ALAO Newsletter

Betsy Blankenship, Ohio State University, Marion

I want to say how privileged I am to be able to serve as your President for the 2013-2014 year! The Board met in July for the Leadership Retreat, where new members were installed, and we said goodbye to others. I want to say thank you to Brian Hickam, Karen Plummer, Stephanie Bange, Jessica Long, Peggy Rector, Jennifer Bazeley, Alice Crosetto, Julie Deardorff, and Lauren Wahman for their service to ALAO. We truly appreciate the time and service you gave!

The new board has already been busy with new projects. We approved the creation of a new Interest Groups, Assessment Interest Group, at the Leadership Retreat. Please look for their discussion session at the Annual Conference. The ALAO website is undergoing a facelift, so please pardon our dust as we get all the parts working. I hope you let us know what you like (or don’t like) about the new site once it is done.

The 39th Annual Conference is shaping up! We are looking forward to seeing how everyone is envisioning The Changing Faces of Academic Libraries, through their transforming, reorganizing and re-imagining! The Conference Committee has been busy (and busier lately!) getting the plans finalized. We have sent out the last round of acceptances for the poster sessions, lightning talks and roundtables, so the schedule is set. There were so many great proposals sent in, and the committee was truly challenged to choose. We are looking forward to hearing our Keynote Speaker, Dr. Nancy Fried Foster speak. The Committee pledged to offer students more professional development opportunities. We are working on those, from volunteering at the conference to presenting poster sessions and talks. We are also working with Membership Chair, Alison Ricker, and others to offer New Members and First Time Conference Attendees special sessions and information and a chance to get a conference mentor. In addition, we are working to set up an informal get-together opportunity on Thursday evening. Check the conference website for updates. And, don’t forget the great Pre-Conference we have, too! Laura Solomon and others will be sharing some great information and hands-on activities. Please come join us October 24 (pre-conference) and 25 (Early Bird registration ends September 16). Remember to book your room at the conference hotel by September 23 to get the ALAO rate! Visit the conference website for more information: http://goo.gl/ryXMa

ALAO Colleagues,
We had a wonderful Board Retreat in July at the Holiday Inn in Worthington, Ohio. Several photos of new and departing Board members are on the new ALAO website. Speaking of the new site, have you used it yet? Our wonderful web-masters completed the site in record time this summer. Big thanks go out to Brian Gray, Melissa Bauer, and Rob Withers, the ALAO Web-masters, for completing this upgrade. Several other Board members lent support and also deserve a shout out – Katy Kelly, Kathleen Pickens, and Alison Ricker. The site features a new organizational structure, search box, and images of our members in action. This fall we hope to launch a new ALAO listserv. More information will be distributed at the annual conference.

Awards Committee – I created a new form for submitting nominations for the Jay Ladd Distinguished Service Award. More information about the award and the nomination process is in this newsletter. The deadline for nominations is September 30th. Please consider nominating a colleague. The Awards Committee will also consider adding new awards to our portfolio. If you have ideas or wish to be part of the conversation, let me know.

Nominations Committee – I’ve been recruiting new members for the nominations committee. This group meets from late Fall through March to accept nominations for ALAO offices open for election and present a slate of candidates to the membership. If you are interested in joining this group, please feel free to contact me. Nominations for ALAO offices will be open later this year. These will include Vice President/President Elect, Secretary, Membership Chair, and 3 Board Members-at-Large. Maybe your name should be on the slate of candidates!

Looking forward to seeing you in October at the annual conference, registration is open!

Best,
Sue Polanka
ALAO Past President

Sue Polanka, Wright State University

The ALAO Awards Committee seeks nominations for the 2013 Jay Ladd Distinguished Service Award.
This award recognizes an individual who (1) has been an Academic Library Association of Ohio member for at least 5 years, and (2) who has promoted academic libraries and librarianship not only on his or her own campus, but also within the state.

The award also recognizes someone who has provided leadership in the promotion of ALAO through service such as committee membership, executive board office, or interest group office. The Jay Ladd Distinguished Service Award honors the memory of Jay Ladd, a founding member of ALAO in the early 1970s.

