Making Space, Engaging Students

How One Department Built Outreach into Our Community of Practice

Authors

  • Ann Matsushima Chiu Reed College
  • Carly Lamphere Reed College
  • Lily De La Fuente Reed College
  • Caleah James Reed College
  • Angie Beiriger Reed College

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.5399/osu/1093-7374.28.01.4

Keywords:

outreach, reference, zines, user experience, book club, engagement, programming

Abstract

Reed College is a small liberal arts college located in Portland, Oregon. Students work and study on a mostly residential campus and the library has historically been the heart of academic and campus life. This relationship was disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic as Reed shifted to online learning and library staff worked remotely. After more than a year, students and library staff returned to campus but other disruptions impacted student use of services and physical library space. A major seismic renovation closed a large section of the library. During this 18-month renovation, almost 40 percent of library seating and assigned desks were unavailable for student use. These major disruptions meant that both incoming and some upper-level students had no established relationship to the library beyond virtual interactions. It became evident there was a need to re-engage and re-energize students’ relationship with all aspects of library spaces and services.

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Author Biographies

Ann Matsushima Chiu, Reed College

Ann Matsushima Chiu (she/they) is the Social Sciences Librarian at Reed College. Having earned an MLIS from University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, a BA in Visual Arts from University of California, San Diego, and currently pursuing a MEd in Curriculum and Instruction, Ann is inspired by the intersection between information literacy instruction, zines, and culturally responsive outreach. Ann is particularly excited about outreach through the Reed Zine Library and zine programming. Their work on zine librarianship can be found in Librarians with Spines: Information Agitators in the Age of Stagnation (2016) and Zines in Libraries: Selecting, Purchasing, and Processing (2022). Besides programming zines, Ann is found gardening, going to live music shows, and hanging with her artist spouse and two exuberant daughters.

Carly Lamphere, Reed College

Carly Lamphere (she/hers) is the Science Librarian at Reed College. Hailing from Southern California, she now resides in Portland, OR alongside her husband and cat Schrödinger. As a mixed-race Latina, and first-generation master’s degree recipient, Carly is passionate about helping others attain their educational goals in whatever capacity they envision. She is dedicated to information literacy instruction within a DEI lens, STEM Librarianship, and technological literacy education beyond the classroom in our communities. When she is not in the library you can find her at home binging horror movies, building mini models, and decorating her living room with the hopes that one day it will resemble her own mad scientist cabinet of curiosities museum.

Lily De La Fuente, Reed College

Lily De La Fuente (she/her/ella) is the Humanities Librarian at Reed College. She completed an M.S. in Information Studies from the University of Texas at Austin iSchool. She also holds a B.A. in International Studies (Arts & Culture) and French Language from Texas A&M University. Her primary focus is to highlight immigrant, diaspora, and multicultural materials while advocating for low-income and first- generation college students. She’s passionate about user experience (UX) and incorporating design thinking to improve library services and outreach. Outside of work she enjoys going analog and exploring the beauty of the Pacific Northwest with her trusty terrier Jack.

Caleah James, Reed College

Caleah James (she/hers) is the Performing Arts Librarian at Reed College. Caleah came to Portland to work at Reed from Southern California bringing along her mom and French Bulldog Mochi. While studying for her MLIS at the Pratt Institute in New York City, Caleah focused on special libraries, particularly performing arts librarianship, which makes her position at Reed practically perfect. Caleah enjoys managing the Performing Arts Resource Center and is interested in active learning techniques, peer research, and acting as a mentor for her student workers. Caleah is a true crime/paranormal podcast junkie, and enjoys all things spooky and weird. 

Angie Beiriger, Reed College

Angie Beiriger (she/hers) is the Director of Research Services for Reed College Library. She earned her MLS from Emporia State and has a Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism from the University of Nebraska- Lincoln. As a long-time librarian and intentional manager, she strives to create a culture of inclusion and belonging for staff, students, and faculty. Her professional experience and interests include digital scholarship, staff development, and the intersection of librarianship and technology. She loves to explore the back roads of Oregon with her spouse and spends her days gardening, cooking, and listening to records with her two boisterous Boston Terriers.

OLA Quarterly cover image, Volume 28, Issue 1

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Published

2024-01-18

How to Cite

Matsushima Chiu, A., Lamphere, C., De La Fuente, L., James, C., & Beiriger, A. (2024). Making Space, Engaging Students: How One Department Built Outreach into Our Community of Practice. OLA Quarterly, 28(1), 10–18. https://doi.org/10.5399/osu/1093-7374.28.01.4

Issue

Vol. 28 No. 1 (2024): Marketing and Outreach: Connecting to Our Communities

Section

Articles