Hi, Jeanette,
My library also has a semiannual student appreciation party, and other ways to appreciating students at staff events.  In the fall there is a party with cookies and juice that is sort of a "welcome back" party for the students.   At the library-wide holiday smorgasbord in December, supervisors provide the names of their students who are graduating in December, and these are printed on large cards and posted around the staff lounge where the party takes place.  In the spring, there is another student appreciation party, and the names of the students graduating in May are likewise posted around the room.

The various events are part of the overall planning done by Library Staff Association (LSA) officers and representatives.  There are other staff events and parties as well, planned by LSA, and students are encouraged to attend these events as well.  The dues for joining LSA ($5.00 for staff, $2.00 for students) are used to fund the events, although a lot of the food is provided by staff who voluntarily bring things when invited to do so.  One of the first events for everyone in the fall is an ice cream social, where people pay dues and sign up for the various committees that will be handling the activities throughout the year.  As people have become busier, there has been some difficulty in getting as many volunteers as in the past, and sometimes this creates an extra burden for the LSA officers who then need to find more help or cancel events.  The student appreciation events are not too time-consuming and are well-supported by volunteers.

Lori Osmus Kappmeyer
Head, Cataloging & Metadata Department
Iowa State University Library
Ames, IA  50011

>>> "Skwor, Jeanette" <skworj@UWGB.EDU> 11/12/2007 3:31 PM >>>
Not necessarily serials, but I'd like some input - Cofrin Library has hosted, for years, a party in December for our student workers.  It used to be called a Christmas party, then a Holiday party, now we refer to it as an appreciation party.  Years ago, professional and classified staff made and brought in a full, hot meal replete with goodies.  That metamorphisized into less fuss - desserts, or a cold meal, or we have a committee that makes a few things (sloppy joes, maybe a salad) and we buy chips etc; everyone else brings desserts.  The past couple of years the staff has brought cookies, and in addition to serving them, we give the students baggies and give them each a bag to take home.  And actually, now we do it twice a year - at the end of each semester.

It's difficult to find the time and the volunteers to do it, and we're looking for input from other libraries.  What, if anything, do you do for your student workers?  And who does it, and where does the money come from?

Thanks in advance for all responses -

Jeanette L. Skwor
Serials Dept., Cofrin Library
University of WI-Green Bay
2420 Nicolet Drive
Green Bay, WI  54311-7003

"Libraries will get you through times of no money better than money will get you through times of no libraries."
                              Anne Herbert, The Whole Earth Catalog