Compliance Status

Louisiana State University and A&M College is in compliance with this principle.

Narrative

Louisiana State University and A&M College (LSU), either through ownership or through formal arrangements or agreements, provides adequate library collections and services consistent with the degrees offered. The LSU Libraries, along with other learning/information resources, provide students and faculty access and user privileges to collections, resources, and services that are sufficient to support all its educational, research, and public service programs.

LSU Libraries offers students and faculty strong support for educational, research, and public service programs through collections containing over four million volumes [1], microform holdings of 2.2 million, and more than 15,000 linear feet of manuscript collections [2]. Electronic holdings are extensive and growing [3] [4].  It is also a U.S. Regional Depository Library [5] and an official depository for U. S. patents [6], as well as an historical, comprehensive depository for Louisiana state documents.

LSU is part of the Louisiana Online University Information System (LOUIS) [7], which provides support and electronic resources access to university libraries in the state. Online catalogs of 33 institutions’ libraries in Louisiana are accessible online through LOUIS [8]. A selection of periodical databases and full-text journals can also be retrieved through the network [9]. LSU Libraries' subject strengths include Louisiana materials, sugar culture and technology, Southern history, agriculture, petroleum engineering, plant pathology, natural history, and various aspects of aquaculture including crawfish, wetlands research, and marine biology [10].

LSU Libraries is one of 125 institutions belonging to the prestigious Association of Research Libraries (ARL), which includes some of the top academic libraries in the United States and Canada [11]. LSU Libraries is also a member of the Association of Southeastern Research Libraries (ASERL) [12], LYRASIS (the merger of PALINET, SOLINET, and other library consortia) [13], and the Louisiana Academic Library Information Network Consortium (LALINC) [14].

Sufficient and Effective Support

Middleton Library [15] is the main library, and in addition to the main collection, with its associated circulation point, also houses three distinct collections and service points: Music Resources, Education Resources, and Government Documents [16] [17] [18]. Special Collections resides in the adjacent Hill Memorial Library [19]. The Cartographic Information Center [20], the Veterinary Medicine Library [21], the Louisiana Transportation Research Center Library, and the Center for Energy Studies Library, all on campus, are administratively separate from the LSU Libraries. Additionally, the Law Center supports a Law Library [22] located on the Baton Rouge campus. These collections and resources are consistent with the degrees offered by the university and support the educational, research, and public service programs. For more detail about sufficient collections and about LSU Libraries’ effectiveness in supporting the educational, research, and public service mission, see Comprehensive Standards 3.3.1.3, 3.3.1.4, and 3.3.1.5.

LSU Libraries assess services through statistical reports and surveys.  In fall 2006, the LSU Libraries Education Resources Center conducted two separate surveys (one faculty; one student) within the College of Education to evaluate service and materials [23]. In response to the results, a fact sheet for faculty was prepared and inserted in packets that were distributed at fall faculty meetings for the departments in the College of Education.  A fact sheet for students was also prepared and used in conjunction with a bulletin board display within Peabody Hall. 

In 2005, the distance education (DE) librarian also conducted a distance education survey of graduate students in the School of Library and Information Science. There were 143 DE students that semester; 84 responded to the survey.  Although some were in more than one DE class, the system allowed them to complete the survey only once.  Most responses to questions about LSU Libraries’ quality and ease of use were ranked either four or five (with five being the highest possible rank) [24].  In response to the survey, the Web page and services were addressed and improved. 

In spring 2012 the Circulation Department of Middleton Library did a survey of late-night (after 10 pm) users. The results indicated that late-night patrons enjoyed the quiet of the library and the ability to locate a space to study and expressed a desire that library hours be extended either past midnight or to 24 hours.

An additional user satisfaction survey was conducted in the fall semester of 2012 [25]. Out of 950 surveys sent to users, 541 were returned completed for a 57% response rate. A majority of the respondents indicated that they come into the libraries daily or two to three times a week. Students recognized access to full-text databases as important to their coursework and recognized the libraries' contribution to their being able to (a) find information for assignments, (b) complete coursework, (c) work on group projects, and (d) make efficient use of time. Overall, students indicated that they are “very” satisfied with the libraries (second to highest rating) or “extremely” satisfied (highest rating). Actionable items from the late-night survey and user-satisfaction survey were tabled due to budgetary constraints.

