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Learning Commons Department records

 Collection — Carton: 1
Identifier: UA 5745

Scope and Contents

Contains university communications, cassettes, newspaper clippings, and digital documentation concerning instructing university professors and library staff on digital means of conducting research. Includes welcome material for the library, communications on which collections in the library to digitize, and how professors should modify their curriculums to teach their students on how to use digital resources from the library.

Dates

  • 2000-2011

Creator

Conditions Governing Access

Restricted. Closed for 35 years from the date of creation of the records, and thereafter open to the public in accordance with the University Archives Policy.

Conditions Governing Use

It is the responsibility of the researcher to obtain any necessary copyright clearances. Permission to publish material from the Learning Commons Department records collection must be obtained from the Supervisor of Reference Services and/or the L. Tom Perry Special Collections Coordinating Committee.

Administrative History

The Learning Commons Department (est. 2009) is an administrative unit in the Harold B. Lee Library at Brigham Young University. It was created from the merger of the General Information Services Department and the Periodicals Department to supply a means for access to scholarly digital resources and a growing number of electronic databases for patrons of the Library.

The Learning Commons Department of the Harold B. Lee Library at Brigham Young University was established in 2009 from the merger of the General Information Services Department and the Periodicals Department. After the Information Commons Project team had a two month investigation from February-April 2003 to determine how online access to library materials at BYU compared to other universities including the University of Arizona, Emory Univeristy, and the University of Tennessee at Knoxville. After this analysis, the newly-created divison of the General Information Services department focused on seven aspects to improve upon: 1) Reference and student workstations; 2) Collaborative learning rooms and areas; 3) Electronic classrooms; 4) Multimedia workstations; 5) Consultation stations; 6) Writing lab; and 7) Lounge area. By implementing such programs, this department ensured that the Heber B. Lee Library is state-of-the-art and effective for all students.

Administrative History

The General Information Services Department (2002-2009) was an administrative unit created from the merger of the General Reference Department and the Department of Library Instruction and Literacy to provide services to students in the Heber B. Lee Library to enhance their time there including multimedia sources, Library Instruction, and Distributed Learning. Closed with it's merger with the Periodicals department to create the Learning Commons Department.

The General Information Services department was an administrative unit created from the merger of the General Reference Department and the Department of Library Instruction and Literacy in 2002 to provide services to students in the Heber B. Lee Library including Multimedia sources, Library Instruction, Distributed Learning, and the creation of the Information Commons. With these services, the department created 78 cooperative workstations, helped assist professors in First Year/Advanced Writing classes, provided online services including the "Ask A Librarian" link on BYU's website, and worked alongside other departments at BYU to utilize Blackboard in providing library services. In 2009, the department merged with the Periodicals department to create the Library's Learning Commons department.

Extent

1 carton (1 linear ft.)

Language of Materials

English

Custodial History

Transferred from Learning Commons Department in 2013.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Transferred; Learning Commons Department; January 2013.

Appraisal

Administration (University Archives Collection Development Policy, August 2015)

Processing Information

Processed; Eric Wolford, student manuscript processor; Cory Nimer, curator; 2016

Title
Register of Learning Commons Department records
Status
Completed
Author
Eric Wolford
Date
2016 February 5
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin
Language of description note
Finding aid written in English in Latin script.

Repository Details

Part of the L. Tom Perry Special Collections. University Archives Repository

Contact:
1130 HBLL
Brigham Young University
Provo UT 84602 US