Showing posts with label librarian. Show all posts
Showing posts with label librarian. Show all posts

Friday, April 24, 2009

WAAL09: We're from the Government and We're Here to Help! : Reference and Loan Library Services for Academic Libraries



"We're from the Government and We're Here to Help! : Reference and Loan Library Services for Academic Libraries"
Martha Farley Berninger, Abby Swanton, Lisa Reale, and Vickie Long
Reference & Loan Library, DPI - http://dpi.wi.gov/RLL

BadgerLink:
-- Appreciate getting credit for database links (ex: "provided by BadgerLink" or logo)
-- Access is via IP address or library card barcode ranges (please provide both to Badgerlink), or other as needed
-- New: Federated searching across all EBSCOhost and Proquest databases, (and WisCat for licensed libraries)
-- Support: online form for tech support & promotional materials (bookmarks, posters)

WisCat:
-- Since 1980s - resource-sharing tool for ILL, MARC record sharing
-- Z39.50 compatible
-- Includes public, academic, and medical library catalogs, (and Minitex - Minnesota catalogs?)
-- For past year, ISO connection with Illiad for UW-Madison libraries (GZM) brokered by WILS
-- Splash page is customizable, with up to 4 RSS feeds, calendar message of the day
-- "L" list libraries only - can't afford others

Wisconsin Digital Archives - http://cdm15011.contentdm.oclc.org
-- WI Document Depository Program - http://dpi.wi.gov/rll/inddep.html
-- Academic and public libraries
-- Some docs are born digital and only exist online
-- Authoritative, long-term access
-- Primary access is via OPACs - all records in WorldCat, WisCat, MadCat, LRBCat, FirstSearch
-- Collection: hot topics, statistics, task forces, final reports
-- All are assigned WiDoc numbers
-- Open to suggestions for documents to add
-- Not archived: public records, databases, private info (intranets), print that hasn't already been digitized, entire websites (tho can do *parts*)
-- RSS feed or Monthly lists sent to libraries since 2005 - http://salcat.dpi.wi.gov/refloan/indship.asp

Reference Services:
-- AskAway = chat for all public libraries & paid institutions, email for paid institutions - not encouraged to be linked as primary service
-- Backup reference (phone, email, mail) - all WI residents / libraries
-- Songbook database - links into WisCat
-- Library directory
-- Automobile service manuals (coming soon)
-- Access to Dialog, WestLaw, Lexis-Nexis

Questions:
-- Plans to add more databases to Badgerlink? Answer: COLAND recommendation was to enhance access, but waiting to hear about funding.

WAAL09: Fake it 'til you make it with government documents



"Fake it 'til you make it with government documents"
Nancy Mulhern, Wisconsin Historical Society
Michael Current, UW Lacrosse

Usa.gov (was First.gov)
-- Top choice for starting points
-- Yahoo type subject directory
-- Official search engine for free government websites (plus images, news, maps...)
-- Faceted search
-- For popular, current information retrieval

Wisconsin.gov
-- News
-- Subjects
-- Agency index
-- Search engine
-- For popular, current information retrieval

Google.com/unclesam
-- Searches .gov, .mil, and other U.S. federal, state, and local (?) sites
-- May use less now that Usa.gov is so good
Catalogs:
-- CGP: Catalog of U.S. Government Publications = http://catalog.gpo.gov (was "the monthly catalog") - supposed to include all pubs back to 1976 - use Ex Libris' Aleph software - SuDoc sorting works!
-- Worldcat.org, WisCat, BadgerCat
-- Local library catalog

Official access:
-- www.GPOaccess.gov - supports their own staff too - documents by government branch - moving over to FDsys (Federal Digital System) which is already live - full text search (faceted) of unaltered official versions - currently back to ~1994

Country information:
-- CIA World Factbook - https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook - updated at least annually
-- State Dept. Background Notes - http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn - update data provided
-- Library of Congress Country Studies (formerly Army Area Handbooks) - http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs - most were last updated in early 1990's

Statistics:
-- FedStats - http://www.fedstats.gov - homepage doesn't look like much - by topic, geography, agency - search function
-- Statistical Abstract of the United States - http://www.census.gov/compendia/statab - lots more than statistics - annual, all online back to 1879 - summary data for social/political/economic - pulls in data from other organizations (ex: Am Vet Med Assn = pet ownership)

Strategy:
-- Think of the associated agency, not individual "author"
-- Challenge: what did the government call it?
-- Tutorial: http://www.library.ucsb.edu/ala/tutorials/agency.html
-- State gov agencies usually mirror fed gov

Census:
-- American Fact Finder - http://factfinder.census.gov - multiple variables - only 1990 and 2000 - "custom table" - slow between 10am-2pm
-- Historical Census - http://fisher.lib.virginia.edu/collections/stats/histcensus - different questions were asked each time - ex: in 1940, how many people were born in Rumania, by state/county?

Other:
-- State Information - http://wikis.ala.org/godort/index.php/State_Agency_Databases
-- Wisconsin - http://www.getfacts.wisc.edu/?geo-mcd - from UW-Madison Applied Population Lab - multivariable - to municipality/tract/block group/basin/watershed (unless privacy could be invaded, for 72 years)
-- Bureau of Labor Statistics - http://www.bls.gov - ex: Unemployment: Mass Layoffs, CPI Inflation Calculator
-- Science.gov - http://wwww.science.gov - "Usa.gov for science" - includes Agriculture, Food, Biotechnology, Animals, Plants, Ecology, Genetics... - faceted results - includes Agricola and PubMed article records

Historical Laws & Congress:
-- Keep in mind that agency names change, and come in/out of existence
-- Century of Law Making - http://lcweb2.loc.gov/amem/amlaw - (1774-1875) - digitized documents - search function
-- Thomas Congressional Information - Library of Congress - http://thomas.loc.gov/cp111/cp111query.html
-- Google Book Search - Google afraid of being sued for posting government info after 1923 even though it isn't copyrighted - can still get limited preview or snippet -
-- WorldCat.org - more historic documents being added

Faking it:
-- Resources above
-- Agency approach
-- Robust referral to gov doc specialist - WHS, UW-Madison Memorial Library, Milwaukee Public Library

Thursday, April 23, 2009

WAAL09: Public Records in E-Mail and Winning Strategies for Managing Them


"Public Records in e-Mail and Winning Strategies for Managing Them"
Amy Moran, WI Dept. Administration
Nancy Kunde, retired UW-Madison Records Officer - starting as adjunct professor for SJSU in Fall

  • Open Records/Sunshine Law: "...all persons are entitled to the greatest possible information regarding the affairs..."
  • What needs to be retained? Public record = documentation of public decisions and transactions.
  • Gets into area of "appraisal" - setting value of records
  • Why save? Administrative, legal, financial, historic, and research reasons
  • May only be disposed when authorized by an approved RDA (Records Disposition Authorization)
  • Most public records now generated electronically
  • Program area determines retention needs - IT has custodial responsibility
  • Content determines record status:
  • does it: interpret or execute policy? record important meetings? document accountability? facilitate department actions/processes? convey an action? support a transaction? support or convey a decision?