Support for Student and Faculty Access and Use

Middleton Library is conveniently located in the central part of the LSU campus [26], in close proximity to the departmental offices of most academic disciplines. Almost all printed materials in the library are cataloged using the Library of Congress classification system [27] and housed in the Reference Department; on four floors of stacks; in the Current Periodicals Room; or in Compact Shelving, depending on frequency of use. Government documents are classed according to the Superintendent of Documents (SuDoc) system, while the United Nations documents are classed in their own format. The last two categories are housed in Documents/ Microforms in the basement of Middleton. Special Collections materials are located in Hill Memorial Library, adjacent to Middleton, in closed stacks and cataloged primarily using the Library of Congress classification system [28].

Middleton Library is open 96 hours a week [29] during regular semester hours, with hours being extended to 24/7 during finals week.  Special Collections in Hill Memorial Library is open 47 hours per week. The libraries’ electronic resources are available 24 hours a day. The Online Catalog is Web-based and provides remote search capability of the entire collection from any computer with an Internet connection [30]. In addition, almost all of the electronic resources are accessible to all faculty, staff, and students from off-campus via remote authentication. The LOUISiana Digital Library contains digital surrogates of selected materials held in Special Collections, which are available 24 hours a day.

On-site assistance is offered through Reference Services, other service points, and liaisons [31]. Off-site assistance is available by telephone, e-mail, text messaging, and a live chat service available during defined periods [32]. LSU Libraries also fully supports LSU’s Distance Education and LSU Online programs [33].

The liaison/subject specialist for a given discipline is usually available on-call and always by appointment. This individual provides subject-specific reference services for students who request assistance with difficult research projects and is also available to assist faculty with their research. The liaison maintains communication throughout the year with faculty, staff, and students regarding library services and updates [34].

There are electronic classrooms in Middleton Library that may be scheduled by any LSU faculty member for sessions requiring hands-on computer instruction [35]. Instruction may be provided by library liaisons or the instructor of record. Computer labs are also available on the first and second floors of Middleton for patron use [36].

The book loan period for faculty and staff is generally one semester. Graduate students may borrow books up to 90 days. Current journals (unbound) may be borrowed for 4 hours by faculty and graduate students. Bound journals may be borrowed by faculty, staff, and all students for seven days. Most library materials may be renewed online [37]. Details on circulation policies are available online [38].

Faculty and instructors are encouraged to place course materials on reserve for their classes – always, of course, in compliance with copyright policies [39].

Faculty and graduate study carrels are also available through Circulation [40]. Group study rooms for students are available on a first-come-first-served basis [41].

Collections and Resources

LSU Libraries works hard to ensure adequate library collections and services for all of the academic programs it supports. The ARL Statistics 2010-2011 describe the collections, expenditures, personnel, and service of LSU Libraries (for ARL purposes, including the Veterinary Medicine Library and the Law Center Library) and peer institution libraries. According to the Association of Research Libraries’ 2010-2011 statistics, LSU Libraries ranks 46^th (out of 115) in total volumes held, with 4,275,073; ranks 25^th (out of 115) in volumes added with 156,755; ranks third (out of 115) in current serials with 168,925, and ranks 24^th (out of 73) in government documents with 570,159 [42]. [Note: Due to the complexities of determining what constitutes a current serial title, the ARL statistics for that figure are grossly inaccurate and unreliable. LSU is ranked 3^rd among ARL libraries with a reported 168,925 current serial titles, but that ranking reflects the inclusion of many serials titles that are part of aggregator databases, which sometimes include current issues and sometimes do not.  As other libraries struggle with the same issues of determining the status of serial titles, this statistic, as reported by all libraries, is suspect.] That having been said, the access that LSU Libraries provides to journal content is very good.

Subject specialist librarians or departmental liaisons are assigned to their relevant academic programs and work directly with the faculty and students in these programs to ascertain their information needs for teaching and research and to provide bibliographic instruction and specialized research assistance. Most requests from faculty and graduate students for monograph purchases are filled, provided they comply with LSU Libraries policies (e.g., generally textbooks are excluded) [43]. Recommendations for serials titles and databases must be considered within the broader scope of needs and recommendations across a wide array of disciplines in addition to funding available.  New serials and subscription databases are the most difficult items to add because they require ongoing, long-term funds, money that is difficult to come by because of the nature of LSU’s funding. When considering whether or not to add a new item, library administrators take into account a number of factors, including available money; history of need; requests; research being done in that area; relative degree of importance to the faculty who will be using the resource; number of faculty who will use the resource; other means by which the libraries are able to provide access, e.g., currently subscribed aggregator databases, ILB, etc. If the item under consideration is a journal, ILB requests may be considered, but this is not necessarily a good indication of use, because faculty frequently use “underground” means of obtaining articles, e.g., from colleagues at other institutions. Input from all subject specialists is sought and evaluated by the Collection Development team, who work closely with the specialists to acquire prioritized items as they are made known. Final decisions are made by the head of Collection Development and the Collection Development coordinator.

