The COVID-19 pandemic impacted libraries tremendously and changed the way services were offered to patrons. Dahlgren Memorial Library was no exception and the library strived to find ways to keep their student assistants employed. This article will discuss how the library trained its student assistants to cover the chat system and work on projects…

The role of the student worker is expanding in academic libraries. Their unique perspectives add valuable insights to the design and delivery of library services, project development, outreach activities, and operational planning. Student-workers gain internal and external benefits from working in peer-to-peer learning environments which also…

This case study looks at the University of Manchester Library Student Team (UMLST) as a model for inclusive community engagement. It examines the impact of working with students as co-creators and explores how the ideas, insights and value they bring serve to drive change in a way that enables the Library to deliver in relation to current student…

Technical services departments are increasingly expected to do more with less, which means that finding a balance between meeting service demands and developing staff knowledge and skills is more challenging than ever. Today's next gen catalogs, changing cataloging rules, and diverse formats and delivery models demand that technical services…

Academic libraries have long employed student workers to assist with routine tasks, creating beneficial outcomes for both the student and the library. Traditionally, these tasks primarily consisted of checking in/out materials, shelving books, and monitoring the library; however, libraries have also started allowing students to assist in a…

Student employees are often vital members of an academic library's workforce, though the extent to which they contribute to library geospatial services has not yet been explored in a systematic way. The present study was designed to address this gap through a survey of academic library professionals involved in employing students to provide…

Student employees are an invaluable asset to academic libraries. They supplement limited professional staffing, allow for students to engage with their academic community, and give work opportunities to those currently enrolled in school. This article reviews several practical ways to train library student workers that both minimizes hands-on…

This study aimed to investigate the challenges faced by working students in patronizing library services in Nigeria and to propose tailored solutions to enhance their patronage. A descriptive survey research design was used to collect data from 110 working undergraduate students, which was then analyzed using descriptive statistics. The findings…

During this research, the author attempted to locate institutions and background information about spaces that would be similar in scope to a digital scholarship lab (or scholar's lab being proposed in a university library. The information is meant to serve as a guide for the space design project, but it will be an important benchmarking tool for…

The University of Baltimore Library was recently renovated. Part of the design in the newly renovated space was having one single service point, that we call the Information Desk. This desk serves as the public facing portal for what was previously three public facing service points to services by three separate departments, Academic Success,…

This study identifies the successes and challenges associated with the addition of a nonlibrary service desk in a university library's learning commons. The authors wanted to know whether a training and service collaboration with an outside unit could reliably and efficiently connect students to the librarians, academic support services, and other…

Access Service Departments are dynamic units that often thrive in an ever changing environment. This became more apparent as libraries across the world faced the outbreak of COVID-19. The Access Services Department of one mid-sized academic library was one of a handful of libraries in the state that remained open to serve patrons on campus. This…

Student employees fulfill an essential role at all academic libraries, but budget and staffing cuts have made student work even more imperative at small, public institutions. This article examines a reference service redesign at Adams State University through the lens of the student circulation employees. Student employee feedback was directly…

The academic library continues to formulate strategies for providing and sustaining a creative learning environment for knowledge creation. But little has been said about its role in skills building through micro employment that is enabling students to develop and integrate their academic, personal, and social skills sets. This study examines the…

Student workers are a well-established component of academic library operations. Recently, their traditional role has expanded to include responsibilities that were previously assigned to librarians, including in-person and virtual reference support. This trend has raised concerns about service quality and highlighted the importance of adequate…