2019 MLA Annual Conference

Augsburg University's Lindell Library became home to a flock of superheroes last year, superhero bicycles, that is. Augsburg Day Student Government bought 14 bicycles, 9 helmets, and 5 Metro Transit bus cards, all for checkout to Augsburg students at the library. It was up to us librarians to figure out how to catalog, process, maintain, and check out these new items. We classified the bikes with superhero names in alphabetical order (Ant-Man to Nightwing), created detailed OCLC catalog records and local holdings records in WMS, figured out checkout policies, trained student Circulation workers, marketed the program with LibGuide pages, and schlepped the bikes to a nearby repair shop when necessary. We also weathered some major setbacks, like villainous bike thieves, and learned some lessons that we are happy to pass on to other libraries. Bottom line: Bike- and transit-share is a popular program that is worth the effort.