Library offers new resources for stressed students

Sarah Goetz Staff Writer

Spring is definitely in the air, and while that brings to mind Founder’s Day and sunny afternoons on the quad, it also signals final research papers and projects that many students face toward the end of the semester. If that term paper looks intimidating and you are not sure where to begin your research or writing, it may be time to turn to the wealth of resources that the Library offers to alleviate end-of-the-year stress.

One of the newest resources that the Library has acquired is LibGuides, an online database that provides research guides compiled by Vassar’s librarians for individual courses, subject areas or general topics. The LibGuides pages feature tools for writing papers, links to other reference databases and information on how to locate relevant articles and books.

“In the past, we’ve done a lot of research guides for individual classes…but we wanted to find something that was more interesting, so we started making these research guides,” said Head of Library Instruction Kathy Kurosman. Additionally, each guide contains contact information for the librarian who composed it; some of them are even equipped with Meebo, an application similar to an instant messenger that allows for immediate, direct communication with a librarian. The database even offers a Facebook application.

Kurosman also advocated using some of the interlibrary loan memberships to which the Library belongs, particularly the newly acquired Center for Research Libraries (CRL). The CRL is a consortium of universities and research libraries that grants access to many formerly obscure periodicals, such as international newspapers and U.S. publications dating back to the colonial era. The CRL contains a vast array of electronic holdings as well as significant collections of microfilm.

The Library also publishes a reference newsletter to advertise its recent acquisitions and new research tools. The Library staff have even uploaded video tutorials to their Web site to teach students how to complete basic Library tasks, such as accessing databases off campus with a proxy server using the microfilm machines and requesting books from the annex.

Katrina Homel ’09, a library research intern, also believes that students will come to value and utilize some of these new offerings. “When students find out about the LibGuides, they are generally very enthusiastic and responsive,” she said.

These additional informational guides are aimed at affording students full access to the Library’s resources. “I think a lot of students could really benefit” from the Library’s research resources, Kurosman said, “so we are trying to find other ways to reach them.”

While the Library’s new resources are certainly innovative and beneficial, Kurosman and her fellow librarians place equal value on some of the well-established research tools, such as research consultations. A student who submits a research consultation form will be assigned to a librarian who works with that particular department. The reference librarians then recommend certain resources or databases for the research paper or project, and are available after the initial consultation to answer questions that arise in the future and offer further assistance.

The reference desk is another resource that remains apparently untapped, according to Kurosman and Science Reference Librarian Flora Grabowska. The desk is occupied most hours of the day by a librarian whose intention is to answer questions about finding information and getting started with research.

Grabowska noted that these brief meetings can be very productive, but that few people are taking advantage of this resource. She also suggested approaching more than one reference librarian. “We’ve all got different approaches,” she said, “and different approaches generate different results.”

To explore these and other Library resources, browse the Library’s Web site or, better yet, go talk to a reference librarian. “They’ll be surprised at how much is available that we can help them with, and how much we can add to their papers if they come talk to us,” Kurosman said.