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Purpose: This study aimed to understand how parents and librarians describe their lived experiences in a modern children's library that aims to create a triad bond through the organization of multiliteracy events and activities. Design/methodology/approach: The study used a phenomenological case study approach using two semistructured interviews, the first with parents (n = 5) and the second with library staff (n = 5), to record their lived experiences in creating and attending literacy events and activities. Findings: The findings indicated multiplicities of transformative and heterotypic spaces that juxtapose different yet compatible and vicarious experiences for librarians, parents and their children. The virtual and interactive features of the library fuel children's curiosity and creativity and afford them authentic materials through a creative blend of local heritage and technology-mediated multimodal literacies. Moreover, the librarians engage in constant program evaluation and upgrades. The library environment creates a vibrant bio-network for disseminating literacy through creativity and ingenuity and affords an affinity space for community socialization. Research limitations/implications: This study has some limitations and delimitations. The data for this study were collected during the pandemic, which affected the sample size. Moreover, the children's views were not considered, which could broaden our understanding of the phenomena. Furthermore, the study relied on interviews as the sole source of data; other sources, such as archival data and documents, could enrich the data and increase the study's rigor. Finally, the study is confined to only one site. Practical implications: The study found that a "living library" philosophy with an enthusiastic and attentive staff that caters to patrons' interests draws parents and children to visit. Additionally, unexpected fun activities that occur when sufficient children are present keep them engaged and motivated to stay and learn more. The study suggests that librarians, architects, school leaders, policymakers and educators should consider how to conceptualize, design and experience a modern library space that prioritizes literacy activities and incorporates technology to inspire children's innovations. The findings can be applied to both public and academic libraries. Originality/value: The findings from this study could provide researchers, teachers, administrators, librarians and artificial intelligence with a viable orientation to envision new ways of reconceptualizing public and school libraries to create affinity spaces for the literate community, especially in a non-western context such as the United Arab Emirates.

The right of persons with disabilities for equal access to education and educational resources is enshrined by international and country-specific anti-discrimination laws. Taking the Ethiopian context as an example, this paper sought to identify barriers of access to educational resources and explored ways for removing them. Seventeen students with visual impairments studying at Hawassa University were selected for semi-structured interviews. Moreover, five individuals working at the disability centre and the university library were interviewed. The results of the interviews were analysed thematically using the International Classification of Functioning, Disabilities and Health (ICF) as a framework. Access and accessibility problems that emanate from the learners' diverse background, lack of educational resources in alternative formats, lack of institutional tools (policy, procedure, guidelines, etc.) to bridge the gap between law and practice, and the digital divide were among the problems identified and discussed. At the end, the paper showed how libraries, revitalised as learning and information commons, could help to ensure the accessibility of educational resources and help learners with disabilities to acquire skills that may help them in their studies and their future undertakings.

Student partnership, a growing phenomenon in higher education, has transformed the way universities collaborate with students. Yet, to date, the academic library has rarely been examined as a place for student and staff partnerships to thrive. In this article, we present findings from a national students as partners benchmarking survey conducted across Australian academic libraries, with responses from library staff representing 35 universities across six states (n = 210). Our findings highlight that while many library staff see the potential benefits to student partnership, this potential is largely unrealised. Our findings further tackle the commonly perceived barriers to partnership specific to the library context, such as staff understanding of student partnership and its corresponding practices as well as challenges and barriers to student engagement. We conclude with a recommendation for more reflection in academic libraries on how to create a connected and relationship-rich culture of partnership.

This study aims to investigate university library directors' perceived importance of antiplagiarism practices through plagiarism software and guidance-based programs. The study also qualitatively explores the barriers faced by university librarians in combating plagiarism practices. The authors used a mixed-method research design to examine their research questions. The findings showed that the library directors placed equal importance on both types of antiplagiarism practices, that is, software-based and guidance-based antiplagiarism practices and that libraries should provide both of these services effectively. The library directors indicated a lack of awareness regarding plagiarism issues, lack of motivation among librarians, lack of information literacy training programs, and administrative issues as the key barriers. This study fills the gap in the existing literature by exploring university library directors' perceptions of antiplagiarism practices and barriers in combating plagiarism practices, particularly in the South Asian context.