Email in the workplace:

  • Continues to grow
  • Attachments getting larger
  • ~93% of all incoming email is unsolicited
  • Most may not be public records - can be deleted right away
  • In the past, every department had a "file room" managed by the secretary
  • Now, we're all data managers / records custodians - everyone's business
  • Focus on major functions of the department (communicating with faculty? students?)

Legal considerations:

  • Email retention is the same as for hard copy (public records, FERPA, HIPAA, other privacy acts, etc.)
  • May be an overall appropriate use policy for organization - differs from one to another
  • Subject to open records requests
  • Subject to discovery - federal rules changed recently
  • California is the state pushing the bubble
  • Legal world just starting to consider metadata (largely invisible)
  • For authenticating, metadata are critical (to/from/subject/less visible parts)
  • Harder to tell when electronic materials have been tempered with

Saving too little:

  • violation of public trust/responsibility,
  • not available when needed,
  • opposition has copies that we don't,
  • embarassment

Saving too much:

  • Davy Jones' locker
  • cost for storage/migration/retrieval/redaction - CD degradation after 5 years
  • "Working in the cloud" - online repository = helps with migration problems
  • "Smoking gun" - $2.2 million in damages awarded to women suing for sexual discrimination, when found "10 reasons why beer is better than women"
  • Not everyone who receives an email needs to save - sender should always save if meets criteria; receiver should receive if it is actionable
  • Delete: transitory material, unsolicited, personal, copies, captured in later messages - weekly

Decision tree:

  • Personal? Delete
  • Work related? Reply or Retain or Delete
  • Outgoing? Retain or Delete
  • Retained? For current use, Archive, or Delete

Classification:

  • Appropriately named folders
  • Either within or outside the client - not both; ex: Thunderbird allows setting # of days to keep
  • File related records in the same folder
  • Each year, close old folder and start new
  • May be able to incorporate retention schedule into metadata
  • Administrative Rule 12 - protect access to e-only records over retention life (retrieval/redaction/etc.)
  • Xythos - pilot project to use; UW-Madison has records module
  • Maximize use of email software "folders" - instead of using "inbox" as a catchall
  • Online storage isn't appropriate for secure access
  • "Near line"
  • Offline - printing to paper, or print to PDF file (still manipulatable, except for PDFa)

Information Life Cycle:

  • Designing > Record created > Use of record > Dormant > Long-term storage
  • Must maintain accuracy, accessibility, retrievability, reliability throughout life cycle
  • Conflicting life cycles of information vs. media

More resources:

Questions:

  • who can make requests? Answer: Anyone; federal open records/sunshine law was modelled on Wisconsin's - you don't have to say who you are, or why you want it - ex: WI State Journal requested salaries of all employees
  • Another example: all the email from one of our deans - you can petition for this to be narrowed, but have to respond in timely manner. "All" might really be "all."
  • does this affect non-UW System institutions? Answer: Yes, not just issue for biggest schools.
  • other technologies? Answer: Some say "don't use IM for official communications" - but this may not be possible. Some gadgets allow synching, backup, etc. - don't want people walking around with records. Could summarize chat in email or print for offical record. Telephone conversations aren't normally recorded, but exceptions: calling in for unemployment benefits.
  • Disintermediation - very few secretaries anymore; no one training and overseeing records management responsibility
  • can we ask IT to be responsible? Answer: Backup isn't record retention - they have a role, but can't be the sole managers.

WAAL09: Tapping the Creative Spirit to Spur Innovation


"Tapping the Creative Spirit to Spur Innovation"
Kathryn Deiss, ACRL Content Strategist

  • http://kathryndeiss.pbwiki.com/ - presentation posted

  • How do you develop a creative environment?

  • New stuff - how do we get it? Depend on creative part of the mind - how tap it?

Who's creative?

  • Audience: everyone, (usually people say: musicians, artists, writers)

  • "Creative Inventions" lightning round (60 seconds) - create an invention using your card and someone else's (items like: ping pong balls, wind chimes, empty 35mm film canister, thermos, bubble-blowing kit, milk crate, waffle iron, gerbil wheel, whistling tea kettle, cassette tape player, cell phone, water pitcher, bicycle helmet, corkscrew, wallet, measuring spoons, compass, slinky, cupcake liners, camera, mousetrap, spray paint, ice cube tray, mickey mouse ears, bandana, zipper, skateboard)

  • Everyone is creative - process of generating novel ideas that are likely to be useful

Creative process:

  • Difficulty = we don't know where we are:

  • problem/opportunity > divergent thinking > convergent thinking > decision point

  • Most people truncate early part, and don't generate enough ideas

  • Problem/opportunity identification - generate ideas - analyze options - choose - implement prototypes - incubate and get feedback - revise and reintroduce

  • We say "but if we put out a prototype and then take it away, patrons will get mad" - not a good reason not to do it

Tools & practices - creative spaces - attitudes & frames of mind

  • Tools:

  • Precise observation - ex: some libraries doing "ethnographic research" of students like they're tribes - U. Rochester Research Project published "Studying Students"

  • Penetrating questions - why do we think this? what happens when we do this?

  • Absence of judgment - suspend in idea-generation period - not "it didn't work last time" or "that won't work"

  • Faith in your resources - group's creativity can do it

  • Stages:

  • Preparation - sitting, waiting, being open, groundwork of processes to bring people together for sparks

  • Time off - don't jump into decision; incubate inside

  • The spark! - leap on it

  • Selection

  • Elaboration - what could idea look like? brainstorm on the one idea

  • Brainstorming rules:

  • Someone records it all

  • Rapid

  • No Voice of Judgment

  • Quantity over quality

  • Wilder the better

  • Build on the ideas of others

  • Other ways:

  • Silent brainstorming (individual, on piece of paper; round robin sharing - get more ideas because introverted people participate)

  • Visual brainstorming

  • Brainwriting - circulate pieces of paper with ideas among participants

  • Bodystorming

  • Mindmapping - there are software programs to help, or can do manually

  • Think of something at work you'd like to change or understand better - Being in this situation is like [add metaphor] - spin off - feelings associated - how affect communication

  • Changing perspective:

  • Can we put to other use? adapt? modify? rearrange? substitute? reverse? combine? ...

  • Effective group creativity requires diverse points of view - not nasty conflict, but multiple perspectives

  • Incubation - like seeds in the soil, like eggs in a nest, like bread rising - "you know, I was thinking..."

  • Scott Adams (Dilbert) went to work for IDEO - to improve "the cubicle" - modular, fun, customizable - (photos) which would you rather work in? - IDEO carves furniture out of styrofoam and says "how's this?"

