As technology advances and the need for collaboration increases, the Library Assessment team at Penn State is trying to find ways to recognize student needs and meet them.
Pattee and Paterno Library of Penn State (Source: The Daily Collegian)
Since the beginning of the spring semester, 60,576 items have been checked out at University Park. Of these items, 42,373 of these were books; however, 5,528 were tech-related items.
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As a whole, the library is transitioning into a gathering place, Borelli said, with students coming to complete group work, socialize over Starbucks coffee, play video games or watch movies in the over 40 study rooms.
“We really do try to curate an experience for students,” Borelli said.
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In addition, [Steve] Borelli [head of Library assessment] said the library is partnering with Penn State’s Counseling and Psychological Services this semester to offer counseling and therapy services, as well as working to get financial literacy support representatives to meet in library spaces.
Gary Price (gprice@gmail.com) is a librarian, writer, consultant, and frequent conference speaker based in the Washington D.C. metro area.
He earned his MLIS degree from Wayne State University in Detroit.
Price has won several awards including the SLA Innovations in Technology Award and Alumnus of the Year from the Wayne St. University Library and Information Science Program. From 2006-2009 he was Director of Online Information Services at Ask.com.
