As final exams approach, the printers and copiers in library spaces get more use.  And with more use, they tend to experience more problems.  The library staff will continue to do the best we can to get these machines serviced promptly, though with the library space spread among several non-contiguous floors in two separate buildings, this continues to be a challenge for us.  We rely heavily on students to report printer and copier problems.  The faster problems are called in, the faster we can get the machines serviced!

Please help us by making sure to call in reports of malfunctioning machines (that don’t already have "out of order signs" on them) to the Library at x2333.  If you’re at a machine that is not near an interoffice phone, you can use your cell phone to call us at 212-431-2333.  This is the number for reporting every sort of problem, from paper jams to network outages to malfunctioning card readers.

— Graduating Students

As you begin your preparation for the Bar Exam in July, please take note of available options for study spaces.

NYLS:

Library spaces, as well as other spaces in the NYLS building complex, will be open through the summer for Bar study by our graduates.  Our old library building at 240 Church St. will close permanently sometime this spring or early summer.  But this will coincide with the opening of new study spaces on the 7th floor of 40 Worth St.  We do not anticipate any significant disruption of available study spaces during our move from 240 Church St. to the 7th floor.  The spaces elsewhere in NYLS will be more than adequate to accommodate our graduates.

After finals, the Library is open reduced business hours through May, and closed over the long Memorial Day weekend, May 27-29.  Our summer business hours begin on May 30: We’ll be open from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. every weekday, and from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. every weekend.  The only exception is the Independence Day holiday, July 1 – 4, when the Library will be closed.

Beyond Library spaces, NYLS keeps several areas open 24-hours, 7-days, including the Independence Day holiday.  These areas are the Stiefel Reading Room; the C Building Cafeteria area (though there is no sale of food;) and the Student Lounge, computer labs, and vending areas in the basement of B and C Buildings.

All NYLS study spaces are air conditioned, and we will make every effort to keep them free of noise or other disruption.  To gain access, please make sure to bring your NYLS ID card to show the security guards.

OTHER OPTIONS:

You’re probably aware that our library has reciprocal agreements with certain other local law schools’ libraries that allow our students free use of those libraries.  But these agreements do not apply to our graduates.  Thus, if you wish to use another law school’s library for Bar study this summer, you may have to purchase a pass.

If you wish to use to another law school’s library for Bar study, you must contact the other library directly.  Most local law school libraries charge other schools’ graduates for a Bar study pass.  The typical charge is $50.  Some graduates will find it most convenient to study at the library of the law school that is hosting their Bar review course.  If this is your situation, then you should contact the library of your course’s host school immediately, as the number of passes being sold may be limited.
We have been advised that the law libraries at Pace in White Plains and St. John’s in Queens will be under construction this summer.  Pace’s library will not be open to graduates of any other school, while St. John’s is selling just a limited number of passes.  If Fordham’s law library is the most convenient place for your Bar study, you should contact Kristen Vissers at 212-431-2350 to inquire about access to that facility.  We will be collecting the details of other schools’ policies as they are made known to us.  You may inquire with our Reference librarians about these details, and about how to contact the other schools.

Finally, if you are employed by a member of the Association of the Bar of the City of New York, you may gain access to this association’s law library in midtown for Bar study.  If this applies to you, you should contact Janice Johnson at 212-382-6739.

If you have any questions regarding summer Bar study options please call the library’s Reference librarians at 212-431-2332, or you may e-mail reference@nyls.edu.

Bill Mills
Associate Librarian

As final exams approach, all students must keep in mind the importance of abiding by the Quiet Study Rules in all Mendik Library study areas. Even if you are the type of student who can study well in noise and commotion, remember that not everyone else feels the same way. At this time of year, the number of student noise complaints to library staff always rises dramatically. Making noise, even a little noise for a short time, can be extremely disruptive to your fellow students who are trying to study.

The library administration and staff, in concert with the Office of Facilities Management, does what it can to cultivate a quiet environment at finals time. Construction and maintenance work are avoided, and we make sure that the group study rooms are kept free for student use. We also walk around and “shush,” as good librarians must. But we can’t be everywhere, and we can do only so much enforcement. We count on the cooperation and collegiality of students to keep the peace.

PLEASE NOTE THAT ALL FLOORS IN THE OLD LIBRARY BUILDING AT 240 CHURCH ST. REMAIN QUIET STUDY ZONES, EXCEPT THE FIRST FLOOR.  All other reading areas, stack areas and public corridors in library spaces at 40 Worth St. and 240 Church St. are Quiet Study Zones. Within Quiet Study Zones:

* Never engage in conversation. A few words at a whisper should always suffice. If you must engage in conversation, take it to the library stairwells or outside.

* Do not use your cell phone, and don’t put it on vibrate—mute it completely or turn it off. Even a humming cell phone can disrupt your neighbor’s study. If you’re waiting for an important call, please find a place to study outside the Quiet Study Zones until you receive it.

* Cell phones aren’t the only electronics that make noise. If your laptop has a sound card, mute it so that its noises are not audible to your neighbors. If you’ve got an IPod or a Walkman, make sure to keep the volume at a level that others can’t hear.

* When you enter or leave a group study room or computer lab, remember to close the door behind you.

* If you become aware of a noisy facilities condition—a squeaky door, a thumping photocopier, a rumbling equipment room—report it immediately to the library staff (extension 2332, or you can push the “Library Help” button on any of our interoffice phones). We’ll do what we can to get the problem resolved as quickly as possible.

During the finals period library spaces get very crowded, and tensions can sometimes mount. The only way to maintain an appropriate study atmosphere is through student cooperation under these simple rules. We ask that you keep them in mind always, and especially at this time of year.

If you have any questions, please contact Bill Mills, associate librarian for information services, at extension 2380 (212.431.2380) or wmills@nyls.edu.