Against the Grain v31 #4, September 2019 by against-the-grain

c/o Katina Strauch Post Office Box 799 Sullivan’s Island, SC 29482

REFERENCE PUBLISHING issue

volume 31, number 4 september 2019

ISSN: 1043-2094

“Linking Publishers, Vendors and Librarians”

Assessment in Libraries by Shannon L. Farrell (Natural Resources Librarian, University of Minnesota) <sfarrell@umn.edu> and Kristen L. Mastel (Outreach and Instruction Librarian, University of Minnesota) <meye0539@umn.edu>

his issue of Against the Grain focuses on the various kinds of assessment that occur in libraries. Assessment is incorporated across all aspects of library programming and services, from instruction to outreach to space planning to collections to user experience. When we started soliciting articles, we did it with the intent of covering a wide variety of types of assessment in libraries. Our experience and expertise with assessment has focused on our activities and programs around outreach. Over the past few years, we have undertaken numerous projects on the topic of outreach assessment. We became interested in this work as outreach activities have traditionally not been formally assessed, or if they were, they focused on simple quantitative measures like head counts. In our work, we hope to persuade librarians to learn more about various assessment measures and to establish goals that are tied to assessment for every outreach activity that they engage in.

Over the past year, we worked with our colleagues Stephanie Graves and Sarah LeMire from Texas A&M on the Association of Research Libraries (ARL) Spec Kit 361.1 Through surveying a range of ARL institutions, we gathered information on the current landscape of outreach staffing, responsibilities, funding, and methods of assessment. One of the core findings was that there is no agreed upon definition of outreach; as a result, we suggest that each institution needs to define what outreach encompasses for their community. This study also reinforced what we found in the literature,2 that outreach is often not planned programmatically or incorporated into institutional assessment efforts. A resource that we have recently worked on to assist in developing institutional outreach and engagement assessment for academic libraries is the ACRL Libraries Transform

If Rumors Were Horses

ave you met Courtney McAllister? Courtney is Electronic Resources Librarian at Yale University, Associate Editor of The Serials Librarian, a columnist for Against the Grain and a Director of the Charleston Conference. I first met Courtney when she was Electronic Resources Librarian at the Citadel’s Daniel Library. Well, the incredible Courtney has just finished Change Management for Library Technologists: A LITA Guide. It has been selected as the ATG Book of the Week! We all know that “technology has transformed how libraries, archives, and museums store and display their collections, engage with their users, and serve their communities. The pressure to implement new technologies is constant, but technology that isn’t truly useful to users, staff, and stakeholders can represent a huge investment of time and money that yields little reward. In order to make meaningful technology changes in our li-

braries, archives, and museums, we need a flexible toolkit that will help information professionals become change leaders, navigating the equally complex variables associated with system specs and human experience or perception. Change Management incorporates these concerns into a comprehensive framework.” Hot off the Press! Beth the incredible Bernhardt who loves us all but especially beer! Has accepted a job at Oxford University Press as of September 16! Her title is Consortia Account Manager and her new email is <Beth. bernhardt@oup.com>.

Toolkit.3 In this Toolkit, there is helpful documentation to match outreach programming to institutional goals, assessment techniques, and institutional reporting. Example “Because” statements highlight unique services and resources that libraries provide and can aid libraries in their promotional activities by providing simple, eye-catching designs for ready distribution. The Toolkit is recruiting for additional content and case studies, so please submit relevant institutional examples that you may have. As noted, libraries are conducting all kinds of assessment around different programs and services. Many assesscontinued on page 8

What To Look For In This Issue: Epistemology — Power, Control, and the Quest for Open Infrastructure.... 36 Marketing Touchpoints — Putting Marketing Planning in its Place........ 60 Headwaters — The Subversion of Referees.............................................. 66 ATG Food + Beverage Roundup....... 70 Interviews Karen Phillips & Kiren Shoman....... 38 Henry Owino...................................... 41 Jason Dewland & Yvonne Mery........ 44 Theodore Pappas................................ 46 Profiles Encouraged People, Library and Company Profiles................................................ 83 Plus more............................... See inside

And did you know that Lynda Kellam has left UNC-Greensboro for a new position at continued on page 6

1043-2094(201909)31:4;1-2

Against the Grain (ISSN: 1043-2094) (USPS: 012-618), Copyright 2017 by the name Against the Grain, LLC is published six times a year in February, April, June, September, November, and December/January by Against the Grain, LLC. Business and Editorial Offices: PO Box 799, 1712 Thompson Ave., Sullivan’s Island, SC 29482. Accounting and Circulation Offices: same. Call (843-509-2848) to subscribe. Periodicals postage is paid at Charleston, SC. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Against the Grain, LLC, PO Box 799, Sullivan’s Island, SC 29482.

TABLE OF CONTENTS v.31 #4 September 2019 © Katina Strauch

ISSUES, NEWS, & GOINGS ON Rumors.................................................. 1 From Your Editor................................. 6

Letters to the Editor............................. 6 Deadlines............................................... 6

Editor:

FEATURES

Associate Editors:

Assessment in Libraries — Guest Editors: Shannon L. Farrell and Kristen L. Mastel

Katina Strauch (Retired, College of Charleston) Cris Ferguson (Murray State) Tom Gilson (Retired, College of Charleston) John Riley (Consultant)

Research Editors:

Judy Luther (Informed Strategies)

Assistants to the Editor:

Ileana Strauch Toni Nix (Just Right Group, LLC)

Editor At Large:

Dennis Brunning (Retired, Arizona State Univ.)

Contributing Editors:

Glenda Alvin (Tennessee State University) Rick Anderson (University of Utah) Sever Bordeianu (U. of New Mexico) Todd Carpenter (NISO) Eleanor Cook (East Carolina University) Anne Doherty (Choice) Ruth Fischer (SCS / OCLC) Michelle Flinchbaugh (U. of MD Baltimore County) Joyce Dixon-Fyle (DePauw University) Laura Gasaway (Retired, UNC, Chapel Hill) Regina Gong (Lansing Community College) Michael Gruenberg (Gruenberg Consulting, LLC) Chuck Hamaker (Retired, UNC, Charlotte) William M. Hannay (Schiff, Hardin & Waite) Mark Herring (Winthrop University) Bob Holley (Retired, Wayne State University) Donna Jacobs (MUSC) Ramune Kubilius (Northwestern University) Myer Kutz (Myer Kutz Associates, Inc.) Tom Leonhardt Rick Lugg (SCS / OCLC) Jack Montgomery (Western Kentucky University) Bob Nardini (ProQuest) Jim O’Donnell (Arizona State University) Ann Okerson (Center for Research Libraries) Rita Ricketts (Blackwell’s) Jared Seay (College of Charleston) Lindsay Wertman (IGI Global)

ATG Proofreader:

Rebecca Saunders (College of Charleston)

Graphics:

Bowles & Carver, Old English Cuts & Illustrations. Grafton, More Silhouettes. Ehmcke, Graphic Trade Symbols By German Designers. Grafton, Ready-to-Use Old-Fashioned Illustrations. The Chap Book Style.

Production & Ad Sales:

Toni Nix, Just Right Group, LLC., P.O. Box 412, Cottageville, SC 29435, phone: 843-835-8604 fax: 843-835-5892 <justwrite@lowcountry.com>

Advertising information:

Toni Nix, phone: 843-835-8604, fax: 843-835-5892 <justwrite@lowcountry.com>

Publisher:

A. Bruce Strauch

Send correspondence, press releases, etc., to: Katina Strauch, Editor, Against the Grain, LLC Post Office Box 799 Sullivan’s Island, SC 29482 cell: 843-509-2848 <kstrauch@comcast.net>

Against the Grain is indexed in Library Literature, LISA, Ingenta, and The Informed Librarian. Authors’ opinions are to be regarded as their own. All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America. This issue was produced on an iMac using Microsoft Word, and Adobe CS6 Premium software under Mac OS X Mountain Lion. Against the Grain is copyright ©2019 by Katina Strauch

Against The Grain

Against the Grain / September 2019

Assessment in Libraries....................... 1

by Shannon L. Farrell and Kristen L. Mastel — Outreach activities have traditionally not been formally assessed, or if they were, they focused on simple quantitative measures like head counts. This issue of ATG aims to examine some of the major issues and also provide incisive commentary from a range of contributors.

Enhancing the Rigor of Common Library Assessment Activities........... 14

by Craig E. Smith — Craig limits the scope of this article to assessment involving human data, and to a small number of ways of increasing rigor that are not overly burdensome. This is an observation of places where relatively easy opportunities for improvement exist.

Outreach Assessment: A Two-Pronged Approach............................................ 17

by John Jackson — The mother lode of outreach assessment will be found when someone develops a way to combine multiple data points into a single indicator of success.

Asking the Right Questions: Bridging Gaps Between Information Literacy Assessment Approaches..................... 20

by Alison J. Head, Alaina C. Bull and Margy MacMillan — Drawing on combined experience at community colleges and universities in the U.S. and Canada and Project Information Literacy (PIL), this article introduces a typology for classifying and critiquing four levels of information literacy assessment — micro, meso, macro, and mega.

Assessing Print Acquisitions at UMN Libraries.............................................. 24

by Julie Rashid — This article attempts to pull out the highlights of recent acquisitions assessment initiatives (2005-2014), outline current assessment activities (2015-present) and reflect on what the future may hold for print acquisitions.

Assessing e-journal post-cancellation access................................................... 28

by Sunshine Carter and Yumiko Toyota-Kindler — A post-cancellation access determination (PCAD) project uncovered various challenges unique to serial publications. The authors share their experience with determining PCA at the University of Minnesota and outline recommendations for other PCA projects.

Assessing the Success of Library Published Journals............................. 30

by Emma Molls — This paper will discuss UMN Libraries Publishing’s development of journal-level goals to assess publication-level success and, in turn, assess the success of a library publishing program.

Assessing Library Competencies for the Future: The LibGOAL Toolkit for Success................................................. 33

by Steven Bell, Marta Brunner, Jennifer Ferguson, Elliot Felix, Emily Kessler, Kelly Sanford, and David Woodbury — This article will detail the process by which a group of thinkers and doers came together to identify essential competencies and develop a toolkit to help both new and seasoned academic library professionals prepare for their future.

Op Ed — Epistemology..................... 36

Power, Control, and the Quest for Open Infrastructure by T. Scott Plutchak — Every one of us operates out of a multiplicity of motivations in almost everything that we do yet every organization that has a mission needs to have a sound financial structure.

Back Talk............................................ 94

Speaking of Bathrooms? by Jim O’Donnell — Jim stresses that good restrooms make for good students who get good grades. And student success is our day job.

ATG INTERVIEWS & PROFILES Karen Phillips..................................... 38

Jason Dewland and Yvonne Mery.... 44

Kiren Shoman..................................... 38

Theodore Pappas................................ 46

Senior Vice President Global Learning Resource, SAGE Publishing Vice President Pedagogy, SAGE Publishing

Henry Owino...................................... 41

by Matthew Ismail — Henry, formerly Manager of Collection Acquisition Services at Qatar National Library, now in a new position at the University of New England.

Associate Librarians, Research & Learning, University of Arizona

Executive Editor and Chief Development Officer at Encyclopaedia Britannica

Profiles Encouraged........................... 83

In this issue we have many people profiles, some company profiles, and several library profiles as well.

<http://www.against-the-grain.com>

REFERENCE PUBLISHING Issue REVIEWS

Reader’s Roundup............................. 50

Monographic Musings & Reference Reviews by Corey Seeman — When asked to do the impossible, the industrious Corey does. Now he features both library-focused works and reference works with a new title, recalling “Woody’s Roundup”from Toy Story 2!

Booklover............................................ 53

Liquidation by Donna Jacobs — Donna’s next Nobelist choice, Imre Kertész’s Liquidation — a random selection from the list of Nobel Literature Laureates “because the novel’s title was delightfully intriguing.”

ATG Food + Beverage Roundup...... 70

Charleston, SC by Nicole Ameduri and Melanie Masserant — We are printng this column early to give us all time to plan our visit to Charleston restaurants! Read on!

LEGAL ISSUES Edited by Bruce Strauch and Jack Montgomery

Legally Speaking................................ 54 The Complications of Open Educational Resources by Anthony Paganelli

Cases of Note...................................... 55

Immoral Trademarks by Bruce Strauch — Iancu, Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director, Patent and Trademark Office v. Brunetti.

Questions and Answers...................... 56

Copyright Column by Laura N. Gasaway — As always, Lolly features many relevant questions and answers. A public librarian asks about copying book jackets for display or to be included in the library’s calendar of monthly events. Is this permissible? Lolly tells us.

PUBLISHING Bet You Missed It............................... 12

by Bruce Strauch — What do Stacy Keech and Clint Hill have in common? Read it here!

The Scholarly Publishing Scene........ 57

Bill Begell’s Legacy by Myer Kutz — A riveting look at a very special man and publisher with a legacy.

And They Were There........................ 58

Reports of Meetings — In this issue you’ll find Ramune’s fourth installment of reports from the 2018 Charleston Conference.

Don’s Conference Notes..................... 76 by Donald T. Hawkins and Leah Hinds — 2019 ACRL Conference: Recasting the Narrative

BOOKSELLING AND VENDING Little Red Herrings............................ 10 Missing Piece of the Puzzle? by Mark Y. Herring — Reading is like a muscle that develops with practice.

Marketing Touchpoints..................... 60

Putting Marketing Planning in its Place by Jill Heinze — When it comes to any sort of large-scale planning exercise, there seem to be two kinds of people: Those who recoil in horror and those who eagerly welcome the process.

Optimizing Library Services............. 62

Food for Thought: Leveraging Library Services to Address Food Insecurity by Kymberly Goodson and Rachel Conry — Food for Fines drives, while more common in public libraries, are relatively simple to organize and have many benefits for academic libraries and the populations they serve.

Biz of Digital....................................... 72

Developing and Growing a New Repository Service: Part 2 Procedures for Library Submissions by Michelle Flinchbaugh — Initial procedures and documentation for an operation relying on one librarian were an important stepping stone. While they weren’t completely satisfactory, or always thoroughly documented, opportunities for changes were identified.

Mayflower: Ode to New Beginnings....80

Beautiful Connector: Collection Showcase Exhibits as Teaching Tools and Community Builders by Antje Mays — Exhibits for showcasing collections and related research strategies can prove effective in helping campus communities more fully harness the power of library resources in their research.

TECHNOLOGY AND STANDARDS Library Analytics: Shaping the Future.................................................. 68

The SPAN Monograph Project: Shared Print Archiving in Western Canada by Jean Blackburn and Lisa Petrachenko — A distributed model of shared print archiving can effectively contribute to solving the problem of preserving the print scholarly record into the future.

Against the Grain / September 2019

Let’s Get Technical............................. 65

St. Thomas Library, Automating for the Future by Tia Felock and Rebecca DeJesus — How a regional organization helped a private elementary school automate their catalog.

Headwaters......................................... 66

The Subversion of Referees by Kent Anderson — Has the human referee declined in many parts of daily life? A new provocative column.

Uncommon ...

Against the Grain is your key to the latest news about libraries, publishers, book jobbers, and subscription agents. ATG is a unique collection of reports on the issues, literature, and people that impact the world of books, journals, and electronic information.

Unconventional ...

ATG is published six times a year, in February, April, June, September, November, and December/January. A six-issue subscription is available for only $55 U.S. ($65 Canada, $95 foreign, payable in U.S. dollars), making it an uncommonly good buy for all that it covers. Make checks payable to Against the Grain, LLC and mail to: Against the Grain c/o Katina Strauch Post Office Box 799 Sullivan’s Island, SC 29482 *Wire transfers are available, email <kstrauch@comcast.net> for details, however, credit cards are the preferred alternative to checks ($25 fee applies).

_______________________________________________ City State Zip _______________________________________________ Company Phone _______________________________________________ Email _______________________________________________

Gegenwartsromane, Contemporary German-Language Novels by Heidi Madden — Monographic works that are essential to the academic library within a particular discipline.

Name _______________________________________________ Address _______________________________________________

Collecting to the Core........................ 47

“Linking Publishers, Vendors and Librarians”

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From Your (biting my nails) Editor:

ll right. We moved to the beach and we knew there might be hurricanes! But every other week or so in the fall? Talk about false advertising or I guess I should say false stupidity. We are hunkered in — surrounded by bottles of water, batteries, cans of food, sandbags, closed shutters, you name it! Here’s hoping all will remain well. As always we have a great print issue of ATG to read when the Internet is down or we have no connectivity in the air. Guest Editors Shannon L. Farrell and Kristen L. Mastel explore

Assessment in Libraries. This special issue of Against the Grain aims to examine some of the major issues and also provide incisive commentary from a range of contributors. We have papers by Craig E. Smith on enhancing the rigor of assessment, John Jackson on combining multiple data points to achieve a single indicator of success, Alison J. Head, Alaina C. Bull and Margy MacMillan introduce four levels of information literacy assessment — micro, meso, macro, and mega. The highlights of current print acquisitions

Letters to the Editor Send letters to <kstrauch@comcast.net>, phone 843-509-2848, or snail mail: Against the Grain, Post Office Box 799, Sullivan’s Island, SC 29482. You can also send a letter to the editor from the ATG Homepage at http://www.against-the-grain.com. Dear Editor: It was nice to see the ATG with my interview in it in my mailbox. Am I correct that it’s not online yet? In any case, could you provide me with a PDF of the final version (or point me to someone who can)? Many thanks, Maria Maria Bonn (Program Director, MS Library and Information Science, Associate Professor, School of Information Sciences, University of Illinois UrbanaChampaign) <mbonn@illinois.edu> Dear Maria, We’re glad that you were pleased by the interview. You are correct. The interview should be available online in a few weeks so in the interim, I am copying Toni Nix our printer who can provide you with a PDF of the file. Again, thank you for agreeing to do the interview. We enjoyed doing it too. — Yr. Ed.

