Student Libraries Advisory Board (SLAB) Spring 2025
by Seyvion Scott, Student Engagement Librarian
The Student Libraries Advisory Board (SLAB) at the Syracuse University (SU) Libraries is a small cohort of undergraduate and graduate students representing a variety of schools and colleges from across campus who participate in user experience (UX) research and design projects and serve as representatives of the user experience at SU Libraries.
What is user experience or UX? User experience is a broad concept that covers a user’s feelings, attitudes and behaviors while using systems, services or spaces. UX research refers to the process of collecting information about the needs and perceptions of the users. The Student Library Advisory Board’s mission is to provide members with a platform to voice their ideas, needs and feedback to improve the libraries’ resources, spaces and programming using ethnographic and user experience (UX) methodologies.
Why is SLAB important? UX research and design is all about tailoring the libraries’ services to the needs, behaviors and experiences of our users, and it’s also about placing our users firmly at the center of everything we do. SLAB is important to SU Libraries because it informs library practitioners on what our users are experiencing. For academic libraries to be user-focused and user-centered in today’s digital society, UX research ensures that we are giving patrons what they need and want, and not simply what we assume they need. The key to a great user experience in academic libraries is investing in more facetime with library users, which is exactly what SLAB accomplishes.
The SLAB is structured by recruiting interested students to apply to the SLAB application, followed by a member selection process, signing an acceptance letter that acknowledges members’ responsibilities, and their informed consent in participating in user research activities. After members have been selected, members are provided with meeting dates and an overview of the UX research activity. SLAB members meet once a month for a semester, have UX homework in-between meetings and must be prepared to discuss their findings at the SLAB meetings. As the facilitator and organizer of SLAB, my role is crucial. I plan the UX research activity, lead the SLAB meetings, interpret and analyze the data and serve as the point of contact between SLAB and library stakeholders.
For the first semester of SLAB this past Spring 2025, members participated in an ethnographic, qualitative UX research method known as a Diary Study. Qualitative research is descriptive data and provides information on users’ thoughts, beliefs, experiences and behaviors. Ethnography literally means writing culture or gathering detailed descriptions of everyday behaviors. The SLAB Diary Study asked members to keep a monthly diary entry of their library and information-gathering activities throughout the semester. Diary entry prompts focused on specific themes, services and resources in the libraries. Students had to complete four diary entries in total. For the month of January, their diary entries focused on initial impressions of Bird Library. February’s diary entries focused on resources and technology. March’s diary entries focused on library staff and service desks. April’s diary entries reflected on the impact SLAB had on the libraries.
One inspirational quote from a SLAB graduate student on their experience participating in SLAB during the spring 2025 semester wrote: “Among the most memorable aspects of being a SLAB member were the experiences of sharing and reflecting. Every monthly meeting became a reflective space, where we weren’t simply commenting on library services, but genuinely contributing to their transformation. We brought our lived experiences to the table – what we appreciated, what we wished for, and what we imagined could be improved. That act of reflective dialogue promoted a unique sense of community. I didn’t feel like just another student giving feedback – I felt like a collaborator, a co-creator, and a member of a campus community that truly cares. The culture of mutual respect and open listening was empowering and reinforcing my own sense of belonging.”
The fall 2025 cohort of SLAB is finalized and ready for another great semester at SU Libraries. Cheers to another exciting cohort of SLAB in the fall of 2025.