  • (photo of big conference table room) - what's wrong with this? - (alternative: what looks like my old housing co-op living rooms)

  • Zephyr Innovation Incubator - Illinois - lots of little toys for customers/staff to play with while brainstorming

  • Imagine a place that stimulates you (art gallery) - qualities/characteristics: changes periodically, thought-provoking, sometimes beautiful, emotion-provoking - how can your work place better reflect that space?

  • Creativity is messy! - we don't have patience for "fooling around" - but you have to, to get the new!

  • Have to be willing to break the rules!

  • Use unexpected detours to your advantage - others may think that you're distracted and not doing "work"

Killers:

  • we can't

  • it won't work

  • we tried that before

  • we don't have the money

  • they won't let us

  • what if it's too successful

Wednesday, April 22, 2009

WAAL09: Transformative Technology: Screencasting and the Use of Jing at UW-Madison


Transformative Technology: Screencasting and the Use of Jing at UW-Madison
Steve Frye & Ian Benton, College Library at UW-Madison

  • http://www.jingproject.com/ - quick download

  • We're not here because we work for Techsmith - more interested in how this technology can change what we do - link on handout to comparison of screencasting tools

  • What do you think of when you hear "transformative technology"? Changes what you do, or how you do it; NOT hype - it's use is immediately apparent

  • Examples from audience: internet, e-mail, online circulation / OPAC, telephones, automobile, IM

  • What are the steps for changing a tire? Those who know in the audience list steps - so everyone else can now change a tire, right? I think we just need more information - Steve explains in detail using all kinds of words that most people probably don't know - now how many people could do it? OK, let's try YouTube... - now how many people could start doing this? - lots and lots of people raise their hands - is YouTube transformative technology?
    We librarians are bicycle repairpeople - when they ask us how to do something, we send them tons of words - or, we could send them a screencast with video and sound (shows example for finding a specific article)
  • When you try to describe a visual process with a textual description, you must translate
  • Jing videos can be created in real time, at the reference desk

  • Patron responses (unsolicited) are VERY happy - (shows examples)

  • What is a screencast? Much bigger than what we've shown - Wikipedia definition

  • Techsmith has video on homepage to show you the value of Jing (shows) - same company makes Camtasia, but Jing is free and fast and has free hosting - just a link, no file transfer necessary

  • Removing a barrier to communication (the long list of words and steps and jargon) - no technological hurdle

  • How many times have you described a process, and had the patron say "but I that exact thing!"

  • Question: what about kinesthetic learners? Answer: They need to follow the process, because my video doesn't provide them the materials they want

  • Anyone challenge our assumptions? Audience: Not sure if it's transformative; used to co-browse and be there in realtime with user

  • There could certainly be instances in which Jing is not the right tool for the job

  • Instruction librarians showed interest

  • Ian uses it to send in tech glitches, rather than just describing

  • Staff use to send explanations to each other, too

  • College Library: Dec 2007-July 2008, soft roll-out in evening reference; Aug 2008 - Official Jing training - not mandatory, but it's a useful tool

  • If desired, could be a re-usable object, both for librarians and for users

  • Statistics: 1,400-1,550 chat reference calls in 1-2 months; 15-25% use Jing - needed to upgrade

  • Jing Pro = low cost for institutional use, had to upgrade to get enough storage space; now enough for UW-Madison's entire campus library system

  • Steve doesn't think he's ever had a patron who couldn't get the Jing video to work

  • Embed function doesn't seem to be robust

  • Most library staff initially didn't record sound - patron response was favorable

  • Nice to tell patrons ahead that there's audio, in case they need to turn it on or off
    (Show chat transcript, time involved in recording Jing, then continuing chat)

  • Documents normal human interaction, not perfection

  • Can also share with patrons, so they can make videos themselves

  • Can transfer between Pro and free Jing

  • Online "help" files are robust

  • If interrupted, just push "pause" and continue video again

  • (Demonstrations of making, playing, saving video)

  • We consider these videos as disposable - don't agonize over its organization; probably easier to create a new one

  • Question: Does this work the same on Mac as on PC? Answer: Yes.

  • Jing also captures still images, and then there's some extra tools (arrows, boxes, highlighting)

  • Question: General screencasting - any pushback from vendors on demonstrating the use of their databases, say if posted to YouTube? Answer: Haven't heard anything yet...

  • Video length limit = 5 minutes; suggest not going over 2 1/2 minutes and not trying to explain more than 4 concepts per video

  • Question: Does Jing save time on the desk? Answer: Ian's chat transcript data shows that it doesn't, actually lengthens chats

  • When sending, ask patron to "tell me if this doesn't work"

WAAL09: Tale (Tail) of the Tyger



Tale (Tail) of the Tyger
Rev. Dr. David Joyce, President of Ripon College

  • What do you think of when you hear "Ripon"? Harrison Ford, Rippin' Good cookies, and now "The bike thing"

Goal: Appreciate the worth in yourself and others so that you can influence and create your own future

  • We spend too much time picking things apart, and not enough time putting things together

  • "Nothing endures but change" - Heraclitus (500 B.C.)

  • The rules are changing in this economy - old ways of doing things don't necessarily work - can't just look to the past - it used to be that if stocks were down, then bonds were up - not right now!

Fear-based decision-making:

  • We instill fear in others to control what they do or don't do

  • How much do we do or not do because we're afraid of what might happen?

Transformational Process:

  • May be considered "inefficient" because time intensive - I meet with senior staff 4 hours each week to do this process

  • #1 Mutual Worth - Begins with belief that "you have worth"

  • #2 Authentic Interaction - What's going well? - everyone tends to jump to problem-solving too quickly - sometimes what's going well might be in our personal lives

  • #3 Appreciative Understanding - everyone has a skill set, and they have more skills than you know - if you only look at those like you, all you'll get is those like you

  • #4 Progressive Integration

  • #5 Continuous Improvement

  • #6 Transformation

Decision-making:

  • Motivation (memory, emotions, attitudes) > Decisions > Behaviors > Perceptions > Trust or Distrust

  • Ask open-ended questions

  • Listen

  • Paraphrase

  • Instead of "Yeah, but" say "Yes, and"

  • Enablers: awareness, reason, freedom, skills

The Bike Thing (Velorution):

  • Ripon College is growing, and we were running out of car parking

  • 1,100 students; 7,800 town residents > unhappy with students parking on streets

  • "Creative Interchange":

  • #1 Wish statement - "I wish/I would like it if... we didn't need to pave more green space to create parking lots for cars"

  • #2 Another person paraphrases, then offers an idea - "We could give all incoming students a bicycle"

  • #3 Next person paraphrases, then offers 4 reasons why they like the idea for every 1 wish statement

  • #4 Continues until solution arrived upon - give out about 200 bikes per year

WAAL09: Digitization on Demand: ILL Operations Participating in Institutional Digitization


"Digitization on Demand: ILL Operations Participating in Institutional Digitization"
Angela Milock, Laura Rizzo, Eric Robinson - WiLS (Wisconsin Library Services)

