The College of the Rockies is undertaking an initiative to enhance the student experience through the creation of a “learning commons” consisting of engaging and supportive space(s), services, partnerships and technologies that will facilitate progressive learning, teaching and campus connections and experiences for all students, employees and the larger regional community. To start the process, the Library is hosting a series of community engagement sessions to gather stakeholder input to understand users’ needs, requirements and preferences to improve library operations, user experiences and future partnership and expansion requirements. The goal of the stakeholder sessions is to begin the conversation with the College of the Rockies community about how the existing library is, or is not, meeting your needs (for spaces, services, resources, technologies, etc.) and how you would like to see it evolve. The input gathered at these sessions will drive the design decisions to determine how best to move the Library forward and enhance the student learning experience at the College of the Rockies. During the third community engagement session, we will do a quick re-cap of what we heard during the last meeting, and then we will be talking about the next two design principles to consider when designing a learning commons space. All of the input that you provide will help us answer the main discussion question; how does the library move forward into a new one-stop shop “learning commons” that will merge key student success and support services within a 21st Century learning community? Thank you to everyone who participated! Please join us for the fourth session on February 4 where we will discuss the final design principle to consider with learning commons design, as well as furniture solutions that can be incorporated into the new design.

1. Thank you for joining us this afternoon. Session #3 will begin at 4:00pm
Retain +
Furniture
Session #2 Recap:
How does the library move forward
into a new one-stop shop “learning
commons” that will merge key
student success and support
services within a 21st Century
learning community?
Reorganize/Rebalance + Reconfigure

2. Thank you for joining us this afternoon. Session #3 will begin at 4:00pm
What we heard – Types of study spaces desired

3. Thank you for joining us this afternoon. Session #3 will begin at 4:00pm
What we heard – Types of technology to consider

4. Thank you for joining us this afternoon. Session #3 will begin at 4:00pm
Agenda for Session #3
1. Team Introduction
2. Zoom Refresher
3. Introduction to today’s topic
4. Community Input
5. Wrap Up

5. Thank you for joining us this afternoon. Session #2 will begin at 4:00pm
Next Sessions:
1. February 4 – Session #4
Topic: Retain + Furniture Solutions
2. February 11 – Session #5
Topic: Community Engagement Summary

6. Learning Commons +
Library Design
• Remove
• Reveal
• How does the move forward into a new one-
stop shop “learning commons” that will merge
key student success and support services
within a 21st Century learning community?
Cranbrook, British Columbia
College of the Rockies
January 28, 2021

8. How does the library move forward
into a new one-stop shop “learning
commons” that will merge key
student success and support
services within a 21st Century
learning community?
Retain +
Furniture

9. Reorganize /
Rebalance
Reorganizing and
rebalancing the space
to be structured around
a central gathering area
helps to focus the
spatial configuration on
the people rather than
the collections, allowing
the library to reinforce a
sense of community
with engaging gathering
spaces that promote
interaction.
Reconfigure
Reconfiguring the space
allows the library to
embrace change and
continue to find
innovative ways to
deliver service that
supports the shifting
needs of the
community.
Remove
Removing barriers in
the space between
people, knowledge, and
resources allows the
library to support
inclusive spaces that
accommodate learning
opportunities for people
of all backgrounds.
Reveal
Revealing the space to
the community allows
the library to become
an equitable
environment that
promotes access to
resources for growth
and learning, and that
recognizes the historic
and ongoing
connections to the
Ktunaxa and Kinbasket
Peoples.
Retain
Retaining the historic
character of the existing
library and surrounding
buildings preserves a
story of the city,
neighbourhoods and
school across
generations, and
acknowledges the
relationship of the
College and the Ktunaxa
Peoples upon whose
unceded ancestral lands
we learn and thrive on.

10. Remove
1. Smaller, mobile services points should be included to make the staff more approachable.
2. The introduction of self-service opportunities helps streamline the borrowing process and allows for the staff to
interact with more users.
3. Public computers and technologies should be available, as well as accommodations for users to bring their
own devices (this should include a wide distribution of power and data outlets and wi-fi coverage).
4. Technology intensive meeting space should be provided to support the needs of the users as well as support
the educational programming within the learning commons.

11. Reveal
1. The design should be located in an area that is near the active center of the community (or school).
2. The design should accommodate controlled views inward with a visual connection to the outdoors.
3. Expansive glass required to achieve this should be thoughtfully placed and treated appropriately to control
natural light.
4. Visibility should be a driving force on the interior, prioritizing a sense of openness, optimal sightlines, and
visual control by staff.

12. What types of
educational
programming
should be hosted
in the learning
commons?

13. Poll:
Would self-service opportunities be beneficial to
the operations of the new learning commons?

14. Should there
be multiple
service points,
one main
circulation
desk or a mix
of both?

15. How can we make the
historic and ongoing
connection with the
Ktunaxa and Kinbasket
Peoples transparent
and/or accessible?

16. Are there any other ongoing connections with the College that the new
learning commons should honour?

17. Are there any connections
within the Cranbrook
community that the new
learning commons should
acknowledge?

18. Poll:
How important are
natural elements
to you to be
incorporated for
this project?

19. Should the staff and admin
areas be transparent, or
should they be private?

20. Should the learning
commons be a visually
open design throughout
the whole space, or
should there be some
private areas as well?

21. Questions?
Please join us for our next
community engagement session
on February 4.
This session will be uploaded to
the project website within 24
hours.
Thank you for joining us!
+ Hospice
Retain +
Furniture