The media center’s new admission policy, though it has upset many students, has created the exact atmosphere for the library that the administration sought: one good for studying.

With requiring students to sign up for a spot before school, the students who came to the media center just to socialize with their friends (which they could have done in the cafeteria during commons) are not disrupting the academic atmosphere and those students that need quiet in order to concentrate.

“Students have come up to me and said, ‘This is what I needed, thank you,’” Mr. Krystal said, noting the thanks the staff has received for the change. The lower number of students and quiet atmosphere also allow for the staff to help those students who need it.They can sit down and help out someone struggling to find research for their project or navigate the shelves to help look for a book. It has become a much more productive place now that the socializers have returned to the cafeteria where their chatter is much more welcome.

Groups are not disallowed from the media, however; the room has been rearranged to allow for small groups working together. The table groupings are separated by shelves, allowing someone to distance themselves from the solitary workers if need be. The single-student desks for concentrated study have also been moved around; there are some on each side of the media center, allowing students who need no distractions to take a seat where they find best for the amount of solitude they desire.

Few changes have been made since the policy was put in place at the beginning of the semester. Only the necessary adjustments were made that have rendered the policy more manageable for the students. Now, no student needs a pass to use the media center during their lunch period so as to not bother teachers with students searching them out to have passes written when their time is “better spent preparing for class and planning their lessons,” Mr. Krystal said.

There is more in store for the media center: soon there will be an online form for reserving a place in the library. Students will have to navigate the CG webpage and fill out a Google form to reserve their spot with no visit to the media center before first period needed. Of course, those who still want to sign up in person can, but those who cannot get to school early enough for the extra stop in the library will now have an opportunity to utilize its resources.

At the beginning of the semester, the number of students in the media center was ridiculously small but have steadily grown and students have began to return to the book-laden room. Between the small adjustments made to the policy and the new online system, hopes are that the growth will continue.