C&RL News February 2019 92 Penn State-Berks is one of 24 common-wealth campuses in the Pennsylvania State University (PSU) system. With around 2,800 students, it is a small, tight knit com- munity, yet remains one of the largest cam- puses outside of University Park. While the campus is spacious and beauti- ful, one feature it lacks is an adequate student center, which makes the Thun Library the heart of the campus. Not only does the library provide traditional and valued services, such as access to textbooks on reserve, computer and software access, and research assistance, it is also a location where students gather to study, hang out between classes, and conduct group work. With a large commuter popula- tion, the library offers vital spaces for those without dorm rooms to complete their work. In addition, several other departments are also housed within the building, including the Center for Teaching and Learning along with the information technology (IT) help desk. Unexpected emergency closure In October 2017, the week before midterms, mold was detected within the building. As it was pervasive and rapidly spreading, the library had to close for emergency main- tenance to rectify the issue. With the sud- den closure and no clear timeline in place, our staff had to scramble to brainstorm and implement solutions. Since library services are essential to student success, a complete cessation of services was out of the ques- tion. But how could we, specifically as ref- erence librarians, soldier on without access to a dedicated area to supply services like research assistance and library instruction? Space is a precious and rare commodity on the Berks campus, and there was none left to spare for librarians to set up camp. With other staff requiring relocation, even con- ference rooms and lobbies filled up with services, such as the IT help desk, course reserve checkouts, interlibrary loan func- tions, and general staff workspace. Without the library, buildings on campus overflowed with students. While walking around, it was not unusual to see every open lounge chair filled within each building’s hallways or to witness individuals tucked into remote cor- ners sitting on the floor. Even one of the au- thors had to participate in a webinar behind a vending machine. To put it simply, there was no room at the inn for us. Library instruction sessions proved a straightforward fix. Our administrative as- sistant worked to piece together available computer classrooms that could accom- modate our existing class schedules. While there were a few hiccups along the way, including a double booking incident and a few rescheduled sessions, for the most part all classes could continue as usual through- out campus. Alexandria Chisholm is reference and instruction librarian, email: aec67@psu.edu, Brett Spencer is reference and instruction librarian at Penn State-Berks, email: dbs21@psu.edu © 2019 Alexandria Chisholm and Brett Spencer Alexandria Chisholm and Brett Spencer The displaced librarian Providing research services to your campus without a library mailto:aec67%40psu.edu?subject= mailto:dbs21%40psu.edu?subject= February 2019 93 C&RL News Solutions to providing research services were a bit more complicated. Here at Penn State-Berks we have an established and high- ly valued drop-in and appointment-based research consultation service that we knew would be missed. We were concerned with the negative impact to students on campus if we could not locate an area to establish ourselves during the building closure. Our initial solution had been to direct students through signage on campus and our social media accounts to use the PSU Libraries’ Ask A Librarian chat service, which is staffed by ourselves and librarians at the other PSU cam- puses. How- ever, we knew t h i s w o u l d n o t r e p l a c e the personal- ized in-person research assis- tance to which they had grown accustomed. The Writing Center to the rescue While library staff found hallway space to offer access to course reserves, the librar- ians were lucky enough to discover a fruit- ful partnership through one of our student workers, who also worked as the head writing tutor in the campus’ Writing Center (WC). Having insider knowledge of both departments, she knew that librarians need- ed a space to assist students and that the WC hoped to extend its hours. From this unique perspective, she was able to suggest a collaboration and connect us with the WC. The interim Writing Center Director, Jayne Brown, graciously offered us space to pro- vide research services within the WC. We had access to computers and printers, but most importantly space on campus to make ourselves available to our student commu- nity. By accommodating librarians’ need for a workspace, the WC also increased student use of their space and services, providing justification for a long-held goal of extending its hours to include Fridays. This mutually beneficial scenario proved to be helpful in the short and long term for both parties, and seemed like an effortless collaboration, given the related nature of our work assisting stu- dents in their research and writing. To promote the new setup, we sent out a campus-wide email to faculty, staff, and students advertising that we would be in the Writing Center