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Wise Library Now Offers a Java Jolt: Eliza's Coffee Shop Opens on 4th Floor

Posted on: Wednesday, 22 February 2006, 09:00 CST

By Eric Slagle, The Dominion Post, Morgantown, W.Va.

Feb. 22--Students at WVU say a newly opened coffee shop in Wise Library should provide the caffeinated relief they need when studying late at night.

Student T.J. Cromwell said he thinks Eliza's coffee shop on the fourth floor of the library -- which is operated by university dining services and sells Starbuck's brand coffee -- is a hot concept. "Being a coffee lover, I think it's a great idea," said Cromwell. "It keeps you more awake. It makes you stay up. I'm definitely going to buy a lot of coffee there." The idea for the coffee shop, named after the first library director hired by the university back in 1897, Eliza Skinner, was introduced by the Student Government Association. Library Dean Frances O'Brien said she thinks the coffee shop will be a great success. Besides giving students a place to fortify themselves during late-night study sessions, she said it also provides a location where they can check out what's new in popular reading. Bookshelves in the coffee shop area are stocked with the latest novels, bestsellers and newspapers. O'Brien said she was pleased to see a lot of students taking an interest in the popular collection during the grand opening of the coffee shop. Though library traditionalists might question the propriety of encouraging patrons to eat and drink within the confines of the library, O'Brien said she doesn't see the harm in it so long as students consume responsibly. Snacks are not permitted outside the area of the coffee shop, she said. Students are allowed to have drinks throughout the library so long as the drink containers are covered. O'Brien said many universities, including Marshall and the University of Pittsburgh, have coffee venders inside their libraries. Current hours at the coffee shop are 3 p.m.-midnight Sunday through Wednesday, and 3-9 p.m. Thursday. The shop is closed Friday and Saturday. Some students at WVU say the hours of the coffee shop should be expanded. "It's pretty ridiculous," said sophomore Marie Rafa, who visited the shop midmorning Tuesday with friends and was disappointed to find it closed. "It should be open in the morning." Whether the shop expands its hours will probably be a function of its popularity with students and ability to pay for itself, O'Brien said. Until the shop proves itself, the university has made evening service its priority, she said. "If I were a student here at 11:30 at night, I'd appreciate the chance to get a cup of coffee," she said.

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Copyright (c) 2006, The Dominion Post, Morgantown, W.Va.

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Source: The Dominion Post (Morgantown, W.Va.)

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