A River Ran Through It: Resilience, Teamwork, and Re-imagining the Library after a Disaster #betterthanever

In 2017, Hurricane Harvey hovered over Houston, Texas, unloading fifty-five inches of rain, causing catastrophic damage over the city and its metropolitan area. Lone Star College- Kingwood lost six of the campus’ nine buildings to the raging San Jacinto River and to blackwater from a flooded sewage treatment plant less than a mile away. The Library received four feet of category 4 biohazardous wastewater and lost 100% of its contents. Campus employees faced displacement, cramped, temporary work environments, and uncertainty about the possibility of recovery. Numbed by the shock, the library team worked tirelessly to help students and faculty get their IDs, gain access to computers and course material, and quickly navigate the change to a completely online learning platform.
Following the remediation, the library team took the opportunity to explore new ideas as they began to visualize and create a better functioning and future-forward space. The panel will share the results of their experiences in the recovery, reorganization, and rebuild. The audience will gain insight into lessons learned and how teamwork, leadership, and innovation catapulted the new Learning Commons into becoming the heart of the campus.