First and Focused - College of Saint Benedict & Saint John's University
First and Focused - College of Saint Benedict & Saint John's University
First and Focused - College of Saint Benedict & Saint John's University
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Libraries since antiquity—<strong>and</strong> best exemplified by the famed<br />
library in Alex<strong>and</strong>ria—have been celebrated for the accumulated<br />
knowledge stored within. Erected as gr<strong>and</strong> palaces, or secular<br />
temples, they maintain a physical record <strong>of</strong> the collective intellect.<br />
For centuries, librarians have sustained <strong>and</strong> revered the life <strong>of</strong><br />
the mind. Chief among them, <strong>Benedict</strong>ines have labored for 1,500<br />
years in the preservation, creation <strong>and</strong> transmission <strong>of</strong> knowledge<br />
<strong>and</strong> its artifacts.<br />
At <strong>Saint</strong> John’s <strong>University</strong>, the library represents that <strong>Benedict</strong>ine<br />
commitment to the wisdom tradition. Completed in 1966, Alcuin<br />
was one <strong>of</strong> the great libraries <strong>of</strong> its time. Designed by renowned<br />
architect Marcel Breuer, Alcuin remains widely recognized for its<br />
stately granite exterior. Inside, massive concrete columns known as<br />
“trees <strong>of</strong> knowledge” dominate the expansive reading room, with<br />
28<br />
their dramatic branches reaching across the ceiling.<br />
Johnnies from that era may recall the construction site, <strong>and</strong> how<br />
they improvised an outdoor obstacle course <strong>of</strong> sorts, as described by<br />
Jon Hunstock in his report on library construction progress in The<br />
Record (Sept. 30, 1965):<br />
“The same snowdrifts which caught Johnnies jumping <strong>of</strong>f the<br />
uncompleted library amid sawhorses <strong>and</strong> concrete slabs last winter<br />
were the same ones which brought progress on the library almost to<br />
a st<strong>and</strong>still.”<br />
Hunstock goes on to describe the many modern amenities in<br />
store once the library was transformed from Johnnie playground to<br />
a more scholarly purpose. Features would include two audio-visual<br />
rooms, a record library equipped with earphones, private study<br />
rooms <strong>and</strong> rooms for typing <strong>and</strong> smoking. Smoking? That was then.<br />
“Libraries will be valued well into the future because <strong>of</strong> one abiding<br />
constant: students <strong>and</strong> faculty seeking to make intellectual progress<br />
will continue to require help in accessing the accumulated knowledge<br />
<strong>of</strong> those who have come before them.”<br />
To increase access to librarians, <strong>of</strong>fices<br />
will be relocated to bring them closer<br />
to users in an open area dedicated to a<br />
student research center.<br />
- Council on Library <strong>and</strong> Information Resources