from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Friday with additional times by ap- pointment. H o w e v - e r, a t t e m p t - i n g t o c o m - municate our w h e r e a b o u t s and availabil- ity placed an added burden o n t h e b u s y writing tutors, and we quickly acted to allevi- ate some of that responsibility by providing a simple tool to place the communication back into the hands of students seeking librarian assistance. Within a week after launching services in the WC, we created cards with our temporary hours, names, and email addresses so that tutors could give them to students. From contingency plan to revelation During our six weeks of displacement in the WC, we learned a multitude of beneficial lessons that any librarian can profit from. The biggest moral highlighted throughout our experience was that writing and re- search are inextricably connected academic skills that have blurred contexts. Therefore, both librarians and tutors encounter students reaching out for intersecting assistance. While we can encourage students to follow Penn State-Berks Writing Center. C&RL News February 2019 94 up with the appropri- ate contact who is most equipped to as- sist them, anecdotally we have found the added step hinders successful follow through. During our stay, librarians had the exciting and unique experience of “tag teaming” appoint- ments with the writ- ing tutors. In many cases, this teamwork benefited students im- mensely. Since writing and research are so interconnected, it was enormously helpful for librarians to aid students on how to develop their topics, find appropriate sourc- es, evaluate sources that had questionable va- lidity, and cite their sources accurately, while tutors handled developing arguments, paraphrasing/ quoting, along with the me- chanics and style of writing. Being colocated enabled these collaborations to occur naturally and without much formal setup, a scenario that will likely never again hap- pen on such a casual basis. Nonetheless, it opened our eyes to the potential impact of intentional partnerships between academic libraries and writing centers. As librarians, we also de- veloped a clear understand- ing of how the WC’s services were scheduled and func- tioned. When we returned to our routine schedules, we could accurately refer students using experiential knowledge. Writing tutors often deal with inflated expectations from students. Now we could help prime referrals so they knew the type of assistance they could expect from writing tutors and how to best pre- pare for their appoint- ments to get the most out of their sessions. In turn, the experi- ence also illuminated to writing tutors how librarians can assist students with their research. Many tutors were happy to dis- cover that there were resources on campus that handled some of the skills with which they were less comfort- able, such as source evaluation and selection, as well as citation. The referral system be- tween our two departments is stronger than ever, with no misconceptions about how services work, the limi- tations of our assistance, or the intersecting support that can be obtained from librar- ians and writing tutors. This is a huge win for our student population. Most of these lessons were things we conceptually envisioned and wanted to embrace. In fact, prior to the emergency closure, we had already begun planning a Re- search and Writing Carnival, which would bring together writing tutor and librarian assistance. This event seren- dipitously ended up occur- ring a mere two weeks after Tweet from @ThunLibrary account promoting Penn State University Libraries online research services. Facebook post from Penn State- Berks Writing Center account about librarian-WC partnership. February 2019 95 C&RL News we returned home to our library building. Our extended stay in the WC made this event far more authentic, as we had already established relationships with tutors, practiced tag-teaming consultations, and gained a more thorough understanding of our intersecting roles. Creating a relationship with your campus writing center, along with its director and tutors, is critical to developing a holistic ap- proach to student research and writing ser- vices. Our Research and Writing Carnival is just one way that we plan to continue cultivating this vital relationship. We also have plans to set up formal training workshops specifically for tutors to help them develop strategies to assist students with in- tersecting skills, like citation and ethical use of information. Overall, we are simply excited to see the many creative ways we continue to build this partnership to improve services to students at Penn State- Berks—and the emer- gency closure had a silver lining by fostering these collaborations. Not all who wander are lost Another unexpected benefit to being profes- sionally adrift sprang from how it forced us out of the library building and deep into the campus community. Nothing brings people together like shared suffering. Throughout our time vacated from the library, faculty, staff, and students all over campus expressed sympathy and words of encouragement. Stu- dents would stop us to discuss updates and solutions to issues that were arising in the absence of the library building. We interacted with faculty and staff with whom we typically do not