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Against the Grain / September 2019

and what this means for the future is the focus of Julie Rashid’s contribution. Sunshine Carter and Yumiko Toyota-Kindler share their experience with post-cancellation access determination (PCAD). Emma Molls assesses the success of a library published journals program. Steven Bell, Marta Brunner, Jennifer Ferguson, Elliot Felix, Emily Kessler, Kelly Sanford, and David Woodbury explore the essential competencies needed for the LibGOAL Toolkit. Scott Plutchak’s Epistemology — Power, Control, and the Quest for Open Infrastructure is our OpEd. Jim O’Donnell’s Back Talk has suggestions about bathrooms, and with this issue we introduce a new column Headwaters by Kent Anderson who talks about The Subversion of Referees. Our interviews are with Karen Phillips and Kiren Shoman of Sage Publishing, Jason Dewland and Yvonne Mery from the University of Arizona, Theodore Pappas (Executive Editor and Chief Development Officer at Encyclopaedia Britannica), and Henry Owino (previously at Qatar National Library) now in a new position at University of New England. Corey Seeman has masterfully merged reviews of online and print products in Reader’s Roundup, Ann Doherty is collecting contemporary German-language novels, Donna Jacobs liked Liquidation, Anthony Paganelli is studying open educational resources, Ramune Kubilius reports about the 2018 Charleston Conference, Myer Kutz revisits Robert Maxwell and Pergamon Press, Don Hawkins and Leah Hinds visit ACRL, Mark Herring says reading is a muscle, Marketing Touchpoints by Jill Heinze is all about marketing and building bridges, Antje Mays wants to showcase new teaching tools, Jean Blackburn and Lisa Petrachenko talk about print archiving, and Michelle Flinchbaugh provides part two of a three part Biz of Digital series on repositories. They are asking us to evacuate! Time to leave! Meanwhile, happy fall and see you online! Hugs, Yr. Ed.

Rumors from page 1 Cornell in July? Lynda has routinely written many meeting reports for ATG. Linda is on Council this year. It is her last on the NCLA Chapter. Here is her new email address <lmk277@cornell.edu>. The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation’s Senior Program Officer for Scholarly Communications, Donald J. Waters, will retire on August 31, 2019 after 20 years of exceptional service at the Foundation. “Over the past two decades, Don has developed a magnificent vision for scholarly communications across the humanities landscape, and exerted the intellectual leadership to implement it, always working with trusted partners in the field,” remarked Mariët Westermann, executive vice president for programs and research. “He has been ahead continued on page 26

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Assessment in Libraries from page 1 ments that libraries collect are driven by reporting to larger institutional bodies, such as ARL, state library services, and/or accreditation bodies. However, the data solicited is frequently just quantitative and does not tell the full story of what libraries are doing. There have been recent efforts to aid libraries in demonstrating their impact, such as Project Outcome,4 developed by the Public Library Association. Tools such as this provide some questions to use as a starting point for assessment, which can be especially useful when many staff do not have formal assessment training or expertise. We solicited articles to provide a balance of what assessment can look like in various roles and services within libraries. As libraries push for more rigorous assessment beyond just quantitative measures, we are seeing a surge in job announcements for dedicated assessment positions and conferences focused on improving the library’s impact and story. Craig Smith, Assessment Specialist at the University of Michigan, is an example of how libraries are recruiting staff with functional expertise to fill specific roles. For instance, Smith’s background in psychology and institutional research equipped them with a unique perspective that allowed them to tackle institutional assessment challenges. Smith suggests several areas of improvement for libraries when developing assessments: perspective taking, asking questions with the right focus, avoiding common problems with questions, getting meaningful responses, seeking diverse informants, being careful with claims, using assessment strategically, and seeking and providing critical feedback. Through these suggestions, libraries are able to improve their assessment programs and services. The importance of asking the right questions ties directly into the quality of the feedback we receive, and if we can measure the impact outlined in our goals. As the Head of Outreach and Communications, John Jackson, at Loyola Marymount University, shares assessment strategies to use in the areas of programming and communications. Jackson provides a simple and streamlined three-question feedback form that assesses not only why people came to the program and what they learned, but provides room for their thoughts and reflections. Assessment is taken one step further, by also using a rubric to evaluate the feedback and measure if the program “transformed” the attendees’ perceptions. While measuring engagement of communications can be more straight-forward through clicks and URL tracking, it can be time-consuming. However, tracking can be used to justify spending more time and energy on social media and outreach efforts. Since libraries are multifaceted, Jackson states that the ultimate assessment will be combining “multiple data points into a single indicator of success, similar to the Happiness Index or a Klout score.”

Against the Grain / September 2019

To understand the impact of information literacy instruction, the Project Information Literacy Research Team (PIL) of Alison J. Head (visiting scholar at Harvard University), Aliana C. Bill (University of Washington Tacoma), and Margy MacMillian (Mount Royal University) classified library instruction assessment strategies into four levels (e.g., micro, meso, macro, and mega) based on scope and level of collaboration across institutions. Using this classification, the PIL team has conducted ten major research projects that involve surveys, interviews, and observations, in an effort to “examine what students actually do, rather than what we think they should do.” These assessments go beyond simple measurements of acquired skills. By gathering more data and asking well-crafted questions about student learning, we can better understand the impact of library instruction. Libraries have been collecting simple statistics on their collections for many years (e.g., how many times books have been checked out), but collections assessment can be more effective and can address large-scale issues when it is aligned with library initiatives. Julie Rashid, Manager of Acquisitions and Rapid Cataloging at the University of Minnesota (UMN), describes the initiatives that UMN Libraries undertook to assess their print acquisitions. These initiatives were established to navigate staff through a period of uncertainty, including shifting priorities and rapid advances in technology. The assessment served to address not only external drivers, such as budget issues, but also internal processes, such as the acquisitions department’s productivity and efficiency in offering services. Sunshine Carter, Electronic Resources Librarian, and Yumiko Toyota-Kindler, Library Program Specialist 1 in the E-Resource Management Unit, also at UMN, describe the process they undertook to assess post-cancellation access rights for the UMN Libraries e-journal collection, with a goal to identify which print serials could be withdrawn. Identifying precisely what an institution owns or has access to with regard to electronic purchases or subscriptions is paramount when deciding what print journals to discard. In their article, they provide recommendations on how other institutions could enact a similar process. Both of these articles highlight the importance of assessing both print and electronic collections as libraries face challenges in terms of space constraints, limited budgets, and ever-changing title ownership and publishing terms. Emma Molls, Publishing Services Librarian at University of Minnesota, discusses how to assess a brand new library-based publishing program at UMN. The goal of the program is to provide an affordable alternative for publishing open access journals. However, the typical metrics used by publishers for assessing journals, such as capturing sales figures, are not appropriate in this case, as UMN Publishing Services are not a for-profit publisher. Further, they are utilizing a variety of platforms, rather than a single one, which is atypical of journal

publishers. Molls’ article discusses how to utilize an assortment of assessment measurements to address a wide variety of situations and how to connect the assessment back to unique goals and objectives by gathering feedback from content providers. While we have looked at how assessment can impact libraries’ programs and services for improvement and patron learning, we have yet to touch on how assessment can move our profession forward. Elliot Felix and the LibGoal project team created a tool to aid library staff in first identifying and assessing their skills, and then aligning them to both their personal priorities and the goals of their institution. Through a card sorting exercise, participants are asked to reflect on the soft and hard skills needed in various library roles. This type of activity can help libraries create “T-shaped library professionals with vertical depth of expertise as well as horizontal skills to enable collaboration and impact.” In order to stay relevant and nimble to our communities’ needs, we need staff that can easily adapt across roles and responsibilities. As you will read in this special issue around assessment in libraries, there are efforts at the individual, institutional and professional levels to improve the demonstration of our impact and telling of our stories. Purposeful assessment, while it takes time and thoughtfulness, can help us address long-standing issues, answer difficult questions, and promote change in meaningful ways. Do not be intimidated; the only way we all get better is by learning through action! Over time, purposeful evaluation will allow us to investigate even more complex questions and push ourselves organizationally to confront areas we have yet to begin addressing in assessment, such as power, privilege, and equity. We would like to thank Katina Strauch and Tom Gilson for the invitation to guest edit this issue on assessment and their support in revising solicited articles. In addition, we are grateful to our many contributors. We are elated that our paths have crossed with so many talented people willing to share their stories and we hope they inspire you to expand and evolve your assessment practices. Endnotes 1. LeMire, Sarah, Stephanie J. Graves, Shannon L. Farrell, and Kristen L. Mastel. Outreach and Engagement. SPEC Kit 361. Washington, DC: Association of Research Libraries, November 2018. 2. Diaz, Stephanie A. “Outreach in academic librarianship: A concept analysis and definition.” The Journal of Academic Librarianship 45, no. 3 (2019): 184-194. 3. Libguides: ACRL Libraries Transform Toolkit: Introduction. Accessed June 4, 2019. https://acrl.libguides.com/transform. 4. Public Library Association. Project Outcome. Accessed June 4, 2019. https:// www.projectoutcome.org.

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Little Red Herrings — Missing Piece of the Puzzle? by Mark Y. Herring (Dean of Library Services, Dacus Library, Winthrop University) <herringm@winthrop.edu>

ver since Sven Birkerts’ The Gutenberg Elegies, more than one writer has sought to unravel the mystery of the decline in reading skills. Clearly, online access has not helped. It has made us less attentive, more snatch-and-grab in our pursuit of answers, less willing to read closely, and more. But we cannot place all the blame on the decline in reading solely on the advent of the Web. NAEP reading scores have been falling or flat for decades, and that decline began before online reading was a “thing” or a “meme.” Granted, none of these things have helped. We also cannot discount the glaring fact that there were more than a million births to women 24 and younger, and of that group, seventy-one percent were to unmarried women. Almost 50% of them already had a child. That reading skills have declined cannot be denied. From anecdotal evidence to NAEP scores, we find students everywhere unable to sit still long enough to read much of anything longer than a

10 Against the Grain / September 2019

paragraph. My most dismaying experience with this occurred about a decade ago with an honors class of students. In a class of 25, only two of them read the class assignments. While everyone wanted to participate, the majority did not want to do the work to gain a ticket to participation. All of these things — the Web, the scores of children from homes that do not value reading, and the process of reading itself — militate against effective reading, writing and math scores, of course, but perhaps there is yet one other piece to the puzzle of poor reading skills: enter Jigsaw Reading. Jigsaw Reading, or rather the Jigsaw Method or technique, is a classroom activity that makes students dependent on others to succeed. Already you can see where this is going. We are so wedded to our modern biases that we cannot fathom that group learning can possibly be inferior to independent learning. Surely coming together as a group and di-

viding up the labor is far superior to that elitist method of each person doing his or her own work. That may or may not be the case, but the growing popularity of this approach is beginning to have weak dividends. The Jigsaw Method comes to us from the mind of Elliot Arsonson, developed by him and his University of Texas students in or around 1971. Aronson is a masterful researcher. He graduated from Brandeis (BA), Wesleyan (MA) and Stanford (PhD, Psychology). He has won all three of the APA’s highest awards in writing, teaching and research. I mention all this because I do not think the method itself may be inherently flawed but the execution of so many using a method they do not fully understand may be contributing to results. Those results range from fine to lackluster. In any event, my complaint is more about the unintended consequences, not the method itself. With respect to reading, the Jigsaw Method often manifests itself in the form of groups of students who parcel out the work. So, for a 15-page reading assignment, each student in a group of five may have three pages to read. On the face of it, this appears to make sense. After all, isn’t this similar to what soon-to-be hotshot attorneys do when trying to master a course like Contracts that often requires hundreds of pages of reading between classes? Ah, there’s the rub. In a class of budding attorneys, one is likely to find most if not all of them at or above the 95th percentile. The idea of cooperative learning here is not necessarily an inherently bad one. Granted, group-learning when I was going through school failed miserably on every attempt. Too many in the group did not do their portion of it, and all too often the lion’s share of the work fell to one or two of the more motivated students. This version of it strikes me as more politically motivated than strategic, but that may just be me. I always bristle when approaches rely too much on Kumbaya and not enough on substance. The Jigsaw Method focuses on mixing together students of varying abilities, making certain, it would seem, that some are going to be less motivated to do the work. As teachers in my state have pointed out, Jigsaw Reading means that no one student reads the entire work. Each student is responsible for his or her assignment and reports back to the group. But grouping students of varying abilities means that some of those reports will be weak, and some may be worse than weak, even addlepated. Jigsaw Reading appears on the face of it to encourage not careful reading, but short snatches of reading, while also encouraging “just enough” to get by. In our modern age, it is apparently too facile to point out that what makes reading stronger is, well, reading more and more, and more and more difficult texts. Reading is like a muscle that develops with practice. The more you do the better you become at it. Reading short parts of an article would, it appears, only encourage you to avoid longer and more complicated texts. This is certainly what I have encountered and what teachers in the area tell me as well. continued on page 18

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Ethnomusicology: Global Field Recordings

Delve into the cultural study of music, and explore the rise of Ethnomusicology as a discipline, with this essential digital collection. Presenting content from across the globe, this diverse and comprehensive resource features audio field recordings and interviews, educational recordings, film footage, field notebooks, slides, correspondence and ephemera from fields of study around the world including sites in West Africa, North America, South East Asia, and more.

Key Themes: •

Education and the teaching of Ethnomusicology

•

The interaction between music and art

•

Religion and ritual

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Cultural identity and social norms

•

Music and gender

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Music and conﬂict

•

Musical traditions

www.amdigital.co.uk/primary-sources/ethnomusicology

www.amdigital.co.uk info@amdigital.co.uk

Bet You Missed It Press Clippings — In the News — Carefully Selected by Your Crack Staff of News Sleuths Column Editor: Bruce Strauch (The Citadel, Emeritus) <bruce.strauch@gmail.com> Editor’s Note: Hey, are y’all reading this? If you know of an article that should be called to Against the Grain’s attention ... send an email to <kstrauch@comcast.net>. We’re listening! — KS

From Bullied Kid to 75 Films

Stacy Keech was born with a hare lip. He talked funny with a nasal voice and was mercilessly teased and bullied. But his father had studied drama at Northwestern and became director of the Pasadena Playhouse in California. Then they moved to Queens, NY for him to be an RKO director. Then they went back to LA in Sherman Oaks where the dad produced a radio series for NBC called “Tales of the Texas Rangers.” Keech had the acting bug and studied drama at Berkeley. His nasal voice became part of his roles. He is noted for “The Long Riders,” “Fat City,” “The Bourne Legacy,” and a TV series of tough guy Mike Hammer. See — Marc Myers, “House Calls: From Bullied Kid to Screen Tough Guy,” Wall Street Journal, April 19, 1909, p.M5.

Moby: From VW to Los Feliz

Singer-songwriter Moby’s father killed himself driving drunk. His mother took him aged two to Haight-Ashbury where he sat in the back of a VW or X-rated movie theaters while she and her boyfriends smoked pot. They returned to Darien, Conn. for him to start school. She found more hippy friends and later moved to a biker gang. To Moby, it was all poverty and shame. He spent a lot of time locked in a closet listening to music. One day he was given an electric guitar. He dropped out of the University of Connecticut, struggled with postLSD panic attacks, began to DJ. Success soon followed. Albums include “Play,” “18,” and “Hotel.” He now lives in 2,500 square feet in Los Feliz section of LA. His father called him “Moby” because the mother’s family side is related to Herman Melville. See — Marc Myers, “House Calls: A Restless, Creative Soul Finds Safe Harbor,” Wall Street Journal, May 10, 2019, p.M1.

Let’s Read Depressing Books on Russia

Anne Applebaum, Red Famine (2017) (Stalin starves millions in Ukraine); (2) Tim Tzouliadis, The Forsaken (2008) (American workers volunteer to work in Russia. End up in gulags.); (3) Peter Pomerantsev, Nothing is True and Everything is Possible (2014) (post-Soviet oil boom of greed and crass gluttony); (4) Alexander Yakolev, A Century of Violence in Soviet Russia (2002) (exposé of mass arrests and murders by Lenin and Stalin); (5) Vasily Grossman, An Armenian Sketchbook (2013) (travels through Armenia with a large discourse on Jewish and Armenian genocide). See — Alexandra Popoff, “Five Best,” Wall Street Journal, May 11-12, 2019, p.C8.

