Pandemic or not, college students and faculty want to read

Every August carries reminders that college campuses are returning to life, from football players scrimmaging on freshly mowed lawns to freshmen in shorts clutching bookstore bags as they familiarize themselves with new surroundings.

But some sights simply are unique to 2020, like the librarians at Penn State University wearing face masks who all last week stood under a blue tent outside the main campus library. They awaited walk-up patrons with appointments who decided that — pandemic or not — they need to read.

Like other universities, not to mention community libraries generally, Penn State University Libraries have worked since March behind the scenes to keep resources flowing, even as Pennsylvania’s flagship public university was closed to combat COVID-19. The curbside service that began Aug. 3 outside the Paterno Library entrance marks return of

limited in-person services, just days before the Aug. 24 start of fall classes on the sprawling University Park campus.

Make no mistake, plenty of students might frame their pent-up demand for a normal Penn State experience in terms of Big Ten football or nightlife in State College.

But consider that the curbside program was announced July 30, and within three days, 330 items were reserved online in a season when just about any warmweather pursuit would seem like a good excuse not to read.

It’s a reminder that campus libraries remain crucial, as are the staff members who were heartbroken to see their facilities closed and who have tried as best they can to work around a tough situation, said Ann Snowman, head of Access Services and the User Services Training Program with Penn State Libraries.

“We are a community of scholars who thrive on the printed word,” she said last week. “The libraries support the full span of scholarship from discovery to expression.”

Put another way, those volumes on nanotechnology and quantum physics are great, but so are a few good, entertaining summer reads.

Need a government publication? They can get it. A journal? No problem. “Anything you find in the library’s catalog. That would include books, CDs, DVDs,” Ms. Snowman said. “If you were desperate for an LP record, we can do that, too.”

The program generally covers resources not already online. Students, employees and those not affiliated with the university but holding a library card can use the service. Initially holdings were limited to the Paterno Library, but the engineering library is now included, and there are plans to expand the program to some of the university’s commonwealth campuses.

Penn State’s main campus by itself enrolls nearly 50,000 students.

Many of the library materials were put on hold by faculty in March, but until this week, they had to wait.

“They wanted what we had locked up inside,” Ms. Snowman said.

At the University of Pittsburgh, library staff members are caught up in their own fight to keep the printed word available in a global crisis. Their target audience ranges from classroom faculty with fall course plans, to researchers in need of specific knowledge tied to their work, to students hoping to complete course assignments.

Pitt’s curbside program began July 6 and includes not just the Hillman Library, but other locations, said Kornelia Tancheva, Hillman librarian and director of Pitt’s University Library System.

“While a vast majority of our resources are available online, including close to 50% of our book collection through an emergency access program from the HathiTrust, providing access to the physical collection is an opportunity to remind the world that not everything is online,” she said.

“As one of our librarians put it, ‘Doing research, especially in the humanities, can mean people need to be able to get access to both print and electronic books and articles, and we are here to help make that happen.’ ”

The program has fielded 350 requests, although electronic books outnumber that by a magnitude of 10.

At Penn State, library staff members are under the tent each weekday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. The program runs through Aug. 22. After that, staff members will be back inside the multistory library, although limited to its first and ground floors for social distancing.

Remote resources remain available, and an on-campus delivery system is being implemented on a per-building basis depending on inter-office mail.

On its website, Penn State Libraries takes patrons though a step-by-step process to secure their desired reading material.

It starts by asking users to decide on their selection and then place a hold on it by selecting “I want it.”

Patrons then receive a notification when the book or other resource is ready, and are directed to the scheduler for pickup.

“Schedule your pickup location and time. Please note that not all campuses are participating in this service. Participating locations are listed in the location pulldown list on the scheduler,” the website reads.

Borrowers must bring a Penn State ID-Plus card or Resident Borrowers card to confirm their identify

Oh, and don’t forget the face mask. You will need it at the pickup location.

“While a vast majority of our resources are available online, including close to 50% of our book collection through an emergency access program from the HathiTrust, providing access to the physical collection is an opportunity to remind the world that not everything is online.”