Handley Regional Library System and a Design Thinking class at Shenandoah University’s Byrd School of Business collaborated on a project that resulted in students creating promotional videos for the library system to use for marketing purposes. The students of Professor Montressa Washington’s Design Thinking class took on the challenge to develop and create short videos to encapsulate the services of all three library locations to the general public.
Broken up into three groups, students produced two videos that would engage library patrons to use services and materials, attend programs, and visit each location that work together interchangeably. The students learned all about Handley Regional Library System being the center of our community and what it has to offer patrons of all ages.
“As always, we are pleased to partner with Shenandoah University,” says John Huddy, Director of Handley Regional Library System. “We are excited to showcase several of our favorite videos to help continue to show the public the value of the library system in their community. The students in this project even learned about the library system, beyond as a place to study and borrow books,”
“This project was a lot of fun,” adds Matt Swain, Public Relations Manager for Handley Regional Library System. “We were able to meet with the students on campus in their business class, provide background information on the library system, our goals with this project, and answer any questions. Later the students toured our library locations, took photos and video, interviewed patrons and staff, and edited their videos to tell the story. After a few months, we were invited back to class where the students presented to us and showed us their final projects. We were even able to give feedback to the student groups. They all did a great job. Dr. Washington and her class were fantastic to work with on this opportunity.”
Dr. Washington mentions that design thinking elements from her class played a role in this project.
“Through spending time learning about, visiting Handley Regional Library System, and speaking with patrons to observe their interactions and use of library materials, the students were able to create videos that captured the sentiment of Handley Regional Library System. The students used Design Thinking concepts such as empathy maps and interviews to gain deeper insight into patrons interests.”