LOS ANGELES— The William H. Hannon Library held the first of this semester’s half-study, half-social finals week events last Wednesday, April 22. Behind a brightly decorated table at the entrance of the library, student workers greeted their peers and ushered them to the third floor, where tables of study supplies, testing materials, food and beverages, and tutoring sign-ups awaited them— all free of cost.
Eleven years ago, the library’s Outreach and Engagement Department identified a major gap in LMU’s academic experience: third spaces.
“Very intentionally, a lot of the work we do at the library here is to make the library a third space for students”, said John Jackson, the department’s head for seven years.
Third spaces are environments curated to promote both productivity and human connection. Besides the library’s Starbucks and a few seating areas outside of lecture halls, there is only one cafe on campus that can serve as both a work and community space.
LMU junior Judite Sampaio reports feeling this gap in her daily life on campus. “When there’s no events going on, it’s a little bit more quiet,” she said. “The lobby’s empty, people are just studying on their own, and it’s definitely more individual work. But when we have these events, people are more together. People go with their friends, it’s definitely more social, but there’s still places to study individually.”
The shift Sampaio describes addresses a common student struggle: lacking spaces to be productive without feeling isolated and stressed. By opening the private Von der Ahe suite, allowing students an exclusive view and free dinner to study over, the library becomes a destination for students, rather than a chore.
Beyond the social aspect, the event also serves as an intervention against finals-week burnout. By providing high-demand resources like writing and math tutors, the library lowers barriers to less attainable resources at students’ most critical moments.
“We definitely see a reduction in stress level from students who attend, because the point of the event is that students get work done,” Jackson explained. “We give them the opportunity, the space, the quiet, as well as the support.”
For Rilee Goldfarb, a junior attending for her third time, this academic support rebrands the stress of finals.
“It changes the stigma around studying,” she said. It feels like a positive environment for people to collaborate, get support, and just also kind of crash out while supporting each other, like, ‘you got this’.”
But for some, the third space isn’t just about socializing, free food, or fancy study rooms— it’s about the collective accountability of the room.
LMU junior Diya Sakariya, who used the event to tackle a difficult economics presentation, noted that the environment itself acts as a motivator to stay “locked in,” even inspiring her to reinforce the basics of her finance knowledge by tutoring others next year.
Goldfarb agreed, noting that without the communal atmosphere provided by the library, her productivity would likely slow down by this point in the semester.
“I’d honestly be at my apartment, most likely asleep within 30 minutes,” she said. “Any time I sit down on that couch, it’s over.”
As the library prepares for its next Long Nights Against Procrastination this Wednesday, the growing numbers suggest that the event will be much more than a tutoring session or study space.
By providing “all the things you need to get into the zone,” as Jackson put it, Hannon Library has successfully bridged the gap between academic and community growth, proving that even during the most stressful weeks of the semester, students are looking for a place to “lock in” together.
