Pursuing student success in the library: a case study in peer mentor program transition, training and engagement
ISSN: 0090-7324
Article publication date: 10 January 2023
Issue publication date: 9 June 2023
Abstract
Purpose
This article shares an academic library's transition from traditional reference services to a peer support model during a campus reopening post-COVID-19 closure. It examines the conception, implementation and implications of the Peer Mentor program amidst shifts in campus priorities, Library research and reference paradigms and the Library workforce, from the perspectives of library faculty and staff, alongside feedback from student workers.
Design/methodology/approach
The article uses a case study approach to detail the Library's Peer Mentor Program by authors involved in various stages of the program's lifespan and discusses the beginnings, implementations and challenges of the program and introduces the unique curriculum used to train student Peer Mentors.
Findings
The authors chronicle their own experience after two semesters of the Peer Mentor program alongside qualitative feedback from the first cohort of Peer Mentors. The Peer Mentor feedback points to positive impacts in other academic pursuits and in gaining a greater understanding of the information landscape and the library field.
Originality/value
The case study presented is a valuable example for academic librarians considering beginning peer-to-peer learning models within their own research and reference services units, especially those who may be creating these peer learning networks in the wake of library service disruption or restructure (such as due to the COVID-19 pandemic).
Keywords
Acknowledgements
The authors would like to thank past, present, and future Peer Mentors for their enrichments to the library culture at San Francisco State University. Their contributions have positively affected their peers' information literacy, the library service model, and the library profession. The authors are very grateful. The authors would also like to thank the Friends of the J. Paul Leonard Library, whose generosity allowed the Peer Mentor Program to become a reality.
Citation
Maxwell, J., Rusk, F., Nielsen, J., Guidara, A., Borges, E. and Lamberti, J. (2023), "Pursuing student success in the library: a case study in peer mentor program transition, training and engagement", Reference Services Review, Vol. 51 No. 2, pp. 91-104. https://doi.org/10.1108/RSR-09-2022-0047
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
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