Books: Approval Plans 

In the past, many of the books added to the LSU Libraries collection were received automatically as the result of a carefully established approval profile with the unit’s main book vendor, Yankee Book Peddler. The Library of Congress Classification Schedule was analyzed to establish a profile that would assure that books in appropriate subject areas were automatically shipped to the library immediately upon publication.  The profile was reviewed on an ongoing basis and changes made as needed. A lump allocation was made each year to cover the approval plans, based on available funds. For reasons discussed below, automatic purchases and shipments based on these plans have stopped, with the exception of a couple of smaller components that continue today: (1) the approval plan for Louisiana Studies and Louisiana Authors, with separate specifications for Hill Memorial Library’s Special Collections and for Middleton Library, and (2) the Children’s Awards Book Plan for Education Resources in Middleton Library.

E-book Demand-driven Acquisition Plan (e-DDA)

With ever tightening financial restraints in recent years, the need for new, more efficient ways to purchase books became apparent. The enormous growth of e-book publications has allowed for new business models to develop and is enabling us now to purchase at point of need through what is called “demand-driven acquisition,” as opposed to purchasing in advance of projected need as in the older print model approval plan.

Through this new e-DDA program, LSU Libraries loads into its Online Catalog new e-book records from its vendor based on pre-determined criteria, similar to the print approval plan. Once the records are loaded, patrons are able to discover this content in the course of their regular searching and obtain immediate full-text access, wherever they are. Certain uses of these books will trigger either a short-term loan or a purchase, depending on the number of times the item has been triggered [44].

By repurposing and adapting our approval plan to the new e-DDA model, we are now able to buy or “borrow” only books that are needed, when they are needed, without having to buy any that are not used. This has greatly reduced our book expenditures, while at the same time increasing the number of titles to which we can provide immediate full-text access.

Books: Selector Orders

In addition to our e-Demand-driven Acquisition plan, library liaisons for the various departments and subject areas will further select, as appropriate, from book slips sent by the libraries’ book vendor of new books meeting the appropriate approval plan requirements, as well as from book reviews, publisher catalogs, and faculty requests [45].

Serials

Serials expenses, including database costs, represent by far the bulk of the libraries’ expenditures. Because of the nature of these costs, e.g., recurring costs subject to inflation and for which a reliable, ongoing source of funds must be available, serials expenses are accounted for first in each new budget year. Approximately every five years, LSU Libraries undertakes a survey [46] [47] [48] [49] of the faculty to update its information regarding essential and non-essential journal needs. The faculty input so gathered is taken into account as budgets expand or decrease, allowing the libraries to realign funds as needed. In spring 2009, new data was obtained from the faculty in this manner.

Online Resources

Online resources include traditional subject-based electronic Abstracts & Indexes, Internet subject guides developed by liaisons, current electronic journals, electronic journal backfiles, full-text aggregator databases, specialty full-text databases, and e-books. Additional aggregate databases germane to a broad array of LSU’s programs and consistent with the degrees offered are available through the LSU Libraries’ participation in the LOUIS consortium. Many outstanding Internet sites are now included in the Online Catalog.  Subject searches of the catalog are especially likely to include these resources along with the more traditional materials. See LSU Libraries’ Databases page for a complete list of online resources [50].

Document Delivery: Books and Articles 

If books and journals are not available in the print collection or electronically, many can be provided via document delivery through Ingenta [51], which allows for unmediated, subsidized ordering of articles from periodicals not owned by LSU by faculty, research staff, and graduate students for research or instructional use. Materials not available through Ingenta can be requested through Interlibrary Borrowing [52] via an online ordering and tracking system called Illiad, accessible 24 hours a day.

The Ingenta Library Gateway is a searchable database of more than 19 million citations from over 29,000 journals. Gateway is a powerful, easy to use service offered by LSU Libraries as a means of expanding access to current, scholarly research [53]. Electronic and fax document delivery is available for millions of articles, and most are delivered within 24 to 48 hours during the normal business week. Some electronic articles and chapters of books are available in the original publisher pdf version for downloading and/or viewing immediately [54]. Excellent help screens provide detailed information on how to use the Ingenta service effectively.