In the wake of the COVID pandemic, many academic libraries sought virtual instruction options, like the embedded librarian model, bringing renewed interest to the topic. Debates defining embedded librarianship are plentiful and varied, but a review of the professional literature reveals a commonly used metaphor comparing embedded librarians to embedded journalists. This paper analyses the prevalence of that metaphor in the professional discourse through the lens of cognitive metaphor theory (CMT) to reveal the semantic and pragmatic implications of its use. CMT highlights the power of figurative language to reflect and define professional identities. The metaphor's militaristic rhetoric counters negative stereotypes of librarians as passive or meek, while the metaphor's combative rhetoric discloses complex power dynamics between academic librarians and faculty. However, the etymology of 'embed' reveals more productive definitions related to geology, computer science, and linguistics. Embracing these multiple definitions will help librarians shape that role in the future.

Mzuzu University Library provides various e-library services to postgraduate students. However, a minimal amount is known regarding the use of these e-library services by postgraduate students. This mixed methods quantitative study aimed to investigate postgraduate students' use of e-library services. The findings reveal that 95% of postgraduate students knew about e-library services. In comparison, 83% knew internet access, and 73% knew e-journals service from 10 e-library services that Mzuzu University offers. Further, 80% and 64% of postgraduate students used the internet and e-journals, respectively, while other e-library services were the least used. Additionally, 68% of users were satisfied with the internet and 64% were confident with e-journals. Factors such as usefulness, availability of support, and resources influenced postgraduate students' use of e-library services. Inadequate infrastructure and staff support discouraged some users from effectively using e-library services. Training and marketing are highly recommended.

This paper examines the role of librarians in e-learning programs, as a consequence of post-COVID adaptations in Nigerian universities. Through a review of the relevant literature and of current practice in existing e-learning programs in Nigerian universities, a discussion is developed around the significant roles librarians can play. The embedded librarianship model was identified as the best practice to adopt in order to secure a place for librarians and libraries in Nigeria in the face of the current change in teaching approaches in the post COVID-19 environment. Furthermore, the paper describes the perceived challenges librarians and libraries may be confronted with in executing the embedded librarianship model with regard to online teaching and learning. The paper advocates that the identified challenges be addressed for the library to play a role in the evolving post-COVID adaptations in Nigerian universities.

To explore whether artificial intelligence can be used to enhance library services, this study used ChatGPT to answer reference questions. An assessment rubric was used to evaluate how well ChatGPT handled different question types and difficulty levels. Overall ChatGPT's performance was fair, but it did poorly in information accuracy. It scored the highest when handling facilities and equipment-related questions but the lowest when dealing with e-resources access problems. ChatGPT was weak in answering advanced research questions, complex inquiries, and known item searches relating to a specific local environment, but it could be adopted to enhance library communication with users.

Scholarly web-based application programming interfaces (APIs) allow users to interact with information and data programmatically. Interacting with information programmatically allows users to create advanced information query workflows and quickly access machine-readable data for downstream computations. With the growing availability of scholarly APIs from open and commercial library databases, supporting access to information via an API has become a key support area for research data services in libraries. This article describes our efforts with supporting API access through the development of an online Scholarly API Cookbook. The Cookbook contains code recipes (i.e., tutorials) for getting started with 10 different scholarly APIs, including for example, Scopus, World Bank, and PubMed. API tutorials are available in Python, Bash, Matlab, and Mathematica. A tutorial for interacting with library catalog data programmatically via Z39.50 is also included, as traditional library catalog metadata is rarely available via an API. In addition to describing the Scholarly API Cookbook content, we discuss our experiences building a student research data services programming team, challenges we encountered, and ideas to improve the Cookbook. The University of Alabama Libraries Scholarly API Cookbook is freely available and hosted on GitHub. All code within the API Cookbook is licensed with the permissive MIT license, and as a result, users are free to reuse and adapt the code in their teaching and research.

