Emergency Preparedness in the Legal Librarian Community in the United States: Current Culture and the Need to Expand Collaboration

The frequency of natural disasters hitting populated areas is increasing, and due to society’s increased dependency on modern infrastructure, the impacts of disasters have also escalated. I interviewed librarians and law librarians who work or have worked in libraries that were impacted by natural disasters as well as experts in the disaster management field. From their comments and insights, shared in this article, it is clear that there are lessons that can be learned from the larger community in the area of disaster management in law libraries. The law librarian community needs to expand the scope of the national discussion to include disaster management. The key lessons obtained in these national forums, like those shared by the subject matter experts I interviewed, will enable law libraries to become a more resilient and an even more valuable asset to the communities we serve when a natural disaster strikes.     

Intro to Archival Science: Developing an Undergraduate Archival Elective Outside of a LIS Program

Abstract

This case study describes the development and implementation of a three-credit undergraduate archival science course at Mount St. Mary’s University. Offered through the university’s Department of History, this course was designed to prepare students for positions in archives-related careers, unlike most research-based undergraduate archival electives. Benefits of the course to both students and the archivist profession will be discussed.     

Disaster Planning in Libraries

ABSTRACT

Disaster preparedness is an important issue in library management today. This article presents a general overview of the theoretical aspects of disaster planning in libraries. The stages of disaster planning are a circular process of planning, prevention, response, recovery, preparedness, and training.     

Incident preparedness at the National Gallery: Developing a grab bag for rapid response to a corrosive attack

Abstract

Being prepared to address an attack on a painting requires considerable input from both scientific and conservation personnel. When tailoring an appropriate and effective incident response, a well-developed knowledge of the collection, the museum layout, and staffing is also essential. This article discusses the nature of attacks on paintings and the materials and techniques used to mitigate the effects of malicious damage. Previous research into response procedures and the testing of attack substances is also summarized. The primary focus of the article traces the redevelopment of the National Gallery incident response grab bag that caters to various types of attack. Discussions center on developing the customized content of the new bag, material testing, and a practice run-through to establish a response procedure. Ultimately, the practicality and efficacy of the grab bag are demonstrated.     

Lessons Learned from Katrina: What Really Matters in a Disaster

SUMMARY

While life's everyday occurrences in libraries leave us with a disaster situation, nothing could have prepared libraries for the magnitude of Hurricane Katrina. Devastating winds, flooding, and destruction to the area infrastructure required a type of response seldom experienced. By revisiting the responses in minor to catastrophic disasters, there are lessons to be learned. Some lessons serve as a source for prevention for potential disaster situations, rehabilitation in localized disasters, and reinvention when libraries are reduced to rubble.     

The 2004 and 2005 Gulf Coast Hurricanes: Evolving Roles and Lessons Learned for Public Libraries in Disaster Preparedness and Community Services

SUMMARY

In the aftermath of the 2004 and 2005 Gulf Coast hurricanes, public libraries played many important roles in their communities, though ensuring access to vital information may have been the most critical service. This article explores the participation of public libraries in the recovery of their communities, the implications of this involvement for the place of public libraries in society, and lessons learned and recommendations for public library disaster planning. As this article demonstrates, public libraries successfully provided a range of disaster preparedness and recovery services that were not provided and could not have been provided by other government agencies.     

Developing Leadership Skills for Reference Librarians: The Case for Planning a Local Conference

The planning, development, and organization of a one-day or multiple-day conference is time consuming, challenging, and requires a well-prepared framework. This article discusses the guidelines and strategies developed by the Southeast Florida Library Information Network Reference Committee for the organization of a successful local conference. These guidelines offer a model for any organization that is planning a conference and for incorporating future events into the planning process. They also serve as a collaborative model for what a regional network can achieve toward promoting and providing professional development and leadership opportunities for its libraries, librarians, and library staff.     

Change in Libraries: Directions for the Future

ABSTRACT

Results of two surveys and a study process for public library members of a Kansas regional library system are described. Information and observations are presented from participants who identify seven key areas for development including the library’s (1) relationship with its community, (2) accessibility and services, (3) technology, (4) e-readers and digital collections, (5) physical space, (6) staffing, and (7) funding. Two general themes–re-purposing of existing physical space and increased growth of the virtual library–are identified. Public librarians may frame the areas for change in the context of their own experiences and planning for the future.     

Managing the Personnel in University Libraries: A Developing Country Perspective

Let's face it, these days leading and managing a library workforce is a complex task, as many competing factors influence the values, behaviors, and culture of library workplaces. This feature column, written by Nosheen Fatima Warraich and Kanwai Ameen, focuses on academic libraries in Pakistan, as the workplace setting; but the research also has implication for the management of library human resources in other contexts and in other countries.

Reading this contribution caused me to think about the issues relating to human resource management in a broader global context. This article is a timely reminder that library workplaces are pretty much the same across the world—something I was reminded of recently when I spent some time at an academic library in Malaysia. Local context and issues are important in any consideration of library human resource challenges and opportunities with local factors (such as enterprise agreements, workforce composition, etc.) never far from the focus of library leaders. However, leaving aside local context, library workplaces are also impacted by global factors (including information and communications technologies, global economic conditions, etc.). More so than ever before, the challenges and opportunities playing out when it comes to leadership and management of library human resources, have many things in common. This feature column highlights this point well as it brings a nice mix of applied research and professional practice experience. Based on some large scale research, its findings may be helpful to library leaders in contexts beyond Pakistan.