The interlibrary borrowing and lending of materials is a courtesy service between libraries. LSU Libraries’ Interlibrary Borrowing Department (ILB) extends access to information through this resource sharing. The libraries assist University faculty, staff, and students in meeting their research needs by obtaining from other libraries and commercial document suppliers items not owned locally [55].

Fees are often charged for ILB transactions by lending libraries and commercial document suppliers. ILB fees will be assumed by the library excepting that portion of a borrowing/copyright fee for a single request that exceeds $50, rush order fees, or fees resulting from the late return, loss, or mutilation of borrowed materials by the patron.

LALINC

In order to access materials not owned by LSU but owned by other academic libraries in Louisiana, faculty and graduate students can apply for a Louisiana Academic Library Information Network Consortium (LALINC) library card that will permit them to have limited circulation privileges at other LALINC member institutions [56].  Upon confirmation of eligibility, LSU Libraries Circulation staff will issue the card, which can be renewed on a semester or yearly basis. The card member will then present the card at the library of the member institution in order to check out books. At LSU, when a LALINC member first presents the card that has been issued from a member institution, (s)he is registered as a patron in our database and issued a temporary card.

Distance Education and LSU Online

The LSU Libraries unit is committed to providing Distance Education (DE) students with library services comparable to those at the main campus [57]. This is accomplished largely through

• access to electronic books and journals [58],
• a delivery service for books and journals owned by the libraries (LSU materials) [59],
• a delivery service for full-text articles from publications not owned by the libraries (Ingenta) [60],
• reciprocal borrowing agreements with many other academic libraries in the state [61],
• a Website (http://www.lib.lsu.edu/instruction/distance/index.html),
• a 1-800 number for reference services [62], and
• a DE librarian via email for individual assistance and problem-solving.

The LSU Libraries offer a variety of services and information resources for both faculty and students participating in the LSU Online program [63]. LSU Online students are eligible for many of the same services available to the distance education students. A library liaison for each course offered through LSU Online is available to assist faculty and students with their research and information needs. The LSU Libraries also offer an online learning coordinator to answer questions.

Music Resources

Housed within Middleton Library, Music Resources [64] primarily supports the LSU School of Music, which is part of the College of Music and Dramatic Arts.  Music Resources houses music scores, books on music, music journals, and audio-visual materials used in music. Music Resources is open 78 hours a week, seven days per week during the fall and winter semesters. The online catalog and a variety of electronic resources can be accessed 24 hours per day via the Internet.  A public service desk is continuously staffed during operating hours. All staff members, including student assistants, are trained in locating materials, answering informational questions, and accessing electronic information. The librarian provides individualized instructional sessions and specialized classroom instruction to graduate and undergraduate students at the request of students or professors. Reference service is also provided by telephone and e-mail.

Education Resources

Also housed in Middleton Library, Education Resources [65] primarily supports the teacher education curriculum of the School of Education, particularly the methods and practicum courses, but also serves the needs of state educators [66]. Education Resources houses children's literature, Louisiana approved textbooks, professional resources, audio-visual materials, and reference books pertaining to these collections [17]. It provides exposure to selective materials representing a variety of teaching concepts and methods which help students meet the requirements of education degrees and credentials [67]. It presents a variety of exhibitions which focus on department resources as well as issues and advocacy.

Education Resources is open seven days a week for a total of 77 hours. The service desk is staffed during all hours that the department is open. Student assistants perform basic circulation functions and answer simple reference questions.  The library paraprofessional and librarian handle in-depth reference questions, conduct tours, make presentations, provide both individual and group research assistance, and help teach classes.   In addition, e-mail and telephone assistance is available. Contact information is provided on the Education Resources Web page, on business cards available at the service desk, through the Ask a Librarian service, and by e-mail updates sent to faculty.

Government Documents

Because the LSU Libraries unit is a regional library participating in the United States Federal Depository Library Program (FDLP), the mission of the Government Documents Department [18] is to provide free access to government information for LSU affiliated students, faculty, and staff, as well as for all members of the local community surrounding LSU, and even through electronic publications and interlibrary loan for anyone in the United States who cannot access certain government materials in their local areas.