This is a wonderful way to recognize a colleague who has provided leadership in ALAO and in the profession. The recipient of this year’s award will receive an honorary 5-year membership in ALAO and will be recognized at the ALAO Annual Conference at Kent State University Stark Campus on October 25, 2013.

Please submit your nomination through the online nomination form.

The form requests the following information:

• Name of nominee
• Nominee’s position title
• Nominee’s college or university
• Nominee’s ALAO activities
• Your reasons for nominating this person
• Your name and contact information, including phone or email

NOTE: You may nominate more than one person. Your reasons for nominating your candidate(s) for the Jay Ladd Distinguished Service Award will be especially valuable to the Awards Committee.

Please submit your nominations by Monday, September 30, 2013.

Past winners include:
2012 John J. Burke
2011 Diane Schrecker
2010 Alisa Mizikar
2009 Susan Scott
2008 Marcia Suter

Joseph Straw, Marietta College, Government Relations Committee Chair

In 2013, ACRL has focused on three legislative and judicial issues at the national level. A summary and current status is as follows:

1. Copyright and “First Sale” Doctrine
   The U.S. Supreme Court case of Kirtsaeng V. John Wiley & Sons took on the important issue of “first sale” and the provisions in the copyright law that allow purchasers of a particular copy to sell or use the copy without the permission of the copyright owner. This case hinged around whether the “first sale” doctrine could be understood to extend copyright protection to material manufactured abroad. On March 19, 2013, the Court ruled 6-3 to offer broad protections to purchasers of copyrighted material from a variety of sources. For libraries, this decision favorably resolved questions regarding their ability to lend or purchase material made abroad. A link to the U.S. Supreme Court slip opinion is below:
   http://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/12pdf/11-697_4g15.pdf

   The library and ALA position is well summarized by John Band:
   http://www.librarycopyrightalliance.org/bm~doc/issue-brief-kirtsaeng-post-analysis-02apr13.pdf
   This decision is very positive for libraries and strongly affirms the “first sale” doctrine. The court did leave open the possibility for copyright holders to change the law through legislation, and clearly the issue of copyright in the broader legislative process will still need to be monitored in the future.

2. Fair Access to Science and Technology Research Act (FASTR)
   On February 13, 2013, the Fair Access to Science and Technology Research Act (FASTR) was concurrently introduced by both the House and Senate (S.350/H.R.708). If passed, FASTR would provide for free online online access to publication slated manuscripts that are generated through federally funded research. The bill would also set-up at the agency level digital repositories that permit open access, interoperability, storage, and preservation of these submitted manuscripts. Links to the text of these bills is provided below:
   http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/BILLS-113hr708ih/pdf/BILLS-113hr708ih.pdf
   http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/BILLS-113s350is/pdf/BILLS-113s350is.pdf
   
   FASTR has bi-partisan congressional support and is strongly endorsed by ALA and by learned societies in the sciences. Despite a number of co-sponsorship efforts, FASTR has not gathered momentum to get out of committee. Much of this is tied to uncertainties surrounding the ongoing budget process, and the bill could get some life if a general budget agreement is reached later in the fall. Some in ALA speculate that the bill might likely be reintroduced in a slightly different incarnation early in 2014.

3. Federal Funding for Libraries
   Since 1996, the Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA) is the principle annual funding source for libraries in the federal budget. This program is basically a population based grant funded to the states and administered by the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS). These grants generally support specialized programming for libraries of all types. LSTA was heavily impacted by the March sequestration with funding cut 5.23 percent for 2013 at 175 million. In April, the President’s 2014 budget request restored some funding at 177 million, while ALA has been advocating for a 184 million baseline for the programs funding. In July, the Senate Appropriations Committee recommended increasing LSTA funding at the ALA level. LSTA appropriations are going to be closely tied to a very uncertain and partisan budget process. The path ahead for the LSAT program at ALA funding may be rocky with some in ALA thinking that a potential 2014 budget agreement will likely be at the 175-180 million level.
   This is the call for volunteers:

   As Government Relations Committee Chairperson, I would like to invite ALAO members to become a part of the Legislative Advocacy Network across Ohio. Advocates serve as grassroots voices for legislation that impacts academic libraries. This involves:

