Each campus is staffed with reference librarians to help you with your research needs. Pierce College librarians have faculty status and have the skills to help you determine what your research needs are and connect you with the best resources, whether they are from books, periodicals, or the Internet.
Reference librarians are available to students, faculty and staff, and the general public. However, during busy times, Pierce College students, faculty and staff are our top priority and will receive assistance first.
Please note that reference librarians do not edit papers. For assistance, visit a campus Writing Center (The Puyallup Writing Center is on the second floor on the Brouillet Library/Science Building and the Fort Steilacoom Writing Center is on the fifth floor of the Cascade Building).
There are four ways to contact us: in person, by phone, by IM (instant message) and by email.
You can find a librarian on staff at the reference desk during the library's open hours. This is the best way to contact us if you are on campus, need immediate assistance or have a lengthy or complicated question.
You can contact a reference librarian at Puyallup at 253-840-8302 or at Fort Steilacoom at 253-964-6555 during the library's open hours.
You can contact a librarian through the library's instant messaging service. We participate in a program where librarians from all over the country answer questions, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week! It may not be a Pierce College librarian, but they are all trained to help you. You can even IM us from the library!
You can email a reference librarian with a reference question at library@pierce.ctc.edu. This is an alternative to chat IM if you want help from a Pierce College librarian. Emails will be answered Monday through Friday during normal business hours.