12 Against the Grain / September 2019

Summer Tippling – The Clint

Clint Hill was the Secret Service bodyguard who shielded Jackie when Jack was killed. Post-White House, he was assigned to her and travelled the world, appearing in countless glamorous photos. Most notably, he went with her to Ravello on the Amalfi Coast when she was a guest on the Agnelli’s 82-foot sailboat with its unique wine-red sails. The North Dakotan water-skiied with the young Caroline and was introduced to the Negroni. He wrote about this in Mrs. Kennedy and Me. And he made a few adjustments to the Negroni to arrive at the Clint: 2 shots Campari, 1 shot vodka, slice of orange, soda water, tall glass with ice. See — David Netto, “Camelot Straight Up,” Town & Country, Summer, 2019, p.56.

Baseball Closer Closes a Book Only to Open Another

Sean Doolittle attended UVA before being selected in the first round of the draft by the Oakland As. Spring training in West Palm Beach found him without a suitable bookstore for his voracious reading habit. He began seeking out independent bookshops during each stop on the tour and writing about them for his Twitter following of 100,000. He has plugged Three Lives & Company in Manhattan’s West Village, Vroman’s in Pasadena, Tattered Cover and Mutiny Information Café in Denver. On his bucket list is Classic Lines in Pittsburg. He mostly is into Fantasy and Sci-Fi, and can’t seem to interest his teammates to accompany him on a book search. See — Jared Diamond, “The Closer Who is Trying to Save Books,” The Wall Street Journal, May 24, 2019, p.A12.

Nixing Nostalgia

Publishing giant Meredith Corp. became the nation’s largest with the purchase of Time, Inc. last year but immediately after spotted problems. Time, Fortune, Money and Sports Illustrated had rich history and prestige, but their content could be found many places. Without the least nostalgia, Meredith sold them. People, Time’s cash cow, faces the stresses of modern publishing with big declines in print advertising and newsstand revenue. But it had unparalleled access to celebrities. It could grow profits. Ad pages are down 38% since 2014, and digital ads aren’t replacing them. Meredith sees no value in magazines with news and sports. The online world is awash. Rather it’s going with lifestyle. Food, fashion and home content is not time sensive. Styles of the rich and famous are a huge draw. It closed Ladies’ Home Journal with its title off-putting to young females. It’s added Happy Paws with a focus on animal emotional needs. It’s added recipe-focused Hungry Girl. And being in Des Moines, Iowa helps. Salaries are 50% lower than NYC. See — Jeffrey Trachtenberg, “In Lousy Market, Magazine Giant Axes Nostalgia,” The Wall Street Journal, May 24, 2019, pA1.

<http://www.against-the-grain.com>

…

A n Annals of Inte rnal M e d icine site lice n se g ive s re ad e rs u n lim ite d acce ss to th e jo u rn al’s p ractice -ch an g in g re se arch , cre d ib le le ad in g -e d g e clin ical re se arch , syste m atic re vie w s, an d n e w sw o rth y article s. In ad d itio n to o rig in al re se arch , su b scrip tio n s in clu d e In the C linic®, a p atie n t m an ag e m e n t se ctio n , an d AC P Jo urnal C lub ®, a fe atu re th at re vie w s th e e vid e n ce o f clin ical stu d ie s fro m m o re th an 1 2 0 le ad in g m e d ical jo u rn als.

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Ke y Facts Annals of Inte rnal M e d icine ’s 2 0 1 8 Im p act Facto r is 1 9 .3 1 8 (C larivate A n alytics). W ith 5 7 ,0 5 7 to tal cite s in 2 0 1 8 , Annals is th e m o st cite d g e n e ral in te rn al m e d icin e jo u rn al. Annals acce p ts le ss th an 8 % o f o rig in al re se arch , an d p u b lish e s clin ically fo cu se d o rig in al re se arch th at is valid ate d b y Annals’ e lite te am o f e d ito rs, p e e r re vie w e rs, an d statistician s. A b stracte d an d / o r in d e xe d in BIO SIS Pre vie w s, C A B D ire ct, C h e m ical A b stract Se rvice s, (C A SSI), C IN A H L, C u rre n t C o n te n ts/ Life Scie n ce s, C u rre n t C o n te n ts/ C lin ical M e d icin e , EM BA SE, In d e x M e d icu s, M ED LIN E, Pu b M e d , Scie n ce C itatio n In d e x, Scie n ce C itatio n In d e x Exp an d e d , an d Sco p u s.

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A nnals.o rg A IM 8 0 0 4

Enhancing the Rigor of Common Library Assessment Activities by Craig E. Smith (Assessment Specialist and Senior Associate Librarian, University of Michigan Library) <craigsm@umich.edu>

he University of Michigan (Ann Arbor) Library recently hired me as an assessment specialist, which is a new role in our library system. My background is in psychology and institutional research, rather than librarianship. Many assessment activities were established in our library when I started my job, and my experiences at the 2018 Library Assessment Conference and the 2019 ACRL Conference further underscored for me the fact that libraries have embraced assessment. With increasing exposure to library assessment, however, I have observed that embrace of assessment and rigor in assessment are sometimes divorced. This is not universally the case, and it is also wholly understandable. In many cases, those doing library assessment do not have assessment/research backgrounds and are also balancing assessment with other duties. With this in mind, my goal is to reflect on some basic ways that we can increase the rigor of our assessment work. There are many areas of library assessment. I will, by necessity, limit the scope of this article to assessment involving human data, and to a small number of ways of increasing rigor that are not overly burdensome. My goal in this article is not to be harsh; even seasoned assessment practitioners and researchers make mistakes and continue to learn. Instead, this is an observation of places where relatively easy opportunities for improvement exist.

Importantly, certain forms of piloting allow us to engage in perspective taking. Imagine a survey or interview that includes the question: “How often do you use the library?” Using a technique called cognitive interviewing allows us to understand how people interpret this question. Cognitive interview questions are things like: • Can you tell me in your own words what you think we are trying to ask? • What does “the library” mean to you? • What does “use the library” mean to you? • [If a survey] Do the response options we provide for this question allow you to answer in the way that you would like to? We may find that people picture different things (e.g., different buildings) when they think about the library, and have different views of library use (e.g., visiting the café, accessing physical collections). After interviewing a small but diverse group of people, the original question will be more precise, or may become a series of questions, perhaps accompanied by simple framing information. Final vetting of revised questions may lead to additional adjustments, or may affirm that we are ready to launch an effort that will yield data that are interpretable and actionable.

Perspective Taking

Asking Questions with the Right Focus

We often ask people to share their library-related experiences and needs. Yet designing surveys, focus groups, tasks, and interviews that yield clear, usable data is genuinely challenging. One common pitfall is a cognitive bias called the curse of knowledge: the assumption that others share our knowledge as we make statements and ask questions. For example, imagine this survey question, “How often do you visit the library’s website?” We want information about people’s interactions with the library’s homepage, yet most respondents only think about the online catalog. Or imagine that we conduct intercept interviews to ask how people access and experience library consultation. Many participants indicate that they have never used library consultation services; some of them have, but do not recognize those experiences as forms of consultation. A basic but important solution to such problems is to vet questions used in all methodologies thoroughly prior to launch. We can first ask a diverse group of colleagues to review questions and prompts with the request that they look for assumptions, biases, and wording issues. A second step should involve piloting with diverse volunteers from the target population. Piloting clarifies pragmatic concerns, such as accessibility and participation time.

14 Against the Grain / September 2019

There are other ways that problematic question framing can occur. Imagine we want to know whether students who received two workshops, compared to those who received one, better remember how to use Boolean operators. One week later we use a follow-up survey: “Demonstrate how you would use Boolean operators to construct an effective search that addresses: ‘Do violent video games increase aggression in children?’” We find that the two-session instruction approach is associated with better performance. Perhaps the two-session approach is indeed better, but there is a potential confound. The two-session students heard “Boolean operator” far more often; perhaps they were more likely to remember the term and were better positioned to demonstrate knowledge possessed equally by both groups. Do we care if students need to remember the term Boolean operator in order to demonstrate learning? If not, then our questions should focus on our precise interests. For example, we could ask: “What is an effective way to structure a search for academic literature on the following question: ‘Do violent video games increase aggression in children?’” If there was still a difference between the two

groups — and other potential confounds were also controlled, e.g., via random assignment — then confidence about group differences may be justified, as would using the data to guide future instruction approaches. In the section on perspective taking above, the focus was on understanding others’ thinking. The takeaway here is that we also need to be reflective and clear about our own thinking and goals as we design assessments.

Avoiding Common Problems with Questions

When crafting questions we sometimes make presumptions that can yield inaccurate data. As an example: “When you access our library’s books, do you prefer digital books (eBooks) or physical books?” This question presupposes that a person seeks books and possesses a preference. Someone may provide an inaccurate response because doing so is easier than doing something else. Or perhaps because admitting to not using our library’s books seems socially undesirable. In an interview, for example, a better way to start might be, “We have digital and physical books in this library’s collection. Many people use this library’s books and many others do not. Which is more like you?” If a person reports library usage, a question about preference that includes a no-preference option becomes appropriate. The new approach could also lead the investigator to ask about other ways a participant might access books, and could still lead to a preference question. (Yet beware of other potential assumptions! For example, in some libraries, people logged in on a certain network may be unaware that they have seamlessly accessed a library’s digital collection.) Another common problem is the “double-barreled” question that asks two different things. Consider a performance-related survey item about a supervisor: “My supervisor encourages and enables collaboration with other work groups.” It is possible that a supervisor could be enthusiastic about collaboration, yet ineffective at enabling it. With such questions, some respondents may provide bad data or simply skip the question. Survey, focus group, and interview questions should be carefully reviewed for common problems such as this. In the example above, the item should be split into two questions if both “encourages” and “enables” are of interest. It can also be problematic to ask the same types of questions about very different things. For example, in creating a toolkit to measure the impact of spaces, events, instruction, and consultation, questions about a construct such as confidence are not easily asked about — or always relevant to — each type of experience. Yet some libraries use matched sets of items continued on page 15

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Enhancing the Rigor of Common ... from page 14 about such things. For example: “I feel more confident about my ability to conduct my research” about research consultation, and the companion “Using this space makes me feel more confident about my ability to achieve my goals” about a library space. The first question could yield valuable information about consultation impact, but the latter question will yield data that are nearly impossible to interpret; what about the space did or did not increase confidence, and what were the goals? The examples here are from ACRL’s Project Outcome measures.1 These measures are described as “designed and tested specifically to be reliable measures of perceived impact.” Well beyond this specific set of measures, it is important to note that measures can perform well in terms of reliability (e.g., internal consistency reliability, test-retest reliability) without being valid or informative in critical ways. There are many good online summaries of the types of reliability and validity one should consider when engaging in various types of measurement. A final example of a common pitfall in this realm is the uncritical use of existing questions, protocols, coding schemes, and instruments. Simply because a method has been used in the past, or has been published or presented, does not mean that it is the right fit for a new project without adaptation, or that it is of high quality. Both new and existing methods should be viewed with a critical stance. It is too often the case in many disciplines that methods, because they are published or presented, become imbued with a gleam that may or may not be deserved. There are many useful guides on asking good questions and making effective use of the answers, across a wide variety of methodologies. A small number of examples are listed in the Appendix.

Getting Meaningful Responses

Part of asking good questions involves giving people meaningful ways to respond. Imagine that a faculty member in Biology is asked: “What is your level of satisfaction with the support you receive from your library subject liaison?” There is a 10-point scale and only the poles are anchored (e.g., 1 = low; 10 = high). The faculty member is not sure what kind of support the question is asking about, but she picks a 7 to report feeling mostly satisfied. Her departmental colleague also chooses a 7, but uses it to express slight satisfaction. How can we avoid such problems? There is an extensive literature on best practices regarding eliciting meaningful responses to questions; a few examples are covered here. First, if you are unsure how to structure a question with response options that include a relatively full range of reasonable possibilities, consider (a) using a non-leading, open-ended question, or (b) using a mixed-methods design that allows you to develop good questions and/ or response options by first interviewing and better understanding members of the relevant population. Open-ended questions may require

Against the Grain / September 2019

careful decisions about coding and proper checks on coding reliability. But such questions can yield data that are more meaningful compared to questions with poorly-conceived response options. Second, when using rating scales, mitigate common response biases (e.g., acquiescence bias, response set bias) by using both positively- and negatively-worded items to capture a single construct when possible. Third, when using scales, confirm that multiple participants understand each point on the scale and interpret them in a similar way (e.g., via cognitive interviewing), and try to use scales connected to the construct of interest (e.g., using agreement scales for all questions is not always the best approach). See the Appendix for guides that address these issues and more.

Seeking Diverse Informants

Assessment participants help guide our work and decisions, yet they do not always represent the diversity of the communities we serve. How well can we understand ourselves and the people we hope to serve if we get marginal input from groups that may already be marginalized? The challenge of achieving true representation in assessment projects is not unique to library assessment. But how can we do better? If you work at an academic library, consider partnering with stewards of administrative data in your library or on your campus. An office with administrative data access may be willing to support assessment efforts by providing representative lists of campus community members (representative in terms of gender identity, race/ethnicity, first-gen status, area of study, etc.). These lists can be used when recruiting for all sorts of assessment activities. Such a partnership may necessitate training in managing sensitive data and in responsible recruiting practices. For both campus and public libraries, forming mutually-beneficial relationships with organizations that include diverse members of your communities is also an important avenue to increasing the diversity of willing assessment participants. It is also useful to remember that members of campus groups that are small when intersectionality is considered (e.g., female full professors of color in STEM fields) are often disproportionately asked to provide service; assessment participation is a form of service. It is important to ask for help respectfully, to think about the protection of potentially-identifiable data, and to allow people to opt out of future requests. Achieving genuine diversity in assessment is challenging, but the consequences of falling short are problematic. For example, when there are very small numbers of certain groups in survey samples, a common strategy for ensuring anonymity is to exclude these groups — and the insights they offer — from the results altogether. Another common approach is to lump all responses together, meaning that we may miss important ways that groups might differ. As we commit ourselves to diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility, we must also commit to engaging in assessment practices that reflect these values. There are real obstacles that impede success in this area. When

this is the case, we can at least be careful with the claims we make by not generalizing our results to groups who are not well represented in our data.

Being Careful with Claims

We often make claims based on assessment data. For example, someone assessing student-library interactions might make a claim about impact on student retention or GPA. As another example, someone might use data to claim that one group of patrons experiences the library as more welcoming than another group. Sometimes, however, such claims are made without the support of proper study design and/or analyses. If you do not have people in your library with expertise in study design and data analysis (qualitative and quantitative), consider forming partnerships with people who do. This is easier for academic libraries, and for libraries near colleges and universities. But there are communities of assessment practitioners online who can offer guidance (e.g., the ASSESS email list2). We can also consult with peers in other libraries when we have questions about methods, analyses, and reporting. Further, I encourage people conducting assessment in libraries to think about some of the following common issues before making claims based on data. First, correlational data cannot easily support claims about causality. For example, imagine we find that frequency of collections use is positively correlated with GPA. First, even the simple statistic should be subjected to some scrutiny; how large is the association and is it statistically significant? More importantly, the association should be viewed as open to multiple interpretations. It could be, for example, that unmeasured variables (e.g., motivation, self-efficacy) account for both collections use and GPA. To make strong claims about impact, our studies must be designed correctly. Although it seems obvious that correlational data alone cannot support claims about impact or causality, it is common to see presentations of data in which such claims are made subtly or explicitly. Second, if our goal is to generalize from a sample to make claims about a population, our claims should be supported by both good study design and inferential statistics. It is not uncommon to see presentations of library data in which simple descriptive statistics from a sample (e.g., means, percentages) are used to implicitly make claims about a population (e.g., a campus community). As a hypothetical example, imagine that an assessment with 50 undergraduates finds that 56% of first-year students (n = 25) cite social media sources in course assignments, while 44% of second-year students (n = 25) report doing so. It would be a mistake to claim that this is a difference between the groups. A more reasonable next step would be to use a statistical analysis — in this simplified case, a chi-square test — to determine whether a generalization is warranted. This test would reveal that the difference of 56% vs. 44% is not large enough, given the sample size, to confidently claim anycontinued on page 16

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Enhancing the Rigor of Common ... from page 15 thing about the larger population of younger undergraduates (χ2 = .72, p = .40, φ = .123). Note that if the difference was very large in the hypothetical sample (e.g., 88% vs. 12%), the level of confidence about generalizing to the population would be improved (if the sample was representative), and this should be demonstrated via the use of proper statistics (χ2 = 28.88, p < .001, φ = .76). Or, if the representative sample contained 400 students and the difference was 56% vs. 44%, the level of confidence would also be improved (χ2 = 5.76, p = .02, φ = .12). These last points also speak to proper study design. In this example, with quantitative data, we see that if one wants to investigate a potential difference or effect that is likely to be rather modest though potentially meaningful, planning for the proper sample size is critical. Further, thinking about sample composition is critical; as noted, generalizing to a diverse population from a homogeneous sample is problematic. Third, effect sizes matter. Consider the hypothetical study with 400 students described above. In that case, one could claim that the result was statistically significant. A claim about practical significance, however, could be scrutinized; an effect size of .12 indicates a very small difference. As more libraries move toward using analytics with large samples, there will be many cases in which statistically significant findings will be obtained. The critical question in such cases is whether the findings convey practical significance. This question can be assessed, in part, by attending to effect sizes when reporting on quantitative results. There are, of course, other problems with common library analytics methods, such as putting too much stock in correlational data that lack the proper controls.

