The Library has Standing Desks—Try One and Do Your Body a Favor

There are some new desks in UVA libraries that serve a purpose besides just providing a place for a computer. They’re adjustable and allow Library users to work either sitting or standing. The desks are the project of Joe Tidwell, a UVA undergrad majoring in Kinesiology, the study of human movement and physical activity. Joe spends a lot of time in the Library, and his awareness of the bodily stress of remaining stationary for too long led him to suggest to Library Director of Information Services & Spaces Barbie Selby that people might benefit from being able to stand during prolonged study sessions. A friend of his suffers lower back pain if she has to sit.

Joe applied for and received a UVA Parents Fund grant to place seven standing desks in the Scholars’ Lab, the Reference Room, and the Map Room of Alderman Library; on 4th floor of Clemons; and on the main floor of Brown Science and Engineering Library. They’re mobile, so you can roll them close to an electrical outlet or wherever you’re most comfortable. Come and try one out. You may find that you like standing while you work. Leonardo DaVinci, Thomas Jefferson, and Ernest Hemingway did!

Use the lever to adjust to your height and work either standing or sitting.

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