Due to the lack of study spaces on campus between 1 a.m. and 7 a.m., many all-night-crammers would like a 24-hour library.

“After midnight you have to leave the library,” Yongju Cho, senior in computer engineering, said. “There are limited places on campus you can study.”

Many students looking for a late-night study space on campus have found the few buildings on campus that stay open after midnight get rather crowded.

“During the finals [after midnight], everyone’s studying in Durham, and it’s just so crowded and noisy,” Rasim Bokhari, computer engineering senior, said.

Some students who are dependent on the study rooms, computer labs and quiet atmosphere the library provides wish Parks Library could have extended hours or, ideally, be open 24 hours.

Other students question the realism of such a feat.

Ryan Glanzer, chief of staff for Government of the Student Body, said he did not think enough students would use the library during graveyard hours.

“I do remember times when I needed to get something at the library, and it was closed,” Glanzer said. “I think you’d have a problem with people sleeping there overnight. It would be impossible to staff.”

David Gray, interim associate director of public services and collection at Parks Library, voiced many of the same concerns.

Gray said by tracking student usage of the library through exit door counters, the library has found that peak hours for use are mid-day hours. The flow of students in early morning and late evening is small.

“We’d like to accommodate those people, but I don’t think people appreciate the small amount of students involved,” Gray said.

A large portion of the library staff is composed of hourly student labor. The library has a fixed budget to pay that hourly staff, he said.

The other dilemma is the labor pool, Gray said.

“Getting students to work before 8 a.m. and after 10 p.m. are our most difficult shifts to fill. Getting students to work graveyard hours would be almost impossible,” Gray said.

If student employees were unwilling to work the late hours, full-time positions with benefits would be the only other choice, Gray said.

“It’s not to say it can’t be done, but is that where we want to spend our money?” Gray asked.

Additionally, Gray said he would prefer to spend funds to create more comprehensive library web pages and directories that would be accessible from off campus.

“One way we are trying to deal with this is that we have more electronic sources,” Gray said. “Students can use the library’s web page and Scholar. More and more of your research can be done remotely, so the time spent in the library is reduced.”

If it is study space students are looking for, they may have to look somewhere else.

“The library does not exist as a study hall,” Gray said. “We provide a safe, quiet environment, but that is not our only function. We are part of the larger university.”

Gray said he felt the real direction of the library is not toward a library open 24-hours-a-day, but rather utilizing technology to provide library information 24-hours-a-day.

“To us, it makes more sense to invest in making information more electronically available. I would be reluctant to keep this building open additional hours,” Gray said.