The Georgia Tech Library Public Services Department proposed to expand the number of staffed service points throughout the Library to increase coverage and service. The proposal was well-received by Library leadership and earned priority placement in the Library's annual budget request. The theoretical underpinning for this reception is an adaptation of Kingdon's three streams framework of public policy adapted to internal policy work: namely, that success in internal requests requires the same confluence of problem, policy, and politics to open a window of opportunity to place the issue on the agenda of those who make decisions.

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 for the Resources Department.

This study seeks to understand the relationship between research data management (RDM) services framed in the data curation life cycle and the production of open data. An electronic questionnaire was distributed to US researchers and RDM specialists, and the results were analyzed using Chi-Square tests for association. The data curation life cycle does associate with the production of open data and shareable research, but tasks like data management plans have stronger associations with the production of open data. The findings analyze the intersection of these concepts and provide insight into RDM services that facilitate the production of open data and shareable research.

With the advent of the big data internet era, the corresponding multimedia technology is also developing. At the same time, as an important place for students to improve their cognitive level and expand their knowledge coverage, the construction of knowledge and information in university libraries will have an important impact on the growth of students and the development of the library itself. Big data not only brings specific challenges to the intelligent information construction of libraries, but also provides opportunities for the further development of intelligent information construction. Therefore, this paper aims to analyze the intelligent informatization construction of university libraries in the multimedia big data environment, make suggestions for the further development of library intelligent informatization construction, and provide reference materials for library intelligent informatization construction.

The use of robots in open and distance learning university libraries is a relatively new and innovative concept that has emerged in recent years as a response to the increasing demand for remote access to library resources and services. However, there seem to be limited studies that focused on the adoption of robots in open and distance learning university libraries. The study through a review of literature from a global perspective examined the adoption of robots in open and distance learning university libraries. The study drew data and information from the literature gathered manually from various databases including Google Scholar, research gate, and Scopus. The study discussed the adoption of robots in distance learning university libraries, examples of distance learning university libraries adopting robots per region of the world, the factors open and distance learning university libraries consider for adopting robots in their services, services distance learning university libraries use robots to offer, data on distance learning university libraries adoption of robots, benefits of using robots in open and distance learning university libraries, ethical and practical concerns in the adoption of robots in distance learning university libraries, and challenges of using robots in open and distance learning university libraries. The study concludes that the adoption of robots in open and distance learning university libraries can be beneficial for both library operations and users. However, libraries must carefully evaluate their needs and goals before adopting the technology and take steps to address any potential challenges that may arise. Based on the conclusion, the study recommends among others that open and distance learning university Libraries should carefully consider their specific needs and goals before adopting robots and ensure that the technology is implemented in a way that benefits both library staff and users.

As participants in the Association of College and Research Libraries' (ACRL) Distance and Online Learning Section (DOLS) Mentoring Program, two librarians collaborated to deploy a pilot library video tutorial program at the mentee librarian's small liberal arts college in the Southeastern United States. Drawing on the mentoring librarian's experience with tutorials at their largely online university, the mentee librarian maintained instructional support and faculty engagement during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. Additionally, the authors compared statistics between this pilot video tutorial program with the mentoring librarian's more established program and discussed the benefits of the mentoring relationship for both librarians.

The purpose of the study was to address gaps in the use of library information resources and services among distance learners. The study followed a pragmatic paradigm and employed a mixed-method research approach with a sequential explanatory design. A questionnaire was used to elicit information from 1,170 s-year distance learning students in undergraduate and postgraduate programs at the University of Education, Winneba, and the University of Cape Coast. The semi-structured interviews solicited the views of six librarians and twelve students. The data were analyzed using the SPSS program and thematic analysis. The study discovered that meeting distance learners' information expectations are the way to address gaps in their use of library information resources and services. The study suggested that academic libraries conduct frequent service delivery reviews and student information needs assessments to identify gaps and improve services to meet students' expectations.

