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Building Connections in the Library
Information Science and Communication 
Center Approaches for Student and Faculty 
Development
Robert Griffin, Director of the Center for Academic Literacy, Columbia Theo-
logical Seminary 
Kelly Campbell, Associate Dean for Information Services, Senior Director of 
John Bulow Campbell Library, Columbia Theological Seminary

ABSTRACT Building Connections among an Information Services Team in 
a theological library and a communication center housed in the same build-
ing can be beneficial to the academic pursuits of students and faculty at 
institutions that are both large and small. This conversation group focused 
on the critical work of Information Services and the communication center 
in building neural connections by stimulating the various lobes of the brain 
responsible for the research and writing process. Considering a whole brain 
approach, participants were introduced to ways in which Information Ser-
vices and communication center staff can collaborate to assist with the aca-
demic pursuits of both faculty and students at their respective institutions. 

To serve faculty, staff, and administration, and to promote the cen-
trality of Information Services in the academic life of our institutions, 
theological libraries need to combine their resources and expertise 
to curate and facilitate the research process. The Atla Annual con-
versation group entitled “Building Connections in the Library: Infor-
mation Science and Communication Center Approaches for Student 

CONVERSATION GROUPS



156  ATLA 2023 PROCEEDINGS

and Faculty Development” examined the potential that Information 
Service teams provide for their institutions by looking at how inter-
sections across Information Services can be maximized for the ben-
efit of their schools. 

At Columbia Theological Seminary in Decatur, Georgia, five units 
comprise Information Services, including: the Center for Academic 
Literacy (CAL1), Instructional Technology, Media Services, the John 
Bulow Campbell Library, and the C. Benton Kline, Jr. Special Collec-
tions and Archives. Each of these departments is aligned under the 
umbrella of Information Services to further the mission of the insti-
tution; united in the library as a hub and central point of departure 
for the teaching and learning activities of the seminary; and a safe 
space for nurturing and exploration. Given this context, the focus of 
the Atla Annual conversation group centered on (1) the collabora-
tive process among Information Services and why this is important; 
(2) an examination of such collaboration from the perspective of a 
connectionist model of thinking; (3) the elucidation of the research 
and writing process by specifically examining the role of the library 
and the Communication Center; and (4) suggesting take-aways that 
participants could implement to foster connections among Informa-
tion Services in their institutional settings. 

OVERVIEW OF SESSION: WHY COLLABORATION AMONG INFORMA-
TION SERVICES? 

As a trusted space on campus isolated from the pressures of the 
classroom or stressful interaction with other stakeholders on and 
off campus, the library, as a part of Information Services, possesses 
a unique position in which staff with a service attitude can support 
the campus community in their pursuits. The campus library is that 
quiet space where all can explore, hypothesize, and create without 
judgement. Within this setting, the task of Information Services is 
to build trust with the patron by looking out for their best interests 

1 The Center for Academic Literacy (CAL) at Columbia Theological Seminary 
(Decatur, GA) is an academic support unit located within the John Bulow 
Campbell Library. The Center includes a Director whose Ph.D. is in Linguis-
tics with a specialization in Second Language Acquisition and two academic 
coaches who are doctoral students in Religion and Philosophy respectively. In 
keeping with the needs of Columbia Theological Seminary, CAL is conceived 
as a Communication Center, assisting patrons with a broad array of language 
skills (e.g., writing, speaking, listening, reading, pragmatics) required for suc-
cess in their academic and professional work on and off campus.



CONvERSATION GROuPS  157

in an environment that is non-threatening. Having a facility with 
a team of trusted experts to provide resources, allow for reflection 
and thought as well as promote the production and review of writ-
ten and oral work under one roof is why collaboration in the library 
setting is so beneficial to the learning enterprise. This freeing envi-
ronment permits patrons to use all their faculties in a constructive 
manner through the myriad number of perspectives and approaches 
to building knowledge that can be best explored in the library setting. 
Exploring such connections to enhance and support student and fac-
ulty pursuits was the conversation group’s main aim. To investigate 
this topic further, the overview for the Conversation session led to 
a more detailed examination of the process of knowledge acquisi-
tion through connectionism, answering the initial question of how 
knowledge is constructed and how connections among Information 
Scientists can assist with academic undertakings. 

A CONNECTIONIST MODEL FOR INFORMATION SERVICES 

Considering the expertise offered by Information Services as a ha-
ven of connections with various paths, group discussion turned to 
the recent literature on brain-based teaching and learning (Harley 
2010; Medina 2015). When considering the brain’s approach to learn-
ing (Murphy 2015), a key principle is based on the notion of connec-
tionism, in which different lobes of the brain play particular roles 
in the learning process. Information Services personnel can stimu-
late the different areas of the brain, strengthening neural pathways 
that are the basis for research and writing. In this sense, connections 
are generated through the inputs provided and the resulting neural 
wiring that occurs. Considering the Whole Brain Approach to learn-
ing (Başar, 2006), when the student or faculty member comes to the 
library, the individual builds connections from both background 
knowledge (i.e., schema) as well as novel information that allow the 
person to identify past experiences that they are familiar with and 
build on these understandings to consolidate new knowledge. This 
use of schema is called scaffolding and is fundamental to the services 
intertwined within an Information Services web of support. 

Connections with prior and current knowledge are thus at the 
heart of how the brain learns and makes sense of its surroundings. 
As Information Scientists, Librarian-teachers or scholars and Com-
munication Center Coaches, we can aid the learner by facilitating 



158  ATLA 2023 PROCEEDINGS

connections, increasing attention, and building motivation—all part 
of a good learning foundation. To gain a more comprehensive under-
standing of this process, participants in the conversation group were 
introduced to the notion of schema, leading to questions about what 
schema is and how it can promote the learning process.