  • How it all began... WiLS was already scanning masters theses, special collections, etc. for document delivery - thought they could start saving their scanned documents to make them available to everyone

  • Models? Found existing Digitization-on-Demand (DOD) and Print-on-Demand (POD) programs at other institutions - Cornell, Penn State, U Michigan

  • Where deposit? UW Digital Collections - http://minds.wisconsin.edu/, Google Books & CIC Hathi Trust > OPAC

  • Which items to digitize? Started with: Special collections, Music Library

  • Turnaround time? Walked through detailed workflow; appears to be faster for ILL to do it than Digital Content Group (therefore, less expensive)

  • Partnerships? Special collections, some institutions with Kirtas/Booksurge/Amazon

  • Paying for service? WiLS mainly emulated Michigan: cost passed on to requester, posted per page cost, $30-160; Cornell: Amazon ($20-40, 1-4 days); Penn: $26 paperback; WiLS just tries to cover costs; Surprised to find that people at our own institution willing to pay for digitization of materials they already have physical access to

  • Requests? Web form, OCLC

  • Usage? Huge differences from institution to institution, based on how easy it is to find out about materials/service; people *are* willing to pay; WiLS filled 6 in first 3 weeks (not even announced yet!) vs Michigan ~20/year (multiple communication steps) vs Penn = 1 total in 2 months vs Cornell = heavy POD usage of selected 6,000 titles (Amazon helps!)

  • Copyright? Tricky U.S. vs non-U.S. laws; needed clear guidelines > "Cornell matrix"; wanted to be safe from litigation > very conservative (use Google's policy: pre-1923, author death year + 70 years - "are they dead enough?"); other institutions follow different policies

  • Technology? WiLS: b/w 300 dpi, grayscale/color 600 dpi; existing ILL/Special Collections scanners; some institutions send to Kirtas scanners (turn pages automatically; Google's probably look like this too); is the scanner up to the challenge? WiLS had nice new scanner but it would

  • New tasks? Barcoding and item records on the fly if needed, whole document and each page separately so works with page-turning model

  • Total planning time? WiLS took 7 months from idea to reality

  • Why? Access more convenient, seamless, removed digitization selection decisions, cost-effective

  • Hey, you! Any UW System school can deposit their materials in http://minds.wisconsin.edu/

Questions

  • Did WiLS not scan materials in Special Collections or the Music Library before you intiated this program? Answer: Went from part (article or chapter) to whole (500+ pages, rare, fragile materials).

  • Are Cornell & Penn shipping rare books or doing in-house? Answer: Apparently, they *are* shipping at least some rare materials.

  • Some requests denied? Answer: Yes, holding library has that power.

  • How delivered? Answer: Preferred delivery method of institution; mounted, hosted PDF version if that's the normal manner.

  • Payment details? Answer: If university doesn't cover costs, then patron can use Google Shopping Cart (all communication goes through their local institution)

  • Don't need institutional affiliation to request materials? Answer: Correct.

  • Is your copyright policy posted? Answer: Not yet.

  • What about duplication from one library to another? Answer: We may get fewer requests for duplicate items as things become findable online.

Tuesday, April 22, 2008

WAAL 2008: Standardization of Interlibrary Lending (ILL)



Standards-based ILL

Terry Wilcox, Reference and Loan Library
Bob Shaw, WiLS

• Directors don’t want to know more about ILL, just want it to work
• We’re using standards all the time, we just don’t know it
• Whenever you search an online database – it’s built on standards - the way it looks for a title, author, ISBN, etc.
• Standards are confusing, so no one talks about them

Why do we have standards?

• Helps software programs talk to eachother
• Help you retrieve information in a way you can understand
• Z39.50 – with Wiscat license (vs. free interface), you can see a lot of resources – takes you into other institution’s online catalog
• Can be developed by different companies, as long as use standards – allows searches across multiple catalogs and databases – can make ILL request
• State agency - we have to re-bid our projects at least every 5 years, regardless of whether there’s another vendor that can do it or not – may sound difficult, but it keeps things changing and evolving, so I don’t get bored

What standards are we using?

• ISO 10161-1 / 10161-2 – international exchange of good and services – could be a cell phone, PDA – much more than ILL/circ – might help you connect with OCLC
• SIP / SIP2 – was never actually adopted as standard, but gave an idea of how systems could connect to produce an end result – developed by 3M for remote patron identification – now NCIP
• NSIP – national standard for circulation

ISO

• Equivalency standards for fields across systems allows accurate, narrowed search results
• One interface to search many systems, don’t have to repeat over and over
• WisCat union catalog - 1,205 libraries of all types and sizes – 7 million records for 35 million holdings – 72 online catalogs (WI + MINITEX + LOC + NLM) – see actual availability [my question: what do you do if it’s at LOC?]

What have we done so far?

• Set ourselves up to be a lender through OCLC
• Wiscat libraries (AGent) can request from WiLS (direct into ILLiad)
• If you don’t want to lend out a certain type of material, you won’t get the request – this would be an improvement for OCLC
• WiLS is a broker (handles requests on behalf of multiple libraries) – UW-Madison might get same request 4 times, which makes sense because of multiple libraries – but ILLiad thinks if you cancel initial request, have to cancel all – we came up with workaround

Before you start

• Testing is crucial – every step
• Vendor may claim to have implemented a standard - but maybe not whole standard, or in same way as other vendors
• Test again anytime something changes!
• Small number of problems encountered shouldn’t necessarily stop you from going ahead
• Error messages may not be intuitive
• Address files may all be different, or just codes

NCIP

• Z39.83 NISO allows actions in ILL or Circ, and opposite action will happen automatically in Circ or ILL (ex: “ship” > “checked out”)
• Not always completed implemented by vendor - may need to buy the fanciest version from vendor to get fullest implementation – ask specifically which ones
• Need to match up every little status change on both sides (ex: accept item, cancel request item, check in item…) – and indicate which side can initiate (or both)
• Many status messages aren’t on NCIP list (ex: recall)

What can you do?

• Encourage administration to request ILS vendors to include standardization
• Don’t recreate the wheel with RFPs – contact other libraries for theirs
• Communicate about potential time/money savings
• LITAC provides guidance to Reference & Loan Library – technology recommendations for all libraries in state – they support standardization
• Most states have systems clearinghouse with hierarchical structure – standards don’t yet recognize reality

Wiscat AGent and ILLiad at WiLS

• ILLiad is more robust and intuitive than AGent or OCLC Resource Sharing
• Consolidated locations to GZM
• 1,500 address records shared
• Just 1 type of “pick slip” for lenders to use – also used as mailing slip and return slip – library system as well as local library printed on slip
• Wanted to move everything online – can use Odyssey/Ariel or “E-doc” for free (by email)
• If citation is bad, or can’t lend but can offer scanning of TOC/index, that note goes into AGent - sometimes doesn’t make it to ILLiad – developing workaround
• Working on improving messages for end-user – rather than “Error – NISO xxxx…”
• Test again each time either side changes something!
• High success rate

Friday, April 18, 2008

WAAL 2008: Diversity and Undergrad Internship Programs


"ISIP: Diversity and the Information Specialist Internship Program at the UW-Madison"

Why an internship program?

