Streamlining Support: Improving Outreach by Creating a Sustainable Events Framework

Outreach programming in academic libraries includes hosting and marketing library events. At the Robert B. Haas Family Arts Library, events were previously executed ad-hoc and by a few librarians. In order to streamline this work for greater efficiency, promote collaboration, and better serve their patrons, the Arts Library formed a Programming Team. The group developed a framework for library events, as well as workflows and documentation guidelines. This article outlines the process of forming the group, establishing workflows and procedures, and takeaways from an academic year of implementation. It provides a top-level model for coordinating events systematically, highlighting Fall 2019 Reading Week as a case study for using the framework for live events. It additionally discusses adapting the model to fit remote and outside events in spring 2020. The authors conclude with a list of suggestions and considerations for librarians contemplating a similar configuration for their events and programs.

Letter from the Editors

Letter from the Editors

Community Dialogues to Enhance Inclusion and Equity in Public Libraries

Over the past decade, public libraries have shifted from quiet repositories of knowledge to raucous centers of public engagement. Public libraries seek to fill the educational and social gaps left by other informal education organizations (such as museums and science centers) that target specific populations or require paid access for their resources. These gaps are filled by hiring social workers, providing accessible makerspaces, developing English language learner (ELL) programs, facilitating hands-on STEM activities, providing information about community resources and social services, providing summer meals, and much more. But what are the next steps to continue this high level of engagement? By utilizing a Community Dialogue Framework (Dialogues), libraries have engaged with new members of their communities to reach groups not currently benefiting from library services, provided equitable access to new resources, engaged with new partners, and - in the time of COVID - began to address the digital divide in their communities. An examination of forty public libraries’ engagement with and learning from Dialogues was conducted using a qualitative approach and reflexive thematic analysis. An account from a librarian who hosted multiple Dialogues is also presented as a first-person narrative describing their methods and successes using the tool. Benefits and practical considerations for conducting Dialogues are discussed in the results section, followed by limitations and recommendations for further research in this area.

Pre- and post- Covid-19 Outreach Experiences at Marshall University Libraries

This article will provide insight into how MU Libraries’ cross-departmental system has evolved over the years, and how the recent finalization of their Outreach Plan led to a successful transition to online outreach during the COVID pandemic. Specifically, the authors will address: the history of library outreach at the university; the formation of the Outreach Librarian position; the audit the Outreach librarian performed on the library’s practices; the creation of an Outreach committee and subsequent Outreach Plan guide; and, how the library adapted their approach during the Covid-19 pandemic of 2020.

Health Promotion, Collaboration, and Outreach: Creating Space for Health Literacy at a Specialized, Academic Research Library

In the current cultural climate, the ability to engage with and understand health resources is more important than ever. Health literacy, broadly, describes an individual’s ability to process health information and use it to make sound medical choices. In relation, health promotion adapts health literacy to focus on people’s ability to lead healthy lives. While many public librarians are actively engaged in health literacy services to their patrons, far fewer academic librarians report such engagement. This paper aims to demystify health literacy and health promotion for a library audience, along with providing real world examples of collaborating with health experts and turning a library into a built environment that encourages the growth of health literacy skills.

Reaching Out by Looking Within: The #WellnessWednesdays Initiative at Texas Tech University

Yoga is both a movement-based and contemplative practice, and has been used as a programming option in public libraries for many years. With more research being conducted on yoga and its efficacy on various health issues, many academic libraries are offering yoga as part of their de-stressing programs and events during their finals weeks or other high stress periods. Student wellness programs and self-care are also briefly reviewed. This paper summarizes some related research on yoga and college students, and its efficacy on easing depression and anxiety. This paper also describes a small survey of 64 academic librarians (faculty and staff) who were asked about yoga programming at their institutions and their libraries, with considerations for both accessibility and online practices because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Library Liaison Services in US Community Colleges

Library liaison services have been shown to be a valuable component of higher education in the US. Despite this established value, however, liaison services specific to community colleges are rarely discussed in the scholarly literature, while such services from universities and research institutions are well researched. Though it is understandable that liaison services at universities and community colleges would have similarities such as collaboration and outreach with students and faculty, it is only logical that they would also have differences due to the differences in user groups they serve. However, performing any reasonable comparison is difficult due to the absence of scholarly discourse regarding liaison services at community colleges. This article fills this gap by presenting survey data on the state of liaison services in community college libraries in the US. The data shows that a range of liaison work is being performed by community college librarians; A number of opportunities for further inquiry are also identified.

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

Too Big for the Library

Outreach is necessary to further the visions and missions of many university libraries, including Manderino Library at California University of Pennsylvania. Organizing events has been used to firmly cement the library’s place in the campus community. However, in the library’s efforts to be part of the larger campus, it has collaborated with other academic departments to create and hold large, well-attended events that require a lot of manpower and hours. After analyzing chat, reference, gate counts, and database usage, librarians found that large and successful events do not increase usage for other library services. This article explores whether the cost is equal to the gain for taking on events that eventually leave the library once they become popular. Results seem to indicate the library might better utilize time and efforts to hold small, focused events, even if attendance is low. Since the bump to actual library services is negligible, the library may want to look at other ways to increase funding instead of continuing to seek out collaborations to offset the cost of attractive events for students. Additionally, we found that while the relationships librarians forge with fellow academic departments are extremely valuable, larger events and collaborations generally relegate librarians to organizer roles that do little for the library’s bottom line.