manor College in Pennsylvania and Loyola Marymount University, our nearby four-year college, just north of L.A.X.
Manor College shares similarities with the 'old' Marymount College and Manor College's Library page states that its library has "over 45,000 books.
The figure reported by Manor College may just be a perfect number of books in a two-year, Junior College setting.
Marymount College, Palos Verdes is no longer just a 'two-year' college.
According to Loyola Marymount's Web site page for its library, there are "444,200" books reportedly at the library during the 2008-2009 academic year.
As we all should know, 'books' are just a portion of what is now offered in college libraries. For those interested, I have saved the 'statistics' page for L.M.U.s library and it illustrates many different types of available items including 'e-books', photographs and a whole host of reference materials.
I think illustrating the difference in the number of books between a Junior College and Loyola Marymount's library clearly shows that the library envisioned for Marymount College's Palos Verdes Drive East campus is far to small to remain in consideration.
There are surely ways for Marymount College officials to offer a library at least as good as what is found at L.M.U.
One way is to redesign the currently-approved brick and mortar structure. That would certainly entail new design, research and financial consideration.
It would also require a whole new set of studies and approvals including our city's Planning Commission and eventually, our City Council members.
Does the current Marymount campus have enough room for a physical library containing "444,200" books and other materials?
I continue to opine that Marymount supporters and others consider a different type of library for the ever expanding student population and the new expansions of educational facilities in downtown San Pedro and at Palos Verdes North and even Marymount's Pacific Heights off-campus housing facility.
What I feel might work now is several physical 'media centers' established and sites Marymount owns or rents. All of them can be tied together with a hub to create a huge virtual library providing access to the most number of people all without transportation-related issues and having a top-notch security structure to allow for the best learning opportunities with the least problems.
As downtown San Pedro has its Business Improvement District providing banners welcoming Marymount into two new facilities, it illustrates that more remote access to library items and related materials will be needed at more locations than ever before.
Since there is no way Marymount could possibly offer a library structure that allows for inventory equal or better than is found at L.M.U. a virtual library concept become ever more possible and hopefully probable for the entire Marymount community.
Virtual libraries may also be quite a bit more cost-effective than brick and mortar libraries.
Virtual libraries have already proven to be more effective for those concerned when remote or satellite educational and residential facilities are considered.
If Marymount College ultimately abandons plans for a brick and mortar library in favor of small media centers and a huge virtual library, perhaps everybody wins.
Construction work and the labor required to build a physical library on Marymount's main campus can be moved to other locations to improve Marymount's presence in communities within the South Bay.
Potentially, a virtual library for Marymount may be easily tied into library services of Loyola Marymount University.
It might require some repeating structures to 'beam' information between facilities. They would be small in size and should be designed and built to not impede visuals and other things, between them.
Many of Marymount's new grand designs can be assisted because of financial regards by avoiding having to fund a physical library, something that is becoming more extinct on campuses all over the world.
I hope folks learn more about virtual libraries and their benefits over physical, brick and mortar library buildings. There will always be a place for physical books and other materials to touch, feel and use, but those places can be collectives and housed in a more civic-central location.
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