Each academic discipline and interdisciplinary program at the University of North Carolina Wilmington is assigned a liaison librarian from Randall Library who collaborates with their programs, departments, schools, and colleges to ensure that all stakeholders are engaged with the library at a level that supports their academic and scholarly success.
Liaison librarians at UNCW have four main functional roles: Research Services; Teaching and Learning; Collections and Resources; and Outreach, Engagement, and Relationship-Building. Liaisons collaborate closely with each other, with colleagues in Randall Library, and with partners on campus to best engage the UNCW community as a whole.
Research Services
- Assist UNCW students, faculty, staff, and community members with research needs via methods best suited to the user (e.g. face-to-face or Zoom consultations, telephone, email, chat, etc).
- Understand the research workflows of faculty and graduate and undergraduate students in liaison areas and where in that workflow the liaison might be able to assist.
- Stay up to date on areas of current and expanding research and creative works in liaison areas, particularly those related to areas of faculty specialization.
- Stay up to date on research tools and databases relevant to liaison areas.
- Stay up to date on scholarly research services issues (e.g. research data management, author rights, scholarly impact) relevant to liaison areas.
Teaching and Learning
- Assess student learning of information literacy concepts.
- Determine the best delivery method(s) for information literacy instruction content based on course needs, student learning outcomes, and consultation with the instructor(s). Methods might include face-to-face session(s), flipped instruction, gamified instruction, embedding in the class, workshops, tutorials, course guides, Canvas modules, and/or more.
- Empower instructors to share the responsibility for information literacy education.
- Work with stakeholders to identify, integrate, and scaffold information literacy throughout the curriculum.
Collections and Resources
- Develop and manage the physical and electronic collections in assigned liaison areas to maintain a robust and up-to-date collection.
- Facilitate stakeholder awareness of collection, budget, and licensing issues as needed.
- Identify and add relevant and significant databases and journals to the collections wish list.
- Remain knowledgeable about specialized collections relevant to liaison areas (e.g. government information, University Archives, Special Collections, art collection, and Curriculum Materials Center).
Outreach, Engagement, and Relationship-Building
- Communicate with faculty and instructors in liaison areas using the best means for that department (e.g. an email list, communications for distribution via the chair) regarding important Randall Library updates.
- Reach out to new faculty in liaison areas to learn about their scholarship and teaching and provide them with information about Randall Library services.
- Work with department chairs to attend department meetings to provide updates and gather information about library-related needs.
- Identify potential connections between faculty in liaison areas and other Randall Library functional areas (e.g. Scholarly Research Services, Specialized Collections).
- Maintain knowledge of grants, awards, research, scholarship, and creative works produced in liaison areas to identify potential partnerships for events, exhibits, and programming.