  • Diversify future of the profession
  • Admin support - $$$ - so we can pay the interns
  • Provide variety of work experiences to spark interest

About the ISIP program

  • Work 8-10 hours/week within regular business hours - librarian supervisors are volunteering
  • Initially, thought 4 modules/year - now varying 1 16-week and 2 8-week modules - gives time to recruit both interns and supervisors
  • Breadth and depth - balanced experience
  • How recruit? Partnered with other diversity programs on campus, able to target 2nd-3rd year students - able to get many applicants - also went to student fairs, get it out there in front of students and staff - wanted to get on radar
  • Keisha is one of our 1st interns - very valuable feedback to improve
  • Not necessarily a goal for students to go on to LIS grad school and profession - helping to create more informed citizenry - more library supporters - better research skills

An intern's experience - Keisha

  • Looking for job - saw posting on student job website
  • Previous experience just with being a reader, checking out books at library
  • Great experience, now applying to grad school
  • Have completed 5 modules: life of a book, reference/instruction, special collections, branch library (Art), library technology support, digitization/metadata
  • Life of a book - from purchasing to discarding - good introduction
  • A lot more went into libraries than I thought - didn't know you needed a master's degree - thought librarians just went "ssshhhhhh!" [laughter]
  • Really enjoyed working at Art Library - hands-on Cuban artists' book display with faculty - mentor in art history had passion - I even go to the art museum now!
  • Mentorship - Nola Walker working on PhD at SLIS, met with other masters students at SLIS - what they love and hate - real feel for what goes into it

Running the program

  • Set goals for program - Defined an "information specialist" - beyond librarian
  • Collection management - including analysis to assess what we have and find out what we don't have that we should that interns could help with - gave budget
  • Other institutions - could make specific to your subject areas (ex: nursing)
  • Keep focus on the goals, big picture - here are the tasks, and here's why we do that - beyond training a student to do hourly work which is short-term + intensive
  • 8 week modules are short - need to find appropriate projects and work with them all along
  • 5 new students each year - currently have 5 new and 3 continuing
  • Detailed timeline across 2 years
  • Meet & greet at beginning of each module brings everyone together, interns can re-connect and discuss experiences, see old supervisors
  • Part of their hours include occasional activities - some in conjunction with SLIS
  • Remember: these are undergrads, pulled in many directions, they aren't in grad school
  • Contingency plans: relevant projects to work on day-to-day if supervisors get busy, something is cancelled, etc. - don't show up and find nothing to do
  • Supervisors asked to bring interns along to meetings, social events, etc.

What have we learned?

  • Successes: "Life of a Book" has a narrative with beginning and end
  • Projects that interns can complete and have tangible result they can take pride in
  • Seeing the behind-the-scenes work at meetings
  • Passionate volunteers who love what they do, and love ISIP program
  • Realistic: some of the work you do is boring, but fits into big picture
  • One-on-one meetings between steering committee member and intern - constant checking in, especially during 1st semester, so could change as we go - not necessarily with their current supervisor
  • Small group meetings - like focus groups, one intern's comment would spark others to share
  • Realized that we didn't have interns write anything 1st year - started module summaries - could share with next supervisor so they'd know what they'd already done, to customize (don't have to sit through 5 iterations of same workshop)
  • Needed more supervisor feedback - started supervisor trainings - had them also write module summaries, helpful with recommendation letters in future
  • Want supervisors to benefit from interns' work
  • 20 supervisors + 8 interns + steering committee = communication complex
  • Confusing to talk about both ISIP program and LIS grad school at same time - bring close SLIS ties into 2nd year
  • Marketing - "ISIP" as an acronym, or even spelled out, doesn't clearly communicate to potential interns or supervisors what the program is all about
  • 40 applicants 1st year, fewer 2nd year - why? we did the same things - timing, turnover at diversity programs
  • Requires more focus on why interns might be interested in what you do - that interest isn't necessarily already there
  • Interns becoming library advocates - telling their friends that library/librarians can offer some surprising things
  • 2 of 3 finishing interns from 1st cohort are going on to LIS grad school, 3rd more interested in museum studies
  • Will be hiring a project assistant to help with this program - what can we expect them to do? - has been challenging to have a committee-run program due to communication overlaps and gaps

Questions/comments

  • UW-Eau Claire similar paid program in reference.
  • I've been a librarian for 23 years; some of these things we've been trained to do, and others you read about and have to try - way to rethink what you're doing and see if applicable across our "one system, one library" - perhaps a weekend CUWL training? How make scalable? Many supervisors also want to take the modules. 5 interns is a LOT - you could have 1. But cohort is good - 3 minimum? But doubles in 2nd year. Keisha would have still done program if only intern.
  • How get time commitment? Stress it from the beginning. Expand hours with evening/weekend librarians. These tend to be highly-involved students, differently involved from grad students.
  • Library administration seems to be missing? Starting this; one student has requested. Could have work with different directors for a week. What about issues that are of a sensitive nature?
  • 2 interns dropped out after end of 1st semester, another 2 dropped out after end of 2nd semester.
  • Grad students would be very envious of this program - what did SLIS students say to interns? Talked about the school aspect. Makes us think about what we can develop for grad students, and current librarians.
  • Important that this is an ongoing budget line item - not just a short-term project.

Thursday, April 17, 2008

WAAL 2008: Reinventing the Library Class Session


Eliot Finkelstein, Carrie Nelson, Trisha Prosise (UW-Madison's College Library)

Background

  • "One-shots" - single 50-minute sessions - many, many of us teach these
  • Library instruction "module" is integrated by mandate into certain required courses at UW-Madison
  • 2006: 4,300 students get online tutorial followed by 50-minute session
  • Librarians were repeating content in tutorial and in-person sessions - taking up time
  • Got to a point that script was a Frankenstein's monster, after multiple re-writes
  • Started with desired outcomes, rather than jumping into the "fun part"
  • Literature search - Deb Gilchrist (assessment expert)
  • Bloom's taxonomy - set 7 learning outcomes

Demonstration

  • 3 volunteers from audience were taught in the old way (told how to complete all the steps, then did it), then 3 volunteers that had been waiting in the hallway were taught in the new way (why this might be important to you, you won't be able to do it correctly the first time, but I'll step in to talk you through it)
  • Scenario: How to order food at the "WLA Food Counter" - needed to provide structured, ordered commands from controlled vocabulary
  • Second group of "students" felt more prepared, confident; even though one wound up with peanut butter smeared on the table in front of her, with no plate :) - because she knew what not to do next time
  • Teachers gave context: on the job
  • Allowed learners to try before completely taught method
  • One learner modelled, then learners discussed together
  • Set at ease: told them "this is going to be complicated," "this isn't easy"

