Jessica Swaringen, Undergraduate Instruction & Outreach Librarian, Lane Library / Georgia Southern University Libraries, Savannah, GA (FTE: 4,621) Big Talk From Small Libraries 2023 February 24, 2023 http://nlcblogs.nebraska.gov/bigtalk

1. We Want Snacks, Too!
Adapting a Big Outreach Program for A Small Library
Jessica Swaringen (she/her), MLS, MA
Undergraduate Instruction & Outreach Librarian
Georgia Southern University

2. Background:
All about
Georgia Southern
University Libraries
Georgia Southern (GS) University is a public R2
university in Georgia, USA. The main campus is
located in Statesboro, GA, and services 17,000+
students.
In 2018, Armstrong State University was
consolidated with GS University and became the
Armstrong Campus of GS University in Savannah,
GA. This campus services approximately 4,600
students, maintaining its small campus “feel.”
GS University Libraries is comprised of Henderson
Library at the Statesboro campus, as well as Lane
Library and the Learning Commons at the
Armstrong campus.

3. The first Snack Cart
initiative:
Spring 2022
The first time GS Libraries provided students with
a final exams Snack Cart, Libraries Outreach
Coordinator Melissa Brown led the initiative.
Since the initiative only took place in the Zach S.
Henderson Library, it was initially called “Zach’s
Snacks.”
Zach’s Snacks made rounds starting at 11:00 pm
through the 4 floors of Henderson Library from
April 25-29th.
During this time, 434 interactions with students
were recorded and 358 students were served.
Students reacted positively to the initiative, and it
was considered a success among the Libraries
faculty and staff. We decided that we’d like to
expand the initiative the next semester.

4. Changes between
May and December,
2022
In July 2022, I started my new job at GS University at
the Armstrong Campus. I joined the Reference &
Instruction department of Lane Library on July 1st.
My Statesboro campus counterpart, Kevin Reagan,
began working at Henderson Library in September,
2022.
The Undergraduate Instruction and Outreach
Librarians were recruited to:
● teach information literacy to undergraduate
students, particularly those in their first and
second years (as well as assigned liaison areas)
● develop, implement, and assess a robust
student - library outreach program at each
respective campus.
● chair two Libraries committees: the Student
Outreach Committee and the Communications
and Marketing Committee

5. Return of the
Snacks:
Fall 2022
In preparation for the Fall 2022 finals Snack Carts:
● The name “Zach’s Snacks” was changed to the
“GS Libraries Snack Cart.”
● The Snack Cart on the Statesboro campus ran
the week prior to final exams, while the Snack
Cart on the Armstrong campus ran the week of
final exams.
● The Snack Cart on the Statesboro campus
began rounds at 11:00 pm, while we circulated
at 4:30 and 6:30pm at the Armstrong campus.
● Faculty from the Reference & Instruction
department at Lane Library staffed the Snack
Cart during final exams
○ Vivian Bynoe
○ Caroline Hopkinson
○ Lauren McMillan
○ Jessica Swaringen (me!)

6. Return of the
Snacks:
Fall 2022
In preparation for the Fall 2022 finals Snack Carts:
● We listed the snack cart events in our GS
branded presence.io platform, Eagle Engage in
order to market and assess the event
●
● Due to how our events were set up in Eagle
Engage, the attendance data was collected
differently for each campus.

7. This should be easy,
right?
I expected that with such a smaller group of
students on the Armstrong campus, we would only
need about half of what was purchased for the
Statesboro campus.
We ordered:
● 60 Rice Krispies Treats
● 60 Quaker Chewy Bars
● 40 Cheez-It Crackers
● 96 water bottles
● Life Savers bulk size (for encourage-mints)
● Total cost: $139.20
That should be enough… right?

8. Wrong.
But in a good way!
313 unique attendees at Statesboro
195 unique attendees at Armstrong*
This reflects outreach to:
● 1.84% of students on the Statesboro campus
● 4.24% of those on the Armstrong campus
Library Employees donated a combined $57 to buy
more snacks and water for the Snack Cart.
*= there were 408 total interactions recorded at the Statesboro
campus. This total is unknown for the Armstrong campus due to
how the event was set up in our assessment platform. We will
amend this for Snack Cart 2023 initiatives.

9. Looking Ahead to
Spring 2023
● Create a separate “event” in Eagle Engage
platform for each night the Snack Cart
makes rounds at each campus.
● Ask for an increased budget – we have the
numbers to back us up!
● Word of mouth, or more intentional
marketing?
● Assessment plan:
○ Establish written, measurable objectives
○ Follow up on the objectives and reflect

10. So what did we
learn here? ● Word of mouth travels FAST at a
small campus
● Keep records!
○ Student attendance
○ Cost of program
○ Volunteers
● It’s ok to be different
● Little things can make a big impact

11. Q&A
Any questions?
Contact me:
Jessica Swaringen (she/her)
jswaringen@georgiasouthern.edu
@gslibraries on Instagram