Academic Library Outreach: Beyond the Campus Walls

Traditionally, academic library outreach has meant reaching out to the campus community, providing services to faculty and students. Many universities and colleges, however, now have a new or renewed emphasis on outreach beyond the campus, seeking to ensure their institutions’ relevance to the community at large. How can and do academic libraries participate in this type of outreach? What types of collaborations or partnerships are academic libraries forming with schools, public libraries, or community groups? How do academic librarians partner with faculty or campus departments on their community projects? What role does service-learning play? Nancy Courtney has assembled a sampling of approaches, from the innovative to the tried-and-true, each written in the voice of its strongest champion.