Howard-Tilton Memorial Library open for basic services

Of all the “essential services” of a university, the library has to be at the top of the list. While classes did not meet on Tuesday (Jan. 28) or Wednesday (Jan. 29) on the Tulane University uptown campus because of the threat of severe winter weather, that does not mean academic pursuits came to a halt.

Students and faculty members may go to the library to check out books, do research and enjoy a quiet haven in which to study. (Photo by Alicia Duplessis Jasmin)

Lance Query, dean of libraries, said, “We are going to keep the library open because that's the business we're in. We are dedicated to providing our students with the access to the information they need where they need it and when they need it.”

Students and faculty members may go to the library to check out books, do research and enjoy a quiet haven in which to study. Some library services such as instruction and interlibrary loan would not be available until Thursday, when the library and university will be operating under normal conditions.

The library has a contingency plan for emergencies such as the weather-related closure this week. The plan designates a “skeletal” crew to operate the library for shortened hours.

Hayden Battle, head of circulation, is one of two library staff members along with a few student workers who welcomed more than 100 library-goers on Tuesday.

Battle said he had no problem getting to work because he lives in the neighborhood and walks to the library every day. He said that Tulane University provost Michael Bernstein requested that the library stay open because it is “essential” to the university's mission.