Curriculum, Community, and

Collaboration:A Business Case Study Beyond the

ClassroomDr. Cheryl Batdorf

Alison Oskam, MA, MLS

Collaboration

@ACBSPAccredited #ACBSP2015

LibraryStudents

Business

Faculty

Beyond the Management Classroom

• Use the five functions of management

• Reconceptualize the course

• Connect library, life, and community

Practical Experiences for Business Students

• Internships•Simulations•Service Learning•Problem-based Learning

Group Theory Exploration Project Overview

• Research requires background information as well as arguments provided by authorities in the chosen field. This information you gather must be integrated with original thought. 

• The objective of this assignment is for students to develop a deeper understanding of  the functions of management (and their application) as well as put into practice the skills of college level topic development, thesis writing, topic structure, research, integration of source material and documentation of source material.

• A secondary goal is students will become familiar with computer, internet technologies and library database searches as they find sources.

Information Literacy

• Fundamental skill for life long learning

Critical Thinking

• Placing skills in a broader context

Time

• Classroom time constraints for teaching librarian

• Students want instant gratification

Research Perceptions

• Difficult

• Labor-intensive

• Meaningless

Librarian Intervention

• Classroom session on basic information retrieval

• Class visits to library

• Refine search terms

• Defend research choices• Explain topic• Justify choice

Critical thinking in action

Problem-Based Learning

• Challenging scenario

• Student collaboration

• Significant time investment

• Increased enjoyment

• Increased engagement

• Active learning

The Project: Mystery Shopping a Bank

• Local bank with several branches

• Previous attempts

• Commitment to local community (since 1873)

• Sense that data more “real” from students who are customers/potential customers

• Data shared at each branch

• Individual coaching session at branch

Bank and a College

• Ed Martel, SVP Sales, Marketing, Branch Administration and CRA Officer at Jonestown Bank & Trust Co

• Significant insight into our service delivery • 3rd party evaluator of service delivery rather than

internal perspective• JBT's commitment to our communities• Value-driven partnership

Curriculum

• First version

• Revised version

• Future Directions

• Application to college-wide assessment

College-wide information literacy assessment rubric

Project group average score: 2.5

“Opportunity to be involved in a [class] which spanned such a wide spectrum of education.”“In order to continue, local businesses need to keep big ideas in mind.”“Collaboration was indispensable in following a path.”“I found myself better [at] evaluating sources.”“Customers are evaluating the employee whether they realize it or not.”

Student reactions to the project.

Your Presenters

Dr. Cheryl Batdorf, Associate Dean, College of Graduate and Professional Studies, Millersville University

cheryl.batdorf@millersville.edu

717-871-2053

Alison Oskam, MA, MLS

Adjunct Reference and Instruction Librarian

Adjunct Instructor, Foundational Studies

Harrisburg Area Community College

akoskam@hacc.edu

717-270-6328