Claire Boughton
Equinox Staff
No matter your grade, everyone has had at least one class or one assignment that has been, put simply, a struggle. Whether it be a required class that you have to pass for your major or a research paper worth 15% of your final grade, we have all been there, and we can all agree that it is daunting.
However, Keene State College has an amazing place filled with resources and individuals ready to help you through that class or assignment that is stressing you out. That place is the Mason Library, right on Appian Way. The Mason Library is not only a great place to go for some quiet time or if you need to check out a book, it is also a place where you can get help from qualified individuals who have been trained to problem-solve.
Tom Lupetin, a sophomore here at Keene State, and Emily “Fern” Fernandes, a freshman, both work at the help desk in the library and both underwent the long process to get qualified for their jobs. Fernandes spoke about the class she had to take for her job where she learned all about “how to find real sources, primary resources, what library anxiety is, and how to […] help individual students […] find specific research.” Lupetin discussed how he was also trained in teaching students how to navigate databases to further their ability to research successfully on their own. All help desk staff undergo the same training in order to make sure that they are capable of helping whatever student with whatever issue they may come across.
As well as that, the majority of the help desk staff also work at the writing center. Celia Rabinowitz, the Dean of Mason Library, spoke about how the help desk staff, like Lupetin and Fernandes, are “trained to do writing center tutoring and to do research support.”
The help desk is far from the only resource the Mason Library offers students, however.
The library also offers study nights which are sponsored by the ASPIRE program and held in the Mason Library. Rabinowitz spoke on the topic, saying that “there is… a correlation, we don’t know that one causes the other, but there is some correlation between students who come” and a better academic experience.
Another popular resource Mason Library offers is the Green Bikes. These bikes can be seen right outside the entrance to the library and they can be rented for either two weeks or an entire semester. Renting bikes is very simple. Rabinowitz explained the process, saying, “The bike will have a tag with a number on them, pull off the tag with the number, bring that in with your I.D., we take the tag with the number, we give you the lock for the bike… and tell us if you want the bike for two weeks or the semester.” Simple as that.
From bike rentals to the help desk, Mason Library has resources of all sorts to help the student body. Whether you are having trouble on a research paper, need help figuring out a work cited page, or even just need a fast way to get around campus, the library is a great place to go to solve any of those problems.
Claire Boughton can be contacted at
cboughton@kscequinox.com.
