Statement of Commendation for Library Staff

Friends of the Libraries commends library staff for their valor in acting quickly to maintain public health and student, faculty, and community access to library materials and services as the covid-19 pandemic shut down campus.

• Curbside service at Paul Laurence Dunbar Library started the day after the Dayton campus shut down. Our library was one of the first academic libraries in the state of Ohio to offer curbside service.
• Library staff pivoted to expand online services.
• Library staff rapidly revised internal procedures and schedules.
• Library staff followed detailed CDC guidelines to prepare the library for reopening by removing and distancing furniture, installing directional signage and safety shields, and ensuring self-cleaning supplies for patron use.

Friends of the Libraries commends library staff for their valor in acting quickly to maintain student access to the Charles and Renate Frydman Educational Resource Center when the College of Education and Human Services cut its budget as a cost-saving measure.

• On very short notice, library staff repurposed library space to house the 19,000-item collection.
• Library staff moved all of the new and unique items formerly housed in 116 Allyn Hall, including media lab equipment, furniture, and computers, with an assist from Facilities Services. The massive move featured 250 trips through Dayton campus tunnels over a period of five weeks.
• Library staff have made ERC materials and resources a featured collection of the Paul Laurence Dunbar Library. This not only allows students to have continued access to unique items, but has expanded access with longer daily hours, greater accessibility for a wider range of users, and longer loan periods.

Friends of the Libraries commends outstanding leadership of and teamwork within library staff for embracing opportunities for improved services to students, faculty, and community during a time of great challenge.