Using Assessment Strategically

We can also fall short if we fail to consider assessment at the outset of a project or endeavor. For example, imagine we conclude that a workshop on website design was successful because participants reported high levels of confidence and self-efficacy in a post-session evaluation. Later, a colleague asks whether we have any way of knowing whether the workshop led to changes in confidence and self-efficacy. If we had planned carefully, we could have used pre- and post-session assessments, or at least crafted well-designed post-session questions about changes in the constructs of interest. The stakes get even higher as we assess major projects or initiatives without considering assessment as part of the larger planning process. Another advantage of considering assessment at the outset of a project is that we can think across the silos that often exist in our organizations. For example, if the goal is to create an assessment of a website design workshop, there may be real benefits to working on such a project in collaboration with people in your organization who teach or sponsor other types

16 Against the Grain / September 2019

of workshops (e.g., the benefit of exposure to new instruction and assessment strategies). When thinking about using assessment strategically, another important question is whether we always need formal assessment to gain insight or inform decisions. Assessment consumes time and resources, so a good question to ask is whether your library has a strategy for how assessment is deployed. There is an emphasis on creating a “culture of assessment” in many libraries. It might be more useful to create a “culture of strategic planning” in which decisions about when and how to use assessment become a standard part of larger conversations about making improvements, starting projects, meeting the needs of users, etc. For example, your library could create a checklist of questions that get asked in the context of new endeavors. One question could be, do we need to use assessment here, or do we need an assessment plan? When might the answer be no? Perhaps if the expertise in the room and the library’s strategic goals give you enough insight and direction to make a decision without collecting new data. Or perhaps you already have access to data that will, if used correctly, illuminate a path forward. A decision to forgo assessment should be made carefully and with people in the room who are willing to ask challenging questions, but such a decision is not always wrong.

Seeking and Providing Critical Feedback

In presentations of data at recent library conferences, I have observed that audience members often provided positive feedback about the studies and findings shared by their peers. Almost absent, however, were kindly-worded comments that probed problematic study designs, analyses, and interpretations. Yet some presentations did indeed have shortcomings. Norms of politeness do not need to be sacrificed in order for us to push each other — and expect each other — to do rigorous work. The lab meeting model exists in many research disciplines. For example, psychology lab meetings are used to get feedback on pilot data, research ideas, study/instrument design, data interpretation, and presentations/manuscripts. Psychology lab meetings are eye-opening experiences for newcomers. The feedback is abundant and is often more aimed at identifying problems than giving compliments. Yet the investigator leaves with important ideas about how to make their work stronger. This is a model that we can harness as we plan new assessments, or as we prepare to share findings and interpretations. It is concerning to me that audience members at library conferences may walk away from a presentation thinking something is “true” and actionable when the assessment work has not been properly scrutinized and contains design, analysis, or interpretation problems. I encourage those doing assessment in libraries to create communities of practice in which there is safe space for offering supportive critique. If you do not have people in your library who can offer informed

critique, an alternative could be to partner with people on a college/university campus who are willing to share their time, or to collaborate with an online assessment community. Relatedly, if you are a reviewer for a publication or a conference and are considering a submitted assessment project, set a high bar. Be very kind, but ask critical questions. If statistics should be reported, ask for them; this is relevant for many types of assessment, including many forms of qualitative research. If you are reviewing work where methods cannot support claims, say so. If you are reviewing work you don’t feel qualified to evaluate, admit it. Analyses of assessment and research data (e.g., regression models, mixed-methods designs, interview coding) can be done very well or very poorly, and there should be at least one person familiar with the relevant methods reviewing a piece of work. Setting a high bar does not necessarily involve rejecting flawed assessment; in some cases it may simply involve asking investigators to adjust their claims. For example, you may end up recommending that claims of “success” regarding an intervention lacking proper controls be tempered, with the results instead described as promising and justifying additional investigation. These can be enlightening moments when we think of ways to conduct more solid assessment, thereby building solid guideposts for our library work.

Appendix: Helpful Resources

Bradburn, N. M., Stern, M. J., Johnson, T. P., & Wansink, B. (2020). Asking questions: The definitive guide to questionnaire design (3rd ed.). New York, NY: Wiley. Creswell, J. W., & Clark, V. L. P. (2017). Designing and conducting mixed methods research (3rd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. Fowler, F. J., Jr. (2013). Survey research methods (5th ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. Saldaña, J. M. (2015). The coding manual for qualitative researchers (3rd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. Seidman, I. E. (2019). Interviewing as qualitative research: A guide for researchers in education and the social sciences (5th ed.). New York, NY: Teachers College Press. Tracy, S. J. (2019). Qualitative research methods: Collecting evidence, crafting analysis, communicating impact (2nd ed.). Hoboken, NJ: Wiley-Blackwell.

Endnotes 1. Project Outcome: Measuring the True Impact of Public Libraries. Retrieved June 10, 2019, from https://acrl.projectoutcome.org. 2. ASSESS is managed by the University of Kentucky College of Education in collaboration with the Association for the Assessment of Learning in Higher Education. 3. The typical standard in social science research for statistical significance is p < .05. The symbol φ represents effect size for a chi-square test (effect sizes are discussed briefly in this section).

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Outreach Assessment: A Two-Pronged Approach by John Jackson (Head of Outreach and Communications, William H. Hannon Library, Loyola Marymount University, Los Angeles) <john.jackson@lmu.edu> “Outreach Librarian” is one of those nebulous terms that seems to encompass a universe of possibilities as it stretches the phrase “other duties as assigned” to its breaking point. One can easily find outreach librarians housed within almost every department known to libraries: in reference departments as instruction designers, in communications departments as marketing directors, in administration units as program coordinators, and in collections departments as faculty liaisons. Determining how to assess the activities of an outreach librarian is no less complex than the myriad nature of the job itself. To that end, it is probably worth noting from the start that assessing outreach varies from library to library based on the expectations and where the position is housed. At the William H. Hannon Library at Loyola Marymount University (LMU), outreach is a stand-alone department that oversees programming and events, marketing and promotion, and orientations and tours. It houses an outreach librarian, a student engagement librarian, and an events manager. So much of what follows is based on the needs and nature of that collaborative work environment but will still apply to other variations of outreach work, including as a vehicle for library instruction or faculty relations. We delineate outreach at LMU primarily as a combination of programming and communication activities: orientations, tours, speaker series, specialized workshops, events, social media, print, and digital media, intercampus and external partnerships, donor relations, signage, internal communications, photography and video production, and more. There is no single assessment method that can encompass, much less measure, the success of all these activities and yet they are all interconnected and contribute to the overall success of our outreach activities. For the sake of simplicity, we put all these activities into one of two buckets, programming or communications, and attempt to assess them accordingly.

Assessing Programming Outreach Let me begin with programming. Our Faculty Pub Night series is one of the most successful programs we host at LMU. Each year, we invite faculty to give a talk about their recent “pub”-lication in an informal, pub-like atmosphere (we set up a bar, hire a bartender, serve light snacks, and encourage attendees to get up and treat themselves to the fare as they wish during the event). Over the past ten years, this program has brought thousands of students and faculty into the library to celebrate and recognize faculty research and creative works. We use many traditional metrics, like attendance and audience composition, to measure the success of this program. We also use a standard set of feedback questions which we have found to be successful indicators of a program’s relative success: (1) Why did you

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decide to attend today’s event? (2) What did you learn from attending today’s event? And (3) was there anything that surprised you and if so, what? The first of these questions gets at whether the nature of the program and our promotional efforts generated an appropriate level of curiosity. It also tends to let us know if students are attending for extra credit, which is useful information to have. Responses to the second question can be tracked to expected learning outcomes if those have been developed in advance. The final question is the wildcard and tends to produce the most interesting responses from attendees. These responses range from “I didn’t realize how complex this issue could be” to “I didn’t know the library hosted so many events!” When viewed collectively, the responses to these questions help us to identify the 2-3 most salient aspects of the library program which can then be used for a variety of purposes, from how we promote the video recording of the event on social media to how we connect the success of the event to our strategic plan. The beauty of our standard feedback form is that we can use it for every Faculty Pub Night event, regardless of the speaker’s topic, which can range from international trade law to 19th-century murder mysteries. What every Pub Night has in common is our goal to introduce our audience to new ideas and perspectives. In short, we want our attendees to be transformed. Two years ago, we developed a rubric for assessing the “transformative” nature of an event based on attendees’ responses to our standard feedback forms. This rubric ranks responses as they relate to our learning outcomes from 1-No evidence (“[Attendee’s response] shows no evidence of understanding/comprehension. Denies any change in perception/outlook”) to 4-Significant Evidence (“Acknowledges aspects of expected learning outcome

and applies knowledge to other experiences, structures, subjects. Critically analyzes and applies experience. Articulates values of knowledge or change in perceptions.”). This rubric is a helpful tool for quickly identifying programming that has an impact. Of course, reading the feedback forms alone and using one’s “gut feeling” could also extract this information, but having the rubric provides some stability to the assessment and can be used by other librarians. Ideally, we would create learning outcomes for each Pub Night, but we do not have the bandwidth to create customized assessment tools for every event, much less for the 40+ programs we offer each year, and so these standard feedback forms (which can be quickly printed and distributed) have sufficed for many of our other programs as well. Nonetheless, for some events, we create customized assessment tools. Most notably: our Long Night Against Procrastination and our Library Open House. The Long Night Against Procrastination at LMU happens every Spring during Finals Week. The event is a structured study session for a limited number of students. During the course of the event (which lasts 4-5 hours), we provide students with food, coffee, swag, and one-on-one support from research librarians and writing tutors. Our primary goal for this event is for every student to feel that they have made significant progress on their final projects and/or exam prep in a stress-free, fun environment. We have developed an assessment strategy accordingly.

At the top of the event, we ask every student to write down what they plan to accomplish. These projects usually include writing a final continued on page 18

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Outreach Assessment ... from page 17 paper, creating a study guide, or developing a presentation. At the end of the event, we email each of the students a Qualtrics survey which asks, among other things, what did you accomplish this evening? Compared to those initial responses, we are able to measure whether the event was high or low impact for the students who attended. The survey also asks students to rate their satisfaction with different aspects of the event, like food, space, research support, etc. in order to determine if the event did indeed provide a “stress-free, fun environment.” Our 2018 Library Open House had more specific goals. This food and swag extravaganza targeted first-year students and had two expected outcomes: (1) reduce library anxiety and (2) provide students with detailed information about library services, spaces, and collections. Every attendee was asked to provide an email address in order to enter the open house space. We then emailed those attendees and asked them to rate, “To what extent do you feel comfortable asking for help at the library?” Additionally, we asked students, “What was the most helpful thing you learned?” The results of those two questions indicated if we met our expected outcomes (79% said they felt “very comfortable” asking for help!) and can be used from year to year to measure the relative success of each subsequent open house. Other custom assessment measures that we’ve developed for library programs include: creating an online dashboard to track edits and citations for Wikipedia editing events; interrogating changes in attitudes/perceptions about cultural stigmas among attendees at our annual Human Library; using juries and peer review to qualitatively assess student art work connected to our Common Book program; doing content analysis of student write-ups of events as a qualitative measure of whether the event met its intended purpose; and surveying library partners and guest speakers about their experience working with the library programming team. The unifying factor in all of these custom assessment measures is that they are developed to identify specific expected

Little Red Herrings from page 10 Obviously, teaching reading in the early grades is also to blame. Some elementary teachers apply too many experimental reading techniques rather than known successful methods, thereby doing more harm than good. But as students get older, teaching them to read less and less does not strike me as something that will improve the skill. If you exercise your left

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learning outcomes that are set in advance of each library program.

Assessing Communications Outreach

Compared to programming, I find assessing communications outreach to be much easier: that is, the techniques and workflows are simpler. Part of this is due to how I define success in my communications strategies: not by use of services or by attendance at events, but by eyeballs alone (i.e., how many people saw our messaging) and whether that number is growing steadily over time. In this sense, I take a decidedly limited approach to how I assess our communications efforts. To make it more complicated, some of the outreach we do only manifests on/in our communications channels (e.g., social media) and there is no programming, service, or collections-based correlate. For example, one of our most successful Twitter projects was encouraging other units on campus to post about the ways their student workers enabled them to meet their institutional goals. This shortlived pile-on thread did not generate additional followers or drive people to our website, but it did have a record-breaking (for us) number of impressions: more than six times our average organic impressions at the time. A lot of people on campus saw that post. What they did with it or how it changed their perception or use of the library, we will probably never know, short of conducting longitudinal studies of library perceptions. Like many of our social media projects, it came about suddenly, organically, and unexpectedly: something which is difficult to replicate in a formal study. There are, however, some things we can know. For example, we use Hootsuite to track our success on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. Like many social media managers, Hootsuite allows us to create short URLs (ow. ly) whose usage can be tracked over time. Examining our social media content monthto-month, we can create an indicator of “URL engagement” by tracking the number of URLs posted vs. the number of click-throughs vs. the number of impressions. The same method can be applied to customized URLs that we post the digital screens in our lobby that highlight electronic resources (e.g., bit.ly/name_of_resources)

arm with increasing lighter weights and fewer repetitions, it is likely that muscle will not improve. My honors students often found that 25 pages assigned on Monday for Wednesday was simply far too much to ask. I may as well have asked for 250. But why should we in librarianship care? Libraries are just about reading, right? Yes and no. Libraries are about a lot of things these days, but they are foremost about reading. If we lose more and more of our clientele to poor reading skills, we are surely to find a rising

and links in our e-newsletters. If there is a URL for it, we can track it. Though, it is worth noting that we only track URL hits and not personally identifiable information or other types of personalized metadata. For URLs that go directly to our library website domain from social media, digital displays, or newsletters, we use SiteImprove. Among other useful tools, SiteImprove allows us to see where traffic to our website originated and what it does once it is there (stay on the site, bounce off, etc). Traffic from social media or other sources can be compared to overall site traffic to create yet another indicator (social media traffic vs. overall traffic) to measure social media engagement month to month. Showing how much traffic drives users to our website allows me to make a case for the continued investment in social media resources. Interestingly, we also use RSVPs to track the success of our communication and outreach efforts. Yes, the number of RSVPs is probably a more accurate indicator of the general interest in a program, but we have had extremely popular events with a small number of RSVPs. And since many of our events tend to be similar in nature (e.g., a lecture by a historian; a workshop for Wikipedia), we can also use RSVPs as an indicator of how well we are “getting the word out there.” Low RSVPs for an event that usually brings in a packed audience is a quick-and-dirty measure for the relative success of our communication strategy. Looking at the past two years of RSVP data, we can reasonably expect the number of actual attendees to range between 30% below or 20% above the number of RSVPs. Anything outside that range can usually be ascribed to a communications anomaly (e.g., we forgot to post it to the university calendar, or the event got picked up by the local press).

Final Thoughts

The mother lode of outreach assessment will be found when someone develops a way to combine multiple data points into a single indicator of success, similar to the Happiness Index or a Klout score. Perhaps the culture of learning analytics that seems to be growing on college campuses will provide solutions, though as many have noted, this raises certain ethical quandaries for librarians. Until then, we are left to assess each outreach project according to its own merits, nature, and expected outcomes. Onward and upward!

generation that simply doesn’t “get” what all the books are about. Jigsaw Reading isn’t the cherchez la femme of poor reading skills, but it does strike me as one more nail in the coffin of libraries. Reading used to be fundamental. If it ceases to be so, we may find libraries as anything but extraneous.

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Asking the Right Questions: Bridging Gaps Between Information Literacy Assessment Approaches by Alison J. Head (Executive Director, Project Information Literacy) <alison@projectinfolit.org> and Alaina C. Bull (First Year Experience Librarian, University of Washington Tacoma) <alainac@uw.edu> and Margy MacMillan (Senior Researcher, Project Information Literacy) <margymac@gmail.com> Abstract

Table 1: Typology of Information Literacy Assessment Approaches

A large volume of research on information literacy assessment has measured students’ skills and competencies against librarians’ expectations. Far fewer studies have reported on the holistic experiences of students with finding, using, and creating information to fulfill their academic and personal needs. Consequently, the picture emerging from the assessment literature often portrays students as unskilled, uncreative, and uninterested when fulfilling course research assignments. Drawing on our combined experience at community colleges and universities in the U.S. and Canada and Project Information Literacy (PIL), this article introduces a typology for classifying and critiquing four levels of information literacy assessment — micro, meso, macro, and mega, and presents a series of reflective questions to spark useful connections among these approaches, while maximizing librarians’ teaching, learning, and assessment outcomes.

