ABSTRACT

Most librarians are to some degree virtual librarians these days. They regularly communicate and answer enquiries with users via the internet. The author began working for a 100 per cent online university in the United States, which had library services but no chance ever of the librarian's meeting users face to face or regularly interacting with the university administration. The major challenge was to provide library services to a group of students who for a number of reasons felt disconnected from the university and each other. The author provides library services to the students in an online doctoral programme for Kindergarten to Grade 12 educational leadership. Students could email the library and were promised a response within 24 hours and could work with a librarian only two hours per two-month term. There was library support for their dissertation writing courses.