Libraries in the time of COVID-19

Libraries across America are caring for their patrons in so many ways. We are still very much a part of teaching, learning, scholarship and service during the COVID-19 pandemic, but we are just doing it remotely. Bentley librarians are providing research instruction to classes through Zoom, answering reference questions via chat, email and text services, and having virtual meetings with students and faculty. Staff are scanning book chapters and articles to put in Blackboard course sites, purchasing streaming films, and continuing to order journal articles through interlibrary loan. Our technical services department staff continue to catalog and process electronic books, communicate with vendors, pay invoices, and order print materials. We are doing what libraries have always done in times of crisis … adapting.

Bentley library staff are here to support you and continue to provide you with the best service. As Ramiro Salazar, president of the Public Library Association said, “We cannot create a sense of normalcy for [library users], but [libraries] can use this new reality to offer something different.” Bentley Library is proud to be doing just that.