Introduction

How students find, use, and create information has intrigued librarians for decades. As the Internet and social media have rapidly and dramatically redefined what it means to be part of an informed society, academic librarians have turned even more of their attention to teaching, learning, and information literacy assessments. In the past ten years, the sheer number of assessment articles, books, and conference presentations has increased exponentially, signaling the importance of this inquiry.1 The quality and potential usefulness of the assessment literature, however, remains a topic of discussion and debate among librarians.2 According to some critics, much of the literature is anecdotal and relies on methods that lack replicability from one class or library setting to the next. Others have noted a preponderance of research based on deficit-based tests that measure students’ atomized skills against librarians’ expectations for information literacy competencies. Critics claim there needs instead to be strengths-based assessment focused on how students solve their information problems. In this article, we draw upon our combined assessment experience at U.S. and Canadian community colleges and universities and in conducting multi-institutional studies at Project Information Literacy (PIL), a national research institute on students’ research practices, to introduce a typology for classifying four approaches to information literacy assessment. Reflective questions are featured for strengthening the ties among these approaches, so that librarian practices, instruction methods, and student learning may ultimately advance and improve teaching and learning outcomes.

Levels of Assessment

Information literacy assessment methods are as varied as the librarians who have developed and shared their creative tools for measuring student success. To summarize the individuality of these accounts and categorize the breadth and depth of the assessment fields, we have developed a typology that draws on a broad swath of assessment literature. We define four levels of assessment: (1) micro: in a single course; (2) meso: at a program or institutional level; (3) macro: assessment of skill sets across multiple institutions; and (4) mega: contextualized against larger trends within society.3 Table 1 summarizes each assessment category in our typology and the related details. (See Table 1 above.)

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Each assessment approach in our typology has its own goals, methods, motivations, and desired outcomes. For instance, micro-level classroom assessments provide insights into more specific measures of student learning in classroom situations. In many cases, libraries use these assessment methods to document the impact of our instructional efforts. Much of this assessment is done quickly and to check the validity of instructional approaches. In class, librarians frequently use assessment tools like “think-pair-share” surveys embedded in learning management systems, “Poll Anywhere” surveys, and one-minute papers to identify keywords that all check for quick understanding of surface-level concepts. Meso-level assessment methods gather data to measure how effective librarians have been at reaching all students with information literacy instruction. Data can include percentages of classes taught in a department, total number of students reached plotted against overall trends in retention or GPA, types of items taught in different types and levels of courses as well as student performance of particular outcomes. This approach often incorporates data on the achievement of particular institutional outcomes. Meso methods often look at information literacy instruction continued on page 21

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Asking the Right Questions: Bridging Gaps Between ... from page 20 from the specific perspective of proving the need to retain information literacy instruction. In some cases, this kind of data is compiled across institutions as a macro-level assessment to reveal comparisons between academic libraries. These macro efforts often use standardized question banks and are often implemented by consortia of libraries. With the constant threat to library funding, it is understandable why librarians assess from a strategic, and some might even say defensive, mindset. Libraries are under relentless public scrutiny. They are subject to reduced funding, whether it is on a campus, in a county, or nationwide. In academia, we are always expected to do more with less. In a society focused on data-driven decision making, as librarians, we are constantly trying to justify why and how our work has impact. Embracing assessment has allowed us to come to the negotiations prepared to discuss our impact, and back our statements up with data. One departure from factors like these that drive library-centered assessments are the ongoing mega studies we have conducted with PIL. Unlike macro studies among pre-existing groups of institutions, PIL works to ensure a wide representation of institutional types and locations. To date, there have been ten large-scale analytical research studies about student research in the digital age. We collect data about how students solve information problems for coursework and in their daily lives. We look for robust relationships between students’ research practices from across schools that suggest generalizable trends (e.g., the growing use of Wikipedia for course research).15 In this sense, we examine what students actually do, rather than what we think they should do. At PIL, we have used interviews, surveys, and, most recently, in our news study,16 direct observation and a computational analysis of social media as methods for assessing information practices through the lens of the student experience. These methods allow for a deeper understanding of human experiences, attitudes, and opinions about the research process, from the students’ perspective. Since 2009, more than 22,000 young adults enrolled in 89 U.S. public and private colleges and universities, community colleges, and 34 high schools have been interviewed or surveyed. PIL’s research goal is to fill in missing pieces of the information literacy puzzle by finding out how early adults (in their own words and based on their own experiences) put their information literacy competencies into practice in learning environments in a digital age, regardless of how they may measure up to standards for being information-literate.

Minding the Gaps

Even though there are different rationales for each of these four levels of assessment, a symbiotic relationship does exist among the approaches in our typology. We definitely see where each level can borrow from the others to enrich the entire assessment process. Still, assessment data may end up being incomplete. Even when the data seem very straightforward in terms of an assessment of students’ skills, the results may not always point clearly to the next step. While assessment data points are effective as bargaining tools, they are less helpful in leading to a more thorough understanding of information literacy and promoting change. A deeper understanding of this interplay and knowing the “right questions” to ask for reconciling these approaches, we argue, has the great possibility of maximizing information literacy teaching, learning, and assessment outcomes. In recent years, there has been an increase in interest in moving beyond the status quo assessment models. For instance, Magnus, Belanger, and Faber have discussed the importance of incorporating feminist and critical pedagogy into assessment efforts in their 2018 article “Towards a Critical Assessment Practice.”17 Similarly, we need to critically examine the questions we ask students when developing assessments for implementing change. The kinds of questions librarians frequently ask reveal the (often) narrow kinds of information literacy we value: the use of library terms and systems. Often, such questions are shaped more by external needs for particular kinds of data, or external pressures to prove the worth of a program than by our genuine desire to improve learning. Unsurprisingly, these questions fall into what the scholarship of teaching and learning (SoTL) would call the “what works” category.18 Examples might be whether a particular type of teaching increases students’ use of library

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resources or their confidence in using library resources. The data gathered from students is often coded on whether or not, or to what extent, students demonstrate a positive emotional response to interventions. Even when we think we are assessing learning gains in information literacy, our questions often fall short of our goals to impact teaching and learning. Instead, many times we are really only assessing the ability to memorize library jargon. In other cases, we are evaluating the identification of information containers that have limited application in the dynamic information environment where students fulfill classroom and personal research needs. At the same time, our assessments tend to privilege certain information behaviors (e.g., ones that mimic our own professional ideals as librarians for seeking information to be used for academic assignments or learning). While these assessments may provide useful data to the librarian or about the library program, it is arguable whether that information is actually about the kind of deep learning we claim we want to support. If the questions we ask are not about learning, it is hardly surprising we struggle to implement results that improve the experience of students. Like many undergraduate researchers, we librarians, too, may be rushing to prove a position before we understand enough about the context (similar to all of the first-year papers on why marijuana must/ must not be legalized). Before we can really tell “what works” for learning, we need to understand precisely what students actually do. SoTL would suggest asking more “what is” questions — ones that explore what is actually happening when students are doing something, regardless of whether it matches an instructor’s expectations, fits into wider frameworks, or serves particular institutional goals. We cannot measure the difference instruction makes until we truly understand what is happening as students are learning. For instance, an assessment librarian might ask questions such as these: “What are the first steps students in a freshman composition class take when searching for sources for an argumentative essay?” “Is there a difference in how students in 300-level history courses assess sources in a class where issues of equity and diversity are explicitly addressed in the readings?” “What aspects of the research process do students find most satisfying and most frustrating, and are there differences related to year of study or whether the course is in the student’s main discipline?” In these cases, data come from material generated while students experience learning, such as reflective journals, lab work, and successive drafts of papers, or may use protocols like think-alouds. PIL studies often incorporate this kind of data through focus groups and interviews that ask students to narrate their own experiences with information. The insights gained can illuminate why an intervention might have “worked” and therefore how to implement changes to create the conditions that foster learning. While they are broken down here by type of assessment, the questions in Table 2 can also spark useful connections between the approaches, and may be used outside the levels we associate them with here. Table 2 presents a framework of what some of these questions may be for each level of assessment in our typology. (See Table 2 p.22.)

To Prove and Improve

Information literacy instruction has dramatically changed as libraries have situated themselves as centers of pedagogy. Still, many of our assessment methods remain fossilized. Far too often, librarians reuse tested assessment methods that focus on proving worth rather than measuring actual learning. The typology we present in this article is intended to help us recognize where we can usefully borrow questions from different levels and types of assessments. For instance, we may want to look for tested macro questions that might identify learning gains, or micro assessments that can scale up to provide deeper insights. What can we learn from the voices of students heard in more qualitative work that can help us ask better questions? What changes when we move the focus of assessment from proving something works to understanding and improving the student experience? In recent years, as Donna Lanclos and Andrew Asher have noted, there has been a promising expansion of work that explores IL from the student perspective.19 These studies show the benefits of asking different questions about IL and assessment and using student experience as a lever for change. This approach has the benefit of destabilizing comfortable assumptions while deepening our understanding of learning, a necessary condition for real change. continued on page 22

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Asking the Right Questions: Bridging Gaps Between ... from page 21 Table 2: Asking Questions About Assessment

We are not saying that library assessment is broken. Instead, we contend that information literacy assessment would benefit from both proving and improving teaching and learning outcomes. In order to accomplish this, we need to change our questions. A simple example in the context of instruction is to ask two quick questions at the end of the session: “What is one thing that a student has learned? What is something that a student is unclear on, or what question does a student have?” This kind of assessment shows where students get stuck, providing useful feedback on something the librarian can actually rework and improve. It might even prompt a “what is” question, such as “what is happening in students’ lived experiences that might be contributing to their confusion?” This is the kind of question that can inform that librarian’s response. Ultimately, we must bring the same intentionality to assessment as we do to teaching and learning. We need to incorporate the same kinds of reflective practices as we do in our instruction. And by doing so, we can ask questions for proving worth that also improves instruction, an all-important goal for advancing the librarian profession.

About the Authors

Alison J. Head, Ph.D. is the Founder and Director of Project Information Literacy (PIL) and a Visiting Scholar at Harvard Graduate School of Education. Alaina C. Bull is a Research Analyst at PIL and the First-Year Experience Librarian at The University of Washington Tacoma. Margy MacMillan is Senior Researcher at PIL, an I-SoTL Outreach Associate, and Professor Emerita at Mount Royal University, where she spent 27 years working on information literacy initiatives.

Acknowledgements

We are grateful to Barbara Fister, PIL’s Scholar-in-Residence, for making recommendations for this paper and her keen insights, and to Steven Braun for designing the tables.

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Endnotes 1. When we conducted a search of “all databases” in the University of Washington library portal using the terms “information literacy assessment,” we found more than 500 books and articles published between 2008 and 2018. Search conducted: January 3, 2019. 2. Andrew Walsh, “Information Literacy Assessment: Where Do I Start?,” Journal of Librarianship and Information Science Vol. 41, No. 1 (March 2009): 19-28, http://eprints.hud.ac.uk/id/eprint/2882/1/Information_literacy_assessment_where_do_we_start.pdf; Zoe Fisher, “Information Literacy Assessment (Day 88/100)” (blog), (June 8, 2017), https://quickaskzoe.com/2017/06/08/ information-literacy-assessment-day-88100/. 3. Brad Wuetherick and Stan Yu, “The Canadian Teaching Commons: The Scholarship of Teaching and Learning in Canadian Higher Education,” New Directions for Teaching and Learning (2016), No. 146: 23-30, https:// onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1002/tl.20183. 4. “Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education,” American Library Association, (February 9, 2015), http://www.ala.org/acrl/standards/ilframework. 5. Megan Oakleaf. Academic Library Value: The Impact Starter Kit. Syracuse, NY: Dellas Graphics, (2017), https://www.alastore.ala.org/content/academic-library-value-impact-starter-kit. 6. Terrel Rhodes. Assessing Outcomes and Improving Achievement: Tips and Tools for Using Rubrics. Washington, DC: Association of American Colleges & Universities. (2010), https://www.aacu.org/value-rubrics. 7. “The Tests,” Project SAILS, (2016), https://www. projectsails.org. 8. “NSSE,” National Survey of Student Engagement, (2019), http://nsse.indiana.edu. 9. “WASSAIL,” University of Alberta Libraries, (2019), https://guides.library.ualberta.ca/augustana/ information-literacy/wassail. 10. “The ERIAL Project,” The ERIAL Project, (2013), http://www.erialproject.org. 11. “What is PIL?” Project Information Literacy, (2019), https://www.projectinfolit.org. 12. “Our Work,” Ithaka S+R, (2019), https://sr.ithaka. org/our-work/. 13. “Pew Research Center,” Pew Research Center, (2019), https://www.pewresearch.org. 14. “GALLUP,” GALLUP, (2019), https://www.gallup. com. 15. Alison J. Head and Michael B. Eisenberg, “How Today’s College Students Use Wikipedia for Course-Related Research,” First Monday, Vol. 15, No. 3, (March 1, 2010), http://firstmonday.org/ojs/index.php/fm/article/ view/2830. 16. Alison J. Head, John Wihbey, P. Takis Metaxas, Margy MacMillan, and Dan Cohen, “How Students Engage with News: Five Takeaways for Educators, Journalists, and Librarians,” Project Information Literacy Research Institute, (October 16, 2018), https://www.projectinfolit.org/uploads/2/7/5/4/27541717/newsreport.pdf. 17. Ebony Magnus, Jackie Belanger, and Maggie Faber, “Towards a Critical Assessment Practice,” In the Library with a Lead Pipe, (Oct. 31, 2018), http:// inthelibrarywiththeleadpipe.org/2018/towards-critical-assessment-practice/. 18. Pat Hutchings, “Approaching the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning,” in Opening Lines: Approaches to the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, edited by Pat Hutchings (Menlo Park, Calif.: Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, 2000), https://files.eric. ed.gov/fulltext/ED449157.pdf. 19. Donna Lanclos and Andrew D. Asher, “‘Ethnographish’: The State of the Ethnography in Libraries,” Weave: Journal of Library User Experience Vol. 1, No. 5, (2016), http://dx.doi.org/10.3998/weave.12535642.0001.503.

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Assessing Print Acquisitions at UMN Libraries by Julie Rashid (Manager, Acquisitions and Rapid Cataloging, University of Minnesota Libraries) <jarashid@umn.edu>

he library acquisitions landscape has been evolving over the past few decades. An upsurge of and demand for electronic resources, advances in vendor technology and service offerings, constraints in library physical spaces, and dwindling staff and collections budgets have forced acquisitions departments to take a closer look at how they operate. Libraries recognize that assessment of current procedures and services, as well as vendor offerings, is needed to guide acquisitions staff during these times of rapid technological advances and shifting library priorities. In her article on technical services assessment, Mugridge defines assessment “as the process of evaluating a procedure, service, product, or person to determine its value or effectiveness.”1 Mugridge lists various methods of technical services assessment including collecting statistics and usage data, soliciting input from nontechnical services librarians and staff, collecting stories or feedback from customers, conducting customer service surveys, benchmarking with other institutions, having an anonymous suggestion box, and conducting focus groups. Mugridge observes in the analysis of library literature on assessment activities in technical service units that the most common forms of assessment activities are “workflow analysis; statistics collection; assessment of training, documentation and websites.” In a followup article Mugridge and Poehlmann comment that outcomes based on assessment activities are often “used to identify ways to streamline or improve processes, make better decisions, lower costs, reallocate staff or other resources, identify activities and services that can be eliminated, inform strategic planning activities and communicate with customers or administration.”2 Over the years the University of Minnesota Libraries has explored a variety of quantitative and qualitative measures to assess its procedures and services. Knowledge of these past initiatives is extremely valuable to new managers in understanding the various paths that the library has taken over time; what has worked (and what has not); and where the library has invested dollars (plus blood, sweat, and tears). This wealth of valuable information stashed away in the library’s working archives is an invaluable source of institutional knowledge that can guide and inform managerial decisions moving forward. This article attempts to pull out the highlights of recent acquisitions assessment initiatives (2005-2014), outline current assessment activities (2015-present) and reflect on what the future may hold for print acquisitions. For the purposes of this article, I would like to break down UMN Library acquisitions-related assessment initiatives into two categories: externally-driven and internally-driven. Externally-driven assessment initiatives refer to those which materialize from external causes, i.e., turnover in key leadership positions,

24 Against the Grain / September 2019

substantial budget fluctuations, library-wide initiatives, etc. They are essentially top-down mandates. Internally-driven assessment initiatives refer to those which the acquisitions department itself undertakes to gauge department productivity, efficiencies and value to the organization, i.e., collection of acquisitions-related statistics, vendor services exploration and assessment, personnel performance, etc. A look at both categories allows for an in-depth understanding of where we have been, where we are and, hopefully, will help guide us to where we want to be in the future.

