A new model of faculty‐librarian collaboration: the faculty member as library specialist

Abstract

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to show how the library at Jinwen University of Science and Technology (JUST) in Taiwan introduced the use of a new model “Faculty member as library specialist”. This is done in an attempt to determine the value of a new approach of faculty‐librarian collaboration for promoting the library's resources and services. In addition, some ideas and suggestions are proposed regarding the issue of faculty‐librarian collaboration for library staff around the world.Design/methodology/approachAfter providing some background information regarding the JUST Library, the process of the project implementation and the approaches used are described in detail. In addition, the effectiveness of the project is reviewed based on the results of the interviews with some of the teaching faculty and the statistics reports of the usage of the JUST Library from 2006 to 2008. Finally, some conclusions are drawn and some suggestions are made, proposing that the library staff establish a faculty‐librarian collaborative model.FindingsAfter reviewing the effectiveness of the project, it is hard to say whether or not it is the best way to promote the library's services and resources. However, the paper finds that the proposed approach provides a new idea and an example of faculty‐librarian collaboration in promoting the library's resources and services to the students.Originality/valueHopefully the model of faculty‐librarian collaboration in the JUST Library in Taiwan will provide some new ideas and inspirations that can be shared with library staff around the world.