One of Atlantic County’s most prominent higher education facilities is getting a massive modernization effort, as construction has started to overhaul the Richard E. Bjork Library at Stockton University.
The $19.5 million project, being funded by the New Jersey State Bond Solicitation of 2022, has been in the works for several years. DIGroup Architecture designed a revamp that is set to include a café, advisement services, tutoring, career development, technology and media recording studios, and other contemporary amenities.
Work on the three-story, 100,000 square-foot space is expected to be completed by June 2026, with the renovated library opening for the fall school year.
“The role of the library is to be a community space. A gathering space. A commons where students have access,” said Patricia Thatcher, associate provost of the library and learning commons. “Students will have access to work-ready technology and learn how to use and find credible information in multiple formats. That’s the library in the 21st century.”
The renovation of the facility will increase the number of study rooms from 11 to 34 and up the learning commons space from the current 6,950 square feet to more than 26,000 square feet. The renovation includes a new roof and a fresh heating and air conditioning system, and will also add more charging stations for students.
“The Bjork Library renovation was driven by a commitment to anticipate the evolving way modern students learn and collaborate,” Jaime Masler Beach, DIG associate principal, said in a statement. “Our design successfully implements a logical relationship between different study zones, from quiet reading rooms to collaborative and café spaces, offering a variety of options for student engagement and study.”
The new design of the library will also intentionally overlap areas such as the café with a new circulation core to facilitate interaction among students. The university will cut its total number of physical books nearly in half, from more than 376,000 to just over 181,000, to free up space for new programming, made possible by the broader shift toward students using ebooks.
The library’s classrooms will be closed during the renovation and will reopen when the work is complete. Some additional spaces, like a Graduate Studies Reading Room, will be added to the facility when the work is finished.
