ABD-ELHAMEED: Rutgers needs to advertise these hidden gems
Column: Something to Think About
With approximately 50,000 students across five different campuses at Rutgers—New Brunswick, it is fair to assume that it can be difficult to advertise all the University has to offer.
Regardless of this statistic, though, how often do students receive emails promoting deals on spirit apparel? And conversely, how many students receive emails advertising the Gardner A. Sage Library?
You may have never even heard of this library but have most likely strolled past it on your way to the Academic Building on Seminary Place.
Rutgers should make a more conscious effort when advertising to students. Instead of focusing on profit-based advertisements, such as constantly bombarding students' emails with discounted spirit wear or diploma frames, the University should promote its unique spaces and buildings, including the Gardner A. Sage Library and the Zimmerli Art Museum.
A few weeks ago, I visited the Zimmerli with the Rutgers Institute for Research on Women (IRW) for the Liberation Social. I am nearing the end of my junior year at Rutgers, and that was the first time I stepped foot into the museum. Many of my fellow IRW seminar students had also never visited the museum.
As soon as I stepped through the front doors, I wished that I had visited earlier. The museum's ambiance was warm and inviting, with a much calmer and more relaxed atmosphere than the wooden cubicle desks at Alexander Library on the College Avenue campus.
There are small tables and chairs opposite the museum's front entrance where students can sit and study while even enjoying a coffee from the museum's cafe, Paparazzi Cafe.
The Liberation Social event, hosted on February 16, was a celebration for the BIPOC and LGBTQ+ communities. There were five different BIPOC and LGBTQ+ organizations and several food vendors set up by local businesses that visitors had the opportunity of experiencing at no cost.
While I was exploring the art installations with several other people from my IRW seminar, one person showed me their phone screen that displayed a beautiful interior of a building I had never seen before, asking me if I had ever been there.
I was confused, unaware if she was referring to a facility on Rutgers since I was positive the building in this picture was not on our campus.
The picture she showed me was the Gardner A. Sage Library which had been adjacent to the Academic Building's west wing this entire time.
I tried to recall if I ever fully realized that a historic library sat next to the Academic Building, which I have entered many times. If I am being honest, I thought that building was an old church that was not in use anymore.
I was not entirely wrong.
The library's architecture resembles that of an early-century Roman church and was built in 1875, according to the library's website. In the picture above, one can easily notice the intricately tiled floors, the detailed molding of the book aisle arches and the rectangular wooden tables with lamps that display a historic and traditional look.
Additionally, the library holds more than 160,000 bound volumes that range across theological and Biblical studies. It even has "rare manuscripts and several of the world's earliest printed books."
Several days after discovering this information, I asked a few of my friends if they were aware of this library's existence. Not a single person I had asked was even familiar with the name.
For those who are curious about this so-called "hidden gem" that is technically not hidden at all — the library is open to all visitors. It is open Monday through Thursday from 1 p.m. to 10 p.m., Saturday from 12 p.m. to 5 p.m. but closed on Fridays and Sundays.
To access the library, visitors enter from the side of the Bishop Place parking lot, as the doors facing Seminary Place serve as the exit doors. Visitors must then push the speaker button to the right of the door and request entrance.
It is also important to note that food and drinks are strictly prohibited, and there is no wifi in order to preserve the historical nature of the building. If students need to get readings done for classes that are provided online, it would be beneficial to download any material beforehand and read it on your devices.
Since Rutgers is intent on gatekeeping these spaces and buildings from students, let this article compel you to visit the Gardner A. Sage Library and the Zimmerli.
The lack of visitors to the library creates a quiet and ideal study space for students when other areas around campus get too noisy and crowded. At the Zimmerli, you are greeted with a relaxing environment that can foster intellectual stimulation.
While you usually take breaks at the library by scrolling on your phone, you can instead roam around the art galleries and then head back to studying.
It is a shame that students are constantly being subjected to purchasing discounted spirit wear and diploma frames when we should also be receiving emails that advertise the unique places and events that the University has to offer.
Naaima Abd-Elhameed is a junior in the School of Arts and Sciences majoring in journalism and media studies and minoring in Arabic and international and global studies. Her column, "Something to Think About," runs on alternate Fridays.
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