Externally-driven Assessment Initiatives

University of Minnesota Libraries is an award-winning institution which prides itself on innovation and problem-solving.3 As a leader in the field, the organization is constantly looking at ways to improve and enhance library services, both internally and for its users. In spring 2005 the Libraries Administration approved funding to hire a consultant to find ways to increase efficiencies in selection, acquisition, cataloging, processing, and providing resources more rapidly to users. The project, called Selection to Access (S2A), began in October 2005 and “sought to bring as many new monographs as possible through a streamlined process — one that would not require local cataloging or local physical processing” and to expand the use of approval plans to “free time for selectors to identify and select less mainstream titles, and to consolidate English-language ordering with a single vendor.”4 Prior to the arrival of the consultant, five working groups were established to provide documentation for the consultant to review, including organizational charts, procedures, workload statistics, job descriptions, detailed flow charts, high-level operating budgets, vendor statistics, etc. The consultant then came to the university for three days of on-site interviews, met with over 100 people in small groups, analyzed the data collected and provided, and made recommendations that focused on enhancing unit efficiency and productivity. A committee was formed to assess the recommendations made by the consultant and to set up an implementation schedule, a process that took about a year. The committee looked at the impact of the proposed changes, in terms of economic feasibility, staffing, and desired service outcomes. Among the changes implemented, some of the most significant included: • dividing the existing approval plan into 18 highly-focused plans • reducing liaison selection activities • loading of electronic order confirmation records (EOCRs) and Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) invoices • expediting the arrival of books to the user through the elimination of review shelves and adoption of

shelf-ready processing and vendor-supplied cataloging records • consolidating English language acquisitions (U.S. and UK) with one vendor (YBP) • determining which monographic series would be treated on the approval plans and blocking series that would not to avoid duplication • training selectors on the GOBI platform to streamline firm ordering At the outset of the S2A project, the goal was to move 65 percent of new orders through the streamlined process. As of fiscal year 2007, 60 percent of all new items were received shelf-ready and 46 percent of all monographic materials were received on approval plans. Those percentages remain roughly the same today. The project also identified Casalini and Harrassowitz as potential vendors for future streamlining projects. In Spring 2007, immediately following the implementation of S2A, the same consultant was hired “to analyze current operations dealing with serials [and] e-resources.”5 This project was dubbed Selection to Access: the Sequel (S2A2). The assessment process for S2A2 was similar to that as described above for S2A. The consultant recommendations were completed in April 2007 and aimed at improving unit efficiency and eliminating processing exceptions made for materials going to individual departmental libraries. An implementation subcommittee was formed to assess the proposed changes in relation to unit service goals. Implementation began in June 2007 and was largely completed by October 2008. Some outcomes pertaining to print resources included: • simplifying print serials workflows and reducing processing exceptions for different campus libraries • identifying strategies to reduce staff turnover in serials acquisitions • establishing system-wide collections management policies In the years following the implementation of recommendations made under S2A and S2A2, assessment and improvement work continued in the Libraries. In 2011 the Libraries hired a consultant to engage Library staff in broad strategic themes and to help shape the future of the University Libraries. After collecting data and meeting with library leaders and staff, the consultant presented recommendations proposing a new organizational framework for UMN Libraries in support of strategic directions. The Libraries convened several different groups to look at the restructuring recommendations; one of those groups was the Technical Services/Enterprise Technology (TS/ET) Design Group, which was charged with transitioning “existing Technical Services and Enterprise Technology continued on page 25

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Table 1

Assessing Print Acquisitions ... from page 24 departments into critical roles in support of the Libraries’ work and strategic themes.”6 (Note: Technical Services was comprised of acquisitions and cataloging staff and Enterprise Technology was IT staff.) The TS/ET Design Group surveyed current tasks done by staff in Enterprise Technology and Technical Services, polled staff via a Google survey and solicited feedback at town hall meetings. As a result of Libraries restructuring, IT was renamed Data & Technology (D&T) and Content & Collections (C&C) was established as a new division. Acquisitions became part of the C&C division, along with Collection Development, Collection Management & Preservation, and eventually Interlibrary Loan and Publishing Services. Cataloging was renamed to Data Management and Access (DMA) and became part of D&T, along with Web Development, Digital Library Services and Computer & Networking Support. This basic structure exists today. These three externally-driven assessment initiatives: S2A, S2A2 and the TS/ET Design Group were strategically launched by the Libraries and had far-reaching impacts on departments and units throughout the libraries. Not all initiatives are quite as grand in scale.

Internally-driven Assessment Initiatives

Running parallel to the large external initiatives are smaller, need-based internal assessments. These are done to evaluate a unit’s performance, efficiencies and impact on overall library services and, as mentioned in the introductory statements, can include such things as statistics, informal observations, goals tracking, vendor assessments, customer service quality, adherence to established timeliness standards , etc. It should be noted that internally-driven assessment initiatives typically feed into the larger externally-driven assessment initiatives, providing rich sources of data and a picture of ‘on the ground’ activities. They are generally collected at the departmental level with the purpose of monitoring unit effectiveness and, unlike the externally-driven assessment initiatives, do not normally have additional funding sources. Over the years the acquisitions department has undertaken various forms of assessment to track its effectiveness. Some forms of assessment are one-time or project-based and some are recurring.

One-time or Project-based Assessments

Two examples of internally-driven project-based assessments undertaken at UMN Libraries were the Technical Services/ Information Access & Delivery Services Benchmarking Throughput Study (2006-2010) and the Acquisitions & Rapid Cataloging unit (ARC) Serials Time Study (2015-2016). The Benchmarking Throughput Study was repeated several times from December 2006 to November 2010 and “measured throughput times for newly acquired monographs, music scores,

Against the Grain / September 2019

*Reflects timeliness standard for items cataloged in which there were Library of Congress & Member bibliographic records available. The standard for original cataloging was one month. sound recordings, ASC (Archives and Special Collections) gifts, and Smart Learning Commons videos.”7 The study used flyers to track items from receipt in the shipping department, through acquisitions, cataloging, processing and their arrival on the destination library shelves. The study compared the average processing times for shelf-ready and non-shelfready materials with department timeliness standards8 and found that they fell well within the established parameters (see table 1). The ARC Serials Time Study took place from October 2015 to October 2017.9 The goal of this study was to obtain benchmark measures to improve efficiencies, to compare student receiving costs with a prominent vendor’s subscription services, to determine if an open Library Assistant 2 position should be filled, to gain a clearer picture of the duties being performed by full-time staff and to assess time availability for cross-training purposes. Print serials staff and students were asked to track their activities by category on a spreadsheet for one-month intervals in October 2015, April 2016 and October 2016. Two interesting findings came out of this study: Overall staff time spent on receiving dropped from 61.8% in October 2015 to 41.5% in October 2016, while project-related work increased from 17.3% in October 2015 to 30.1% in October 2016. The decrease in receiving was attributed to the large print serials cancellation project that occurred in August 2015. Of the 3,000 print serial subscriptions open with the selected vendor, 93.9% of those titles were cheaper to process with existing staff and students. The remainder of the titles were journals with higher frequencies, i.e., daily, weekly, etc. Potential cost savings were weighed against the receiving delay that would occur through having the vendor process these materials and it was determined that the frequent publications were more valued for their timely delivery than for any economies that might be realized by outsourcing their processing.

Recurring Assessments

Aside from one-time and project-based assessments, the collecting of departmental statistics has always been used to evaluate departmental efficiency and productivity and to make decisions. Common collection data points are number of orders created, approval orders, shelf-ready orders, gifts, periodicals received (by students and full-time staff), orders by vendor, books fast cataloged (rapid

cataloging), print serials cancellations, and issues claimed, plus cost of shelf-ready processing and vendor records, total expenditures (often broken down on a granular level by fund code, vendor, material type, selector, fiscal year, etc.), vendor performance reports, and many more. Soliciting input from colleagues whose work is affected by acquisitions unit workflows, procedures and policies is a vital part of departmental assessment. This takes many forms at the Libraries. Members of the Acquisitions & E-Resources Management department participate in cross-functional, cross-divisional groups where policies and decisions regarding print acquisitions, trends, budgets, etc. are made and provide input on collection development and management guidelines, as well as policies and procedures regarding selection, acquisitions, preservation, withdrawal, reformatting, etc. Being actively involved in various library committees allows acquisitions leaders to be aware of upcoming purchases and purchasing trends, better understand the changing priorities of library users, learn about initiatives in other departments, and get feedback on acquisitions policies, procedures, and services to ensure open communication. It also gives acquisitions staff the opportunity to communicate procedural changes, remind selectors of fiscal year deadlines and have a forum to bring up new ideas for input. Additional input is sought by participating in other departmental or divisional meetings. Both the print and electronic acquisitions units have requested time in non-acquisitions departmental meetings to talk about what we do, how our services intersect with other departments and to inquire about pain points. These conversations have been very fruitful and have led to acquisition unit projects such as: • implementing ServiceNow, a ticketing system for queries, and improving our customer service model with regard to how the unit responds to and follows up with queries from liaisons, binding staff and vendors • fine-tuning claiming strategies by creating a student claiming spreadsheet in which students identify missing issues as they are checking in new issues and claim them with the subscriptions vendor on the spot • pursuing the Purchase Order Claiming Task List project in Alma to identify and perform acquisitions continued on page 26

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Assessing Print Acquisitions ... from page 25 maintenance on ceased and defunct serial titles • participating in cross-training projects in interlibrary loan, copyright permissions, and (in the near future) e-resources management As a relatively new manager at UMN Libraries (I joined in July 2015), learning about the assessment efforts that have taken place over the years has been crucial in my growth and understanding of how current procedures and organizational structures have been formed and how they affect everyday activities in the acquisitions department. Assessing the outcomes of changes implemented over time provides current managers with rich institutional knowledge and arms them with assessment techniques and tools that can be used to further improve processes and services offered.

Rumors from page 6 of many in his understanding of the enormous opportunities, challenges, and risks attendant on the digital transformation of the cultural record, its preservation, and its dissemination. The humanities field is forever in his debt.” With the rise and promise of the digital age, the Mellon Foundation established a standing program in support of the burgeoning field of scholarly communications in 1999. With Waters at the helm, the Scholarly Communications program supported research libraries, cultural and academic archives, museums, universities, presses, and arts organizations as they embraced the potential of digital technologies in furthering the collective understanding of societies and cultures around the world. Scholarly Communications grants have given rise to scores of nonprofit enterprises, including Ithaka, Artstor, Portico, LOCKSS, Hypothes.is, and the Digital Public Library of America; dozens of new types of professions, such as scholarly communications librarians, digital repository managers, digitization specialists, data curators; and a large variety of standards and digital tools for knowledge-making. https://mellon.org/about/staff/donald-j-waters/ For Waters full biography: https://mellon.org/ resources/news/articles/senior-program-officer-donald-j-waters-retire/ The resourceful Kent Anderson announces: Caldera Is Active Again. After guiding a startup to acquisition, it’s time to return to consulting. “With the announcement of RedLink’s acquisition by Wiley/Atypon, I’m pleased to also announce that Caldera Publishing Solutions is active again, after 3+ years of dormancy. Of course, the launch of this newsletter — “The Geyser” — in October 2018 was the first rumbling that something

26 Against the Grain / September 2019

Endnotes 1. Rebecca L. Mugridge, “Technical Services Assessment: A Survey of Pennsylvania Academic Libraries” Library Resources and Technical Services, 58, no.2 (2014): 100-110. Accessed December 2, 2018 at http://web.b.ebscohost.com.ezp3.lib.umn.edu/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=1&sid=8f05afaa-d777-4ac1-9615-ab494bca7e7b%40pdc-v-sessmgr03. 2. Rebecca L. Mugridge and Nancy M. Poehlmann, “Internal Customer Service Assessment of Cataloging, Acquisitions, and Library System” OCLC Systems & Services: International digital library perspectives, 31, no.4 (2015:Nov. 9):219-248. Accessed December 10, 18 at www.emeraldinsight.com/1065-075X.htm. 3. Kaylyn Groves, “University of Minnesota Libraries Wins 2017 National Medal for Museum and Library Service” Association of Research Libraries News, (May 15, 2017). Accessed January 10, 2019 at https://www.arl.org/news/community-updates/4285-university-of-minnesota-libraries-wins-2017-national-medal-for-museum-and-library-service#.XHc3DIhKiUk. 4. UMN Libraries, Selection to Access (S2A) Implementation Report (October 27, 2006). Internal UMN Libraries document. 5. UMN Libraries, S2A2 Serials and E-Resources Implementation Final Report (December 4, 2008). Internal UMN Libraries document. 6. UMN Libraries, Organization Design Group: Repositioning Technical Services and Enterprise Technology - Final Report (April 4, 2012). Internal UMN Libraries document. 7. UMN Libraries, Technical Services/’IADS Benchmarking Throughput Study (2010). Internal UMN Libraries document. 8. UMN Libraries, ARM Timeliness Standards for Basic Functions (April 22, 2011). Internal UMN Libraries document. 9. UMN Libraries, ARC Time Study (February 2017). Internal UMN Libraries document.

was coming. Caldera Publishing Solutions was launched in 2016 with the mission of providing scholarly and scientific publishers — as well as other information purveyors — with future-focused consulting services. We emphasize editorial development, product development, market assessment, customer insights, and strategic synthesis. We have some unique approaches that help develop strategies that recognize complexity and size-up viability from the start.” https://www.caldera-publishing.com PS — I will put in a plug for The Geyser which is always an enlightening read! thegeyser@substack.com Plus Kent is offering a discounted subscription to ATG subscribers and Charleston Conference attendees! Watch for it! Moving right along — Kent and Rick Anderson have another entry in the world of newsletter publishing — Mad About Music. I had no idea that both Kent and Rick had bands back when they were younger or maybe even now! I just learned about a Maine folk musician, Gordon Bok who is quite good! “Without music, life would be a mistake.” Friedrich Nietzsche. madaboutmusic@substack.com The National Information Standards Organization (NISO) announces the appointment of Jason Griffey as the Director of Strategic Initiatives on the NISO staff. Griffey brings to NISO over 15 years of experience in libraries and community leadership, as well as a broad understanding of emerging technologies. This new position was created to support the merger between NISO and the National Federation of Advanced Information Services (NFAIS) that was announced earlier this spring. Griffey will be responsible for organizing an annual conference and thought leadership meetings,

and for building initiatives based on those convenings. For the last five years, Griffey has run Evenly Distributed, a consulting firm that works with libraries — both nationally and internationally — on education and strategic planning related to cutting-edge technologies. He is widely recognized as an expert in the areas of artificial intelligence, blockchain, privacy, and other library-related technology issues. Griffey has written and presented extensively on technology and libraries, including multiple books and a series of full-periodical issues on technology topics, most recently AI & Machine Learning in Libraries and Library Spaces and Smart Buildings: Technology, Metrics, and Iterative Design both published in 2018. Griffey spent three years as a Fellow and Affiliate at the Berkman Klein Center for Internet and Society at Harvard University before spending one year working with the metaLAB at Harvard. He has served both as Director-at-Large and as Parliamentarian on the Board of the Library Information Technology Association, a division of the American Library Association. Griffey is a graduate of Morehead State University and holds an MLS from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. NISO fosters the development and maintenance of standards that facilitate the creation, persistent management, and effective interchange of information so that it can be trusted for use in research and learning. NISO is a not-for-profit association accredited by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI). http://www.niso.org Awesome! Award of the Laurea magistrale ad honorem in Library and Information Science has been given to Michele Casalini by the University of Florence. It is with both enormous pride and great pleasure that we announce that the CEO of Casalini continued on page 29

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Assessing e-journal post-cancellation access by Sunshine Carter (Electronic Resources Librarian and Interim Collection Development Officer, University of Minnesota Libraries) <scarter@umn.edu> and Yumiko Toyota-Kindler (Library Program Specialist 1, University of Minnesota Libraries) <y-toyo@umn.edu> Introduction

Post-cancellation access (PCA) allows for the continued ownership and access of an institution’s electronic purchases or subscriptions. Ideally, the initial point of acquisition is the time to record PCA rights. In 2018, the University of Minnesota Libraries (Minnesota Libraries) began a project to assess its e-journal PCA rights. The Minnesota Libraries has negotiated for PCA rights for nearly two decades and knows, for the most part, which publishers provided PCA; yet the specific PCA entitlements for each title were not known. Investigating PCA rights for e-journals was a long and arduous task, dependent on the presence (or absence) of accurate records. An automated overlap analysis script compared print and electronic serial holdings to reduce the number of titles to review. Along the way, a post-cancellation access determination (PCAD) project uncovered various challenges unique to serial publications. The authors share their experience with determining PCA at the University of Minnesota and outline recommendations for other PCA projects.