Government Documents includes all of the FDLP collection [68] that, as of June 2012, is made up of 592,000 cataloged volumes and at least that many uncataloged volumes.  In addition, many federal agency publications that are not part of the FDLP are sent directly to LSU Libraries from those agencies.  The collection dates back to the late 18th century, offering scholars and other researchers access to United States government information that is often rare and difficult to find. 

Special Collections

Housed in historic Hill Memorial Library, the LSU Libraries Special Collections [19] collects, preserves, provides discovery and access to, and promotes and instructs in the use of a wealth of research materials in fields ranging from the humanities and social sciences to the natural sciences, agriculture, coastal studies, the fine arts, and design. These resources are organized as follows:  the Louisiana and Lower Mississippi Valley Collections’ University Archives, the Rare Book Collection, the E. A. McIlhenny Natural History Rare Book Collection, the Clarence John Laughlin Collection, numerous smaller named book collections, and the T. Harry Williams Center for Oral History [69] [70] [71] [72]. The division also manages and provides active digitization and microfilming, exhibition, and public service/reference and instruction programs [73] [74] [75] [76].

Information about Special Collections’ holdings is included in the LSU Libraries online catalog.  These records are supplemented with more detailed descriptions of manuscript and archival holdings, available at Louisiana and Lower Mississippi Valley Collections manuscript holdings [77] and in University Archives record groups [78], as well as topical subject guides [79].   Guides on selected topics represented in its published holdings are also available [80]. In addition, selected content has been digitized and is available online through LSU’s collections [81] in the LOUISiana Digital Library [82], a free, online library that presents over 144,000 digital items from Louisiana archives, libraries, and museums.  Special Collections is also responsible for the Louisiana Newspaper Project, a public service program, microfilming for posterity all the parish newspapers of record that are not commercially filmed [83]. Special Collections’ growing online exhibition offerings provide another venue through which users may access selected holdings online.  Finally, the division maintains a blog [84] to promote events, new acquisitions, exhibitions, and notable finds in the collections.

Services and collections are open to faculty, staff, graduate students, and undergraduate students both from LSU and other institutions; independent researchers; and the general public six days a week, up to 47 hours [85]. Special Collections supports use of its collections by providing in-person, phone, or correspondence reference service, making materials available to remote users through reproduction services, online digital content, interlibrary loan, and remote use, and offering and conducting bibliographic instruction and orientation sessions for classes and groups [86].

Special Collections is a closed-stacks library, which means that, with assistance as needed from libraries faculty and staff, library users identify what materials they want to see, submit a request for the items, and then access them in the reading room of Hill Memorial Library [87].

Cartographic Information Center

The LSU Cartographic Information Center (CIC) [88] is part of the Department of Geography & Anthropology under the College of Humanities & Social Sciences. The CIC’s mission is to collect, preserve, and provide access to geospatial information resources in support of the teaching, research, and service activities of the Department of Geography & Anthropology, the entire LSU community, and the general public. The CIC is one of LSU’s public service programs [89].

The material in the Cartographic Information Center consists of maps, charts, aerial photographs, globes, atlases, journals, monographs, field photographs, and slides, as well as unique research collections produced by the department’s faculty.  In addition, the CIC houses the cartographic material for the Government Printing Office Regional Depository in the LSU Libraries under a selective housing agreement [90].

Patrons using the collection include the faculty and students in the Departments of Geography & Anthropology, Geology and Geophysics, and the Coastal Studies Institute.  Beyond the geosciences, the center serves many patrons from the College of Art & Design, the School of Renewable Natural Resources, and the greater LSU community, as well as businesses, Louisiana state agencies, and the general public.

The CIC is located in room 313 Howe-Russell-Kniffen Geoscience Complex and is open for public service 40 hours a week, Monday through Friday [91]. In addition to walk-in patrons, the CIC provides virtual reference service via e-mail, fax, and phone to researchers from around the United States and overseas [92].

Veterinary Medicine Library

The mission of the Veterinary Medicine Library is to proactively serve the LSU School of Veterinary Medicine’s teaching and research programs [21]. As the largest biomedical library in the greater Baton Rouge area, it also serves the LSU and Baton Rouge communities. The library is open 87 hours, seven days a week during the semester.

The collection is composed of primarily veterinary medicine materials, with additional emphasis on biomedicine, microbiology, comparative medicine, animal science, and zoonotic diseases.

The Veterinary Medicine Library also curates the International Exhibition on Animals in Art.  The library receives between 500 and 600 submissions worldwide for inclusion in this 75-piece juried show, now in its 26th year [93].

