To improve customer service, some academic libraries have used a service philosophy statement to foster a shared understanding of service standards. The authors conducted semistructured interviews with heads of public services at academic libraries to understand how the service philosophy statement was used in practice and its impact on staff…

Makerspaces have continued to be a popular addition to the services offered by libraries. This article will address the creation and implementation of one at a mid-sized medical library. The writer will summarize their personal experience of the steps taken towards opening the makerspace and give insight into the process. This article will also…

The University of Michigan, Ann Arbor had embraced service design and design thinking, but the pandemic-induced campus transition enabled staff to innovate differently. Many services transitioned to virtual options but some onsite library services reopened for Fall 2020. Library employees created a new service model to accommodate request…

To gain firsthand insights into the daily workflows of researchers and to create opportunities to engage in the full research life cycle, engineering librarians at North Carolina State (NC State) University launched a pilot project to embed themselves into campus research groups by attending weekly lab meetings. This article provides details on…

This article presents the University of South Florida's Virtual Book Club, created and continually improved during a time of social isolation (COVID-19 pandemic). Implementation steps taken are discussed, presenting practical considerations to others who may wish to replicate this program. Additionally, this article explores findings from a…

In the past five years, Delta State University's academic library has made significant efforts to develop sustainable outreach programs that support the LGBTQ+ (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer+) community. This program has increased the library's visibility and enhanced its image among its students, faculty, and staff. The article…

This case study will describe the labor and collaborative efforts, to-date, of an embedded librarian to pilot an OER textbook creation and/or adoption program in her liaison area--a school of education serving approximately 850 graduate and 150 undergraduates at a private Catholic university on the West Coast of the U.S.A. This case study will…

Tennessee State University was a decade long user of OCLC's ILLiad platform. 2019 marked the year when the relationship with that system ended as our two interlibrary loan departments migrated to Tipasa, OCLC's new cloud-based system. The platform change did not stem from dissatisfaction with ILLiad but from being informed that Tipasa would…

This case study discusses the implementation of formal organizational learning activities at the Richard G. Trefry Library, which serves the American Public University System, an accredited, for-profit, asynchronous institution of higher education. Discussed are the challenges and solutions throughout the implementation processes along with the…

This paper reports on the establishment of an open pedagogy initiative between community organisations and students, facilitated by the Temple University Libraries (TUL) and faculty in the Philadelphia area. The Community-University Research Exchange (CURE) produces community-driven social justice research. Library facilitators solicit research…

Many universities have implemented faculty profile systems that capture faculty and researchers' scholarly outputs and activities. These systems usually include public profiles and tools to help find collaborators or experts. They may be used to create reports for faculty annual reviews or for promotion and tenure, or to assist faculty with…

The University of North Dakota (UND) Libraries have developed a multi-award winning Customer Service Program (CSP) involving longitudinal assessment and continuous improvement. The CSP consists of iterative training modules; constant reinforcement of Customer Service Principles with multiple communication strategies and tools, and incentives that…

The role and functions of an academic library have evolved drastically as the result of a new social, economic, and technological reality. Libraries are responding to these developments by changing focus from collection and storage of information to becoming active partners in students' educational journey. The learning commons model of service is…

Seed libraries are a relatively new innovation in the library field, offering seeds, gardening information, and the opportunity for community and ecological engagement to members. While they are increasingly popular in public libraries, they have not yet established a foothold in academic libraries. This paper defines the nature and role of seed…

Finals week activities have become increasingly popular in academic libraries in the last few years, but what is a library to do when it is not allowed to have therapy dogs? This column examines a progression of increasingly popular activities at Michigan State University Libraries. Included is an assessment of what makes them popular, our…