Jocelyn Tipton has liked libraries since she was a toddler in Maryland.

Tipton works at the Booth Library reference desk an average of 14 hours out of her 40-hour work week, along with working as an assistant political science professor at Eastern.

Booth Library is a place for students to study and do research year around, but it sees the most action around finals and midterms, which are this week.

“This library is very user-focused,” Tipton said.

Tipton has a number of duties at Booth. She is in involved with collection development in the reference library. She helps the library select and purchase materials that are related to her specialty subjects, political science and psychology, she said. She gives tours of the library, teaches bibliography writing in structured sessions and answers questions from library users.

In addition to these duties, she also creates exhibits students can see on display in Booth, works with the library speaker series and works with the National Library Committee for National Library Day in April.

As a reference worker, she is there to help students with their questions, no matter how off the wall they may be.

People have asked Tipton questions ranging from normal homework help to “questions that aren’t typical to research,” she said.

She has been asked everything from how to find information on the origin of a coin someone found in his backyard to questions about identifying trees on campus. The library provides workers with brochures about campus so they have that kind of information available, she said.

“We help people find the answers, but we don’t do their homework for them,” Tipton said.

Jeremy Gasow, a sophomore history major, said he does not use the library reference services unless he has trouble finding materials on his own.

“I’d look up the information myself,” he said.

One misconception is that library workers know everything. What people do not realize is everyone has his or her own specialty, Tipton said.

Marielle McNeal, a junior English major, worked at the library reference desk last year, re-shelving books and keeping the collection in order. McNeal said people try to look up the information for themselves, but end up asking the librarians for help.

“(The reference desk) is where you have to come if you want to find anything in the library,” she said.

McNeal said she uses the library reference at least once a week for class research papers and to get a better understanding of things she might not understand in class. During midterms, the reference desk can get busy, she said, especially at night.

“Booth really does work to ‘be EIU,” Tipton said. “We do everything we can to help.”