   • Assist in monitoring key legislation
   • Responding to legislative alerts
   • Contact state and congressional legislators on key legislation
   • Encourage colleagues to contact legislators
   • Be eligible to participate in ALA’s annual Legislative Day in Washington D.C. by applying for the ALAO Legislative Advocate Travel Award

For any interested members please contact:
Joseph Straw, Government Relations Committee Chairperson
Marietta College
js001@marietta.edu

Remember the show that was on TV some years back called Name that Tune? Contestants had to decide how many notes of a song they thought they needed to hear in order to name a song. Some were great and only needed 2 or 3 notes to correctly identify it. They won money and could advance to the final round to win even more money. I think it’s great when we can easily identify something with just a few notes or letters. At the Leadership Retreat, I asked our board members (new and old) to tell me what they thought the letters ALAO meant or stood for, to them. My example was Always Looking At Opportunities. I got some really great ideas and now I need to decide which one is the best (because I offered a prize). The trouble is, I can’t really decide, since they all relate to ALAO in some meaningful way. I think they’re all winners! What do you think?

An Excellent Annual Conference
Accessible Learning, Advancing Openness
Advancing Librarians Across Ohio
Accessing Links (and) Advocacy in Ohio
ALAO means to me really great people
Appreciating Librarians And Organizations
Acquiring LIFELONG Acquaintanceships in Ohio
Action/Leadership/Advocacy/Opportunity
Always Laughing At Ourselves
Awesome Libraries Around Ohio
Amigos Laboring, Always Onward

What about you? What does ALAO mean to you?

Curriculum Materials Center Interest Group

Cheryl Ghosh, University of Cincinnati

The Curriculum Materials Center Interest Group (CMCIG) will be co-chaired by Cheryl Ghosh and the newly appointed co-chair, Sharon Kerestes (Cedarville University). A huge thank you goes to Stephanie Bange (Wright State) for serving on this committee for many years (definitely more than two) as chair and co-chair. Her strong leadership skills and enthusiasm will be missed, although she has granted us permission to consult with her as needed. Sharon and I are tossing around several ideas for the spring CMCIG workshop and leaning toward a technology based theme. We look forward to planning the 2014 spring workshop and pulling together as many Ohio CMC librarians together as possible.

Diversity Committee

Diane Kolosionek, Cleveland State University
Diversity Scholarship Awards
The ALAO Diversity Committee is pleased to award two Diversity Scholarships for 2013-2014! The Diversity Scholarship winners are Conrad Pegues and Robert Millspaugh. The Committee was very impressed by their demonstrated commitment to diversity, academic achievement, strong leadership abilities, and excellent customer service skills. The Diversity Scholarship includes $1,500.00 for tuition, free registration to the ALAO Annual Conference, and a year of mentoring by an ALAO member.

Conrad Pegues is a student in the Master of Library and Information Science program at Kent State University. He earned a Master of Arts in English Literature and a Bachelor of Arts in English from the University of Memphis. Conrad currently works as an Overnight Circulation Supervisor at Miami University’s King Library.
In his scholarship application, Conrad addressed the lack of diversity in librarianship, specifically the low number of African American male librarians. Conrad has noticed that his presence at the circulation desk has attracted more African American students. “It’s not just about checking out books or laptops or cameras. It’s about presence and understanding their plight. I’ve become acutely aware of the necessity for presence in a field traditionally seen as one for white females.”
Conrad would focus his efforts on recruitment and outreach to make prospective students aware of the possibilities of a career in librarianship. He believes that “ideas and topics have to be made culturally relevant to grasp the minds and imagination of the field’s potential.” Librarians must be culturally relevant, not just technologically savvy, to serve the world’s diversity.

Robert Millspaugh is a student in the Master of Library and Information Science program at Kent State University. He earned a Bachelor of Arts in Linguistics from The Ohio State University. Robert currently works as a Library Circulation Specialist at the Columbus State Community College Library.
In his scholarship application, Robert stated that diversity in the workforce is a major issue. As a male of mixed racial backgrounds, Robert has been sensitive to the issue from the moment he began working in a library. “This only encourages and motivates me to be the best library professional I can be.”
Robert offered ways to increase diversity in the profession. He believes that being an inspiration to diverse students on a daily basis will make a difference. “I feel that efforts for increased diversity in the library workforce can begin by recruiting undergraduate students. In urban community colleges such as CSCC the diversity is so multifaceted with the student body being varied by age, race, socioeconomic status, ethnicity, nationality and sexual orientation. By engaging these students, both as patrons and workers, I believe interest in librarianship as a career can be raised.”
Congratulations to Conrad and Robert! The Committee is confident that they will be strong leaders and advocates for diversity and inclusion in libraries.