Purpose: This research work aims to study the continuous usage intention of students for digital library systems in higher learning institutions (HLI). Additionally, keeping in mind the lack of focus on academic involvement of students in existing studies, this research work attempts to examine the moderating role of academic involvement in making up the continuous usage intention for digital library systems among students at HLI. Design/methodology/approach: Cross-sectional survey design is used in this study. Target population is students pursuing postgraduate studies and using digital library systems at private universities in the state of Uttarakhand, India. The Stratified random sampling method is used wherein each private university forms one stratum. Findings: The results suggest that the students' continuous usage intention for digital library systems is significantly influenced by dimensions of digital library system quality, mediated by user satisfaction. Further, the level of academic involvement of students exerts moderating impact between dimensions of digital library system quality and user satisfaction; however, it does not exist between user satisfaction and their continuous usage intention. Research limitations/implications: This study contributes to the literature on academic involvement of students by highlighting its importance in the process of continuous usage intention. It also proposes a holistic conceptual framework for continuous usage intention for digital library systems among students and moderating impact of academic involvement. Being cross-sectional survey-based research, this study has certain limitations. Since responses were obtained at a single point in time, variation in respondents' behaviour could not be captured. Practical implications: The findings of the study can be helpful to the HLI, academic librarians, teachers, digital library systems service provider companies and government regulatory authorities. HLI need to put more effort into procuring subscriptions to reputed publications of e-books, e-research papers, e-magazines, e-reports, etc. for making digital library systems more beneficial for the students. Academic librarians need to be effortful towards building students' satisfaction through constantly upgrading software and systems and active interaction with students. Digital library systems service provider companies can also collaborate to customize their digital resources for different types of academic programs. The government can partnership with private companies for providing digital library systems in HLI. Originality/value: This research work is the first of its kind in terms of studying the role of academic involvement of students for purpose of evaluating continuous usage intention for digital library systems among students studying in Indian HLI.

With growing emphasis on data curation practice in both science and industry, there has been a call for information professionals to take on a substantial role in data curation. Library and information science (LIS) education has been responding to this call by offering various training opportunities from Master's education to professional development. The most recent effort to systematically review a data curation curriculum offered by ALA-accredited LIS schools was in 2012, so it is time to revisit the progress and evolution of data curation education. The main goal of this study is to analyze the course content from the syllabi of various programs to understand what is being taught in LIS schools throughout graduate-level education. Further, because the need for data curation is apparent across different disciplines, and thus not only LIS but also other disciplines have been offering data curation courses, this study also analyzed syllabi from other disciplines. A total of 80 syllabi were analyzed in this study: 15 syllabi from 9 ALA-accredited institutions and 65 syllabi from 53 institutions of Carnegie Classification (CC). Our findings suggest a notable growth in LIS education in data curation since 2012, but LIS education still provides less training in technical skills. There was also a distinctive difference in educational approach to teach data curation between LIS (user- and service-oriented) and other disciplines (technical skills-focused), which brought different strengths and weaknesses in curriculum.

The purpose of this qualitative research study was to illustrate the experiences of transfer students interacting with community college librarians for instruction and research assistance. This research study was guided by one research question: (RQ1) How do transfer students at community colleges who frequently meet with their community college librarians for library instruction and research assistance describe the experience of their interactions? The researcher used a transcendental phenomenological design to address a gap in the literature, which illustrates a lack of understanding of how transfer students at community colleges experience working with community college librarians for library instruction and research assistance. This study examined the experiences of college students who attend a small community college in Southeast Texas and utilized interviews to capture and analyze data pertaining to this phenomenon. After reviewing and analyzing the data, two themes emerged: (a) The Importance of Advocacy and (b) The Importance of Positive Experiences. Each major theme was based on two subthemes that emerged from the participants' feedback.

This study surveyed librarians and staff at Association of Research Libraries (ARL) member institutions to determine who assembles social justice guides (that is, LibGuides), what motivated the creation of such guides, and how these guides are deployed. Additionally, the survey gauged employee perceptions of library and institutional responses to social unrest. Sociopolitical events, perceived educational need, and work assignments to develop such a guide were the primary reasons motivating the creation of the guides. Social justice guides are seldom incorporated or deployed into wider library or institutional programming, however. Overall, library and institutional diversity statements and responses to social unrest were perceived as words without action. Results from this survey shed light on library employee perceptions, on the emotional labor involved in the development of anti-racist resources, and on library and institutional responses to social unrest.

