Libraries and librarians have dealt with patron privacy issues since their inception, often serving as educators and advocates. In today's social media-filled landscape, patron privacy has moved from the safeguarding of traditional library records to the creation, use, and ownership of information maintained in an online world. As the core…

In this article, we introduce the case of a makerspace program that provides a "systemwide approach to making" rather than a singular face-to-face or online place. This makerspace, called Bubbler, extends across a public library system of a mid-sized Midwestern city (Madison, Wisconsin) and incorporates nine neighborhood libraries and…

In this work we examine youth learning in an informal computing program implemented through a library-university partnership. In particular, we introduce and illustrate a culturally responsive computing framework which served as a foundation for the design of the program. Subsequently, we examine youth collaboration as well as affective and…

Demonstrating academic library value is crucial in this era of budget cuts and freely available online resources. This article provides a unique complement to existing research on library value. The author uses a qualitative approach known as narrative inquiry to evaluate patron experiences during the temporary closure of an academic branch…

The study aimed at investigating distance learners' use of, and satisfaction with academic library services. It is a case study that employed a survey method to solicit the views of distance learning students of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST). Findings revealed a fairly satisfactory use of the library services…

Academic institutions invest significant sums of money to serve their students and to influence their decisions to stay. This study sheds light on the challenge for academic institutions to allocate their investments to keep students and enhance their retention rates. This study aims to investigate whether or not providing academic services has…

This review offers a critical analysis of the library and information science (LIS) literature on first-generation students (FGS) from the last 40 years. This literature demonstrates an interest in understanding the needs of FGS to serve them better, but it is often grounded in a deficit model of education that focuses on what first-generation…

Distance librarians working with an online doctoral program at Johns Hopkins University are asked by both students and faculty to provide a large amount of library support -- without being embedded into the curriculum or the individual courses. Program administrators and faculty were resistant to allow librarians into the course management system…

Master of Library and Information Studies (MLIS) students represent a population for whom literature searching is a core practice and a learning outcome for an entry-level course on information searching. How LIS students learn to find information, though, is not completely clear. Many studies have explored undergraduate searching behavior, but…

Construction management is a growing field with strong job prospects and expanding educational opportunities. It is closely related to business and engineering. This article provides an introduction and overview of collection development for academic librarians supporting construction management, from the perspective of the author's experiences at…

Many of the descriptions of public libraries as sanctuaries provide myriad examples of ways in which they serve the underserved: language circles, English language learning and citizenship classes, and access to technology for the homeless, to name a few. In the school library, if librarians are providing sanctuary only to those who feel…

This paper presents the results of focus groups conducted with student-parents at the University of Memphis. The objective of this study was to explore the research services and library spaces student-parents need to thrive in higher education settings. The results identify several ways in which academic librarians can support student-parents'…

Research libraries have been engaged in discussions of the functionalist approach versus the liaison model. While some have adopted a hybrid model that overlays functionalists with liaisons, few have abandoned the liaison structure. This article demonstrates a successful nonliaison approach that prioritizes teaching and focuses on building…

Higher Education in the UK is experiencing a level of change unprecedented in the last twenty-five years. Coupled with global drivers and disruptors, from technology to generational differences, the new higher education landscape that is emerging is presenting academic libraries with a series of new and extreme strategic challenges and…

This case study demonstrates how librarians at LaGuardia Community College led a college-wide knowledge management project to implement "Ask LaGuardia," an online knowledge base where users can find answers to common questions on navigating this large urban college. Students had been experiencing difficulty receiving clear, correct, and…