Processing Electronic Reserves in a Large Academic Library System

Implementation of electronic reserves in academic libraries represents one of the most important advances in libraries for patrons in many years. Some academic libraries offer faculty peace of mind by assuming responsibility for copyright clearance for electronic reserve services. Libraries have the specialized equipment to scan and edit files to make them readable and easily downloaded by students. Libraries also have sufficient electronic storage to hold scanned material for future semesters. This paper examines how electronic reserves are managed in a large academic library system. The short history behind electronic reserves at Pennsylvania State University Libraries and the procedures associated with creating and maintaining the reserve system, will be considered, as well as offering a statistical assessment of how electronic reserves have affected the other services of the University Libraries. Finally, issues surrounding electronic reserves, fair use, copyright and Pennsylvania State University Libraries' procedures will be explored.     

Article Delivery Services at Penn State and Partner Libraries in the Committee on Institutional Cooperation Consortium

To meet rising patron expectations and to promote library collections and services, libraries are contemplating or implementing article delivery services to same-campus patrons from journal articles held locally. This article describes The Pennsylvania State University Libraries’ electronic delivery of articles from in-house print collections. It also summarizes a survey of the Committee on Institutional Cooperation interlibrary loan directors about the article delivery services at their institutions.     

Introduction

This article highlights the speakers and their topics presented at the MidSouth eResource Symposium held at Mississippi State University (MSU) Libraries on August 11, 2011. The Symposium was co-sponsored by EBSCO Information Services, North American Serials Interest Group's (NASIG) Continuing Education Committee, and MSU Libraries. Burdened with flat or decreasing budgets and the need for more digital collections driven by patron preferences, libraries continue to face many challenges. This year's Symposium presentations focused on the acquisition and management of e-resources, and provided attendees with knowledge of new and emerging technologies related to electronic resources and the digital environment.     

Reorganizing acquisitions at the Pennsylvania State University Libraries: From work units to teams

This paper provides insight into the process of reorganizing The Pennsylvania State University Libraries Acquisitions Department into self-managed teams. Included are discussions of budgets and staffing issues that served as a catalyst for change; the reorganization process; past, interim, and current organizational structures; and advantages and disadvantages of the new team-based structure.     

Floating collection in an academic library: An audacious experiment that succeeded

Can a floating collection thrive in a large multicampus academic research library? Floating collections have been successful in public libraries for some time, but it is uncommon for academic libraries and unheard of for a large academic library system. This article will discuss the investigation into the feasibility of a floating collection at Penn State University Libraries, its implementation, and continuation for a period covering 2009 through 2015. Attaining the floating collection, limited to monographs in the general stacks of campus libraries, proved to be easier to implement than imagined and resulted in unintended benefits as well as some surprises.     

The North Carolina State University Libraries Search Experience: Usability Testing Tabbed Search Interfaces for Academic Libraries

Creating a learnable, effective, and user-friendly library Web site hinges on providing easy access to search. Designing a search interface for academic libraries can be particularly challenging given the complexity and range of searchable library collections, such as bibliographic databases, electronic journals, and article search silos. Library Web designers must decide whether to present users with a single search interface—one that searches across content silos by default—or to offer an interface that exposes the various silos available. Designers must also contend with the user's entire search experience and determine how search should appear on the library home page as well as in global navigation systems. In the spring of 2010, the North Carolina State University Libraries sought to answer search design questions for an upcoming Web site design effort. The Libraries evaluated two different search interfaces to determine whether a tabbed search approach with options to pre-select silos is an effective design for end users. Findings show that a tabbed search interface is an effective design device for presenting multiple silos. This study outlines the methods the North Carolina State University Libraries used to conduct usability testing as well as observations, findings, and recommendations about effective design of search on academic library Web sites.     

Financial Literacy and the Academic Library: Exploring the Peer-to-Peer Approach

Colleges and universities employ a variety of strategies to deliver financial education to students. Among these approaches is peer-to-peer financial education, which has been explored in many settings but never in an academic library. Following a review of financial literacy approaches used on college and university campuses by libraries, and other units and departments, this article describes the Student Financial Education Center located at Pennsylvania State University Libraries and discusses the unique challenges and opportunities of implementing a peer-to-peer financial education program in this setting.     

An interview with Sanford G. Thatcher,director, the Penn State Press

This interview was conducted at The Pennsylvania State University Libraries on April 30, 1992. Sanford G. Thatcher candidly comments on issues relating to university presses, the current state of the publishing world, and his views regarding scholarly communication and the future of scholarly journals.     

The Klaipeda University Library in Lithuania

Summary

The author, Library Director at the University of Klaipeda (Lithuania) and Washington State University Libraries' Library Fellow, writes about her own library in the context of other Lithuanian academic libraries and emerging consortia in Lithuania and the European Community. Both the Consortium of Lithuanian Libraries' project, the Lithuanian Integrated Library Information System (LIBIS), and the European Community's project, the Trans-European Cooperative Scheme for Higher Education (TEMPUS), are specifically noted. The author also offers both her impressions of American academic libraries gathered during her experience as a Library Fellow based at Washington State University Libraries and her hopes for the future of academic libraries in Lithuania.     