Re-invention

  • With old method, engagement was less than we wanted
  • Questions and comments from students indicated a disconnect in learning

Constructivist learning

  • Susan Cooperstein and Elizabeth Kocevar-Weidinger
  • We may think that hands-on computer work after a demonstration is "active", but that's not pedagogists' definition of active learning: activity leading to concepts (not vice versa)
  • Students more comfortable with learning among peers
  • Real-world problem to solve (from students' point of view)
  • Learning from mistakes
  • Teacher as coach or facilitator of learning by chunks, rather than Our Leader

Transformative learning

  • Kelly McGonigal
  • Have to realize that there's something you don't know - motivation
  • Safe to fail
  • Scaffolding - teaching/learning in chunks

Changes made

  • Real world: "If you were an intern in Washington, D.C. this summer, your boss would ask you to do this"
  • Failure is built in - showed them a reasonable search, with 0 results - am I in the right database? are my search terms good? - recovered together
  • Disorientation: search field for database names, not for research terms - we bring them there, then talk them through it
  • Safe failure: Pods of computers - see everyone else having same thing happen
  • Balance between support and challenge - chunking, clues, flexibility with finger on the pulse of the room so you can change the plan if gets too challenging

Success!

  • Great student engagement
  • They're realizing that they do not know how to do something they thought they did
  • They want to know how to do this - Problem-solving, Working together
  • Lots of activities
  • Online worksheet - not talking at them the whole time

Assessment

  • Online worksheet kept in a database - research topic, journal database, search terms
  • Pulled 600 sheets - created a basic rubric
  • 1/4 hadn't chosen best database, 1/5 chose poor search terms
  • High percentage of instructors believe that library module improved student learning
  • Reviewed comments that indicated need to make changes
  • Librarians felt very engaged with new script
  • 80% students chose "librarian demonstrations" as the part of module that helped them most - they were really watching us, because they'd already done exercise

Questions/Comments

  • What if students don't do tutorial? Required, with embedded quizzes they need to turn in to instructor.
  • How would you do an exercise like this with different classes? 2nd script for separate class - chose hardest topic that I thought wouldn't work - went well. Work with instructor on assignment - ask "is it OK if the search fails the 1st time?"
  • Do you run out of time? Not any more than in past.
  • What do you cut out? Students working on their own topic at the end. We want them to come with a topic, but they might not start research on it during session.
  • Outcomes? How to find a book and article, how to get help, and positive attitude about the library.
  • Electronic worksheet? Web form - we get them there at beginning of class. Outline of some of class session. Narrative background of scenario. Paste in answers. Talk to the person next to you and find out... Students are okay with multi-tasking on computer. Students get copy of completed worksheet emailed to them (and us).
  • Non-traditional students? Mainly traditional undergrads, comfort with technology. In ELL class, did use paper worksheet.
  • Increased library use by these students? College Library is widely used by this user group, so getting them in the door isn't the issue. Anecdotally, getting better questions at the information desk. Recently, a student had already been in a database and found an article, but knew she needed better search terms and came to librarian - this is progress! Before, "I have a paper..."
  • Academic freedom of faculty? Some students can test out, so not required for all. Abbie Loomis, our campus instruction coordinator, was instrumental in getting library module mandated.
  • Used for more advanced classes? Not us yet. Sarah McDaniel, current campus instruction coordinator, has done similar project at other campus.

Wednesday, April 16, 2008

WAAL 2008: Next generation virtual reference


  • Steve Frye, UW-Madison College Library
  • Mark Beatty, WiLS
  • Valerie Beech, Marquette University
  • John Jentz, Marquette University

IM/chat at UW-Madison, and future of virtual reference

  • Steve:
  • UW-Madison started online reference in 2002 with Convey software
  • Needed to change software, and thought we'd look at new vendors
  • Instead, library powers that be asked us to look at virtual reference as a whole first
  • 2006 started with blended service (chat/IM)
  • "Ask a Librarian" link ubiquitous throughout library webpages
  • Decided early on that service would be staffed at desks, with staff of various levels
  • Needed to be stable, and simple - if needed more than 5 minutes of training, too much
  • Video: watching collaboration on virtual ref between reference staff
  • Choosing software - some useful websites
  • Will add Chat button within OPAC when "no results found"
  • Discussion btw. Writing Center, IT, libraries, tutoring service re: creating virtual Information Commons
  • Using Jing - free to download, screencasting for multi-step processes, free online hosting with URLs you can send patron
  • Takes 7 steps to order another book from another UW System library
  • #1: Virtual ref isn't the point - it's just another communication channel - we don't say "telephonic reference"
  • #2: What is it we do? - if you're thinking about doing it or not, does it fit in your mission? - 1876 Samuel Greene quote on what librarians do - doesn't mention a desk, or having to be there with a patron
  • #3: What do we call what we do? - TAIGA Forum 2006 - library directors - "Within the next 5 years..." - end of reference - library role is to project specialized services into research and learning workflows - Steve: they seem unable to conceive of "reference" beyond the desk
  • If you were building a new library, would you have a ref desk? If not, why do you have one now?
  • What is the future of providing support to students and faculty doing research? Bright.
  • Are we in the buggy business? Or the transportation business?

IM at Marquette University

  • IM = commercial free; VR = expensive client-based software (aka "chat")
  • 2006: John learns of Meebo; also looked at Pidgin (was GAIM) and Trillian
  • 2007: Use both Tutor.com ($$$) and Meebo
  • Meebo: entirely web-based (no download), allows anonymous chat
  • Students are used to being interrupted during reference, so prioritization of modality a non-issue
  • Hand-written log for ref stats, although can keep transcripts
  • In 3 months, IM has become 7.7% of ref Qs; less e-mail (fairly steady); less still VR
  • Think IM may level off at 10%
  • Types: ref (substantive) - mainly, ref (technical), directional (technical), directional (non-technical)
  • Minority of rude, impatient patrons
  • Ref staff really like IM; don't really like Tutor.com (complex national scheduling, etc.)
  • [Live demo]
  • Meebo sidebar in Firefox, so you can monitor as staffperson

QuestionPoint at WiLS

  • Finally able to do quality control - virtual ref staff previously worked in a vacuum
  • Both academic and public library patrons
  • AskAway
  • QuestionPoint introduced Qwidget one month ago - availability indicator, can re-direct to email for off-hours, or link to other live coverage when you aren't available
  • Starts anonymous; can enter email address; can still get a transcript if they don't share email with staff
  • [Live demo - email icon is small and not really obvious, but otherwise looks good!]
  • NWTC using on homepage, and integrated into LibGuides
  • I was able to get it into a MySpace page, and a regular Facebook profile (not a Facebook Page)
  • Would hate to think that librarians wouldn't do something because they were afraid of being inundated by reference questions
  • Could take a while if we ever need changes made to the software; QP is huge consortium with variety of opinions (ex: co-browsing - librarian can take over patron's desktop - Mark: this is dead; others insist they need it)
  • Steve: VR vendors should have talked to users, not librarians - too many features, it became unstable
  • Audience: I tried using public library chat, and Michigan person answered - I needed local knowledge, was referred to email
  • Mark: Garbage In, Garbage Out - need to make sure you put as much information as possible on your own website, so distant librarians can help. Signs in doors when closed - "here's how to get help online"

