Teach with Special Collections and College Archives

Special Collections and College Archives instruction sessions provide students with the chance to conduct hands-on research with primary sources, develop research skills, learn how to handle rare materials, and prepare for future independent work in special collections and archives. Our goal with each class is to feature collection material that corresponds to your course, engages students in hands-on learning exercises and group discussion, and provides an orientation to the reading room environment and rare materials research.

We kindly ask that you request classes a minimum of two weeks in advance. We can generally accommodate a maximum of twenty students, but will do all in our power to meet your needs. To request a class please email classvisitssp@stolaf.edu.

New to working with us? We love introducing people to our wonderful collections and are happy to provide an individual orientation to Special Collections and College Archives. We can tour the collections and suggest materials for specific courses. We also provide introductions to procedures: requesting a class, compiling a course list, reserving items for assignments. If you would like to schedule an orientation contact us with possible dates.

We offer a few options on how to plan your class visit. Regardless of how you choose to lead your session, we remind you and your students that class visits are conducted in a reading room environment and students will be expected to follow our Reading Room Guidelines.

Librarian-Led Class

We are excited to teach classes with our collections. We will custom design the session to best meet your teaching objectives for your course by:

• Featuring collection material that corresponds to your specific course
• Engaging students in hands-on exercises and group discussion
• Providing an orientation to the reading room environment and rare materials research

Faculty- and Librarian-Led Class

We are here to support your teaching and are happy to co-teach sessions. This partnership enables students to understand why you’ve chosen particular items and how they relate to your course, while simultaneously learning how to conduct materials research.

Faculty-Led Class

Faculty are welcome to teach their own sessions with Special Collections materials. A librarian will remain present in the room to ensure proper handling and care of the items.