Shields Library returns to its regular business hours today following a weekend of 24-hour operations.

The library remained open from 7:30 a.m. Friday, Feb. 5, through midnight Sunday, Feb. 7, to give students additional time to study for midterms and to recognize those who wanted to express their opposition to budget cuts.

Usual library hours are 7:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Fridays, noon to 6 p.m. on Saturdays, and noon to midnight on Sundays.

During the weekend, protesters scheduled a series of speakers and workshops on topics ranging from civil disobedience and yoga to composting and knitting, and hung handmade banners and posters inside and in front of the building. Library staff provided space in the basement early Sunday morning for about 25 students who requested permission to hold a "dance party" as a brief break from studying. Staff also allowed coffee and some food in a limited area of the lobby.

Before closing Sunday, students had removed their signs, cleaned tables and swept floors. Many wrote thank-you notes to library staff.

In addition to the extended hours at Shields, the campus also provided designated quiet space for students to study during normal hours Friday, Saturday and Sunday at the Memorial Union and ARC.

Campus leaders plan to evaluate the costs of the extended-hours weekend and weigh feedback from students and library staff as they consider whether to expand library hours during finals week.

Shields Library is open from 7:30 a.m. to midnight Monday through Thursday, and operates a 3,800-square-foot reading room that is available to registered students 24-hours a day, seven days a week.