Morrill, Snyder to present on efforts that dramatically increased library use

GREENVILLE, Pa.-- Thiel College Director of Langenheim Memorial Library Allen Morrill and Reference Librarian for Instruction Tressa Snyder will deliver a presentation on library services and information literacy at the 2016 PA Forward Information Literacy Summit on Thursday, July 21.

The presentation, titled “Fifteen to One Hundred Fifty: Integrating Information Literacy at Thiel College,” will highlight work by library staff members to inform Thiel College faculty members of library services. Their session will demonstrate the development and promotion of information literacy and faculty-librarian collaboration at the College. As a result of their efforts, the library has seen an increase in foot traffic of 15,000 visits per school year, and they have gone from hosting 15 to 150 individual information literacy classes each year.

 Snyder and Morrill will present new strategies for designing library instruction and ideas on how to work with campus constituents to market library services. Both possess master’s degrees in library science. Snyder has worked in the Langenheim Memorial Library for eight years, and Morrill has been the director for nine years.

“We were very excited to be selected to present the work we have done with the library,” Morrill said. “Tressa and I have been working hard, and the results we saw have been a pleasant surprise. We have a great story to tell and this is a wonderful opportunity to tell it.”

The Langenheim Memorial Library was dedicated in 1952 and contains more than 300,000 volumes, 27 databases and 500 print journals. It employs three full-time librarians, four part-time librarians and 20 student workers.

The fourth annual PA Forward Information Literacy Summit will be held at Pennsylvania State University in State College, Pa. It is titled “Library Services by Design: Supporting Future Forward Workplace Competencies.” The event is from 8 a.m. until 4 p.m. in the Foster Auditorium of the Paterno Library.