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This paper aims to demonstrate the variety of ways institutions and their libraries approach student success both conceptionally and operationally.

Librarians from nine different institutions of higher education were given a series of questions about student success on their campuses and in their libraries. They responded with written essays describing their experiences and perspectives.

The contributed pieces are collected together and display a shared interest in defining “student success,” aligning strategic planning with student success initiatives and establishing (and assessing) strong infrastructure to support student success.

These examples help us observe what is happening throughout higher education and see potential paths forward at our own institutions engaged in this work.

The study aims to explore collaborations between writing centers and libraries which create opportunities for providing information literacy intervention for students doing researched writing. This case study gathered data from writing center logs to uncover if and how information literacy activity was occurring during consultations.

A representative sample of writing center logs recorded between September of 2013 and May 2014 was mined for frequencies of library and information literacy terms. Transaction logs were coded and analyzed according to the frames in the Association of College and Research Libraries Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education.

Information literacy is discussed in only 13 per cent of consultations. Referrals to librarians accounted for less than 1 per cent of all transactions. Students most commonly asked for assistance in formatting citations, but deeper information literacy conversations did occur that provide opportunities for engagement with the Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education.

Transactions were examined from one university. Although findings cannot be generalized, the results were applicable to local services, and this study provides a model useful for libraries and writing centers.

This study provides ample direction for future collaborations that will take advantage of the intersections of information literacy and writing instruction to improve student research skills.

Although much has been written about partnerships between libraries and writing centers, this study uniquely demonstrates a model for data sharing across institutional boundaries and how one library mined existing data from a writing center.

The purpose of this research is to determine whether instruction would be welcomed by instant messaging (IM)/chat users, whether instruction is possible in this medium, whether it can be effectively provided, and if the use of co‐browsing enhances learning.

Two studies were conducted in which IM/chat reference transcripts were analyzed and patron surveys collected. This research paper compares results from these studies, the first based on use of text‐only IM software, the second using commercial chat software with a co‐browse feature.

Findings indicate that patrons welcome instruction, whether they ask for it or not, and are satisfied with chat/IM as an instructional medium. Librarians usually provide instruction, though they are more likely to do so if patrons ask for it, directly or indirectly. Co‐browsing was used little and did not increase the amount of instruction provided. Patron question format had an impact on the likelihood of co‐browsing. Despite a high rate of technical difficulties, co‐browsing was very well received by survey respondents.

Findings suggest more training on the importance of instruction in virtual reference is needed.

Providing instruction via reference is an established practice at the physical reference desk, yet few studies of instruction in virtual reference have been conducted and none on co‐browsing as an instructional tool. This study addresses the need for research on instruction in the virtual reference environment.

The purpose of this study is to analyze one Instant Messaging (IM) reference service to determine to what extent instruction is or can be offered in this medium and whether patrons want or expect it.

The authors surveyed IM patrons over a seven week period to determine whether they felt they could and did learn from chat transactions. Transcript content was analyzed to find out whether and how instruction is being offered.

Results show that patrons overwhelmingly welcome instruction and that it is provided in a large majority of cases, using a variety of bibliographic instruction techniques. The way the question is phrased, however, affects the likelihood of instruction to some extent.

The results of this study indicate that librarians should make a habit of practicing instruction in IM reference even when patrons do not appear to be asking for it.

The relationship between instruction and virtual reference has not been fully explored in the literature. Reference and instruction librarians will benefit from this study's exploration of instruction in the IM medium.

As virtual reference and online discovery tools evolve, so do interactions with patrons. This study aims to describe how synchronous virtual reference transactions changed over a six‐year period at a university library.

Transcripts from October and February from October 2004 to February 2010 were coded for question type, interlibrary loan discussions, and referrals. Subcategories for holding types and referrals were also recorded.

The number and types of questions changed with the virtual reference platform used, both increasing and decreasing. The number of questions more than doubled from the beginning to the end of the six‐year study period. The number of holdings questions at the end of the study period was six times higher than the number at the beginning. Patterns relating to interlibrary loan discussions and referrals were noted.

The study examined transcripts from one university library. Findings cannot be generalized but provide examples that may be similar in other libraries.

The number and type of online reference questions that a library receives can change dramatically in a short time. Libraries should monitor question transactions, especially after software changes. Libraries also should consider how the placement of chat widgets changes the quantity and nature of questions and train staff appropriately.

This study examines transcripts across a longer time span than previous studies. It is unique in its examination of virtual reference widgets embedded in proprietary databases and link resolvers.

This case study describes how one library leveraged shared resources by defaulting to a consortial catalog search.

The authors use a case study approach to describe steps involved in changing the catalog interface, then assess the project with a usability study and an analysis of borrowing statistics.

The authors determined the benefit to library patrons was significant and resulted in increased borrowing. The usability study revealed elements of the catalog interface needing improvement.

Taking advantage of an existing resource increased the visibility of consortial materials to better serve library patrons. The library provided these resources without significant additional investment.

While the authors were able to identify other libraries using their consortial catalog as the default search, no substantive published research on its benefits exists in the literature. This chapter will be valuable to libraries with limited budgets that would like to increase patron access to materials.

Although one of the central premises of authentic leadership theory is that authentic leaders mobilize their followers, the underlying motivational mechanisms of this process remain poorly understood. Drawing on self-determination theory, this study aims to fill that gap by examining authentic leadership practices (ALP) as theoretical antecedents of employees' motivation profiles.

Latent profile analyses conducted on a sample of 501 employees revealed four profiles: self-determined, unmotivated, highly motivated and moderately motivated.

ALP were associated with a higher likelihood of membership into the most adaptive motivation profiles. Employees in these profiles displayed more optimal job functioning: higher organizational commitment and performance, and lower intentions to leave their organization.

These findings underscore the predictive power of autonomous motivation for employee functioning and provide new insights into how ALP can improve work motivation, and hence job functioning. Our results account not only for how ALP affects the complete range of behavioral regulations at work but also the different patterns in which these regulations combine within employees.