I am pleased to feature this contribution to help highlight the global nature of our practice of professional skills in librarianship and the leadership of library human resources. As always, I invite contributions to the column on topics broadly addressing themes or issues for library workers throughout their career lifecycle. Please submit articles for this column to the editor at vicki.williamson@usask.ca. Please mark the subject line of your submission “IILR contribution.”     

Bringing Content into the Picture: Proposing a Tri-Partite Model for Digital Preservation

Digital preservation is a complex field that is rapidly maturing and increasingly focusing on content as well as the human element of digital preservation. This conceptual article examines a number of digital preservation models meeting a variety of needs created by different communities. Given the guidance these models have afforded digital preservation, considering the present, and looking to the future, this article proposes a tri-partite model for thinking about digital preservation in an era of robust community involvement: the Digital Preservation Triad. The Triad focuses on 1) Management, including elements relating to documentation and human resources; 2) Technology; and 3) Content.     

Framing a Vision for 21st-Century Librarianship: LIS Education in Changing Times

Librarianship is at a critical juncture. Technological changes have reshaped the information landscape, but libraries as social institutions have not been able to transform themselves to keep pace. This is the challenge of Library and Information Science Education. As we look to a future professional education for librarians, we need to acknowledge the need to reinvent our educational goals and methods so our graduates can lead in this new emerging environment. A relevant education for the information sectors will include a synthesis of global, technical, and critical perspectives to encourage librarians to understand the changes they need to enact to ensure relevance for the future.     

Assessment of Social Media in the Library: Guidelines for Administrators

Libraries have always tried to identify the places their patrons visit and the tools they use to make sure they are fully serving these patrons. Since a high percentage of adults in the United States use some form of social media, libraries should be visible there too. This column offers guidelines and advice for implementing social media in the academic library in two areas: marketing and instruction. The guidelines will help library administrators plan, implement and assess social media campaigns in both areas and will ensure that valuable time and resources are not wasted.     

内容管理：信息资源管理的前沿课题

通过文献调查、分析,以及对内容管理与信息管理的对比研究,可以认为内容管理是信息资源管理微观层次上的重要进展,属于信息资源管理的前沿课题。     

Resourceful Blogging: Using a Blog for Information Sharing

ABSTRACT

In an effort to help raise awareness about the need for disaster planning in health sciences libraries, emergency response planners at the Claude Moore Health Sciences Library at the University of Virginia considered how best to promote the idea and provide a forum for gathering and exchanging information, while maintaining control over content in order to keep the focus and the quality of the entries consistent. The blog they created has been successful in providing much-needed assistance to hospital libraries and other libraries, both large and small, as well as for individuals and other organizations worldwide.     

从交互维度到交互功能:构建数字图书馆交互评估理论模型

数字图书馆评估研究从不同角度确立了大量的评估指标,但是评估指标的多元化也造成了共识性缺乏的弊端,削弱了评估成果的应用价值和应用绩效;特别是关于数字图书馆交互功能评估的研究,仍处于成果短缺、零散的状态。基于此,本研究以用户与数字图书馆的交互模型为理论基础,采用实验研究方法,探索用户与数字图书馆的交互过程,分析不同的交互维度、子维度及其相关指标对于数字图书馆交互功能评估的作用,最终获得数字图书馆交互功能评估的预测性子维度与关联性子维度,并据此构建了数字图书馆交互功能评估模型,为数字图书馆交互评估提供了理论框架,同时也为提升数字图书馆交互功能的设计提供借鉴。图1。表12。参考文献39。     

Managing Content in EBSCO Discovery Service: Action Guide for Surviving and Thriving

ABSTRACT

Since Idaho State University Libraries’ implementation and promotion of EBSCO Discovery Service (EDS) in 2014, its electronic resources team continues to troubleshoot seamless content discovery for library patrons. But nothing prepared us for the kind of content issues the Library would have to deal with on a day-to-day basis. This report discusses ways of managing content in EDS to improve discovery of resources, including linking issues to ClinicalKey records and dealing with “bound with” local catalog records. It also addresses obstacles and solutions, as well as the authors’ experience working with EBSCO Support.     

Not Meta Just Data: Redefining Content and Metadata in Archival Theory and Practice1

How we imagine records affects what we acquire and how we manage it. I take up the call from Arjun Appadurai to view archives as deliberate creations, and from Hugh Taylor to use imagination as a means of creative engagement with archival theory. I explore how we can reimagine archival work, mandates, and records by eschewing divisions of content and metadata, acknowledging items and aggregations to be interchangeable concepts, and integrating data about use into archival data management.     

Bridging strategy versus buffering strategy: enhancing crisis management capability in public management for relational and reputational improvement,and conflict avoidance

This study seeks to understand the effectiveness of an organization’s communication strategy in enhancing its crisis management capability in public management. The relationships between two types of communication strategies (bridging and buffering), crisis management capability in public management, relational improvement, reputational improvement, and conflict avoidance have been tested to suggest how an organization’s overall strategic orientation may help its ability to weather a crisis. A survey of communication managers was conducted in South Korea with 105 responses, representing 105 organizations. Results revealed that organizations which are predisposed toward adopting the bridging strategy as their main communication strategy also report better crisis management capability in public management, and as a result, experience positive relational and reputational outcomes.