Distinctive Populations Team Update

The Distinctive Populations team has begun delving into research on several key student populations on campus. We have collected a variety of institutional data on these populations, and begun benchmarking with other institutions by exploring the published research related to the role of the library in supporting these students groups.

Because student veterans are a priority for both the university and the Libraries, we have identified veterans as a target population for our reboot work. According to a January 2019 article in Penn State News, Penn State has joined 30 other higher education institutions in a commitment to graduating more military veterans as a part of the American Talent Initiative (ATI). Penn State has also begun planning a new 6,300-square-foot Student Veteran Center on the University Park campus. In the Libraries, creating welcoming spaces for veterans is a recommendation in the STEM Visioning 2018 report, a document that outlines plans’ to “explore opportunities to collaborate and shape forward-looking services” within STEM libraries.

Through our research into student veterans at Penn State, we discovered that first-year undergraduates with veteran status may enroll in a Veteran’s First Year seminar course, and are eligible for a special living option that helps them transition to college with others sharing a similar experience. Our reboot team is exploring ways to connect the Libraries with these programs for student veterans.

Our team has also identified other potential partners for future collaboration, including the Comprehensive Studies Program hosted by the Multicultural Resource Center (MRC) and the Equity Scholars Program. Both these programs help students who are Pennsylvania residents and who may be first-generation college goers successfully navigate the college experience.

Our next steps are to begin conversations with key partners within the groups we’ve identified and to develop ideas for what our involvement with the programs will look like, with the goal of piloting a workshop or other form of engagement with at least one program in Fall 2019.

Many thanks to team members Megan, Hailley, Anne and Amy for all their work so far.

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