Lavery Library, St. John Fisher University – Academic Library

Yet another alma mater visit, is St. John Fisher University where I completed my Masters degree in Childhood and Special Education.  I did not use the library as extensively during my time at Fisher as I did during my undergraduate years largely due to me living off campus while completing my graduate studies. However, as a student of the Ralph C. Wilson School of Education, I did utilize the K-12 Resource Center quite frequently.  

Digital Access 

https://www.sjf.edu/library/

Lavery Library’s website appears to be the standard layout for most University library websites, branded with the school’s logo and the school colors while prominently featuring a search bar for the catalog at the top of the page.  Scroll down and you will find additional databases and resources.  At the bottom of the page is the Lavery Library Contact information for the checkout desk, research help, after-hours research help.  

A demonstration of their commitment to the evolving mission of an academic library, and their commitment to looking for ways to improve their services and programs, Lavery Library collects data and presents it as an assessment tool on the Library Statistics Dashboard.  I find this to be in accordance with Ranganathan’s fifth law: The Library must be a growing organism.  “He argued that libraries must accommodate growth in staff, in the physical collection, in patron use and in the facility” (Rubin& Rubin, 2020, p. 665). Each area of focus in the assessment tool seems to address the things Ranganathan listed. Quick facts speak to the collection, such as in the 2018-2019 academic year Lavery Library saw 40,000+ books and media accessed, either in print or electronically and to the patrons, that the library sees 900+ visitors daily, on average during the school year (September-April), just to highlight a few (St. John Fisher University, 2022).  After clicking read more you will find graphs, charts and additional visualizations of all the library data collected.  It is an interesting feature to explore.    

The Space and Physical Access

Lavery Library is located on St. John Fisher University campus in Rochester, NY.  The building is grand and prominent in the center of campus.  Given that Fisher is an independent institution in the Catholic tradition of higher education, it is not surprising that the architecture of the building and most buildings on campus have a church-like feel. Lavery Library’s main entrance has a large staircase leading from the sidewalk to the front door.  There is a handicap accessible entrance on the lower level and an elevator to accommodate patrons with physical disabilities.  The main level houses the help desk and checkout desk.  This floor has several seating options, group workstations, a laptop friendly countertop area and a coffee area.  You will also find leisure books for checkout on this floor. The main level has been regularly updated to meet the needs of student users. The upper level is a designated quiet space.  It houses the main circulating collection of books and media.  It also has several individual and group study rooms to foster the more studious atmosphere of this floor.  The lower level contains the gallery, the K-12 Resource Center and instruction classrooms (St. John Fisher University, 2022).  

Services and Intellectual Access 

Lavery Library provides print books, journals, newspapers, online databases of research articles and audiovisual materials.  In addition to these scholarly materials, a variety of DVDs, books, magazines and games are available for student’s leisure needs. (St. John Fisher University, 2022). Interlibrary Loan is available and Fisher also has a cooperative access program where students can directly check out materials from Nazareth College’s library located a few short miles from campus.  

Beyond the standard circulation resources, Lavery Library also has extensive research services to assist students in their academic pursuits.  The Research Help Desk is available on a drop-in basis during regular office hours and by appointment, in-person or virtually.  Additionally, Lavery Library offers a Chat 24/7 with a librarian service for after hours assistance.  Rubin & Rubin (2020) accredited changes in the curriculum and the rise of the Research Model to the substantial increase of importance and centrality of the academic library (p. 63).    

Each major has a specific librarian assigned to support their needs unique to their major.  While assigning specialties to an academic librarian may be common, what makes it noteworthy is that each librarian has their own profile found on the Lavery Library website with a link to email them as well as several research guides that they have curated for different topics and courses offered within their department.  These research guides are quite extensive and clearly tailored with the needs of the students in mind.  The Lavery Library staff has embraced the “new model of the modern university. This model envisioned faculty members as independent researchers.  Objective scholarship was promoted, and an expansive faculty research agenda was encouraged” (Rubin & Rubin, 2020, p. 63).  The plethora of research guides and the comprehensive nature of them indicates a strong commitment to the Research Model and stays true to the mission of academic libraries.  “Although the mission of academic libraries continues to evolve, the need to support the academic curriculum and provide research support to faculty remains the academic library’s primary function” (Rubin & Rubin, 2020, p. 63). 

Lavery Library’s lower level contains materials that were purchased specifically with future teachers and students in other majors of the Ralph C. Wilson School of Education in mind.  There is a collection of children’s literature, wordless picture books, formal assessments and NYS Certification exam study guides.  The library also has access to several K-12 online databases specific to future teachers, such as BrainPOP, CultureGrams and Tumblebooks Library and Tumblebooks TeenBookCloud. These are valuable resources to someone entering the field of education in any capacity. 

Collections 

Lavery Library holds the Fisher Archives which document the history of St. John Fisher University from its initial planning by the Basilian Fathers in 1946 to the present day (St. John Fisher University, 2022). 

Administered by the Library, Fisher Digital Publications, promotes the discovery, sharing and preservation of intellectual and creative works of the faculty, students and staff of St. John Fisher University (St. John Fisher University, 2022). You can explore works in 328 disciplines by viewing a color coded discipline wheel that spins and breaks down each discipline further into specialties and areas within the larger discipline.  You are then directed to the specific work where you can download without restriction as all works are part of the Digital Commons Network. 

Lavery Library holds a number of valuable and historically important materials in their Special Collections.  Many of these items are available to view in the digitized special collections, at New York Heritage.  Of note is the facsimile of the “Book of Kells”.  The “Book of Kells” is a Latin version of the New Testament, transcribed by Irish monks over 1,000 years ago.  The Lavery Library houses facsimile number 765 of a limited edition of 1,480 books that were made worldwide (St. John Fisher University, 2022).  

People (Patrons and Staff) 

Scrolling through the staff on the Lavery Library website you will be greeted with the smiling faces of white women and a few white men.  It is not a diverse staff.  Fisher itself is not an exceptionally diverse population of students although it is certainly more diverse than what is represented on the library staff.  Despite the lack of diversity, the students seem very comfortable in the Lavery Library and their needs appear to be well met.  

Conclusion

It is very apparent that Lavery Library is highly committed to student success and supporting faculty.  Their online presence and resources are extensive.  I explored for hours and barely scratched the surface of what is available.  While I do wish there was more diversity in the library staff commensurate with the changing demographics and face of library science, I am proud to call St. John Fisher University my alma mater.  

References

Lavery Library Main Entrance. [Photograph]. Tumblr. https://stjohnfishercollege.tumblr.com/page/7#.YthJR3bMJPY

Rubin, R. E., & Rubin, R. G. (2020). Foundations of library and information science (5th ed.). ALA Neal-Schuman.

St. John Fisher University. (2022). Library Statistics Dashboard. Lavery Library. https://libguides.sjfc.edu/dashboard 

St. John Fisher University. (2022). Library Maps. Lavery Library. https://www.sjf.edu/library/about/library-maps/ 

St. John Fisher University. (2022). Archives and Collections. Lavery Library.  https://www.sjf.edu/library/archives/