have the opportunity to collaborate. Overall, our displacement made the seem- ingly invisible value of our resources and services exceedingly evident. The sight of library staff camped out under the stairs of an academic building with a mobile course reserve and circulation station, or librarians trudging about the campus with loaded back- packs, highlighted the dedication and value of what we bring to our academic community. Takeaways What if your library falls prey to a mold monster or some other unfortunate event, but your campus con- tinues to function as usual? Here are some things we learned that we hope will help you make the best of a bad situation: • C o m m u n i c a - tion is key. Immediately assure the campus by email that you will create backup research services and quickly settle on a plan to implement. • R e m i n d c a m - pus faculty, staff, and students that they can access your virtual refer- ences services. Reinforce this service with extra staffing. • Make the best of the situation by practic- ing embedded librarian- ship. Would a writing center be an appropriate place to relocate? Could librarians find spaces in their liaison departments? Are there high traffic spaces on campus where you could set up shop? Figure out what works best for your campus setting. • Schedule alternate computer class- rooms so you can continue offering instruc- tion. If computer classrooms are unavailable, ask faculty to encourage their students to Library staff transport course reserves and other materials from the Thun Library to an- other location on campus. (continues on page 99) February 2019 99 C&RL News (“The displaced librarian,” continues from page 95) library working on a single project, they are focused on several. These students are well-balanced and well organized, and have come to expect the stability that the library provides for their hectic schedule. They are driven by goals and achievement, and need a space where the services are reliable and the tools they need are in supply. These are just a few examples of the core patrons best served by the late-night scene, but there are dozens of categories. Understanding all these things and trying to remain mindful of personalities drawn to this type of environment is a rather large part of what do as overnight information associ- ates. It’s one of those duties that’s difficult to put into context, and even harder to plan accommodations for. It’s a bit of a magical quality that’s simply evolved during our ser- vice as the sole representatives of the library during this time slot. We’re part sympathetic bartender, part father-figure, part gate-keep- er, part medic, part library professional. We know when silence is golden, and when a listening ear is needed. We are observant of those who are weary and in need of rest versus those in distress and in need medical assistance. We can discern the difference between the whinings of a procrastinator and the pleadings of a genuinely frustrated, overworked student in need of a miracle. We strive each night to master the art of blending policy enforcement with a shared humanity that keeps us engaged and motivated about serving and advocating for the late-night patrons of the Georgia Tech Library. Conclusion As we move toward implementing LibraryNext, an ambitious reimagining of the Georgia Tech Library, we know that we have to mold overnight use and services to what is best for the students. Before we even started the renewal process, we knew it would be different at night, and instantly began thinking of ways to improve specifi- cally the overnight experience. It is because we know through our time here that there are differences, that a one-size-fits-all ap- proach is not the best strategy for users with diverse needs and that we are always looking towards providing an experience as necessary, unique, and enjoyable as pos- sible at night. bring laptops to their regular classrooms. You might even be able to borrow laptops from your campus technology department. Post your handouts online, since printing and copying will be tricky during a dis- placement. • Prepare for a nomadic librarian life- style. Procure laptops and backpacks that will permit you to rove around campus outside your temporary reference area. It can be difficult to foresee where students will con- gregate after a library closure. Leave yourself the flexibility to go directly to the students in addition to maintaining a relocated refer- ence desk. • Maintain a positive attitude. Every day is filled with new and different challenges when you are removed from your typical environment. Go with the flow and embrace the uncertainty with grace. An emergency closure is definitely an unwelcome disruption to professional life. However, students will still need research support in order for learning to occur. Stra- tegically seize the opportunity to do campus outreach and connect with faculty, staff, and students whether they are library novices or die-hard supporters. Being a displaced librar- ian opens up doors to strengthening campus partnerships and making embedded librari- anship not just a reality but a necessity. The experience has certainly taught us that while the physical library is essential to the campus, the work we do as librarians transcends the four walls of our building.