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Providing support to students and faculty has always been the library\u2019s first priority, but the job was not always as simple as it sounds. Among all the changes in campus construction and technology, perhaps the richest subject in the history of the library is the students themselves. In addition to its intellectual role, the library served as an early social hub on campus. It served as an ideal neutral meeting place for student studies, especially since it was located next to the University Center, now the Marshall Student Center, which contained the only eatery on campus back then. The patio became a favorite for couples, leading to a tradition of \u201cpatio dates.\u201d The patio\u2019s pond was a favorite target of pranksters, who regularly polluted the pool with dye, soap, shark repellant, and ink, and local wildlife sometimes found their way in for a swim.<\/p>\n
As a touchstone for student life, the library became part of USF\u2019s political landscape. The first open protests occurred around the unofficial dress code, which mandated long pants and dresses for students on the sunbeaten campus. Students rallied against the administration\u2019s habit of canceling lectures on sensitive subjects, from leftist politics to college football. In the late 1960s, it was not unusual for students to march in support of professors who ran afoul of the administration.<\/p>\n
Race relations took center stage in 1969-70, when matters came to a head at USF. African American students in militant garb marched on campus demanding an Afro Studies department, their own lounge, and more library materials pertinent to the black experience. Students formed a group called \u201cStudents for a Non-Racist Library,\u201d accusing library officials of \u201cbreaking promises\u201d for more materials on black themes. Just days later, library staff shelved a rush order to fulfill the need.<\/p>\n
USF had its share of protests against the Vietnam War. Only once did the library seem threatened, an incident Harkness recalls in detail:<\/p>\n
\n\u201cOne particular time when there was an all-night [student protest] session and I know I was a little concerned about closing \u2013 there were libraries at other places that were trashed and things like that. [I] prepared to spend the night at the library if need be[.] It was closed very quietly. The students, the activists were not interested in demonstrating in the library. They were mostly interested in sitting around and smoking pot and singing and there were a few speeches.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
During the 1970s, some students, oblivious to politics and all else, stumbled from the Empty Keg (the student rathskeller) across the street to sleep off drinks in the library\u2019s lobby on Friday nights. Walter Rowe, then working as a security guard, remembered, \u201cWe\u2019d have to kick their feet to get them to wake up when we closed out. There was one guy [who] walked out the front door who literally laid down on the sidewalk and went right back to sleep. I had to move him so I could get around to lock the door.\u201d<\/p>\n
Protecting library property was a distinct challenge. Library staff and faculty were rightly concerned with the security of the materials, but help was on the way. One of the second library\u2019s most attractive features proved to be \u201cTattleTape,\u201d an electronic system that tallied patrons at the entrance and provided collections security at the exit. \u201cSome lenders want an arm and leg for security,\u201d a promotional sign read. \u201cYour library just wants the book back.\u201d Security guards would no longer be necessary to check bags. Paul Camp had the honor of being the first to set off the untested security system in the midst of the move. \u201cI had my book I was reading at lunch and I hadn\u2019t checked it out. I come ambling along, and all of a sudden, I hit the gate and it locks and it goes \u2018Bing!\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
Aside from the occasional protest, the library\u2019s relationship with students was far more collegial. The Graduate Assistant program began in tandem with the Library Science program in 1976, with more than two hundred alumni. The program was originally used to provide student instructors to work with reference librarians for a course The Use of the Library (Silver & Cunningham, 2008). The successful program was discontinued amid disagreements over funding in the 2010s.<\/p>\n
The Graduate Assistant program discontinuation didn\u2019t end the library\u2019s relationship with students. Several departments offered opportunities for students to work on campus and obtain experience in the library. By 2012 a new reference desk and training program was launched to elevate the visibility of research assistance on the first floor. This desk would be staffed primarily by specially trained student assistants (Todorinova & Torrence, 2013).<\/p>\n
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References<\/h3>\n
Silver, S., & Cunningham, V. (2008). The Impact of the USF Tampa Library Graduate Assistant Program on Career and Professional Development. https:\/\/files.eric.ed.gov\/fulltext\/ED500319.pdf<\/p>\n
Todorinova, L., & Torrence, M. (2013). Implementing and Assessing Library Reference Training Programs. The Reference Librarian, 55(1), 37\u201348. https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1080\/02763877.2014.853277<\/p>\n
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A Space for StudentsSupporting Students at the Library Providing support to students and faculty has always been the library\u2019s first priority, but the job was not always as simple as it sounds. Among all the changes in campus construction and technology, perhaps the richest subject in the history of the library is the students themselves. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":28,"menu_order":3,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"on","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-25","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lib.usf.edu\/library50thanniversary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/25","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lib.usf.edu\/library50thanniversary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lib.usf.edu\/library50thanniversary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lib.usf.edu\/library50thanniversary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lib.usf.edu\/library50thanniversary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=25"}],"version-history":[{"count":19,"href":"https:\/\/lib.usf.edu\/library50thanniversary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/25\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":484,"href":"https:\/\/lib.usf.edu\/library50thanniversary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/25\/revisions\/484"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lib.usf.edu\/library50thanniversary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/28"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lib.usf.edu\/library50thanniversary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=25"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}