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Question and Answer with Rachael Lester, OU Online’s Librarian

October 30, 2025
by Hannah Rieger

What’s the biggest misconception online students have about using library services, and how do you help them realize what’s actually available to them?

The one thing I want every student to know—online or in-person—is that your librarians are here for you! Helping students with their research is our favorite thing to do, and we love connecting people with the resources they need. We can help you through email or live chat (where you’ll talk with a real-life human, not AI), or schedule one-on-one consultations with your subject librarian. We’re here to support you!

Can you walk us through how an online student can get research help at 2 AM when they’re stuck on a paper that’s due tomorrow?

Our Research Guides are one of my favorite things that we offer, especially for when you’re in a time crunch (we’ve all been there). These guides are all created by OU librarians and contain subject-specific resources, including tips for searching and recommended resources. The library’s research guides helped me so much when I was a student in an OU Online program myself, and provide great recommendations for your research when you can’t get in touch with your professor or a librarian.

What are some creative ways you’ve helped online students access physical materials or resources when they can’t physically visit campus?

OU Libraries has a really wonderful service called Sooner Xpress that allows you to get physical materials through the mail! We mail you the book you need, you just cover the return postage cost. But, if you’re only needing a chapter or two of a book that we don’t have available digitally, we can scan it and email it to you. When you find a book in our Catalog, there will be a “Request via Sooner Xpress” link. Just log in to your OU account, fill out a short form, and we’ll get to work.

What’s one research tip or library hack you wish every online student knew that could save them hours of work?

I want every single online student to know about Lean Library! Lean Library is a browser extension that can save you time and money. Here’s how it works: as you find articles on Google, Lean Library will recognize that OU Libraries has that article and will provide you with a “Get Access” button. All you have to do then is log in using your OU credentials, and you have access to an article that was previously behind a paywall. I can’t recommend installing Lean Library enough—it’s magical.

Contact info and how students can get a hold of you for appointments, etc.

Please email me at rllester@ou.edu or make an appointment for a Zoom consultation! I would love to chat with you about your research needs, and if you need help from one of our subject librarians, I can help you get in touch with them. Whatever your needs are, one of my colleagues or I will be able to help!

From midnight research sessions to specialized consultations, your library team is ready to support your academic success—all you have to do is reach out.