After posing the above questions, the group looked at a short video 
from the “Brain Rules” series in which Medina (2015) demonstrated 
the impact of schema when explaining the process of doing laundry. 
The participants were first introduced to schema by showing them a 
clip during which the presenters explained a process without giving 
clues about their presentation topic. At the conclusion of the video, 
participants were asked what they thought the video was about. 
There was confusion among the audience. When playing the clip a 
second time, the audience was provided with four words: “This is 
about laundry.” Suddenly, the video made sense and an example of 
schema was made clear. 

In presenting the reasons why collaboration among Information 
Service Specialists is so important and after providing a framework 
for understanding how collaboration and schema can promote learn-
ing, the emphasis changed to looking at a model of the corroborative 
research and writing process between Information Services and the 
Center for Academic Literacy at Columbia Theological Seminary.

COLLABORATION FOR THE RESEARCH AND WRITING PROCESS 

Combining Information Services with the offerings of a Commu-
nication Center relies on a multitude of expert perspectives to as-
sist students and faculty. By employing different approaches that 
Information Service and Communication Center Specialists bring 
to student and faculty development such as strategies to create re-
search questions, outline and draft, analyze data, edit, as well as re-
flect, one is drawing on all lobes of the brain to cement knowledge 
and fortify skills necessary for successful study and teaching. To ad-
dress this conceptually, an illustration (see image 1) was presented 
to the conversation group, summarizing the sequence of connected 
services offered by research librarians by considering the Whole 
Brain Approach to learning and acquisition. The visual indicates 
how the collaboration with Info Services starts through discovery 
and exploration and is followed by creation, revision and develop-
ment supported by the Communication Center. This Information 



CONvERSATION GROuPS  159

Services collaboration promotes the skills used for academic inquiry 
as mapped onto the functions inherent to specific locations of the 
brain (i.e., from the frontal to the occipital lobes) according to the 
Whole Brain Approach (Başar 2006; Murphy 2015). In this regard, 
the connections established between the modules of the brain allow 
for learning to occur.

IMAGE 1 The Whole Brain Approach to Learning: Info Services and the 
Communication Center

DISCUSSION: IMPLEMENTING COLLABORATIVE ACTIVITIES FOR STU-
DENTS AND FACULTY 

During the latter half of the conversation session, break-out groups 
were formed to discuss opportunities for building connections with 
Information Services as represented at the participants’ institutions. 
Among those at the session, some were smaller institutions with few 
resources while others were a bit larger and had a Communication 
Center, albeit one not connected with the library. Whatever the size 
of the school or the number of resources available, a variety of activi-
ties were proposed, including: (1) a teaching academy for faculty in 
which staff from Information Services and the Communication Cen-
ter can assist with the development of a teaching portfolio, (2) class-
room observation as well as (3) disseminating information for other 
instructional needs. Additional workshop suggestions pertaining to 
(4) feedback (e.g., giving and receiving correction or comments), (5) 
the research process, (6) assignment creation /curriculum develop-
ment, (7) analyzing texts, (8) presenting and (9) classroom pragmat-
ics were just a few of the areas in which Information Scientists and 
Communication Center staff could be of help. In addition, (10) boot-
camps for writers on particular days or for an entire week during 



160  ATLA 2023 PROCEEDINGS

the academic year were suggested to provide therapy in which in-
formation scientists working together with communication center 
staff and faculty to assist patrons in overcoming writer’s block and 
setting daily and weekly project goals. Another suggested method 
to highlight the interconnected nature of information services with 
units such as a communication center included (11) the design of a 
Four-Step Guide to Academic Success as implemented at Columbia 
Theological Seminary. This guide (see image 2) provides a structured 
approach to using research resources, arranging consultations with 
librarians, exploring communication center resources specific to 
writing and presentation skills as well as booking appointments 
with academic coaches. 

IMAGE 2 Four-Step Guide to Academic Success at CTS



CONvERSATION GROuPS  161

In creating this guide, Information Services at Columbia Theologi-
cal Seminary not only emphasizes practical steps to academic success 
but also adheres to an institutional goal of using the entirety of the 
Seminary’s Information Services’ resources to support the breadth 
of academic skills necessary for the success of faculty and students 
in their campus roles as well as for their professional endeavors go-
ing forward.

CONCLUSION

The conversation group ended after 75 minutes with a promise to 
maintain correspondence among the participants in the form of 
email or via text messaging. With this goal in mind, the attendees 
showed a particular interest in creating a stronger Information Ser-
vices presence on their campuses by building connections across 
their teams to serve the needs of faculty and students at their insti-
tutions. 

REFERENCES

Başar, Erol. 2006. “The Theory of the Whole-Brain-Work.” 
International Journal of Psychophysiology 60 (2): 133–38. 
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijpsycho.2005.12.007.

Harley, Thomas. 2010. The Psychology of Language. Newbury Park: 
Sage Publications.

Medina, John. Brain Rules: 12 Principles for Surviving and Thriving 
at Work, Home and School. Seattle: Pear Press, 2014.

Murphy, Robert. 2015. “Inquiry Learning.” Paper presented at the 
Annual International Korean Teachers of English to Speakers 
of Other Languages (KOTESOL) Association Conference. Seoul, 
ROK.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijpsycho.2005.12.007

