Building Relationships and Outreach
Relationship building takes commitment and time. Challenges stem from the variety of situations (each relationship is unique) and opportunities available. Both informal encounters (conversations over coffee, social events) and structured events (e.g., department meetings, instruction requests) can lead to ongoing collaborations.
Ways to make contact: Get involved in a faculty speaker series (e.g., Scholar in the Library) to engage with individual scholars; explore the course catalog to find where services would be valued and then reach out to instructors; work with campus units, offices or committees as a way to interact with students and faculty and keep current about new and developing initiatives.
Resources
- Scholar in the LibraryThis lecture series (Filter by Category on the Events page) is hosted by the University of Delaware Library, Museums and Press. Featured UD scholars highlight their research and how Library resources proved integral to their research process. Each topic is designed to appeal to a wide audience.
- Curriculum Mapping approach to OutreachGeneral strategy for taking a "curriculum-centric" approach to outreach to undergraduate courses in the departments
- Sample Outreach Planning CalendarA planning calendar can assist in keeping track of different events and activities throughout the year. Make use of this template or create your own!
- Orientations & Transition ProgramsThe library traditionally hosts an information table during the New Student Orientation Fair (during the summer) and the 1743 Welcome Days (UD's opening weekend celebration). Orientation & Transition Programs is part of the Divison of Student Life.
- Undergraduate Research ProgramThe Undergraduate Research & Service Scholar Celebratory Symposium generally takes place in August.
- Summer Institute on TeachingThe institute highlights emerging and established pedagogical practices, resources, and technology tools with an emphasis on evidence and scholarship. Usually takes place in early June.
- Keep Calm and Teach OnBack-to-school workshop series typically occur in August a few weeks before the start of the Fall semester. Opportunity to assist faculty with course preparation through workshops and lectures.
- Course Design InstituteIntensive 3-day workshop for faculty to design a new course or redesign an existing one. (Center for Teaching & Assessment of Learning (CTAL))
Effective Practices
- Meet regularly with department chair and/or library liaison.
- Attend departmental meetings and events regularly, particularly when new information about the collection is available.
- Review departmental website and strategic plans.
- Participate in orientations for new members of your department, including faculty and graduate students; schedule individual meetings with your new faculty.
- Identify the communicators for your departments and schedule a meeting to learn about the distribution channels and practices within your college and departments.
- Monitor campus publications such as The Review, UDaily and the UD Online Research Magazine, and reach out to faculty that are featured in these publications to discuss their work or any new projects that are announced.
- Follow faculty members on social media and engage in conversation / information sharing as appropriate.
- Explore tools such as Google Scholar or ResearchGate which allow you to create and receive notifications or alerts when faculty in your departments publish new material.
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Comply with requests for liaison-supported communication related to library-wide programs (e.g. workshop program, OER, trial databases).
Icons by Scribble.liners from the Noun Project.