Scott Walter is University Librarian, University Copyright Officer, and Professor in the Ames Library at Illinois Wesleyan University. A library leader with almost 20 years of experience in public and private college and university libraries, Dr. Walter has established powerful partnerships among academic libraries, student success programs, information technology initiatives, and classroom and community partners. Prior to coming to Illinois Wesleyan, Dr. Walter was University Librarian at DePaul University (2012-18), Associate University Librarian for Services and Associate Dean of Libraries at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (2006-12), and Assistant Dean of Libraries for Information and Instructional Services at the University of Kansas (2004-06). Dr. Walter received his M.S. in History and Philosophy of Education and his MLS from Indiana University Bloomington and his PhD in Higher Education Administration from Washington State University.
A major goal of the academic library is to support student learning, and recent research has revealed promising correlations between libraries and student success. However, data difficulties may stymie this research unless librarians engage in next generation digital learning environments and learning analytics initiatives on their campuses.
This research bulletin describes how a group of individuals at the University of Kansas worked to design and implement a collaborative learning environment for students, based on theoretical and empirical research along with basic common sense.