Post-Cancellation Access (PCA)

PCA allows for the perpetual, continued ownership of explicitly defined electronic content. Any electronic resource content can come with PCA (or perpetual access), but it is most commonly provided with one-time purchases (e.g., eBooks, primary sources) and e-journal subscriptions. Often, PCA is provided for each year a subscription is paid. A PCA clause in the license is critical to securing and documenting PCA rights, but knowing the specific details of PCA rights is equally important because PCA ensures continued access to content, similar to the continued access print content provides. PCA license clauses vary widely, but it is important to include specific details about the delivery or hosting mechanism and cost of invoking PCA rights.1 LIBLICENSE’s Model License Agreement,2 the Big Ten Academic Alliance Library Initiatives’ Standardized Agreement Language,3 and the California Digital Library’s Standard License Agreement4 all have good model language for PCA. A repository, archive, publisher, or library can self-host PCA on their own servers. Invoking PCA rights is not always easy or cost-free to set up, especially if a library must self-host the content.5 Direct or indirect costs for setting up PCA (whether self-hosted or not) may include staff time, fees (one-time, maintenance, membership, etc.), storage space and/or integration into established delivery mechanisms. The initial point of acquisition is the ideal time to record PCA information for each title. Libraries are good about asking for and receiving PCA rights; recording the PCA details,

28 Against the Grain / September 2019

however, may not be included in daily acquisition workflows.6 The Minnesota Libraries knows (or can identify) which journal publishers or licenses include perpetual access. PCA was not known for specific titles or date ranges due to complicated and convoluted licenses. Or because the Minnesota Libraries has never recorded serial PCA information at the title/year level. For example, the Minnesota Libraries knew it had PCA rights for the Wiley title Counselor education and supervision, but the specific years of PCA were not recorded.

Post-cancellation Access Determination (PCAD) Project In 2018, the Minnesota Libraries embarked on a project to assess its e-journal PCA rights. The post-cancellation access determination (PCAD) project intended to identify electronic surrogates to print serials for possible withdrawal of the print format. Other criteria considered when determining surrogacy (in addition to PCA rights) included electronic holdings equal to, or exceeding, print holdings, interlibrary loan allowances, print retention commitments and archival copies in Portico7 or the Big Ten Academic Alliance (BTAA) Shared Print Repository.8 This article will discuss the processes used by e-resource management staff to assess PCA rights and share lessons learned. As mentioned previously, the Minnesota Libraries generally has a good handle on which publishers provided PCA; however, PCA years for each title is less known. For a few bigger publishers, the Minnesota Libraries had negotiated uniform PCA regardless of the years subscribed. For example, all the journals subscribed through one publisher has a PCA start date of 1995 no matter what the first subscription year was for a specific journal title. For nearly all other publishers, however, it is not the standard practice to set a uniform PCA start date; typically, subscribed years determine PCA access, meaning if a library subscribes and pays for a journal during 2005-2010, the library will have PCA rights from 2005-2010. When a publisher grants PCA to the paid content only, it becomes crucial to review the payment history to determine the exact PCA years. These prior negotiations for uniform PCA rights would, in the end, be a saving grace during this monumental project; it soon became clear manually checking the payment history for each journal would be a time consuming (if not hopeless) task.

PCAD Process

Investigating each candidate e-journal for PCA was easy or hard depending on the presence and accuracy of order records kept by the Minnesota Libraries and/or publishers or subscription agents. This complication and a short timeline caused the PCAD project to focus on those publishers with the most PCA information: Elsevier, Wiley, SAGE and Springer. For these publishers the Libraries had the most comprehensive acquisitions information and, for the most part, contractual agreements providing for many PCA years. For this reason, it was decided that other publishers’ PCA would be investigated later, during the regular renewal process. The PCAD project began with the need to free up space at three library locations. An initial overlap analysis compared print (of the three library locations) and electronic serial holdings, speeding up the PCAD process. Metadata analysts from the Libraries’ Data Management & Access (DMA) Department scripted the overlap analysis. The scripting created a select title list meeting all the criteria with a likelihood of PCA (the analysis excluded all titles from non-perpetual e-collections). The final output provided by DMA (in Excel) listed candidates for assessment based on print holding location, percent (%) print to electronic holdings overlap, and existence in a print or online repository. Additional metadata such as bibliographic record ID, ISSN (print and electronic), and print holdings/chronology range were included in the Excel file to aid in PCAD. Information about the matched and overlapping print and electronic titles were placed in a Google sheet (one worksheet per publisher), enabling simultaneous work by the six E-Resource Management (ERM) Unit staff members (within the Acquisitions & E-Resource Management Department). The PCA determination for each title was recorded in the Google worksheets. After the scripted overlap analysis, ERM staff had 1,082 titles to review (representing over 46,000 volumes), and reviewed 80-100 titles per week. First, ERM staff verified that the print and online records represented the same journal. They then compared the print holdings data from the sheet with the catalog, an added step to detect discrepancies in the print chronology range. ERM staff also reviewed the online holdings to confirm that they equaled or exceeded the print holdings. For each journal, the PCAD findings from the analysis were continued on page 29

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Assessing e-journal ... from page 28 recorded in the sheet, including the existence or lack of PCA for the entire print holdings and any anomalies found (missing chronology data of print item records, missing online issues, etc.). In the end, 92% of the 1,082 titles reviewed by ERM staff were determined to be print surrogates and could be withdrawn based on the established criteria.

Road Blocks

Along the way, the PCAD project uncovered various challenges unique to serial publications, such as how to assess PCA for print supplements, providing proof of payment after many years had passed, tracking PCA for transferred titles, and addressing title changes in the overlap analysis process. One issue encountered was print supplements. The biomedical journals, in particular, include many supplements containing conference proceedings or additional articles. These supplements are often not available electronically or scarcely held by other libraries. The only way to check whether online versions of print supplements exist is verifying their representation in the online version, which is time-consuming. Titles with supplements, due to their extra complications, were set aside to be assessed later. Access entitlement reports (from the publisher), obtained by request or through the Minnesota Libraries’ administrative interfaces, helped in the PCAD of subscribed titles. In some instances, the entitlement information provided to us did not show the correct PCA years for which the Libraries held paid subscriptions. Payment history for the years in question was provided to the publisher and the publisher updated PCA entitlements. Payment proof ranged from past payment history and order format provided by the current serial subscription agent, or screenshots of payment history from the Minnesota Libraries’ unified library services platform. Transfer titles (titles transferred from one publisher to another) made up the bulk of problematic journals, particularly for one publisher. ERM staff pointed out to the current publisher that the former publishers of transferred titles had included a PCA clause. The current publisher subsequently granted PCA rights when sufficient proof of payment was provided. Previously recorded order notes were helpful for gathering past payment history to request rightful PCA to the front files; some notes pertained to what year the journals transferred to the receiving publisher, and others related to the order format change from Print+Online to Online Only. The National Information Standards Organization’s (NISO) Transfer Code of Practice section 3.2 (Perpetual Access) states, “The transferring publisher must ensure continued access to its subscribers where it has granted perpetual access rights, even if the transferring publisher will cease to host the online version of the journal after the effective transfer date.”9 In reality, however, subscribers (libraries), not the transferring publisher, often

Against the Grain / September 2019

bear the burden of proving their PCA years to the receiving publisher, especially if the need to claim PCA rights does not surface for several years. Another issue to be wary of is the tendency for publishers to represent the historical range of a title with only one title identifier, especially in commercial central knowledge base collections, such as Ex Libris’ SFX and Alma Community Zone and ProQuest’s 360. This means a title that has changed names many times can be listed only as the most current title. Some print titles on the shelf did not match with electronic holdings because their title and/or identifiers did not align for overlap analysis to occur.

provide Knowledge Bases And Related Tools (KBART) files in administrator accounts, but they only show activated access years based on current year subscriptions and lack PCA information. Even when the access entitlement files are available from publishers, the way they display the PCA data varies. A standard should be established to promote uniformity of access entitlement files among publishers and include perpetual rights information because PCA years are the true electronic holdings of libraries. Additionally, library management systems should include specific fields for recording post-cancellation access at the title level, with the option to export the information through analytics.

Recommendations

Regardless of publisher, determining PCA has been a time consuming and difficult task because in most cases titles need manual checking. From this project, we have a few recommendations on immediate steps for mitigating a PCA investigation, issues to watch for during a PCA project, and next steps to ease the burden for libraries (and perhaps publishers). Planning for a future invocation of PCA is important in reducing the amount of work and uncertainty that a PCAD project creates. Order information (along with detailed notes) may be necessary to prove payment, so order records should be maintained (or at least accessible in a flat file) even after system migrations. Record and store (if possible) PCA information in your library management system. When negotiating PCA rights, ask for a standard PCA start date to ease record keeping for both parties. It is a good idea to obtain detailed entitlement reports and to create a process for handling anomalies. Request from publishers entitlement reports that include access date ranges and perpetual date ranges. Use this information for the review, but beware of discrepancies. During the process have a procedure for handling supplements, title transfers and title changes. To ease the tracking of PCA information, each provider should make access entitlement files easily downloadable. The files should explicitly show the PCA years and complimentary back file access dates while subscriptions are active. Some publishers

Rumors from page 26 Libri, Michele Casalini, has accepted an honorary degree celebrating his dedication and contribution to the field of Library and Information Science from the University of Florence. The ceremony on 21st May 2019 marked the very first bestowal of the honour for merit in modern librarianship by an Italian university; only the second time that a similar distinction has been conferred in Library and Information Science in Italy. Delivering the Laudatio of the award, Prof. Mauro Guer-

Endnotes 1. Jim Stemper and Susan Barribeau, “Perpetual Access to Electronic Journals,” Library Resources & Technical Services 50 (April 2006): 91–109. 2. “LIBLICENSE: Licensing Digital Content: A Resource for Librarians,” http:// liblicense.crl.edu (accessed June 9, 2019). 3. Big Ten Academic Alliance Library Initiatives, “Standardized Agreement Language,” May 2019, https://www.btaa.org/library/ licensing/standardized-agreement-language (accessed June 9, 2019). 4. California Digital Library, “Standard License Agreement,” 2016, https://www.cdlib. org/gateways/vendors/docs/CDL_Model_License_2016_for_vendors.rtf (accessed June 9, 2019). 5. Sarah Glasser, “Providing Perpetual Access,” Library Resources & Technical Services 58 (July 2014): 144–152. 6. Chris Bulock, “Techniques for Tracking Perpetual Access,” The Serials Librarian 68 (May 2015): 290–298. 7. Portico, https://www.portico.org/ why-portico/ (accessed June 9, 2019). 8. Big Ten Academic Alliance, “Shared Print Repository,” http://www.btaa.org/ library/shared-print-repository/introduction (accessed June 9, 2019). 9. National Information Standards Organization, RP-24-2015 Transfer Code of Practice Version 3.0, https://www.niso.org/ publications/rp-24-2015-transfer, 2015 (accessed June 9, 2019).

rini praised Michele’s capacity to promote innovation in his business and in general among the most advanced library community: “With Casalini Libri, he has understood that the new factor in the digital world is not the technology itself, but close and unconstrained collaboration with other partners. Michele has contributed, and continues to contribute, to the advancement of librarianship in the digital age, achieving excellent results that are appreciated and recognized internationally. Michele Casalini is a bridge builder thanks to the diffusion of culture, knowledge and research.” The honour pays tribute to Michele’s continued on page 32

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Assessing the Success of Library Published Journals by Emma Molls (Publishing Services Librarian, University of Minnesota) <emolls@umn.edu> Abstract

In 2015, the University of Minnesota (UMN) Libraries launched a publishing program. Following in the footsteps of earlier library publishing initiatives, the program seeks to serve campus by providing an affordable venue for publishing quality open access journals and other openly accessible formats. However, given UMN Libraries Publishing’s diverse portfolio and its non-traditional business model, assessing the program’s success required innovative thinking that did not depend on sales figures or disciplinary-specific metrics. This paper will discuss UMN Libraries Publishing’s development of journal-level goals to assess publication-level success and, in turn, assess the success of a library publishing program. The paper will present examples of journal goals, templates for editorial boards, and timelines for publishing workflows related to assessment.

Table 1. New Publication Goal Development Questionnaire.

We’re Here, Now What?

In many ways, the University of Minnesota Libraries was late to the library publishing party. University of Michigan Libraries and University of Pittsburgh Library, arguably two of the most robust library publishers, launched publishing initiatives in 2001 and 1999,1 respectively. Prior to 2015, University of Minnesota Libraries was able to serve campus publishing and publishing-adjacent needs through other existing library services, including the institutional repository (launched in 2007) and digital project assistance offered through the web development department. After a sharp increase in consultations from on-campus, faculty-led journals, the University of Minnesota (UMN) Libraries launched a publishing program in 2015, built heavily off of the experiences and direction of long-standing library publishing programs at peer institutions. After four years, UMN Libraries Publishing now offers in-depth publishing consultations and open access journal, monograph, and textbook publishing services to campus-affiliates and scholarly societies. The University of Minnesota Libraries deliberately and thoughtfully created an open access publishing program, knowing that the program’s success would not, and could not, be measured by the same means as for-profit or self-sustaining publishers. Likewise, library publishing programs, like other library services, need to meet the current needs of campus, which requires frequent reassessment and flexibility. The innovative approach of library publishing within a campus context, therefore, requires a complex answer to the question: “What does success look like for us?”

The Struggle with Metrics Across UMN Libraries Publishing’s catalog, we publish journals on three different platforms, Open Journal Systems, WordPress, and bepress Digital Commons, and monographs and textbooks on three different platforms,

30 Against the Grain / September 2019

Manifold, Pressbooks, and DSpace. Depending on each individual title, some journals publish downloadable PDFs, while others publish full-text HTML. Similarly, depending on the title, monographs and textbooks are available for reading and downloading at the book level, or by chapter-by-chapter. This diversity of content availability became increasingly problematic in creating internal annual reports used to illustrate the publishing service’s growth and activity to library administration. Even with using a standard like COUNTER,2 when available, is a challenge for measuring library publishing activity because it does not capture nuance across titles, including frequency of publication, number of articles published annually, and size of potential audience. Although a publisher would like to assume that every person with internet access would be a potential reader of an open access journal article, realistically, depending on subject area and content of individual articles, each journal, and even each article, has a uniquely sized potential audience. All of these caveats make presenting a straight-forward, usage statistics-centric story of success difficult. While UMN Libraries Publishing still tracks journal-level usage statistics, we are working toward telling our story of success through the success of each journal. This approach requires that we, as publishers, are in close contact with each journal’s editorial board to identify and meet their objectives and successes.

To Each Their Own One of the first UMN Libraries publications, Open Rivers3 (ISSN 2471-190X, published fall 2015), was proposed and developed as a WordPress publication, and therefore required additional conversations and planning around design and website development, especially compared to journals on more templated platforms like bepress Digital Commons. Led by UMN Publishing Team members with library technology backgrounds, editors and librarians walked through a user design template that asked editors to consider different user segments, mentalities, and key site objectives. While this template was being prepared primarily for technology needs, it became clear that walking editors through deeper questions related to the publication’s goals needed to be incorporated into the workflow for all publications. Publishing Team members adapted the user design template to include further questions that were relevant to the non-technology aspects of scholarly publications. These added sections, listed in Table 1, were in large part success-oriented. After three years of revisions, the former user design template is now referred to as “New Publication Goal Development Questionnaire” and includes the following sections, descriptions, and instructions as listed in Table 1. The questionnaire is answered by publication leads, typically editors or a steering committee, but frequently facilitated in-person by a member of the Publishing Team. continued on page 32

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DE WHO? DE GRUYTER! De Gruyter isn’t a megapublisher, but we do know what we’re doing – you’d think so after 270 years of publishing. But just because we’ve been around for a long time doesn’t mean we’re stuffy – how could we be when we publish Humor, the international journal of humor research? In fact, our fresh and modern attitude to open access, transformative agreements and “read and publish” arrangements have gotten us modest headlines. Everything we do is based on our values: partnership, courage, openness and competence and our mission includes connecting researchers to scientific knowledge, nurturing interdisciplinary exchange and thus contributing to wider conversations and progress in society. Interested in a conversation? Come talk to us at Charleston Library Conference.

dewho@degruyter.com Americas: +1 (857) 284-7073 Europe, Middle East, Africa: +49 (30) 2600 50 Asia: +86 (10) 855 12304

degruyter.com

Assessing the Success of Library ... from page 30 It became apparent after working with both brand new journals and journals with a longer publication history, that journals would need to have a different measure of success for the short term (one year), the midterm (three years) and the long term (beyond five years). While it may seem redundant to have separate measures of success for years three and five, this breakdown is specifically linked to indexing and discoverability, which many journals identify as a measure of success. PubMed Central 4 and Scopus 5 require at least two years of regular publication to be included in the indexes; however, it may take a journal an additional two years to get through index review. For brand new titles, goals of year one are typically heavily tied to author and reviewer recruitment and basic editor on-boarding and journal management. It is important to acknowledge that these goals are not abandoned after years three and five, but should be embedded into the everyday work of the journal editors. Given the separate measures of success for different years, we are moving toward regular check-in meetings with each editorial team in order to revisit the New Publication Goal Development Questionnaire. These meetings,

Rumors from page 29 work and commitment to continuing, together with his sister Barbara, the legacy of their father, Mario, founder in 1958 of Casalini Libri an internationally respected publisher in the field of the academic information chain. Such prestigious recognition of Michele’s expertise, professionalism, and foresight in his field reflects the outstanding work carried out by Casalini Libri and is an immense source of pride and satisfaction for the entire company. The full proceedings including Michele’s Lectio doctoralis, The centrality of libraries for progress and democracy, are published by Firenze University Press and are available in open access on Torrossa Open at the permalink https://oa.torrossa.com/resources/ an/4485970. A collection of photos from the event is available at http://www.casalini.it/ docs/lmh_mc_photos.pdf. More great news! Leah Hinds’ daughter, Maddie, was selected and has finished a USDA AgDiscovery Interneship! AgDiscovery is a summer outreach program designed to help teenagers explore careers in plant and animal science, wildlife management, agribusiness, and much more! The program allows students to live on a college campus and learn about agriculture from university professors, scientists, and administrative professionals who work for the U.S. Government in a variety of fields. They study the life cycles and habits of insects

32 Against the Grain / September 2019

especially with mature titles, often result in adding additional yearly goals to the journal. Adding additional goals gives rotating editorial team members a way to leave their “mark” on a journal and often seek to strengthen the journal’s competitiveness in its respective field. As long as these goals can be tied to the journal’s original business objectives and can be described as a measure of success, there is no problem in expanding the answers to the Goal Development Questionnaire. The New Publication Goal Development Questionnaire is a great tool for publishers. Outside of the initial publication build, the questionnaire is used to help scope additional developments. For example, if one of our publications has listed “inclusion in PubMed Central” as a measure of success for year five, we know that workflows for XML production must be in place prior to inclusion.

