Skillman Library debuted the “Lafayette Life Library” last week to help students fill in the gaps to live successfully on campus.
Run by Skillman staff, the program is “a combination of circulating items and programming that aims to foster practical and holistic skill-building and engagement,” according to the library website.
“[The] idea came about from my conversations with other academic and co-curricular departments on campus, as well as inquiries from students and observing national trends at other public and academic libraries,” Katie Pitts, the library staffer who created the program, wrote in an email.
According to Kylie Bailin, the director of outreach and access services, the primary goal of the project is to extend the library beyond the academic realm of support by “providing things that [students] may not have the resources or even the support necessary to buy, to really extend the idea that the library can provide some free items and tools for students.”
The first part of the project will feature the ability to check out a multitude of supplies that students may need for accessibility, such as an eye-glass repair kit, a bike pump and museum passes.
“The items that are available for circulation are available much the same as the rest of the items in the Library’s catalog,” Pitts wrote. “They can be checked out in 48-hour to semester-long increments depending on the item.”
The second part of the project offers “life skill” workshops and information sessions, according to Pitts, which will be hosted by the library staff and other offices on campus. There are currently two sessions scheduled: one session on traveling advice hosted by the study abroad office and another on community engagement hosted by the Landis Center for Community Engagement.
Jodi Fowler, the associate director for civic leadership programs at the Landis Center, said that her session will be an introduction to service.
“The discussion is a very base level, 101-course on community engagement to give students who maybe aren’t yet engaged [with service],” Fowler said. “Even if they’re not going into Easton right now, they’re learning skills that they can translate into other life experiences.”
The free items and resources can be used by students, faculty and staff.
“The library has a lot of resources that a lot of students aren’t aware of, like fancy cameras or MacBooks,” said Fiona O’Connor ‘27, a student employee of Skillman Library. “They’ve got all sorts of stuff that students should really take advantage of because it is free.”