During the 2020 and 2021 summer semesters, the University of Michigan Biological Station (UMBS) transitioned to hybrid classes that were primarily distance learning with two-week inperson sections. The library offered both synchronous and asynchronous reference assistance over the summer term. An analysis showed that students favored using the UMBS LibGuide over synchronous virtual reference help via Zoom. Students further preferred face-to-face interactions over virtual formats, and their preference for LibGuide assistance may carry into the post- COVID-19 classroom. This finding suggests that students prioritize convenience and immediacy over personalized assistance in the Zoom platform. Thus, in providing reference assistance to student populations in the field sciences, balancing face-to-face interactions with convenience and immediacy should be a priority. Recommendations based on the success of the 2020 and 2021 field seasons were suggested for reference interactions in future field courses.

This article explores users' level of satisfaction with the information in the online space of a university library during the pandemic and the russian-Ukrainian war. The authors analyzed the services and activities that the library provided online and examined whether they satisfied users' information needs. Using a questionnaire, the study surveyed students and faculty members of the Kyiv National University of Culture and Arts in 2023. The study revealed that users rely on online library services for many different information needs. The authors do not rule out that their results were influenced by current conditions in Ukraine, such as intensive military operations lasting more than a year, forced relocation of students and teachers to less dangerous regions, concern for the safety of educational and informational activities during constant rocket attacks, power outages, and unstable Internet connection. This article will be useful to those interested in meeting library users' information needs during a pandemic, war, or other instability. Respondents' suggestions for service improvement, conclusions, and recommendations will help university libraries to organize their activities more effectively to maximize users' satisfaction in the online space.

Chatbots have experienced significant growth over the past decade, with a proliferation of new applications across various domains. Previous studies also demonstrate the trend of new technologies, especially artificial intelligence, being adopted in libraries. The purpose of this study is to determine the current research priorities and findings in the field of chatbots in libraries. A systematic literature review was performed utilising the PRISMA checklist and the databases Scopus and Web of Science, identifying 5734 records. Upon conducting the first screening, abstract screening, full-text assessment, and quality assessments guided by the CASP appraisal checklist, 19 papers were deemed suitable for inclusion in the review. The results of the review indicate that the majority of the existing studies were empirical in nature (primarily adopting qualitative methods) and technology reviews with a focus on reviewing the implementation and maintenance, design, evaluation, characteristics, and application of chatbots. The chatbots of interest were mainly text-based and guided chatbots, with closed-source tools with access portals mostly built on library web pages or integrated with social software. The research findings primarily concerned the development models and necessary tools and technologies, the application of chatbots in libraries. Our systematic review also suggests that studies on chatbots in libraries are still in the early stages. [This paper was presented at the 2023 Libraries in the Digital Age (LIDA) International Conference (Osijek, Croatia, May 24-26, 2023).]

As a state university system planned for growth in the availability of distance education degrees, the presidents and the provosts decided to include consideration for the availability of student support services. To ensure availability of student support services for online students, college and university systems in the state developed and implemented a self-reporting tool, the Online Student Support Scorecard, to measure the availability of those services at both the college and the university levels. Although institutions were offering many of the services identified in the scorecard as essential, institutions were struggling to provide some of the services. Differences also were identified between the types of services available at the state college system compared with the university system.

There are currently an estimated 1.1 million juveniles involved with the juvenile justice system. Of that steadily-climbing number, a high percentage will be rearrested, readjudicated, or recommitted to a facility, program, or group home. Although many researchers have studied the factors influencing juvenile criminology and recidivism rates in general in order to reduce these numbers, little is known about the possible influence that an active and thriving library media center may have on these adolescents. Therefore, this literature review will examine the possible connection between having a library media program available during a juvenile's incarceration and reducing juvenile delinquent recidivism rates.

