Littman Library Ramps Up Digital Research and Exhibits Among COVID Pandemic

Students needing access to the Barbara & Leonard Littman Architecture, Art and Design Library while studying from off campus now have a variety of digital options available.

Due to the impact of COVID-19, "In a very short time, we had to learn new tools and platforms, shift priorities, redevelop strategy and select methods for assessing the services we provide," Director Maya Gervits said.

Gervits cited many examples of her library's new and updated digital projects, all intended to replicate the experience of using the library in person, or at least minimize what's lost when patrons can only access the holdings, experiences and exhibits through a web browser.

First, the staff ramped up efforts to acquire digital materials for students in Hillier College of Architecture and Design, as did their colleagues in NJIT's primary Van Houten Library. That work focused primarily on the completed spring 2020 semester but will continue indefinitely, perhaps not as quickly although more than before the pandemic, she explained. Books about architecture, art and design tend to have longer shelf lives than regular textbooks and there aren't as many available digitally.

Along with the new materials, "Librarians had to create research guides as gateways to the most critical information. Our statistics have demonstrated that the use of research guides has increased dramatically compared to the same period last year," she stated.

"Analyzing syllabi, learning about students’ assignments, recovering old reserves and finding digital alternatives to substitute for physical resources typically found in the library and currently inaccessible all helped to provide uninterrupted services.

"We continue to offer instruction sessions using Webex and in efforts to keep a sense of normalcy, we restored our traditional Tea for Ph.D.s," albeit virtually, she added, referring to the college's recurring series for doctoral students. There's also a virtual tea event for international alumni being planned.

"To keep students informed on our activities and to keep their spirit up we use social media, the Littman Library Newsletter as well as direct emailing. We are considering having virtual Tea with Alumni and we realized that we are no longer limited to inviting only local people," Gervits continued.

"I am constantly in contact with my colleagues from other universities sharing our experiences and best practices. I believe that libraries are uniquely positioned to facilitate critical collaboration within and outside of institutions. All this would be impossible without collaboration with our colleagues in HCAD, the Van Houten Library and IT services."

One unique challenge, she said, was how to work with copyrights. "In architecture, art and design, we heavily rely on print materials. During the epidemic, faculty, students and librarians had to face a new reality and find online resources to substitute for those that suddenly became unavailable. Instructors teaching remotely do not have the same copyright protections as those teaching face-to-face. Classes in architecture, art and design are image-saturated and therefore the limitations of the copyright law turned out to be especially challenging. Helping to interpret not always clear regulations and to find legitimate materials to support the curriculum became another critical aspect of the Littman Library work during COVID-19."

Gervits' team is also applying for a New Jersey Historical Commission grant to create a smartphone application supporting their existing web-based exhibit, Digital Archive of Newark Architecture, better known as DANA. A student built a prototype application and then graduated, so the project was on hold before COVID hit.

Gervits noted that, in many ways, her team is plotting their course as they go. "This morning I read a quote by Louisa May Alcott: 'I am not afraid of storms for I am learning to sail my ship.' Perhaps it can relate to our collective experience.

"I firmly believe that we need to take the initiative, be entrepreneurial and look outside of the traditional environment," she said. "Our flexibility and capability to reinvent themselves both physically and virtually is essential for remaining active partners in the academic enterprise."