Andrew Rechnitz
Director, Technology Engagement Division
Texas State University
With the emergence of the digital revolution, academic libraries have found opportunities to transform the traditional ways in which they serve university students, faculty, and staff. The Alkek Library at Texas State University recently undertook a capital renovation project to not only update our physical spaces, but to reimagine the experiences we provide for our students and to prepare them for a technology-driven workforce. We launched an ecosystem of interrelated technology spaces (makerspace, geographic information system (GIS) space, visual and audio production studios, immersion studio, digital design space), coupled with a social learning network that encompasses those spaces, to empower students to explore, create, and innovate in an open and collaborative environment. At the core of this social learning network is a micro-credentialing program that fosters connections between the physical spaces and an open education repository of student-created digital assets. Our innovative approach to designing new technology spaces establishes a network of support that enables students to learn and apply transferable digital skills and design thinking processes alongside their peers and industry experts. This briefing will focus on four key pillars of launching and sustaining an initiative of this kind: strategic planning; user experience and assessment; space design and logistics; and innovative educational components. We will share our story of opening these spaces—from conception to launch—obstacles we experienced along the way, how we overcame and continue to work through those obstacles, and preliminary data that illustrates students’ use and perception of the spaces and the micro-credentialing program.
https://vimeo.com/461241078/62f119ae04
https://alkekone.library.txstate.edu