Challenging your students: Using a contest to promote the library (original) (raw)

2008, College & Research Libraries News

M any academic libraries now offer more than just a quiet place to study and ac cess information. They offer students a suite of computing, programming, and design resources. However, because students rarely associate these tools with the traditional aca demic library, many of them remain unaware of what the library has to offer. As more librar ies provide support for student collaboration, computing, and creativity, they must fi nd new ways to tell students about their resources and to create opportunities for students to use them. Contests are an effective way for libraries to increase student awareness. A successful contest provides students with an interactive, competitive experience through which they can discover-or possibly rediscover-the importance of their campus library.