Grassroots Outreach to Foster a Diverse Community

Abstract

This exploration of an academic library's outreach efforts presents a broad overview of a range of initiatives aimed at fostering interaction with library staff and resources. These efforts are put forth by a variety of contributors from throughout the library's staff without a management mandate or day-to-day control. Although these grassroots outreach efforts cost little to nothing, they still act to effectively inculcate a campus-wide perception of the library as a forward-thinking, inclusive and supportive institution while generating a welcoming atmosphere for diverse users. This atmosphere in turn fosters a learning and research community that sees the library as an important contributor to its success. This chapter describes the foundations for this type of outreach as well as giving examples of a number of innovative methods Albertsons Library at Boise State University uses to provide meaningful opportunities for its users to interact with staff, services and resources in a way that cultivates a feeling of inclusion in the community.