Diversity Spring Workshop
The Diversity Committee’s Spring Workshop was held on Friday, June 14, 2013, at OHIONET in Columbus, Ohio. The workshop was attended by twenty individuals, including eight speakers. Four of the sessions were presented by members of the University of Michigan Library Diversity Council: (1) Library Diversity Committees: The Basics by Deirdre Spencer and Darlene Nichols; (2) Making the Case for a Diversity Committee by Bob Campe and Darlene Nichols; (3) Engaging Staff through Innovative Programs by Steve Griffes, Scott Martin, and Mike McLean; and (4) Getting out the Word by Mike McLean and Kate Saylor. Eileen Theodore-Shusta from Ohio University presented a session about Diversity Internships for Undergraduates and LAMP. Attendees rated the overall workshop as either Excellent or Very Good, and they offered many positive comments about the presenters and the content of the sessions. They also appreciated the delicious lunch from Panera. Thanks to all presenters and attendees for a successful, engaging workshop!

Instruction Interest Group

Katie Foran-Mulcahy, University of Cincinnati, Clermont College

The Instruction Interest Group is excitedly looking forward to the annual ALAO conference this year in North Canton, Ohio. Our sponsored session this year, “Reimagining Info. Lit. Assessment: An Inexpensive and Easy Method for Measuring IL Skill Progression” (Eric Resnis, Kate Lucey, Lindsay Miller – Miami University) promises to offer practical tips on implementing in-house/open-source information literacy assessment tools. As always, the IIG will also host an information table at ALAO; we invite all conference-goers to stop by and say hello!

In other IIG news, we’re elated to announce three new planning committee members joining us this year, including Melissa Bauer (Kent State, Stark), Dana Knott (Columbus Community College), and Kristen Peters (Wittenberg University). Julia Gustafson (College of Wooster) will also continue to assist us as a planning committee member this year. We’re already discussing the spring Instruction Interest Group workshop 2014 – if you’ve got ideas or suggestions, feel free to drop us a line.

Support Staff Interest Group

Ginna Witte, Cincinnati State

The SSIG co-chairs worked with interest group members to develop a list of desired professional development topics for the annual conference. This list was then shared out with SSIG members to encourage the submission of proposals that would be relevant to the needs of support staff and related to the conference theme. The conference planning committee received many strong proposals that covered topics on this list. The co-chairs are thrilled to be sponsoring Jessica Hagman and Janet Carleton’s session, “Better Together: Reimagining Library Social Media Content through Student Collaboration” at the annual conference; please stop by and join us if you have time. We look forward to meeting and reconnecting with all SSIG members in October.

Bowling Green State University

Annie Land is the new Library Associate 1 for the Browne Popular Culture Library/Center for Archival Collections. Annie had previous experience working with archival materials and in preservation. She is an MLIS student at the University of Pittsburgh and a former CAC student employee.

Heather Fishpaw is the new Library Associate 1 for the Curriculum Resource Center. Heather worked in the CRC as a student employee since 2009 and has served as a student supervisor since 2011. Heather recently graduated with a degree in Early Childhood Education from BGSU.

Samantha Ashby is the new Reference Archivist in the Center for Archival Collection. She previously worked for Viacom International (formerly MTV Networks) in New York City as Digital Media Archivist; she also has experience with the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library in Ann Arbor.

Eileen Bosch is the new Coordinator of Library Instruction. Eileen’s former position was with the California State University (CSU)/Long Beach as a Senior Assistant Librarian. She has prior experience working in the UL’s Curriculum Resource Center and in the Library Teaching & Learning Department. In addition, she served as an adjunct instructor for the College of Education and Human Development. Eileen has many successful years of reference and instruction experience and is knowledgeable with emerging technologies and the development of student learning outcomes.

Case Western Reserve University

Tricia Tichon was hired as Accountant, Library Planning, Budgets and Assessment team, on May 20, 2013.

