By Jessica Garcete, Communications Intern
The University of Florida Libraries’ Information Literacy Scholars Program started small. It was meant to be a simple way to give Innovation Academy students something to do during the fall semester.
But the need behind it was bigger than a simple tour.
Innovation Academy students often spend the fall taking online classes or living in Gainesville without the usual rhythm of campus life. Many are still in town, but disconnected from the day-to-day community other students find through lectures, clubs and routines.
“It’s very lonely to be off campus all fall, but still mostly living in Gainesville,” said Hannah Whitaker, UF Libraries’ women’s and gender studies librarian. “They’re trying to find people and find things to do.”
What started as casual conversations about offering library tours soon became something bigger. This spring, the librarians and staff members behind the effort were recognized with the University of Florida Superior Accomplishment Award, honoring their work building the Information Literacy Scholars Program into a multiweek experience centered on critical thinking, communication and student connection.
The eight-week program brings together a small cohort of Innovation Academy students for workshops and discussions led by librarians across UF Libraries. Students explore topics such as media literacy, artificial intelligence, accessibility and research methods, then apply what they learn through a final project. For the librarians who built it, the program’s foundation is the same lesson they hope students leave with: meaningful learning happens through collaboration.
Alex Avelino: Building something bigger than a tour
For Alex Avelino, UF Libraries’ director of marketing and communications, the program began with a straightforward goal. Innovation Academy staff wanted more ways to support their students in the fall, and the Libraries wanted to help.
“It was like me and Lucy from Innovation Academy,” Avelino said. “We’re just looking for anything to provide for Innovation Academy students.”
The idea was initially small. It was meant to introduce students to library spaces and resources, and maybe help them feel more connected to campus. But once the conversation expanded to include more library faculty and staff, the brainstorming took off.
April Hines: Turning an idea into a program
April Hines, UF Libraries’ journalism and mass communications librarian, remembers when the plan was still modest.
“And remember it was just going to be a tour of the libraries at first,” Hines said. “It was going to be something really simple.”
That quickly changed. Hines said she and student success librarian Jasmine Simmons began thinking about how the experience could become more structured, more interactive and more lasting.
“Jasmine and I were like, ‘Well, what if we did like a program,’” Hines said. “Maybe we could have workshops, and maybe they build their skills each week, and at the end they have a product.”
The more the group met, the clearer the opportunity became.
“Once you all got together and started brainstorming,” Hines said, “we were like, ‘Wait, there’s a real opportunity here to do something more meaningful than a tour of the library.’”
Hines said the program’s best moments often come during conversations about misinformation, media ethics and responsibility.
“I learned that I really enjoy having conversations with students about ethical issues in the information landscape,” Hines said. “They are so hungry for those kinds of conversations.”
Hannah Whitaker: Filling a gap for Innovation Academy students
Whitaker said the collaboration with Innovation Academy was intentional. The fall semester can feel disconnected for students who are not in traditional in-person classes, even if they are still living in Gainesville.
“We were kind of trying to fill that gap,” Whitaker said.
Whitaker also said the cohort is intentionally open to any Innovation Academy student, regardless of major. That variety is part of what makes the program work.
“The list of majors that the students were is very broad and cool,” she said.
Lisa Campbell: Teaching beyond the “one-shot”
For Lisa Campbell, UF Libraries’ learning and engagement librarian, the program created something librarians rarely get: time.
In many courses, librarians visit once to cover research basics in a single class session. Campbell said those sessions, often called “one-shots,” are limiting.
“So cramming as much info as you can in a 50-minute, we call them one-shots, is not the most effective way to teach information literacy,” Campbell said.
The Scholars Program gave librarians the chance to slow down and build each lesson in a way that allowed students to explore topics they cared about.
“This allowed us the space to really build out each lesson and actually have time for them to think of their own topics and work on them,” Campbell said. “It was really exciting that we got to do something that was almost like the dream, to teach for six weeks on this topic.”
Campbell said the program reflects why she cares so much about information literacy in the first place.
“I’m deeply motivated by the opportunity to design accessible learning experiences that help students build strong, lifelong skills for finding, evaluating and using information with confidence,” she said.
Matthew Daley: Bringing accessibility into the conversation
Matthew Daley, a web designer in UF Libraries’ web unit, helped bring accessibility and design into the curriculum, adding a layer that went beyond research and source evaluation.
Campbell said Daley’s involvement gave students practical skills tied to communication and presentation.
“So it’s information literacy, plus a little bit of those practical presentation skills, of creating and delivering the presentation,” Campbell said.
Daley said he appreciated the chance to collaborate with librarians whose work is different from his own.
“The Libraries had assembled a superteam of knowledge workers in the information literacy space,” Daley said. “And I feel very fortunate that I was asked to be involved.”
Patty Takacs: A program built for the moment
Patty Takacs, UF Libraries’ political science librarian, said the program’s mission is especially important in a world where students are constantly sorting through news, social media and online content.
“With the amount of information students encounter every day, learning how to evaluate sources and think critically is incredibly important,” Takacs said.
For Takacs, the program is a reminder that librarians are not just guiding students to resources. They are helping students learn how to make sense of what they read, watch and share.
Jasmine Simmons: Seeing the impact at the finish line
Jasmine Simmons, the student success librarian, said the final projects are where the program’s purpose comes into focus. Students not only demonstrate what they learned, but also show a confidence that was not always there at the start.
“By the time they present their final projects, you can clearly see their passion,” Simmons said. “There’s also a strong sense of community and fellowship that develops among the students.”
Recognition for work that often stays behind the scenes
For the librarians and staff members who built the program, the Superior Accomplishment Award carried extra weight. Much of their work is often invisible to the broader campus, even when it directly supports student learning.
“I think it’s especially exciting for us as library staff to win an award,” Campbell said. “We don’t usually win external awards. A lot of our work is hidden or behind the scenes.”
The award recognized the success of the Information Literacy Scholars Program, but it also highlighted the larger shift happening within UF Libraries. Librarians are increasingly taking on visible roles as educators, mentors and collaborators across campus.
For the team behind the program, the recognition is meaningful because it reflects what they believe the program has done from the beginning. It created a space where students could build skills, ask better questions and find community. It also created a model for what can happen when campus partners work together toward the same goal.