Turning the Tables Assessing Student Worker Satisfaction in Peer ‐ Staffing Models Michelle Demeter Rachel Besara Bridgett Birmingham

FSU Community  32,000 Undergraduate Students  7,000 Graduate Students  1,400 Faculty

Strozier Library  More than 1 million visits per year  Central location on campus  Over 750 databases  24/5  Mix of academic and social services and programming

Peer Model  Hire peer-level students to provide services  Reference Help  Technology  Circulation  Outreach  Tutoring

Benefits of Hiring Students  Flexible schedule  Professional development opportunities  Hone major-specific skills  Lower cost  Establishes library as social & academic center  Develops student leaders  Improved research skills  Makes the library less intimidating

Study Overview  Does the peer model work for both student worker and patron?  Survey patrons  Survey the student workers

Surveying the Patrons  Outreach department students and staff solicited participants  5 simple questions  Easy participation

Survey Questions 1. I am a …  Freshman  Sophomore  Junior  Senior  Graduate  Faculty  Staff

Survey Questions 2. Was the person assisting you at the desk a student?  Yes  No  Not Sure

Survey Questions 3. Was the person assisting helpful?  Yes  No

Survey Questions 4. Are you comfortable getting assistance from a student at the desk?  Yes  No  Depends what I need help with

Survey Questions 5. Other comments?

Respondents by Type (181 total responses) TypeNumber Freshman53 Sophomore40 Junior34 Senior34 Graduate15 Faculty3 Staff2

Was the Person Working the Desk a Student? TypeYesNoNot SureTotalsPercentage of Total Respondents Freshman % Sophomore % Junior % Senior % Graduate123158% Faculty2132% Staff1121% Totals Percentage of Responses 80%3%17%

Was the person assisting helpful? Yes

Are you comfortable getting assistance from a student at the desk? 95% said yes 5% said it depends

Surveying the Student Workers  ed via Qualtrics  Sent to 30 student assistants  Several reminders sent

How qualified do you feel assisting people who come to the desk? 100% felt qualified to assist people 1/3 felt very qualified to assist

How comfortable are you helping other undergraduates?

Does it matter if they are freshmen, lower classmen, or upperclassmen? No “I can never tell which is which just by looking at them.”

How comfortable are you helping faculty?

Does it matter if you know who the faculty member is? 44% said Yes “Yes, it makes the interaction a lot easier.” “If it was the FSU president or Julia [Dean of Libraries] or someone that high up I would feel nervous.”

How comfortable are you helping graduate students?

How comfortable are you helping your co-workers? 100% felt comfortable assisting co-workers Most were very comfortable *the desk has a mix of staff, students & librarians

Do you think undergraduates feel more comfortable working with you than staff or librarians?

Do they appear to ask you questions they don’t ask staff or librarians?

Are you more likely to ask follow-up questions to:

Do you think the students you work with respect you? Yes Do you respect the students you work with? &

Are you a peer leader?

Do you have any comments about your experience as a student worker? “I enjoy working at Strozier. The patrons are respectful, and the other workers/supervisors are friendly and understanding.” “I love Strozier library and the environment of working there. However, I wish that there was more connection between students and library staff. there is a feeling of superiority. I would like to get to know more of the staff and librarians like Bridget, Michelle and others.”

Conclusions  Our student workers are comfortable and love working at the library  We need follow-up questions for student workers  Expand number of respondents  Find a way to get more graduate students and faculty feedback  Comfortable vs. confident

Thank You!