Rachel McPherson was hired as Library Assistant 4, Scholarly Resources & Special Collections team, on July 29, 2013.

Ernst & Young (EY), the global “Big Four” professional services firm formed via the 1989 merger of Ernst & Whinney and Arthur Young & Company, has gifted its historical archives to Kelvin Smith Library. The collection will be known as the Ernst & Young Founders Archive. The archive includes such memorabilia as handwritten accounting ledgers detailing firm transactions from the early 1900s, firm advertising from the 1920s, Ernst & Ernst employee and management communications dating back more than 90 years, awards, vintage photos, Arthur Young’s personal cash book and many other historical items.

Kelvin Smith Library’s Personal Librarian program is heading into its second year with new changes and improvements. KSL introduced the program last year to provide all incoming first-year students with their own Personal Librarian (PL) to serve as their point of contact with the library. PLs can help students find their way around the library, assist with research, answer library-related questions and more. This year, a PL will be assigned to each first-year seminar sections and the students within. Having a PL for each section is ideal for encouraging peer learning, as the PL will be able to develop a relationship with a group of students with common goals.

Kelvin Smith Library partnered with the Siegal Lifelong Learning Program this spring to offer a series of continuing education classes entitled, The Legacy and Future of the Cleveland Play House. The class explored the impact of long-lived cultural institutions, using the upcoming centennial of the Cleveland Play House as an example. KSL’s recent acquisition of the Play House archives provided eye-witness evidence of its history, and served as a key resource for the class. Speakers included KSL archivists, Jill Tatem, Helen Conger and Eleanor (Nora) Blackman. To learn more about the program, visit
http://www.siegallifelonglearning.org.

Library staff, William Claspy, Mark Eddy and Gail Reese, submitted a proposal and received a Created Equal: America’s Civil Rights Struggle film set and $1,200 programming stipend as part of the Bridging Cultures
initiative of the National Endowments of Humanities and the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History. Created Equal film sets were distributed to museums, libraries and community organizations in all 50 states to encourage public conversations about the changing meanings of freedom and equality in U.S. history and civic life.

Cedarville University

Joshua Michael recently accepted the newly created position of Information Services Librarian-Health Sciences Liaison. Josh graduated from Cedarville University in 1999 with a degree in History. He earned a Master of Divinity degree from Northwest Baptist Seminary in 2004 and a Master of Library & Information Science degree from University of Pittsburgh in 2007. He most recently served as director of Baptist Bible College & Seminary in Clarks Summit, Pennsylvania, where he also taught classes in the history of Christianity and the American Civil War. He has contributed to a number of reference works in the areas of American history and military history.

Columbus State Community College

Dana Knott, library coordinator, and Kristine Szabo, reference and instruction librarian at the Delaware campus received national recognition by being featured on the Library Journal home page for their work with elementary school students from the Laura Woodward Elementary School. According to Library Journal, “Knott and Szabo had to design a library project to grab the attention of the students (who were visiting the Delaware campus to experience a day at college), and got their topic from a primary source: a librarian with a son in elementary school suggested Bigfoot. Knott and Szabo decided to focus on information literacy and the evaluation of sources, and specifically, to how students should use the CRAP test (Currency, Reliability/Relevance, Authority, and Purpose/ Point of View) to evaluate Bigfoot. Knott and Szabo have shared their materials and advice with two other academic libraries interested in increasing their community outreach to local elementary schools.” The complete article describing the work of these outstanding librarians, please visit: http://lj.libraryjournal.com/2013/08/library-education/finding-bigfoot-in-the-stacks/

Cincinnati State Technical and Community College

Ginna Witte was extremely excited to see her name in print for the first time this past summer. “How to Find and Create Social Media Content in your Library” was published in Elsevier’s Library Connect newsletter in August (http://libraryconnect.elsevier.com/articles/marketing-advocacy-roi/2013-08/how-find-and-create-social-media-content-your-library) and “Content Generation and Social Network Interaction within Academic Library Facebook Pages” is slated for publication in the Journal of Electronic Resources Librarianship later this Fall. Many thanks go out to Kathleen Pickens for her tireless editing assistance.

