Whether you’re a student looking to make your research presentation pop or a faculty member crafting a video training module, the Media Hub in the Valley Library is here to help.
The Media Hub is perhaps best known for its poster-printing capacity: The massive printer can handle posters up to 60 inches in width, though the more common sizes are 36x48 and 24x36. Every student at OSU can print one free poster per assignment, with some size limitations.
The center also offers a huge catalog of borrowable equipment, with dozens of types of cameras, microphones, cables and adapters, projectors, screens and more. As a unit of Academic Technologies, the Media Hub also helps students reserve different kinds of studio spaces for video and audio production as well as for practicing presentations and dissertations.
But beyond its physical resources, the Media Hub provides expertise. The team of around 25 student employees is there to assist both students and employees in using design and production software as well as learning how to wield production equipment. Each student has their own niche area, from screenwriting to 3D modeling to video editing and animation.
Student expertise is not confined to the Media Hub space. Student workers can be booked to go into the field and shoot video, and the first hour of work is free for student assignments. They’ll even help with pre- and post-production.
“We know students bring many different devices to school with them, and we want to meet them where they’re at, so if they bring in a phone or a laptop, we want to work with them on those devices to get the end product they’re trying to create,” said Kristina Brand, director of Academic Technologies in University Information and Technology, where the Media Hub is housed. “It really is helping to equalize access to education and tools.”
Staff say the Media Hub has come a long way since its early days as the Photo Services unit, when it dealt mainly in darkrooms and developer. Nowadays, the student employees are all digital natives, and they come from all over OSU, not just New Media Communications.
“We have students who love engineering and have a different mindset from those who are more focused on the arts, and the way they all meld together and balance each other in the Media Hub is amazing,” Brand said. “It creates a great environment for those who are coming into the Media Hub for support.”
The work provides great experience for student employees, who get real-world practice with a wide variety of projects and equipment, as well as the confidence gained from figuring things out and teaching other people, Brand said. Recently an alumnus who had worked in the Media Hub 18 years ago came to visit, and credited his time in the unit for securing his current job in a city parks and recreation department.
While students can receive most assistance for free, Media Hub services for employees are more fee-based, both for equipment rental and hiring student workers for assistance. There are also two full-time staff who can be booked for higher rates.
For anyone curious about how Media Hub services might help them, staff say the best thing is to just come in and ask.
“Let’s have a conversation and see how we can help you,” Brand said. “That’s where the creativity comes in.”
During academic terms, the Media Hub is open 10 a.m.-9 p.m. Monday-Thursday, 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Fridays and 3-9 p.m. Sundays on the main floor of the Valley Library.
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