Going beyond the books
Jerry Falwell Library now allows students to access healthy resource guides
Liberty University’s Jerry Falwell Library recently developed a health resource guide through the library website to coincide with the Live Healthy Liberty initiative.
Research — Students used the Jerry Falwell Library to study up on healthy living. Photo credit: Kallie Britton
According to the Live Healthy Liberty website, its mission is “to create and sustain a healthy campus culture that educates, motivates, and empowers Liberty students, faculty and staff to adopt and maintain healthy lifestyle behaviors.”
The Live Healthy Liberty resource page has been created to assist students, faculty and staff in their personal health and wellness goals. The resource guide will be periodically updated as new resources become available.
To access the resource guide, students, faculty and staff should go to the main library website (liberty.edu/library), click “Research Guides” under the “Research” tab and then scroll to the bottom of the page where the Live Healthy Liberty resource guide is listed below other guides and resources.
“As a library, we wanted a wellness group, and that started even before the Live Healthy Liberty coalition,” Cataloging Librarian Anne Foust said. “Then whenever the university thought we really ought to have a wellness initiative for the whole campus, we were invited to be part of the coalition.”
Many of the healthy living resources were available before the creation of the Live Healthy Liberty resource guide but were not organized by category. The creation of a website specifically for health and wellness resources has increased accessibility to these resources.
“Several times, we mentioned the fitness DVDs we had that no one seems to be aware of,” Foust said. “That was when we realized we needed something like a resource guide where students can see that we have all of these resources.”
A display for all of the different fitness DVDs is in the process of being put together so students, as well as faculty and staff, will be able to find the specific DVDs they are looking
for with ease.
There are both electronic videos and books available for online students in addition to the hard copies offered for students on campus.
In addition to the Live Healthy resource guide, there are periodic wellness events held at LaHaye Student Union and the Jerry Falwell Library. These events have been going on for the last year-and-a-half preceding the Live Healthy Liberty initiative.
“We have many of the wellness events being held here in the library,” Foust said. “There are two locations, one at LaHaye and then at the library. We schedule events sometimes during the lunch hour and then sometimes, for the students, there will be ones in the evening.”
According to Foust, the library is always looking to hear feedback or any suggestions for how the Live Healthy Liberty resource guide can be improved.
“We do have comment card boxes in the library, and we also have an email address specifically for feedback,” Cynthia Schmidt, head of communication and customer services at the library, said.
To provide suggestions or feedback regarding Live Healthy Liberty resources, send emails to libraryfeedback@liberty.edu.
“We would encourage any student or faculty member to make requests,” Foust said. “We can’t fulfill every request, but we always like to hear suggestions of things people would like to have in the library.”
Sherrill is a news reporter.