Collections and systems: a new organizational paradigm for collection development

Collection development and the management of access to electronic resources in large academic libraries increasingly requires close cooperation between collection development librarians, public service librarians, and systems librarians and staff. Many libraries, both public and academic, have created new positions or converted existing ones with titles such as ‘electronic resources librarian’ or ‘electronic information coordinator.’ Two years ago, the Washington State University (WSU) Libraries decided to take a different approach to managing these two vital library functions by creating the new position of Assistant Director for Collections and Systems. This paper explores the convergence of collection development and systems in a research library. It sets forth the philosophical underpinnings of that convergence, and it discusses issues encountered in the integration of the two services in the WSU Libraries. Finally, it explores strategic issues for future collection development and management from the perspective of this new organizational paradigm. [1]     

We Are All Teachers: A Collaborative Approach to Digital Collection Development

ABSTRACT

In libraries and archives, efforts to document underrepresented communities and diversify collections can be fraught with political tension. We explore an interdepartmental collaboration to create and preserve a digital collection documenting the Urban Native Relocation Program of the mid- to late-twentieth century in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Involving the Grand Valley State University Libraries, the Kutsche Office of Local History, and the university's Native American Advisory Board, the project serves as a model not just for collaborative collection development but also for community engagement and outreach. We find that process is as important as product in developing collaborative digital collections.     

Beyond the fringe: Administratively decentralized collections at the University of Michigan

Little is known about the materials that university departments purchase for their own use. This study examines materials purchased for other departments at the University of Michigan, whether these materials were also held in the University of Michigan Libraries' collections, and the subjects of the materials purchased. Titles purchased for departmental collections were searched in the libraries' online public catalog to determine whether they were held by the University Libraries, and if so, their subject. The majority of titles purchased for departmental libraries were held in the University Libraries collection. As a whole, the purchases were concentrated in science, technical, and medical fields; moreover, titles in these fields were more likely than others to be duplicated in the University Libraries. This study provides initial insight into the relation of independent departmental collections and raises many questions about the relation of such collections to central university libraries.     

Superheroes in the Stacks: Halloween ComicFest and Wichita State University

Academic libraries’ graphic novel and comic book collections hold a wide appeal for both scholarly study and personal reading. Programming around these materials can attract diverse audiences to promote library services and resources in a distinctive way. Wichita State University Libraries hosted their first Halloween ComicFest in 2017 and it has grown into an annual event from the success of this initial endeavor. In this article, the authors discuss the challenges of planning and hosting a comic convention in an academic library as well as the potential benefits such events hold for both libraries and their patrons.     

Integrating Image-Based Research Datasets into an Existing Digital Repository Infrastructure

In 2011, the University of North Texas (UNT) Libraries partnered with researchers in the university's academic departments to describe and provide access to items not traditionally included in the UNT Libraries’ systems. Including more than 1,400 items apiece, the two projects are considered active datasets by their respective users. Each collection provided new challenges in harmonizing partner, metadata, and end-user requirements. This article discusses the projects, workflow for defining requirements, and final implementation in the UNT Digital Library. These collections serve as a model for integrating other research projects easily and inexpensively into a repository infrastructure.     

Refocusing,Rebalancing, and Refining (R3):

At Michigan State University, long-range planning has existed for many years. Its current planning effort, Refocusing, Rebalancing, and Refining (R³) has been implemented effectively within the University Libraries with significant benefits. First, the staff became better informed about library funding which resulted in better and more realistic program proposals. Second, the staff are moving more effectively into the strategic planning process being implemented by the new director. Third, R³ has provided the Libraries with an effective platform from which to emphasize with University administrators the important role played by the Libraries in all academic enterprises. And finally, staff participation in the process provided them with a real sense of empowerment.     

Representation in the Collection: Assessing Coverage of LGBTQ Content in an Academic Library Collection

Abstract

Academic library collections have been built and shaped by a focus on dominant voices and perspectives. In order for collections to reflect the value librarianship places on diversity as well as represent multiple perspectives and serve users of diverse backgrounds and identities, collections need to be assessed for coverage of content related to diversity. This article discusses the challenges inherent in engaging in such an assessment, discusses collection assessment methods, and describes an analysis performed on the Penn State University Libraries collections focused on lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer content.     

Services for Graduate Students: A Review of Academic Library Web Sites

A library's Web site is well recognized as the gateway to the library for the vast majority of users. Choosing the most user-friendly Web architecture to reflect the many services libraries offer is a complex process, and librarians are still experimenting to find what works best for their users. As part of a redesign of the Oregon State University Libraries’ Web site, entry points for specific user groups were created. One of these user groups was graduate students. The purpose of this study was to explore the ways other academic libraries design their Web sites for particular user groups, specifically graduate students, in order to determine how the Oregon State University Libraries Web site compared to peer institutions. This study analyzed 112 Association of Research Libraries’ Web sites and 26 Oregon academic libraries’ Web sites to determine the availability of resources and services specifically promoted to graduate students. Since graduate students may view the library Web site through the lens of new student, researcher, or instructor, Web sites were also examined to see if sites were created with any or all of these roles in mind. Nearly a quarter of Association of Research Libraries' Web sites that were examined contained a link on the homepage for graduate students, and another 20 percent provided graduate-student information at a lower level in their site hierarchy. A majority of sites had events, subject guides, or course guides for graduate students. Information for graduate students was typically framed in the context of graduate students as researchers. Ideas and examples are given for ways to improve Web site design to better serve this user group. In order to provide improved services to these students, future studies will explore what graduate students need from academic libraries and the ways these students conduct themselves in their various roles of researchers, instructors, and new students.     

Electronic Reserves

SUMMARY

At Rutgers University Libraries, the traditional reserve collection has migrated to a paperless electronic reserve service. To justify the change, Library Staff used two methodologies: a user survey and an analysis of reserve collections broken down by location and format, with circulation figures for each category. This change was made in stages; electronic reserves went to a digital only service. Librarians at Rutgers University are using electronic reserve services to gain experience with digital collections, homegrown and commercial databases, collections for distance education, and materials and services to remote users. In this paper we also look at some of the factors affecting academic reserve operations.