Kent State University

The Kent State University Libraries are pleased to announce the appointment of Lae’l Hughes-Watkins as University Archivist in the department of Special Collections and Archives. Ms. Hughes-Watkins is a graduate of Youngstown State University with a BA in journalism and political science and an MA in English. She earned her MLIS at Kent State University and was a Read Graduate Assistant appointee in Special Collections and Archives. Her post-graduate experience has been as an Instructional Librarian and Coordinator of the Student Learning Center at Eastern Gateway Community College, as well as serving as an English curricula consultant in the Ohio State University Young Scholars Program.

The Kent State University Libraries Department of Special Collections and Archives is marking the 25th anniversary of the Borowitz Crime Collection at Kent State with exhibitions and programs throughout the year. This extensive collection includes both primary and secondary sources on crime as well as works of literature based on true crime incidents. It includes groups of materials on specific criminal cases which have had notable impacts on art, literature, and social attitudes. Please check our website for updates on events, starting this fall: http://www.library.kent.edu/scevents.

Miami University

Miami University Libraries’ Special Collections team has assembled two new public exhibitions. The first, an on-campus exhibit running through December, showcases the contributions and legacy of the many sporting coaches that had their careers shaped at Miami and are now honored in the University’s Cradle of Coaches. The second is an online exhibit that spotlights the University’s continued partnership with the Miami Tribe of Oklahoma. Located at http://spec.lib.miamioh.edu/giftofhistory, this site will feature many of the Tribe’s historical documents, including eight early 19th-century land grants and a map of an Indiana town on historic Miami lands, which were recently returned to the Tribe.

The ALA and NEH recently awarded the Miami Libraries two grants that will enable the library to host a series of programs to encourage and enrich conversations about the history, faith, and culture of Muslims in the U.S. and around the world. The first event in the “Let’s Talk About It: Muslim Journeys” programs is a symposium entitled “Muslim Journeys: American Stories” and will be held in Oxford at King Library on September 21, 2013.

Finally, Miami University Libraries welcomes: Michael Farmer to our Hamilton regional library; as well as, Kim Taylor to our Business, Engineering, Science and Technology Library, Adam Rensch to our Center for Information Management, and Donna Peterman and Peter Thorsett to the Office of the Dean, all in Oxford.

Northeast Ohio Medical University

Heather McEwen has changed positions. Her new title is Curriculum Mapper for the College of Medicine.

Ohio State University, Lima

We have a new reference librarian at OSU-Lima. His name is Calvin Cleary, and he can be reached at cleary.110@osu.edu or 419-995-8488.

Ohio State University, Marion / Marion Technical College Library

Congratulations to Patricia Wood who has been promoted to Reference/Instruction Librarian, effective July 1, 2013

Shawnee State University

Shawnee State’s Clark Memorial Library welcomed Rebekah Kilzer as Library Director in June. Having served as Systems Librarian at The Ohio State University, and as Technical Services Librarian, Emerging Technologies Librarian, and most recently as Head, Learning Engagement, at Drexel University Libraries in Philadelphia, PA, Rebekah returns to Ohio to provide vision and direction for Clark Memorial Library’s programming, partnerships and infrastructure.

University of Dayton

During the spring of 2014, University of Dayton Libraries will host two free cultural programs with the support of grant funds awarded by the National Endowment for the Humanities. “America’s Music: A Film History of Our Popular Music from Blues to Bluegrass to Broadway” celebrates American popular music with films and scholar-led discussions during the spring academic semester. The six sessions focus on these uniquely American musical genres: blues and gospel, Broadway, jazz, bluegrass and country, rock ’n’ roll, mambo and hip hop. University of Dayton is one of 81 sites nationwide to host this program series, which is a project by the Tribeca Film Institute in collaboration with the American Library Association, Tribeca Flashpoint, and the Society for American Music.

The second program, “Created Equal: America’s Civil Rights Struggle,” will feature four documentary films and related scholar-led discussions that explore the long history of civil rights in America, marking the 150th anniversary of the Emancipation Proclamation. The program will encourage the Dayton community to revisit its own history of civil rights and to reflect upon the ideals of freedom and equality that have helped bridge deep racial and cultural divides in American life. The Created Equal film set was developed by the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) through its Bridging Cultures initiative in partnership with the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History.