IMPLEMENTING A CULTURE OF CREATIVITY: THE RUTGERS UNIVERSITY ART LIBRARY LEGO PLAYING STATION

MEGAN LOTTS, ART LIBRARIAN, RUTGERS THE STATE UNIVERSITY OF NEW JERSEY

INTRODUCTION

• My research is about: Outreach, Engagement, Making, Creativity & Innovation in

Academic Libraries.

• Creativity & making can stimulate broader conversations among patrons and

Library employees about the value of libraries.

• Making spaces can be scholarly, fun, affordable, and a new way to engage

w/patrons, as well as, connect to communities.

• I’m trained as a painter & installation artist & I spent many hours in college,

working in academic libraries.

@MCLotts

PLAN FOR TODAY

• Talk a bit about Makerspaces & Pop-up Making spaces

• Activity #1- “who are you”

• Talk about the Rutgers Art Library Lego Playing Station

• Activity #2- “challenges”

• Talk about Camden students & #LEGOMAKE Tour

• Activity #3- “the BEST ever”

• Assessment, Making it happen, Conclusion, & Final thoughts

• Questions & Answers

@MCLotts

MAKERSPACES

Editorial Board Thoughts: Libraries as Makerspaces? By Tod Coegrove (U of Nevada)

ejournals.bc.edu/ojs/index.php/ital/article/.../3793/pdf

• “making as a gateway to deepen engagement in science and engineering but also art and design.

Makerspaces share some aspects of the shop class, home economics class, the art of studio and

science lab.”

Makerspaces Move into Academic Libraries by Erin Fisher- 2012

http://acrl.ala.org/techconnect/?p=2340

• “The academic landscape is shifting from a traditional teaching culture to a learning culture. A

teaching culture consists of an expert transferring knowledge to student, whereas a learning culture

utilizes active learning techniques”

@MCLotts

POP UP MAKING SPACES

• Low cost.

• Easy to put up, take down, & store.

• Foster creativity & critical thinking skills (these skills are applicable to

scholarly research).

• Create spontaneous community.

• Encourage cross- disciplinary collaboration.

@MCLotts

ACTIVITY ONE

Build a model that best represents who you are

in your everyday work life.

RUTGERS ART LIBRARY LEGO PLAYING STATION HOW IT ALL BEGAN

• I2C2 conference in Manchester, UK.

• LEGO® SERIOUS PLAY® .

http://www.seriousplay.com/

• Participants built models about work

existence and the challenges faced in

everyday work lives in libraries.

• Began thinking about how I could get my

hands on A LOT of Legos.

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LEGO WORKSHOPS RUL FACULTY & STAFF

• Team building & hands-on learning.

• Opportunity to think creatively about library resources & spaces.

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INSTALLATION

• Installed in August 2014.

• Used existing table & chairs.

• Created signage, “take pics not Legos”.

• Comment box w/ paper & pen.

• All Legos were upcycled for project.

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PRESS

Check out Rutgers Today https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iZHhlwoy9Yc

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BLOCK PARTY

Scarlet Knight Days- models created by library faculty, library staff,

graduate students, and undergrads.

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LEGO CHARACTER CONTEST

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CREATE YOUR OWN LEGO LIBRARY

Mason Gross Printmaking class.

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RU LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE DEPT. EDA COURSE 100-1ST YEAR L.A. STUDENTS

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SAS HONORS COLLOQUIUM SECTION 10

“Thank you so much! My partner and I were playing with the legos for at least two

hours. I even snapchatted my lego model to all my friends.”

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ACADEMIC COACHES RUTGERS LEARNING CENTERS

• January 2015- team building Lego workshop w/ 6 Academic Coaches for an

introduction to the library & information literacy skills.

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RU LIBRARY FACULTY & STAFF SPRING STRESSBUSTING LEGO PLAY

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NEW JERSEY’S FIRST ANNUAL MAKER DAY BLOCK PARTY AT RUTGERS ART LIBRARY

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ART LIBRARY LEGO PLAYING STATION IMAGES

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ART LIBRARY LEGO PLAYING STATION IMAGES

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ART LIBRARY LEGO PLAYING STATION IMAGES

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ART LIBRARY LEGO PLAYING STATION IMAGES

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ART LIBRARY LEGO PLAYING STATION IMAGES

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ART LIBRARY LEGO PLAYING STATION IMAGES

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ACTIVITY TWO

Build a model that represents a challenge that

you face in your everyday work life

LEGO WORKSHOP CAMDEN STUDENT CENTER 28 STUDENT EMPLOYEES.

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#LEGOMAKE TOUR

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THE TOUR

• 6 week tour by car w/100 lbs of Legos

• Visited 20 Academic Libraries in 7

states facilitating Lego workshops that

foster creative & critical thinking skills,

as well as encouraging team work.

• Worked with 240 Individuals

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THE SURVEY

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WHAT DID YOU LEARN?

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WHAT DID YOU LIKE BEST?

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DID YOU HAVE A POSITIVE EXPERIENCE

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• 235 Individuals responded yes

they had a positive experience.

• 10 individuals did not respond.

• No one indicated that they had a

negative experience

HOW WOULD YOU IMPROVE THIS WORKSHOP

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WOULD YOU RECOMMEND THIS WORKSHOP TO SOMEONE ELSE?

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• 231 participants indicated yes.

• 12 individuals did not respond.

• 1 person indicated maybe

• 1 person indicated no

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS

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THE RESULTS- BEST LIBRARY EVER

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1. People

2. Open to patrons

2. The Spaces

2. Technology

5. Eco-friendly

6. Books

7. Money

8. Makerspaces

9. Computers

10. Art

IMAGES FROM THE TOUR

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IMAGES FROM THE TOUR

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ACTIVITY THREE

Work together to build the

BEST Library EVER!

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ASSESSMENT OF POP UP MAKING EVENTS

• Documentation- Analyze the images.

• Surveys.

• Monitor & count social media.

• Observation & stories.

• Counting reference questions.

• Rutgers formed the Events Assessment Task Force

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HOW CAN YOU MAKE IT HAPPEN…

• You don’t need a lot money to create a Makerspace, crowdsource materials.

• Marketing & Outreach.

• Cross-disciplinary collaboration is good.

• Incentives can help.

@MCLotts

CONCLUSION: WHY MAKING IS THIS IMPORTANT

• We are more likely to learn or come back when we are having FUN!

• Creativity, making, & engagement helps build critical thinking skills & these

are skills that are applicable to library research.

• Creativity, making, and engagement creates community.

• Making with others can be inspiring.

• All people have a voice & want to be heard.

• There’s a lots of ways to make or create scholarship.

@MCLotts

FINAL THOUGHTS

Legos can be an international 3-Dimensional language

that uses hands on active learning to communicate and build critical thinking skills,

as well as an activity that makes people happy.

@MCLotts

FINAL THOUGHTS

Art Library Lego playing station has explored & expanded

conventional research functions of an academic library through

encouraging creative and problem solving techniques

associated with Art & Design.

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FINAL THOUGHTS

Art Library Lego Playing station has been a catalyst

for building bridges and making connections with students,

faculty and staff on the RU campuses, which has led to a greater

understanding of the possibilities of an Academic Research Library

and how the act of making and implementing

a culture of creativity can influence library patrons.

@MCLotts

FINAL THOUGHTS

One of the most interesting parts of this project is coming into the Art Library

every day to see what has transpired at the table. Some days it appears that a

group of grubby young children have been let loose at the table and Legos strewn

everywhere, including the floor. Other days the author finds elaborate

models that tell stories about the students, their lives, their imaginations,

and their dreams.

@MCLotts

WANT TO LEARN MORE…

Summer 2016 Lotts, Megan. “On the Road, Playing with LEGO, and Learning about the Library: The Rutgers Art

Library Lego Playing Station, Part Two." Journal of Library Administration Vol. 56, Iss.5 (Summer 2016).

Spring 2016 Lotts, Megan. "Playing with LEGO, Learning about the Library and 'Making’ Campus Connections: The

Rutgers Art Library Lego Playing Station, Part One." Journal of Library Administration Vol. 56, Iss.4 (Spring 2016).

Spring 2015 Lotts, Megan. “Lego® Play: Implementing a Culture of Creativity & Making in the Academic Library.”

ACRL Conference Proceedings, 409-418.

Fall 2014 Lotts Megan. “Implementing a Culture of Creativity: Pop-up making spaces and Participating Events in

Academic Libraries.” College and Research Libraries News

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QUESTIONS

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Megan Lotts, MFA, M.L.I.S

Art Librarian

Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey

(848)932-7189

megan.lotts@rutgers.edu

www.meganlotts.com

link to work in RUcore

http://soar.libraries.rutgers.edu/bib/Megan_Lotts/

like the Rutgers Art Library facebook page

www.facebook.com/rutgersartlibrary