1. Oberlin Group Research
To gain further insight into other collegiate libraries,
the Fellows researched all of the libraries in the Oberlin
Group which is “a consortium of liberal arts college
libraries.” The Fellows used this research to highlight
activities that other libraries are doing to enhance patron
experience, and to lay the groundwork for their
proposed projects. As a result of this research, the
Fellows created potential wireframes for a public
serving Earlham Library website.
Concluded Research
Wireframe Creation Project
This research is aimed at assessing usability and
usefulness of the Earlham College Library website. The
Fellows are in the process of creating suggestions for
improving the website and generally making library
resources more easily accessible to current and
prospective students. As we proceed with this project,
we hope to add insight from Earlham’s Marketing team.
Their professional knowledge in web design will help
guide final decisions regarding the creation of a public-
facing website for the library. In the future, even more
student input would be helpful, as our sample selection
for the usability survey and GoPro initiative will be
relatively small.
Research Introduction On-Going/Future Research
WayFinding GoPro Project
The Fellows are currently in the process of a
GoPro Library Challenge in order to assess the
usability of the library’s physical resources. The
Fellows will ask students to complete tasks within the
library while wearing the GoPro, and then review the
film to identify places that could be made more
accessible to patrons. This project, along with the
Usability Study, will give a clearer picture of the
overall accessibility of library resources.
Website Usability Survey
To help contribute to the development of a public
website (and improve the current website), the Fellows
will be conducting a usability survey for Lilly’s current
website. With the survey, we hope to see patterns that
show what aspects of the website are more usable and
less usable. The survey will help us determine how to
make the current website most user-friendly, and
decided what of Lilly’s assets should be highlighted on
a public serving website.
Acknowledgments
Thank you to: Neal Baker, Kate Blinn, Mary Bogue, Amy
Bryant, and Jenny Freed, as well as the LIS professionals and
Earlham faculty who shared their time with us.
A special thanks to the Earlham Libraries faculty and staff.
The Fellows brainstormed how an Earlham public-
facing website would look like by suggesting resources
to highlight on earlham.edu. Suggestions for a public-
facing website include, but are not limited to:
-“Faculty and Staff” page
-Quick catalog search tool
-Library Mission & Goals
-“Science and Technology Commons” about page
-“Friends Collection and Archives” about page
-Earlhamites in Libraries feature
-“Event and Happenings” page
Mollie Goldblum, Will Henry, Lara Miller, Ally Muterspaw, Sadie Zabawa
Kenlee Ray Library and Archives Fellowship
Example Wireframe from the Oberlin Group
Research Project