Engaging a Wider Community: The Academic Library as a Center for Creativity,Discovery, and Collaboration |
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| Authors: | Steven D Shapiro |
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| Institution: | Montclair State University, Harry A. Sprague Library, Montclair, New Jersey, USA |
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| Abstract: | Academic libraries have reported long-term declines in circulation, reference transactions, reserves, and in-house library materials usage. Increasingly, libraries are perceived as being less critical to the academic enterprise. Are these trends irreversible? Perhaps public libraries and some innovative academic libraries can provide us with some answers. A 2014 IMLS survey of public libraries reported increased visitation and circulation over the past decade. Community outreach, in the form of programming, and investments in collection development contributed to these outcomes. Purchasing additional public workstations also bore results. This article discusses these and other findings along with ways to re-conceptualize our mission and marketing goals. In addition, it also outlines different strategies for using programming and technology initiatives to help academic libraries reconnect with a broader community paying particular attention to experiences at Montclair State University. |
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| Keywords: | collaboration funding institutional repository library buildings and space marketing |
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