In this time of disinformation and misinformation, libraries remain a reliable source of truthful and factual information. As they fervently support the agenda of lifelong learning, libraries recognise that there are various influences that redefine the process of student learning. Admittedly, librarians need to be more creative in motivating post-millennial students to help them fully develop their Media and Information Literacy (MIL) skills. This paper explores how games are adopted and utilised by academic libraries as an interactive approach to entice students to learn essential MIL competencies. It shows how games can be a viable tool not only to deliver information literacy (IL) instruction in a collaborative learning environment but to also effectively engage and attract students to use the library resources and services. While the use of games is not novel, the way it is delivered and re-purposed to meet MIL competencies is vital for today's young generation of learners. This report demonstrates how two academic libraries in the Philippines and Kazakhstan were able to embed MIL skills through a library race challenge. Furthermore, this paper discusses the practical steps undertaken in the preparation of the game as well as the observations made during and after the activity was conducted. From this, other libraries may gain insights and best practices on how to leverage this method to further champion MIL in their own communities.

School librarians can still support readers with the school library space is closed. Even though it might take some creative thinking, "the school library has the ability to provide continuous access to resources" and can ensure that the love of reading and access to materials continues (AASL 2018, 56-57). This article details ways school librarians can support readers and build excitement around reading without the benefit of your library space.

The aim of this case study was to evaluate whether there had been educational changes and if so, in which phases of implementation and institutionalization in three African higher education institutions. The changes were evaluated from the point-of-view of trainees in the field of e-learning and library services during the project conducted in 2013-2015. Written texts and visual material were analysed using qualitative content analysis. The enthusiasm and mutual pedagogical understanding of the academic and support service staff were the key factors promoting the changes in the integration of e-learning and modern library services into everyday practices in these higher education institutions. The provision of suitable training and pedagogic skills to the academics and the support service staff made it possible dovetail these concepts to suit their home institution and provide them with a common language and value base that supported student learning.

Based on the context-aware environment, in this paper, the adaptive interest models are reviewed. And the academic information intelligent recommendation systems of university libraries are presented based on the situational awareness-related theory method, where the current situation and trend of situational awareness-related theory and service of intelligent recommendation systems are investigated. Meanwhile, the potential research directions, basic ideas and methods are also presented. The adaptive model and architecture of the academic information recommendation system are built based on situational awareness, and the collaborative filtering information recommendation algorithm is studied based on spatial-temporal similarity relationship to obtain the interest of scientific and technological scholars. Combining with the adaptive interest model, an academic information demand model is established. On this basis, the prototype system of academic information recommendation is further studied to realize personalized recommendation of academic information based on the situational perception. This paper will provide effective solutions to the digital resources service of university libraries and the academic information recommendation needs of scientific and technological scholars.

2018 was a difficult year for Washington state school librarians. The state's changes in the funding formula for school districts coupled with new regulations on how the money was spent caused many districts to react harshly and reduce certified school librarian and library support staff positions. Unfortunately, school librarians are always at risk of being cut, particularly when most administrators do not fully understand the librarians' impact on student learning. In this article, Suzanna Panter describes how she used Stephanie Vance's book, "The Influence Game: 50 Insider Tactics from the Washington D.C. Lobbying World That Will Get You to Yes" to identify strategies her school librarians could use to advocate for their positions.

The actions of a single librarian can bring about district support aimed at increasing students' equitable access to a strong school library. This article shares a success story from a sole school librarian who showed evidence of the school library's value and was able to double her contracted presence as the school's librarian.

Many of the descriptions of public libraries as sanctuaries provide myriad examples of ways in which they serve the underserved: language circles, English language learning and citizenship classes, and access to technology for the homeless, to name a few. In the school library, if librarians are providing sanctuary only to those who feel comfortable seeking it in the library, they are not valuing the school library as a sanctuary for all. This article discusses why librarians need to prioritize knowing their communities and being proactive rather than neutral.

