APLA 2019

With its increasing use in both public libraries and educational institutions, virtual reality (VR) is becoming an important technology for institutions to consider and provide access to. However, not every university can afford the space required for a makerspace or VR lab, and with shrinking budgets, space and resources continue to be tight. Libraries have provided solutions to challenges such as this before, and can do so again. At our small university, we do not currently have the space for a makerspace or VR lab, but this has not stopped us from implementing VR in classrooms and research projects. By using new ideas alongside established methods of providing access and fostering interdisciplinary collaboration, we are able to meet new technological challenges and thrive in their rapidly changing landscape. This creates not only a partial break with traditional operations, but uses the solid lessons learned from them to find new, successful structures.
In this presentation, we will discuss the rollout of VR at our university. This will include discussion of the results from current mixed-methods research using VR that the Burman University Library has been doing in conjunction with the faculties of Art, Education, and English, as well as the overall use of VR in the university and the plans we have for VR in the future. Ideally, libraries (both public and academic) will come away with ideas and methods to provide access to, and use, VR without much more than the initial cost of investing in the hardware/apps, while also finding avenues for partnerships.