SBCC sits on a hill overlooking the Pacific Ocean. As an idyllic setting for an academy, it's rivaled only by its larger cousin to the north, UCSB. It serves over 20,000 students.
Named for one of SBCC's trustees and benefactors, the Eli Luria Library was built in 1989. Its director is Kenley Neufeld. Kenley and his library have received numerous awards and accolades for their forward-thinking and innovative student services. For example, the reference desk makes extensive use of chat services, Twitter, Facebook and text messaging to communicate with users.
The reference desk was a very busy place on a Thursday morning. Librarians Elizabeth Bowman and Sally Chuah graciously shared their observations. I was able to see chat reference in action, including gathering real-time statistics of student interactions. I was told that chat is very useful for ESL students and shy users in general who are intimidated by librarians in person. Often, the librarians know, whether informed or not, that their patron is sitting out on the floor 30 ft. away (message beeping gives them away). I hadn't considered this, but I was told there was at least one security-related situation where a student summoned help from campus police via the reference desk...another reason to consider chat reference for Oxnard College. I told them about my interest in this technology as a hearing-impaired librarian. Useful site: http://libraryh3lp.com/webchat This reinforced my discussions with Leslie Tirapelle at Pasadena CC last month. Here a couple of (crude) screen shots of what the librarian sees in online mode. A staff member can answer questions from their office just as easily, of course. Also: SBCC uses student tech. assistants next to the librarians, just as I've seen at Westmont and other institutions.
Student requests don't just come from laptops and iPads. They can also come via cell phone text messaging, as shown by this poster visible everywhere in the library.
Even at SBCC, not everyone has or wants to bring a laptop computer. There are 50 Mac workstations, with 20 or so Windows laptops available at the Circulation Desk for on-site use. It's strictly first-come, first-served with no time restrictions.
When it comes to ideas for updating OC's services, we can learn a lot from our northern neighbor. I was also struck by how cordial and collegial librarian/student interactions were, even in a busy environment, something else we need to emulate. Allowing coffee and food everywhere helps, though a quiet study zone in enforced on the lower level. Kenley hopes to add more group study rooms over time, as they are much-needed, but not foreseen back in the late 80s. The reference books were weeded to make room for the espresso bar and tables...right in the library.
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