[Image: http://www.library.wisc.edu/ask]

WAAL 2008: Integrating and assessing information literacy



WAAL Information Literacy Award presentation
  • Dave Dettman, Coordinator of IL and Outreach, UW-Green Bay
  • UW System now looking at student learning assessment tools: iSkills, Project SAILS, ILT
  • Assessing learning outcomes is more difficult for IL than subject areas
  • How well is IL integrated into the curriculum at your campus?
  • "Assessment Loop" - want to complete all steps (goals, measurement, etc.), and close the loop (set new goals) - funders want to see this
  • Accreditation agencies starting to look at IL-related skills
  • Faculty had been afraid of IL - confusing it with technology literacy - can student use x piece of software/hardware?
  • We've been doing "one-shot" instruction sessions for a long time - faculty are used to this
  • Needed to document students' poor understanding of IL concepts for faculty who think that students have these skills
  • Need to approach library databases differently than the Wild West Web, not in same way that you'd ask one another a question
  • Action plan: Make failure visible, in order to move on to more effective approaches
  • Beyond one shot: librarian meets with students 2 times in computer labs where they can continue to research topics
  • Standardized tests: can be powerful for communicating a need for more integration
  • ETS iSkills ICTL test (Scale: 0-300) used at UWGB
  • No library instruction = 156.5
  • One-shot lecture = 164.4
  • Lecture + ICT literacy exercises = 171.2
  • National recommendation = at least 162
  • What does this score mean? Don't know, but he started to get invited by admin to serve on many instruction committees
  • UWGB revived freshman seminar concept, after ~15 years - beyond composition class
  • 1st assignment: Watch movie, pick 5 themes, find scholarly article related to each
  • Library e-guide - but faculty didn't promote, and complained about predominant website citations
  • 1st year (2006) = Failure
  • Would like to parse out data to an instructor level, but my data analyst isn't comfortable with that
  • Self-assessment of learning: increased on most measures (exception: "how to use" information)
  • People upstairs love this: "If the librarian's not doing much teaching right now, imagine the results if librarian was doing a bit more!"
  • Unfortunately, some students get to see me multiple times in their classes, others don't see me at all
  • Perception of what a librarian is the same, regardless of where they work - think the academic librarian is the same as their old kindergarten librarian
  • Really opening doors to faculty, institutional admin
  • Successfully advocated to expand freshman seminar in 2008-09 with IL to about 1/2 students
  • Planning to integrate more with 8 instructors
  • Want to convince 4 more instructors to require a similar assignment with one-shot, so not comparing apples to oranges
  • Many librarians find that they aren't able to use the data they collect in the way that they think, because the wind up trying to compare very different experiences
  • Now possible to make connections between IL scores (higher-level thinking) and post-grad hiring
  • Students finally get something back from assessment - see real-time results = higher motivation
  • We promoted campus interest in results, by some staff promising to shave their heads if score was higher than a certain level
  • Need to build IL assessment into a course, with class time
  • A different campus was offering $25 for students to take IL test - a student said "I'd rather give blood"
  • Awarded an IL "Lesson Study" grant - seed money is powerful on campus
  • Pre/post surveys, focus groups coordinated by Education students
  • Now working on MLLO Project: Assessing mission level student learning objectives
  • Faculty development - monetary rewards - make yourself visible there - with data, you'll become more welcome
  • LibQual at UWGB in 2004, again in 2008 - can show gains
  • UW System-wide assessment interest - we've been working in our own backyards for too long
  • Dave: Better to organically roll into an existing class, than to have a stand-alone "library class" for credit
  • Audience: Disagreement - our credit class is very popular among everyone

[Image: http://www.uwgb.edu/univcomm/news/insidearchive/04nov1.htm]

WAAL 2008: Where are we? Academic librarianship in Wisco


Panelists:

  • Kim LaPlante, Northeast Wisconsin Technical College
  • Mary Rieder, UW Colleges
  • Ed Van Gemert, UW-Madison
  • Pat Wilkinson, UW-Oshkosh
  • Pete Gilbert, Lawrence University
  • Moderator: Gretchen Revie, Lawrence University

Role of library in higher education today

  • Kim:
  • WI Tech Coll system served 400,000 students last year
  • NWTC 43,000+ students, 6,000 FTE
  • Education: what you want, how you want it, where you want it
  • #1 teaching IL skills - find, evaluate, use - librarian is most important resource in the library
  • #2 gather materials - not so much in-house, but provide access; currency (ex: nursing or computer tech within past few years); get copyright permission to put online; video streaming online; cover many counties so has to be widely available
  • #3 fostering innovation; disseminate to admin and faculty re: trends, directions to take, grants
  • Mary:
  • Similar to Tech Coll, with multiple campuses/libraries (13) across state; 50 library staff (~3/library, not all FT)
  • Lots to do, little staff time to do it
  • Large and growing online student population (1,100 now)
  • Undergrad support vs. faculty research
  • Started online document delivery, use SCLS and UB forfor ILL
  • Non-traditional students doing research from work - needed proxy server
  • Online library support has been done from one campus, but will need to hire more
  • Templates for course Library Course Pages - citation guides, databases, catalog, ILL, websites - faculty can customize if want
  • Coursecasting - podcasting audio of lectures, campus activities (ex: poetry readings), access can be restricted to students
  • IL - wide range of students; life-long skills
  • Copyright education for instructors
  • Pete:
  • Googled phrase "role of library in higher education" - found article from 1982, Australian perspective
  • Dependent upon educational objectives of institution
  • WAICU - 19 private schools - Marquette to Nashoda Seminary - most 1000-2000 students - overall 57,000 students; 1/4 4-year students in state - more diversity and non-traditional students (25+ years old)
  • Independent schools: Personal connections, innovate with faculty, mission-driven, about teaching and learning primarily for undergrads, individualized learning, undergrads doing research with faculty
  • Pat:
  • Utilitarian definition of academic librarian
  • Means by which HE gets certain amount of scholarly information to students and faculty
  • 11 comprehensive colleges within UW System (2,500 to 10,000 students)
  • Academic libraries no longer have a near monopoly - once operated in information-scarce environment; now information-rich
  • Grappling with having to demonstrate our effectiveness now that libraries didn't need to 30 years ago
  • Admins contact me and ask about # of books in library to put in reports - that doesn't tell anyone anything
  • Ed:
  • We'll hear more about similarities than dissimilarities today
  • We have an incredible wealth of educational opportunities in this state - marvel at how and why that came about
  • Over 45 libraries on the UW-Madison campus [well...]
  • UW-Madison started 2 years after statehood, library collections go back further than that
  • Sister states benefit from multiple research universities
  • Wisconsin Idea - Charles Van Hise 1904 - boundaries of university extend beyond boundaries of the state
  • My grandfather's time: extension staff, lumbering - natural resources, Now: information technology
  • Support for big science, and digital arts and humanities
  • Important for quality of life in Wisconsin
  • People think "grad students and faculty research" but it's also undergrad education
  • Less about internal focus, than external - how library serves needs of campus, city, state
  • Article in Chronicle from Monday - UW-Madison difficulty retaining faculty and staff, scary article
Changes made in past 3-5 years to accomplish mission in HE? Considering?

