University of New Hampshire Makes Library Closing Time Interesting

Durham, New Hampshire - Patrons of the Dimond Library at the University of New Hampshire who find themselves still there at closing time have a friendly reminder when it comes to packing up for the night. Make that a familiar friendly reminder.

The recorded announcements telling students the library is about to close are the voices of head football coach Sean McDonnell, head hockey coach Dick Umile, and chief faculty marshal Nancy Kinner, whose message includes a rendition of her annual commencement serenade, “Happy Trails.” The trio joins President Mark Huddleston who was enlisted last year to make a closing alert.

Tracey Lauder, assistant dean for library administration, came up with the idea of using well-known people on campus to record the announcements while she was watching an Arnold Schwarzenegger movie where he famously announces “Get ouuuut.”

“For some reason I just thought it would be really fun to hear Ahhnold say ‘Can I have your attention please… the library is now closing… you need to get ouuuuut, but can come baaaaack tomorrow,” Lauder says. “Then I decided to look closer to home for interesting voices.”

The first alert is heard at 1:45 a.m., announcing the library will be closing in 15 minutes, and commending students for their hard work. Kinner sings “Happy trails to you, it’s time to head on home. Happy trails to you, to the circulation desk you should roam.”  At 2 a.m., the “now closed” recording airs.

“I just wanted to make studying so late a wee bit more fun for our hard-working students,” Lauder says.

Other “celebrities” are being approached with the hopes of adding to the recording cast.

University of New Hampshire, founded in 1866, is a world-class public research university with the feel of a New England liberal arts college. A land, sea, and space-grant university, UNH is the state's flagship public institution, enrolling 12,200 undergraduate and 2,300 graduate students