Participation Without Pressure: Two Case Studies in Passive Library Engagement
Department
University Libraries
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
7-16-2026
Embargo Period
8-21-2026
Abstract
This paper examines low-tech, high-visibility passive outreach as a pragmatic response to a central tension in STEM library engagement: the desire for richer insight into students’ library needs and preferences versus the reality that higher-effort or socially exposed outreach methods can suppress participation. Following a brief literature review about academic library outreach, STEM outreach, and passive engagement or micro-assessment strategies, we present two complementary case studies. The first examines #ProjectWhiteboard, a portable whiteboard prompt initiative implemented at the Lane Library on Georgia Southern University’s Armstrong campus, documenting how a simple feedback mechanism evolved into a sustained community-building fixture. The second case study examines the Johnson Library Sticker Survey Project on the Kennesaw State University’s STEM (Marietta) campus, which adapts prompt-based engagement into a sticker “micro-survey” format designed to reduce effort further and broaden participation. Together, these cases demonstrate how pairing an established engagement method with a less-explored micro-survey variant offers practice-informed evidence for sustainable, assessment-minded outreach approaches in STEM-focused library contexts.
Journal Title
The Journal of Creative Library Practice
Journal ISSN
2330-4227
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
n/a