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Parents and Family Members' Guide to the SU Libraries: Where to Study in the GAC

This guide is intended to help parents and other family members of SU students get to know what the Libraries have to offer their students.

Study Spaces in the GAC

The GAC provides many different types of study spaces to suit the varying preferences and needs of our students:

First floor: The hub of the first floor is the Pit, the humming heart of the GAC. This area has desktop computers (both Windows and Mac), some soft seating (primarily comfortable chairs), and round tables without computers for those who have laptops or tablets and enjoy being in a busy space. The southside lounge has soft seating (couches and chairs) as well as restaurant-style booths. There are some other seating areas scattered around the first floor. The three classrooms on this floor can be used for studying as well, when they are not reserved for classes. Room 162 has desktop computers, while Rooms 117 and 163 have collaboration tables encouraging group work. The café on this floor tends to be pretty busy and not a good study space.

Second floor: This floor supports both group and individual study. To support group work, there are eleven reservable group studies (see the link in the sidebar of this page) as well as six collaboration tables (with 42" monitors that anyone at the table can use to share their screens). There are numerous computers around the second floor, and there also is soft seating as well as round tables without computers. Some students enjoy studying at the bars overlooking the atrium. The second floor of the café is a lovely space for (usually) quiet study. The Center for Student Achievement also has some classrooms and open study spaces.

Third floor: This floor is about individual study. There are two large reading rooms, one extending across the entire south side of the building and the other across the entire north side. Both rooms have individual carrels as well as tables. The south side room is designated for quiet studying, and it has a few computers and a printer in the far southwest corner. The north side room is designated as silent study. There also are bars around the atrium and some computers and tables in the open area on the east side of the floor; these areas, being open, are not designated quiet or silent.

Fourth floor: This floor is not typically used for studying, except for a few soft chairs around the atrium. The Nabb Center has a lovely reading room, but it is used primarily by people researching in the Nabb's collections.