Q. What is on each of Fondren Library's floors?

Please review this outline of Fondren's spaces and departments on each floor. Also check out our floor maps.

Basement

The basement is home to the:

• books with call numbers TJ—Z, the general oversize section, and dissertations/theses;
• reference suite, where reference librarians have offices;
• User Experience (UX) lab, where the UX librarians conduct usability tests and solicit feedback about the library’s website, building, services, etc.;
• digital curation lab, where various types of materials are digitized;
• GIS/Data Center (GDC), where Rice community members can learn about and use GIS mapping software;
• Digital Media Commons (DMC), where Rice community members can use specialized media equipment and check out cameras/microphones, as well as use a poster printer; and
• Kelley Center for Government Information, Data, and Geospatial Services, where patrons can look up government information, such as patents and trademarks.

1st Floor

On the first floor, you can find:

• the circulation and course reserves desk; 
• two self-checkout machines;
• the reference desk, where patrons can go to receive assistance in looking for books or navigating library resources, and contains volumes made for ready-reference and fact lookup;
• scanners
• the Woodson Research Center, which houses Fondren’s older, rarer, and more fragile collections, as well as the university archives;
• the Leisure Reading and Friends of Fondren Fiction collections;
• DVD collections;
• the new books section;
• the current periodicals, such as newspapers and magazines;
• the assistive technology room (room 108);
• the four public computers;
• two banks of Owlnet computers, one with Windows PCs and one with Macs; and
• a Chase ATM.

2nd Floor

The second floor has:

• books with call numbers PQ2663—TI;
• all the 200-range of study rooms;
• a bank of Owlnet computers on the balcony; and
• the Center for Academic and Professional Communication.

3rd Floor

The third floor has:

• books with call numbers HS—PQ2662;
• the Brown Fine Arts library, which contains music stacks M—ML and art stacks N—Z, as well as the music/art reference books and corresponding oversize section;
• new music and art books;
• study rooms in the 300-range;
• library administration;
• the Lovett Lounge (open space outside Kyle Morrow Room); and
• the Kyle Morrow Room.

4th Floor

The fourth floor is almost entirely book shelving. There you can find:

• books with call numbers A—HQ2044,
• study rooms in the 400-range, 
• conference room 410,
• the Sarah Lane Lounge with vending machines.

5th Floor

There are no books on the fifth floor. The Woodson Research Center has an annex here. It also houses offices for outside departments and journals.

6th Floor

The sixth floor is a silent study floor that is only accessible to Rice ID holders. It also contains the 600-range of study rooms.