Louisiana Transportation Research Center Library

The Louisiana Transportation Research Center (LTRC) Library is sponsored jointly by the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development and LSU.  LSU students, staff, and faculty, as well as LA DOTD staff, may check out materials for up to four weeks. The LTRC Library is open 47.5 hours, five days a week, to the Baton Rouge and LSU communities, staff of LA DOTD, and other agencies interested in transportation research [94]. The LTRC houses standards relevant to transportation construction and research and research publications from other state DOTs and the Federal Highway Administration.

Center for Energy Studies Library

The Center for Energy Studies Library, located in the rotunda of the Energy, Coast & Environment Building, provides reference service related to energy research and policy to the academic community, government agencies, non-profit organizations, business and industry, and the general public.

The collection focuses on energy and the environment with emphasis on Louisiana energy information and data. The library is open during LSU business hours Monday through Friday. The book collection circulates; however, select reference materials must be used in the library without photocopying.

The library is part of the Energy Information and Data Division of the Center for Energy Studies [95].

The Law Library

The Law Library [96], located in the Paul M. Hebert Law Center Building, is one of the largest academic law libraries in the United States. It maintains an extensive collection of Anglo-American, foreign, international, and comparative legal materials in both digital and print formats. Law students, Law Center faculty, university faculty, and LSU graduate students only are permitted to check out the limited proportion of law materials that circulate. Undergraduate students may visit the library for the purpose of using library materials, though undergraduate access is restricted during law school exam periods.

Other Learning/Information Resources

The LSU Center for Academic Success (CAS) provides free walk-in assistance with homework, test preparation, and tutoring in biology, chemistry, mathematics, physics, and foreign languages through the Shell Tutorial Center housed in Middleton Library [97].  Another tutoring center for physics is available in Nicholson Hall, and an additional tutoring group, Genesis Tutoring, sponsored by the Office of Multicultural Affairs, meets in the evenings in the LSU Union for math, science, and foreign languages.  The CAS also offers online tutoring, online workshops and learning videos, private tutoring, and weekly supplemental instruction sessions. 

LSU faculty and students can receive multi-media, writing, and communication-based support through one of the five LSU Communication across the Curriculum’s (CxC) studios located across campus: Studio 151, Art + Design Studio, Business Studio, Engineering Studio, and Music & Dramatic Arts Studio [98]. The CxC focuses on enhancing learning experiences for students and improving their written, spoken, visual presentation, and technological communication skills within the disciplines. Each studio provides a host of basic services, such as audio/visual presentation support, as well as specialized services germane to their disciplines. CxC studios are open to all LSU faculty and students, and all CxC services are free. For a comprehensive listing of all of LSU’s academic support laboratories, as well as narrative on other learning/information resources consistent with degrees offered, see Comprehensive Standard 3.4.9.

LSU Information Technology Services (ITS) provides 24/7 online training to students, faculty, and staff through two different platforms [99]. The Microsoft IT Academy is an online training resource with over 300 Microsoft e-learning courses. This is a free resource for preparing for Microsoft certification exams. Lynda Campus offers over 1,000 video-based online courses in a variety of software packages.  Software titles include Adobe Creative Suite, Connect, Flash, InDesign, Microsoft Office, Windows, and Exchange, and numerous Apple software titles.  There are courses in AutoCAD, Autodesk, Google products, and many courses on using social media.

Additional training and support for LSU faculty can be found through the Faculty Technology Center (FTC) located in Middleton Library [100].  The FTC provides training on a wide variety of technologies and software applications that can be used to enhance teaching, learning, and research at LSU. The FTC also provides assistance and support for Moodle 2. Some sessions of FTC training are regularly scheduled, while others are available by request. The services provided by the FTC are free.

There are four LSU public access computer labs on campus running over 350 Windows and Mac computers.  All have internet access, email capabilities, and various other software packages.  Printers and scanners are available for use in the labs. The LSU Virtual Lab, provided by ITS, allows students the ability to log into a virtual environment to gain access to the software available in the public access computer labs [101].

LSU “Gear2Geaux” allows for students to check out mobile computing devices at Middleton Library and in Patrick F. Taylor Hall [102].  The inventory includes Dell D630 laptops, Apple Macbooks, Apple iPads, student clickers, digital cameras, digital camcorders, tripods, and power cords. For more information about the other learning/information resources and technology, see Comprehensive Standard 3.4.12.