Author ORCID Identifier
Document Type
Poster
Publication Date
5-2025
College/Unit
WVU Libraries
Abstract
Following a series of significant and systemic budget cuts at a large R1 university, the library system was required to reorganize to deliver services more efficiently. This poster discusses how the Health Sciences Library fits into the newly reorganized system and has continued providing library services.
Background: In late 2023, our large, land-grant, R1 university began making a series of decisions to address systemic and sizeable budget shortfalls and declining enrollment. These included discontinuing programs and majors and a reduction in force of faculty and staff. The university library system, consisting of two campus libraries and the Health Sciences Library (HSL), did not escape these budget cuts, which resulted in cuts to materials and reduced staffing across the libraries.
Description: The library system was required to reduce its personnel budget by $800,000 through retirements and reductions in force and reorganize its entire structure to provide library services across campus more efficiently. HSL lost one previously vacated access services staff position, leaving one director, four health sciences liaison librarians, and four access services/resource sharing staff positions within HSL.
Beginning in 2024, the library system reorganized all departments, moving to consolidate services across the entire system. All access services and resource sharing were consolidated into one unit across all three libraries. The liaison model was replaced by a function model consolidated across the libraries. Research support, reference, and services that support the research mission of the university, including systematic review services and research data management, were moved into a new Research Support & Engagement (RSE) unit. All teaching and library instruction was consolidated into a Student Success & Instruction (SSI) unit. Initially, two health sciences librarians were assigned to each new unit, and the Director of the Health Sciences Library became the head of RSE. Instead of liaising with a specific school, health sciences librarians in each new unit would work together to continue to provide services across the health sciences domain.
Conclusions: The new library structure took effect in July 2024 and has been evolving since. Challenges have included balancing the workload both within and between the two units and a reduction of some services previously offered. Staffing vacancies have also been difficult with a health sciences librarian within each unit leaving since the transition. The benefits have included that health sciences librarians were already more accustomed to working together and supporting services across all five schools of the health sciences and, therefore, have had an easier transition to the functional model and domain concept than other librarians on campus. We have been able to continue library services with minimal impact to the health sciences community.
Digital Commons Citation
Crawford, Anna Katherine; Monnin, Jenn; and Purvis, Ashley, "“A Health Sciences Library By Any Other Name…” Continuing Library Services in a Time of Academic Transformation" (2025). Faculty & Staff Scholarship. 3313.
https://researchrepository.wvu.edu/faculty_publications/3313