Their Success, Our Story

UMN Libraries Publishing was launched in order to meet campus needs and serve campus — and part of our service-oriented program is to ensure that each publication is successful by a measure that fits its context. We believe as an open access publisher, embedded within a public university, we are in a unique position to create a publishing environment that puts academy-led journal priorities first, rather than publisher revenue.

(entomologists); research micro-organisms, such as bacteria and viruses (biotechnologists); examine cells and tissues under a microscope to identify diseases (plant pathologists); work to conserve and manage wild animals and their habitats (wildlife biologists); carry out animal health programs (veterinarians); provide education on the humane care and treatment of animals (veterinarians and animal care inspectors); and manage the business aspects of protecting plants and animals (agribusiness). There are several participating universities, but Maddie applied and was accepted to attend the session at NC State University June 17 - 28. How wonderful! Hooray for Maddie! Was poking around the Internet ordering some books from AbeBooks when I discovered that there are a lot of podcasts on the Abebooks website. The one I noticed was of the Kennel Club Library and there is much more. Lots about food! AbeBooks Podcast - Behind the Bookshelves: https://www.abebooks.com/ podcast/index.shtml. Plus, AbeBooks has introduced an innovative podcast player that offers a daily round-up of book-related podcasts. Shelfsound streams the best literary podcasts from around the world into the player and makes them easily available to AbeBooks’ visitors. http://www.abebooks.com/books/shelfsound-podcast.shtml Do you follow Tom Gilson’s News & Announcements in the ATG NewsChannel? There is a new issue brief on library collec-

While we are still figuring out how to best share our story in a quantifiable way, we know what our story is: we succeed when our journals succeed. Focusing on journal measures of success has implications across an entire publishing program — from proposal application to publication build — and helps shift the focus of publishing back on scholars.

Endnotes 1. Library Publishing Coalition Directory Committee. (2018). Library Publishing Directory 2018. 2016D11D14]. http://www. librarypublishing.org/resources/directory/ lpd2017 2. COUNTER is a standards organization that develops and maintains the standard for counting the use of electronic resources. The COUNTER Project. https://www. projectcounter.org/about/ 3. Open Rivers. http://editions.lib.umn. edu/openrivers/ 4. National Library of Medicine. (2019). Journal Selection for MEDLINE Indexing at NLM. https://www.nlm.nih.gov/ lstrc/j_sel_faq.html 5. Elsevier. (2019). Content Policy and Selection. https://www.elsevier.com/solutions/scopus/how-scopus-works/content/ content-policy-and-selection

tions from Ithaka S+R’s Oya Rieger entitled “What’s a Collection Anyway?” According to the introduction the essay characterizes “the evolving nature of collections and … highlights some of the factors behind these changes and their impact on the notion of collections. It is a reflection on how collections are defined and what it means to build a collection or develop a collection policy given the current information ecology and trends in research and pedagogy…” www.against-the-grain.com/ http://sr.ithaka.org/publications/whats-a-collection-anyway/ Hoo ha! Cris Ferguson has been elected as NASIG treasurer… And interesting that according to the NASIG newsletter, NASIG may move towards formalizing a rotation between four conference cities: Pittsburgh, Spokane, Madison, and Atlanta. https://tigerprints.clemson.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2005&context=nasig Did you see — Against the Grain, all you need to know about Digital Textbooks from a range of commentators across the industry. This special issue (ATG, v.31#3, June 2019) expertly guest edited by Dominic Broadhurst looks at perspectives from academic libraries directly providing textbooks to their students, a view from a publisher, the potential opportunities for open textbooks, the value offered from digital textbooks and of course never forgetting the all-important continued on page 49

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Assessing Library Competencies for the Future: The LibGOAL Toolkit for Success by Steven Bell (Associate University Librarian, Temple University) <bells@temple.edu> and Marta Brunner (College Librarian, Skidmore College) <mbrunner@skidmore.edu> and Jennifer Ferguson (Team Lead, Arts & Humanities, Tufts University) <jennifer.ferguson@tufts.edu> and Elliot Felix (Founder and CEO, brightspot strategy) <elliot@brightspotstrategy.com> and Emily Kessler (Senior Strategist, brightspot strategy) <emily@brightspotstrategy.com> and Kelly Sanford (Senior Strategist, brightspot strategy) <kelly@brightspotstrategy.com> and David Woodbury (Department Head, Learning Spaces & Services, NC State University) <dnwoodbu@ncsu.edu> Abstract

What are the essential competencies that future library professionals will need as individuals, as team members, as members of a university, and as citizens? What are the personal and organizational competencies to guide their education and professional development to become proficient in these competencies? This article will detail the process by which a group of thinkers and doers came together to identify these essential competencies and develop a toolkit to help both new and seasoned academic library professionals prepare for their future. This group was comprised of ten library professionals from eight institutions and three members of brightspot strategy, a higher education strategic consultancy with extensive experience planning library services, staffing, and spaces.1 The toolkit we created — called LibGOAL — is a card sort planning activity for teams of library professionals to help them identify, discuss, and align their priorities for future personal and organizational growth. In this article, we will define the problem we set out to solve, summarize our environmental scan of competency frameworks outside of and within the library world, explain our initial competencies and how we organized them into categories, recount the development of the card sort activity, share the lessons from initial testing and outreach, and identify our next steps to create an open and free community resource.

Introduction

What are the essential competencies that future library professionals will need as individuals, as team members, as members of a university, and as citizens? How can they identify personal and organizational competencies to guide their education and professional development to become proficient in these competencies? To answer these questions for both new and seasoned library professionals, ten library professionals from eight institutions and members of brightspot strategy came together to define the problem, look for example competency frameworks beyond and within the profession, brainstorm competencies and ways of categorizing them, develop a prototype tool, test and polish it, and then launch it at a library conference in late 2018. Along the way, our group has modelled the kinds of skills and activities we think are important for the future such as collaborating faceto-face and at a distance, brainstorming, prototyping,

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and making an impact for ourselves, our teams, our institutions, and our profession. It has been a non-linear process in which we have been learning along the way. We look forward to continuing this process as more people get involved as users, contributors, or both to create an open-access community resource that can help guide recruiting, development, organizational design, and performance management for library professionals.

Problem Definition

LibGOAL started with an insight from Todd Gilman during the editing of Academic Librarianship Today.2 He observed that library professionals now often have an equal seat at the table at institutions as they think about teaching and learning with faculty. No longer limited to ad hoc student orientations, sporadic consultations, and chance collaborations with faculty, library professionals can be shaping syllabi, directing academic centers, and team teaching. With this observation came another one from the group as we discussed the topic of competencies for library professionals in the future: often library professionals are ill-prepared to be equal partners in teaching and learning both from their formal education and in their career development. So, we then came together to identify the competencies needed to close this preparation gap. When we came together, perhaps as a result of our diversity of perspectives, experiences, and institutions, we recalled the idea of the “T-shaped” person. This concept, originating in the late 1970s3 and then popularized by IDEO’s Tim Brown more recently,4 posits that people should have specific vertical areas of deep expertise coupled with horizontal skills and knowledge that cut across roles and departments, enabling collaboration. With this in mind, we realized first that teaching and learning would be a vertical competency in this schema (along with areas like user experience, scholarly communications, and makerspaces) and second, that to be of real value, we should define the horizontal competencies that are likely common to all roles within a library — competencies like communication, creativity, and project management. Thus we defined the problem, the opportunity really, as the identification of essential continued on page 34

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Assessing Library Competencies for the Future ... from page 33 competencies that future library professionals need to guide their education and professional development.

Environmental Scan

To understand the context and inform the development of the toolkit, we looked both within the library world and outside of it. Looking within, we reflected on the scenario planning work that the Association of Research Libraries (ARL) did in 2010 to imagine the future 20 years out, based on how constrained and how diffused research might become.5 This yielded four ARL scenarios: 1. Research Entrepreneurs: A future shaped by the rise of entrepreneurial research where individual researchers are the stars of the story as creators of high-value new knowledge. 2. Reuse and Recycle: A future in which reuse of research activities dominate “because of an anticipated scarcity of resources for the research enterprise.” 3. Disciplines in Charge: A future in which scholars align themselves around data stores and computational capacity that address large-scale research questions within their research field. 4. Global Followers: A future in which the research enterprise is relatively familiar, but the cultural context framing research changes because of funding shifts from North America and developed western nations to nations in the Middle East and Asia. Our group also explored existing articles and competency frameworks within the profession; for instance, Bertot, Sarin, and Percell identified competencies in their 2015 article “Re-Envisioning the MLS: Findings, Issues, and Considerations” (which read like attributes) including Collaborative, Inclusive, Flexible/Adaptable, Creative, Risk Takers, Socially Innovative, and several others.6 The NASIG (formerly the North American Serials Interest Group, Inc.) report on Core Competencies for Scholarly Communication Librarians identified the themes of Background Knowledge, Technical Skills, Outreach and Instruction, and Team Building as well as five areas of emphasis including Institutional Repository Management, Publishing Services, Copyright Services, Data Management Services, and Assessment and Impact Metrics.7 Our look outside the library profession was equally useful. For instance, the Society of Actuaries (SOA) has a self-assessment tool in which individuals rate statements about their skills and knowledge included in the competency framework in two dimensions: the importance to their work and the individual’s ability to perform it.8 This tool provided a critical clue that not all competencies will be equally relevant and prioritization based on the institution and the individual is an important step. The Chartered Global Management Accountants (CGMA) also created an excellent framework in 2014 whose four categories of competenies tell a kind of story about how professionals “apply accounting and finance skills (technical skills), in the context of the business (business skills), to influence people (people skills), and lead within the organization (leadership skills).”9 These four categories inspired LibGOAL’s four horizontal scales: Technical, Professional, Interpersonal, and Strategic.

34 Against the Grain / September 2019

Categories and Competencies: Origins

Early decisions centered around the ways in which the team would define what a librarian of the future looked like and what skills that librarian needed. Brainstorming during a workshop at brightspot strategy resulted in identifying a mix of soft and hard skills, new areas of expertise, and emerging roles. As the team searched for common themes among a multitude of possibilities, an organizing schema emerged. Many of the competencies fell into one of two categories. One set reflected leadership and management activities, such as change management, ethics, vision, risk, and diversity. The other addressed functional areas such as learning, scholarly communications, and data management. It is at this point that the model of the “T-shaped person” began to emerge based on two sets of scales, horizontal and vertical. The horizontal axis would reflect strategic competencies while the vertical would apply to the functional skill sets. To test the feasibility of the T-shaped model, the team selected teaching and learning and scholarly communications for building out a set of competencies. For the former, team members used their own expertise to construct the competencies, while the latter was based on competencies developed by a library association. For teaching and learning, the challenge was to identify just ten key concepts to represent a broad range of educator practices and knowledge. For scholarly communications, a set of competencies was adopted from the aforementioned NASIG Report. We also learned that to inform the development of future competencies, a team member should be tasked with establishing a hierarchy of competencies in their area of expertise and to aim for broadness of coverage. At that point, additional team members should review the content to determine if the listed competencies will manageably transfer to the card set or if refinements are necessary. Developing these categories and competencies is a team sport that requires the accumulated knowledge and practical experience of all of its members. Ultimately though, practitioners who participate in our public prototyping exercises can inform how well choices were made and influence further refinements.

Prototyping and ARL Conference

Once we had determined the horizontal competency scales, we defined the horizontal competencies, and drafted the initial vertical competencies; for instance, horizontal competences included creativity, ethics, assessment, outreach, and social justice while vertical competencies would fall under categories like scholarly communications, teaching and learning, and makerspaces. Then, the group collaborated on the development of a card sort activity prototype. The prototype included cards listing each horizontal and vertical competency along with a card sort activity plot and an action plan plot. The cards included in the initial prototype listed each competency along with a brief definition in order to help users determine the meaning and relevancy of each competency area. The initial prototype also included a detailed set of instructions for plotting the competency cards for relevancy and proficiency and creating an action plan for organizational and/or personal development. Once the prototype was developed, we tested it at libraries from seven academic institutions, including Columbia University, Carnegie Mellon Universicontinued on page 35

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Assessing Library Competencies for the Future ... from page 34 ty, North Carolina State University, Skidmore College, Tufts University, UCLA, and Wheaton College. Based on the feedback from our initial testing, we revised the prototype activity and instructions to clarify the wording of each competency and we provided an example of what each competency might mean in practice. Based on our testers’ perceptions of the activity, we also reworked the instructions to make it more game-based and focused on plotting fewer cards. We made these changes to set participants’ expectations that like a game, they’ll learn as they go, to encourage participants to prioritize competencies, and to make sorting 50+ cards more manageable. This revised prototype was tested once again at the 2018 Library Assessment Conference, where we facilitated a workshop of approximately 50 participating library professionals working in small groups to test and provide feedback on the toolkit. Each group was made up of no more than five people and was provided with a brief strategic overview of one of four sample institutions representing a range of academic library types, including a large public research university, a private research university, a small liberal arts college, and a community college. Each group then spent ten minutes to decide on which area of the library they represented (e.g., leaders, user experience, teaching and learning, etc.) and to have a quick chat about the sample institution. They then worked in their groups to choose no more than five cards to plot in two horizontal categories and one vertical category over the next 30 minutes. Each sample institution had one of the LibGOAL creators available to facilitate sorting and plotting the cards, which helped us to understand better some of the difficulties and sticking points in the current prototype. After each group completed the activity, we solicited real-time feedback using PollEverywhere, asking participants how likely they would be to use LibGOAL at their institution, what local institutional problem they thought it might best solve, and what they would change about the toolkit. That feedback will be incorporated into our lessons learned and next steps.

Lessons Learned and Next Steps

On the basis of feedback from prototyping participants and attendees at the ARL Assessment Conference session, the LibGOAL team has plans to add team members and develop the tool further. In particular, we know that LibGOAL will benefit from increasing the diversity of the team working on it in terms of racial, ethnic, age and institution type. We will work to develop more verticals from which to choose, reflecting a wider range of library professional roles. As noted above, we will continue to refine and clarify language on the cards and streamline the number of cards because we want to avoid overwhelming participants as well as overcrowding the activity plot with too many cards to sort at once. We will also draft clearer framing for the card sort activity and provide more instructions for facilitators to prompt conversations among participants. One way we plan to do this is to “gamify” the activity more so that participants view it as a more explicitly heuristic exercise rather than a prescriptive diagnosis.

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In addition to making the toolkit more usable, we plan to recruit more people to work with the LibGOAL team. These additional collaborators will help to ensure that the continued expansion of the toolkit is as relevant as possible to as many library professionals as possible. To be sure, no single tool can be everything to everyone. Nonetheless, we hope to make it easy for future collaborators to create new LibGOAL card sets or devise new activities with existing cards.

Conclusion

We set out to help librarians be true partners to faculty in advancing teaching and learning at their institutions. By walking the talk and modeling a creative, collaborative problem-solving process, we redefined the problem to be about helping to create “T-shaped” library professionals with vertical depth of expertise (e.g., teaching and learning), as well as horizontal skills to enable collaboration and impact. We now have a useful set of competencies, as well as an effective and fun process for assessing today and planning for tomorrow. But if there is one lesson library professionals have learned well, it’s that great content is not enough to ensure use and relevance. For LibGOAL to become an indispensable tool for the community, it needs to be a platform to which many more people can contribute, by providing feedback or authoring a section, so that practitioners find it substantially informs their continuing education and professional development. Readers can test out the LibGOAL toolkit and get involved in further developing it by visiting www.libgoal.org.

Acknowledgements

The authors would like to sincerely thank current contributors Kelly Barrick and Meagan Brooks; past contributors to the project Todd Gilman, Alexis Seeley, Nisa Bakkalbasi, and Ron Jantz; and our future contributors.

Endnotes 1. For more information on brightspot, visit: http://www.brightspotstrategy.com/. 2. Academic Librarianship Today. