Walking the Walk:

Creating a More Student-Centered Library

Sona Apbasova, Amanda Peach, Ed Poston, and Angel Rivera

• Last year we undertook a number of changes in order to better serve our students

• Why?

• We already have 100% buy-in for freshman composition students, but we wanted to move from students being obligated to being here twice a year to library being THE destination on campus

• Carpet meant to look like an EKG readout, symbolizing that the library is the academic heart of campus

• Our presentation today will look at specific changes we implemented, what we learned from those changes, and how our patrons responded to them.

Library Redesign

4 years ago, Campus Administration planning dramatic renovation of the library:

• Library would house the Office of Internships, Peer Tutoring, the Writing Center, and the IS&S Helpdesk

• Greening of Library: new HVAC, new windows, etc.

• Serious consideration given to moving to shared service points

Preparing for Chaos

• Library would lose almost entire main floor

• Dramatic weeding project began – eventual goal 40% of collection

• Never weeded before, never needed to

• Removed: - 3,469 reference volumes

- 2,461 VHS titles

• Moved remaining reference collection down stairs - 7,798 volumes

• Condensed bound journals (selected 1,046 feet for removal)

Plans Change…• Initial Call for Proposals Plans came back 12 million over budget

• Back to drawing board

• CTL found new home and then IS&S backed out

• Science Building was deemed more needy

• Renovation cancelled

The “Refresh”

• Director and Dean agreed – student experience still a priority

• Library was dated and in need of a “refresh”

• We would receive new furniture, carpet, etc.

Lessons learned

• Should have paid someone to jack the shelves when laying carpet

• Spent all of our $$ on beautifying the place = couldn’t afford to pay for movers

• Met faculty resistance when weeding

• Surprisingly, more pushback over VHS tapes than Reference books

“Refresh” Highlights…

• Moved to flexible space that could easily be reconfigured

• Divided the Main Floor into 3 Sections:

- Left: Large group study area/ presentation/ class space

- Middle: Educational Technology

- Right: Reference area/ small group & individual study

• Added stand-alone Graphic Novel collection & Zine Collection per student requests

• Added vending machines and café seating – allowing SOME food & drink

Zine Collection

• Zines donated by former student

• Not catalogued because zines are meant to be taken

• Collaboration between instruction and a Graphic design course in which students made new zines to be added to the collection

Atrium Before…

• First thing you see when you enter building

• Prime real estate wasted on printers and dummy OPAC terminals

Atrium After…

Cool place to hang out

Before…• Wooden furniture too heavy to move

• Not wired for electricity or internet

Atrium After…

• Added a high-tech Educational Technology Open Lab, replacing the previously closed lab that only select were allowed to use

• High-end Macs and touch-screen PCs

• Expensive productivity and editing software.

• Staffed by students trained w/ the equipment DURING busy hours !!!

• Lots of whiteboards, mobile and otherwise

Reference Before

• Heavy wooden tables that were too small for the student’s stuff

• Chairs were breaking & being repaired constantly

Reference After

• Soft café seating

• Wired booths with high backs for privacy

Reference Before…

Reference After…

Even more options…

• Small booths for 1, with privacy screens• Large group tables with puck system for screen sharing

Periodicals After

Periodicals After…aka “The Cafeteria”

• Tables can be reconfigured into any shape or direction, or folded up and stored

• Space used for Fall Faculty Conference, Convocation overflow, for presentations by visiting scholars and students, and for group study space

They like it!

10:30 am 2:30 pm 5:30 pm 8:30 pm 11:30 pm

Fall 2013 17 27 18 78 29

Fall 2014 20 35 35 112 34

Increase 17.6 % 29.6 % 92.3 % 44.0 % 16.4 %

Headcount StatsFirst 5 weeks

2013 vs. 2014

Lessons Learned

• Students appreciate flexible spaces & group spaces

• Increased use of space = increased noise & complaints about noise

• Abuse of the “some foods” allowance. Chips are ok, but pizza is not (and this distinction seem arbitrary to students)

• We, as library staff, need to have conversations about policies

Webpage Redesign

• In need of a new look to complement new main floor

• Built entirely in LibGuides so we would have control, not have to rely on IS&S for updates/changes

• Added a search box after holding out forever

• Added Reference Consultation Scheduler

• http://libraryguides.berea.edu/

An improved website to match our improved physical space

Focus on high-yield reference consults to supplement the mandatory one-shot

Student View

• Student in control & chooses time best for them

• Reduces the number of emails negotiating meeting times

…My view…

Alerts you via email when appointments are scheduled

LibCalendar Stats

• 175 scheduled via LibCalendar

• 55 scheduled in-person or via email

• 230 total as of Thursday 4/23/2015

• That is a 105% increase over last year’s numbers!!

• And still more scheduled for this semester

Lessons Learned…

• Easy to become overwhelmed/ overscheduled; can’t say no

• Time spent preparing ahead is wasted if student is a no-show

• No-shows are much rarer for those appointments scheduled via LibCalendar than those scheduled in-person or via email

• Faculty made it a requirement of students without checking with us first – suddenly we were flooded!

• One more place to update when you’re out of the office

Student Reference Consultant

• Pilot project began in Spring 2015

• Director had wanted to implement this for 5 years or more, but met resistance from former library faculty

• Logistically impossible until LibCalendar

• Chose Sona because she’s a proven researcher

• Experience writing Bereapedia articles, winner of KATH award for World History Research paper

Benefit of Students Providing Reference Consultations

• Less removed from the assignment, having completed it herself recently

• Meet students on their own turf –dorms, student union

• Less intimidating than meeting with a librarian

• Availability outside of normal library hours

Logistics

• Students scheduled appointments:

- through LibCalendar

- through email

- in-person in the dorm, in food service

• Using flexible schedule; some portion of weekly work hours are scheduled off-the-desk, as needed, to accommodate appointments

Success !!

• Initial fears that no one would meet with a peer were unfounded

• 17 appointments scheduled via LibCalendar

• 9 appointments scheduled in-person

• 12% of all Reference Consultations conducted by Sona!

What Sona took away…

• Improve listening and problem solving skills with each consultation

• Pleasant memories of personal and professional interaction

• Enjoyed helping students not to panic/ share their research project in a calm/not rushed fashion

Lessons learned…

• Promote service on social media (personal & library acct)

• 30 minutes is not really enough

• Some students want their work done for them

• Became so invested in helping others with their own research, neglected her own

Thank you

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Questions?

859-985-3109