On the second floor are the central reference desk, the circulation desk, and the reference, reserve and general book collections. Ellender Archives, part of the Special Collections Department, serves as a repository for primary and secondary materials relating to Louisiana. Other original materials available to patrons include antebellum plantation papers, local business records, diaries and journals, historical photographs, regional and rare books, and a genealogy collection. Archives is also home to the papers of past University presidents and to University yearbooks, student newspaper files, special reports, photographs, and related items that document the growth of the institution. Although the information needs of Nicholls students and University personnel are the first priority of the staff, all patrons are welcome to use the resources of the Library.
Detailed information concerning borrowing privileges is available at the circulation desk.
Service hours during examination periods, holidays, and intersessions are posted at the library and published in the student newspaper and the faculty-staff newsletter. The Nicholls State University Alumni Federation, chartered in 1960, is composed of graduates and former students who have successfully completed at least one semester and a minimum of twelve semester hours. A board of directors elected by the general membership directs Federation activities. The Federation conducts an annual business meeting each spring on campus. The board bestows special honorary membership on carefully chosen friends of the University.