School libraries are places where people seek solace--not just by burying their heads in books to see themselves in the characters or to look up information on a topic they can't bring themselves to ask friends, but as a safe haven, or third space, from those who have prejudices based on one's sexuality. The lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and questioning (LGBTQ) community want the same resources, services, and sources as other people, just without the prejudices. They want a place that is a diverse and inclusive environment. This environment should be a place of solace and support. School libraries of today are not your mother's school library. In 2018, the American Association of School Librarians (AASL) released the National School Library Standards to provide school librarians with guidance and structure on how to best tailor their school library space to the needs of their learners. The standards contain five levels, one level being Domains. The four Domains are Think, Create, Share, and Grow. The Domains detail the school librarian's role in engaging learners and leaders to support the learning community. In this article, this author looks at how the Domains in the AASL Standards make school libraries a safer place.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's 2015 Youth Risk Behavior Survey, 34 percent of lesbian, gay, and bisexual youth have been bullied on school property (2017). The challenges are significant for LGBTQ youth with some stemming from local culture and community location. School librarians need to work hard to ensure that libraries in all communities are welcoming, safe spaces. Perhaps even more so in conservative regions where diversity may not be as celebrated or visible. Regardless of one's personal beliefs or the opinion of the school or district administration, and perhaps breaking with some of the cultural norms of the community, access to ideas and information in the school library is a civil right for all students. In addition to it being a civil right, it's also in the AASL "National School Library Standards" under the Shared Foundation of Include. This Shared Foundation emphasizes the idea that best practice for a school librarian is to ensure that displays and communications focus on resources that reflect a variety of viewpoints, cultures, and experiences. Many school librarians may not even be aware a problem of access exists for LGBTQ youth. The authors hope is that this article and the included ideas and resources will help school librarians create more safe places for LGBTQ youth.

This study investigated 299 chat reference interactions from an academic library consortium for instances of teaching and compared these against other characteristics of the chat, such as question content, staff type, user status, user satisfaction, institutional affiliation, length, and shift busyness. Statistical analysis revealed that teaching was more likely to occur when the chat was a research-related question or when the operator was a graduate student worker employed by the consortium but less likely when the operator was a paraprofessional. Chats with teaching were longer but were also associated with higher user satisfaction scores. Teaching rates did not differ by institutional affiliation, shift busyness, or user type. These results indicate that busy consortial services can offer comparable teaching service to single-institution services. The researchers recommend updating operator training to better emphasize teaching to increase user satisfaction.

Information literacy is the primary instructional focus of many librarians. With the development of a core set of information literacy threshold concepts, librarians often strive to impart these concepts to undergraduate students during their years of study. However, when students come to school, they are not blank slates. They arrive with preconceived ideas or misconceptions which can impede this process. In this article, the authors report on the results of focus groups held with first-year students at a private, liberal arts university. During the focus groups, participants were asked to share their perceptions of the misconceptions identified by Hinchliffe et al. (2018) in their information literacy misconception inventory. This study adds support for some of the misconceptions included in the Hinchliffe et al. inventory. However, it was not able to add support to all of them. In some cases, participants indicated conflicting results; in others their responses opposed the misconception.

This paper suggests changes that are likely to occur in higher education resulting from the coronavirus pandemic from a retired dean's perspective. Global events like the Great Depression and World War II led to significant societal and cultural changes. This global pandemic will have the same impact. Higher education will not be the same in the future. What makes it difficult to predict its future is the fact that colleges and universities have no predetermined guidelines for how to offer an entire academic program during a worldwide health crisis. Administrators are having to figure out how to respond on the fly. This isn't to say there is no future for higher education. However, no colleges or universities will be able to conduct business as usual. For those who survive this changed environment, a significant re-assessment of every aspect of its enterprise will be required. This will include financial viability, mission, academic programs, program delivery, technology, library and student services.

Improvisation is an effective tool for developing actors' skills. It can also be a powerful and unique means for enhancing customer service skills in the contemporary academic library environment. Interactions between library users and librarians / library staff can often be complicated and require excellent listening and communication skills. This article explores how improvisation training can help reinforce customer service skills while also enhancing team building, team cohesion, and interpersonal engagement skills for these library employees. Such exercises are not only enjoyable and entertaining for library employees, they also help develop essential skills which enhance their customer service interactions.