  • Kim:
  • IL - more guides, online tours, virtual ref, more lab staff, hired coordinator for 3 campuses, customized guides for 3 programs, video streaming
  • for students who are used to doing their own Myspace and Facebook pages
  • Increasing tools at regional centers so anywhere in district students can get what they need
  • Cataloging learning objects alongside books, journals, etc.
  • Using Delicious account to bring students to recommended sites
  • Library blog with RSS feed
  • In Facebook - not alot of fans, but we are there - incorporate resources within so if seen, they can use
  • Innovation - joined a lot of committees, not just to market library, but to help out as researcher about new technology, trends; More integrated with curriculum dev process
  • College-wide online discussion with reading lists, instructors discuss articles posted by librarians
  • Want to increase team teaching of librarians and faculty
  • Want to make our interfaces more user-friendly; nextgen wants easy, nontrad want intuitive; Voyager 7 this year
  • Instructor development role - want to help train re: libraries, work with existing faculty, being added to search teams, so can market library before they're hired because so busy when they start
  • Mary:
  • Tried some of those things
  • Wisco virtual ref consortium - dropped out - staff small, hard to cover shifts - started to get questions about resources we didn't have
  • Tried chat and IM ref, our students tend to like email because you can get to it on own time
  • New strategic plan - assessment is big - survey a few years ago re: user feedback on Voyager catalog, and lots of changes were made, more streamlined; more campus surveys; 1st LibQual only 118 respondents (not as many as hoped) - will put into report for Library Council
  • Budget cuts - created our own licensed resource purchasing cooperative; more collaborative purchase decisions
  • Some students want to talk, others to be quiet - customizing spaces
  • Online social networking hasn't really gone big with us
  • Some of our libraries have LibraryThing and Google Books lists
  • May become a baccalaureate granting institution, and will need to support this
  • Want to tell faculty what we have, so they can tell students what we have
  • Want to digitize non-copyrighted materials
  • Want to look at internal and external funding sources
  • Pete:
  • Wayne Wiegand was my advisor in grad school - key phrase was "the library in the life of the user, as opposed to the user in the life of the library" - to achieve ubiquity, we try to customize our resources/services for users
  • Signs and business cards: "Ask us"
  • We're also spending a lot of time asking them - formal through SurveyMonkey, and informal through flipchart in library with question: "What one change would you like to see in the physical building?" that users write on
  • We ask ourselves "So what?" - what if we just stopped doing this? what would happen? because we have to stop something if we start something new.
  • IL causes increased reference statistics - make appointments for reference conferences, allows us to prepare more than drop-in desk questions
  • Going to where the students are, virtually - Moodle course management system on campus (free version of D2L, Blackboard) - created a library module to search catalog, will add federated searching, will be doing Delicious and RSS; working with faculty to use PURLs to link to articles
  • Librarians and art faculty talking about digital image provision to studio students - work on things as people ask for them
  • Senior experience - every department has to have a culminating experience; opportunity to integrate library across curriculum
  • Building new campus center - "living room" - library is like that right now; what will new role of library be? Remote services? Domino effect on other buildings - incorporate learning commons into library?
  • Pat:
  • Sharper, more public focus on faculty research
  • TOC service
  • Desktop document delivery - Promised to faculty that we'd get anything they wanted as fast as we could - $10,000/year - BadgerCat helpful as discovery tool, some UW funding
  • Less cumbersome for students - added MS Office suite, wireless, laptop checkout, allow people to do things from homepage
  • Tried minor physical improvements - quiet study, group study, new archives area (work with classes doing research)
  • More fun, fewer rules, no fines for overdues, murder mystery/IL, coffee/cookies during finals, custom-printed mousepads
  • Not only tried to handle cuts well, but have tried to improve services - got through to admin, they were happier with us
  • Not buried under IT in identity
  • Stress one-system, one-library - role of UW-Madison as flagship very important, elsewhere that doesn't happen
  • Reducing footprint of materials, to make room for information commons
  • Conscious transition to digital resources
  • Integrate with CMS
  • Increased funding, strengthening cooperative collection development
  • Ed:
  • Started 1971 as student assistant in library
  • Recent strategic planning exercise - not so important what directions and outcomes were - process on large campus (300 FTE) was interesting and informative - wouldn't hesitate to do again
  • Strategic partnerships - with faculty, students, other system institutions on digital collections, highlight work by faculty, with Google - transformative work for libraries
  • We can do big things, and we can change the world, that's part of our role - will continue to be
  • Library space is a physical asset; over 1 million square feet at UW-Madison; reduction of print, want to repurpose, also landgrab on campus; how partner with faculty, centers, etc. or it will be taken from us
  • Have lost 5 million dollars in journal collections from budget cuts; ILL/document delivery has done a great job
  • Lorcan Dempsey - critical of libraries not "in the flow"
  • NIH requirement of uploading publications to PubMed Central - libraries have taken central role, partnered with research admin
  • Culture of Sharing workshop last weekend - 50 students, starting Students for Free Culture org on campus - told it was the 1st such symposium in U.S.
  • Building collections based on buildings and people not appropriate; need to support multidisciplinarity
  • Librarians designed learning outcomes for learning objects - instructors bring images, skeletons, etc. - how help them place into CMS, provide ubiquity

What skills and abilities help librarians thrive?

  • Kim:
  • Instruction skills with enthusiasm - they just have to share!
  • Someone with imagination who has ideas they want to try
  • Mary:
  • Need IT skills because we're not that well supported, do our own web design
  • Multi-tasking - reference in person, circulation, email reference, committee work
  • Marketing resources, services, what we can do for faculty/admin/community
  • Networking with community - Campus Reads, library boards, helps at budget time
  • Ed:
  • Social intelligence - build into position descriptions - work as team, partnerships with limited resources and time regardless of subject expertise
  • Pat:
  • Ability to work in ambiguous situations, take a risk, take initiative; 30 years ago, libraries were run top-down
  • Business communication skills - we like academia, and we need to focus our communication on what people need to know, not what we want to show them
  • Pete:
  • Creativity - thinking energy - I have 9 pages of brainstorming from staff about better serving campus
  • Responsivity - reference "house calls"
  • Connectivity - knowing people by name, who's doing what
[Image: http://www.mywcpa.org/colleges_universities.php]