Story written by Lois Barnes Vinson.
Interlibrary Loan. Stacks. Circulation. Check Out Desk. You may know us by a variety of names and services but you may not know that we are all under one department — Access Services. Though we are a public-facing department, much of our work is behind-the-scenes, making sure the UNC Greensboro Jackson Library stays open as scheduled and the flow of items from shelves to patrons and back again goes smoothly.
When the pandemic spread during spring 2020, UNCG responded by taking classes online and ushering students off-campus. Jackson Library adapted in kind, first shortening hours of operation, then limiting building access to SpartanCard swipe entry, then restricting building access to library employees. On March 20, Access Services locked up the building after the last patron exited, unsure of when we would again freely open our doors. With a skeleton crew working a few hours a week providing services that could only be completed onsite and monitoring the facility, we began planning for the brand-new and daunting world of remote work.
Over the quarantined spring and summer, we prepped and persevered. Most of our procedures and services needed to be modified into virtual and/or COVID-safe versions. Staff divided up responsibilities, forming groups to affect departmental mitigation changes, in addition to updating our individual job duties. Throughout we continued to support both student and research success in numerous ways. We filled print materials on demand, kept the book drops emptied and checked-in materials. Interlibrary Loan lent and received electronic articles and books. We checked email and voicemail and kept our online information updated. It may be a cliché, but we really did “build the airplane as we flew it.”
Restrictions eased and in June, we opened our doors to more library staff returning to work in the building. A delivery request process was established to get physical materials to our patrons. In preparation for the return of patrons, we moved furniture, put up signage, assembled barriers, transferred offices, set workspace limits, trained and totally reconfigured our day-to-day operations. In the reverse of our spring closure, we first opened the building to the UNCG community and then to all.
With change came innovation. We are now able to provide many of our standard services with contactless options. Our holds team grew the initial delivery request process into a fully remastered service, with the ability to place items on hold straight from our catalog and pick them up at the desk, from a locker or have them shipped to your home. Instead of checking out reserve items from the desk, students can request electronic scans through an online form. Community members interested in borrowing print materials from the library can complete 90 percent of the membership process before stepping into the building.
Whether we were working from the familiarity of the library building or the comfort of our homes, Access Services made sure we were able to serve our patrons during a tumultuous time. We look forward to continuing to work safely for you!
Story written by Lois Barnes Vinson.