AUC Library unveils renovated Learning Commons, completing university’s seven-year plan

The American University in Cairo (AUC) Library has reopened for the Fall 2026 semester following the transformation of its plaza and garden levels into a modern Learning Commons designed to foster collaboration, active learning and technology-enabled study. The renovation introduces an Accessibility Hub and a permanent exhibition space for the Rare Books and Special Collections Library, completing the AUC’s seven-year Learning Spaces Strategic Plan, launched in 2019 to modernise learning environments across campus.

The redesigned Learning Commons features new furniture, flooring, lighting and technology, alongside upgraded networks and modernised study areas. A state-of-the-art Accessibility Hub has also been introduced to support students with diverse learning needs. The renovation includes a new exhibition space for the RBSCL on the library’s plaza level, making its collections more accessible to a wider audience and encouraging students to engage directly with them.

The RBSCL houses extensive collections of rare and contemporary books and periodicals, as well as archives and manuscripts documenting Egypt’s social, political, cultural and intellectual life.

The changes reflect a broader shift in how students use academic libraries, explained Lamia Eid, ’88, ’92, dean of Libraries and Learning Technologies. When the AUC Library was designed in the late 1990s and early 2000s, its layout focused largely on individual study and access to information, with a large computer lab and desktop computers arranged around circular tables.

Today, students increasingly bring their own laptops and devices to work in groups, exchange ideas and collaborate, reflecting changing approaches to learning.

“Academic libraries around the world have responded to this shift by moving from the traditional Information Commons Model towards Learning Commons that support collaboration, interaction and active learning,” Eid said. “The current renovations at the AUC Library build on that change. It is not simply an update to the existing spaces, but a rethinking of how the library can support students today.”

The renovation also recognises that students have different learning needs and preferences. The new Accessibility Hub provides resources and technology to support students with diverse learning needs and help them work more independently.

At the same time, the library has retained quieter, traditional study environments on the first and second floors, along with its 24-hour study rooms, ensuring that students can continue to access spaces suited to focused individual work.

“The Learning Commons offers more opportunities to study and work together, while the rest of the library continues to provide quieter spaces for focused study. The renewed AUC Library brings these different needs together, giving students more choice in how they use the space and how they learn,” Eid said.

Launched in 2019, the Learning Spaces Strategic Plan aims to create next-generation learning environments that place learning at the centre of the campus experience. The initiative has expanded from a small active-learning pilot into a portfolio of 43 innovative spaces across formal and informal settings.

Beginning with three pilot classrooms and a Faculty Innovation Lab, known as the Sandbox, on AUC’s New Cairo campus, the initiative subsequently expanded to include 14 Active Learning Classrooms across the New Cairo and Falaki campuses, 14 Flexible Classrooms, informal learning spaces and the Library Learning Terrace.

The renovation of the library’s garden and plaza levels marks the culmination of the plan’s first phase.

“At AUC, we believe that the learning environment plays an important role in shaping the educational experience. Our goal is to create spaces that inspire curiosity, encourage students to engage actively with ideas and one another, and support different ways of learning and teaching,” said Hoda Mostafa, professor of practice and director of AUC’s Center for Learning and Teaching, who has co-led the Learning Spaces Strategic Plan since 2019.

“By rethinking how our spaces are designed and used, we are creating an environment that enables students and faculty to explore new possibilities for learning, discovery and innovation,” she added.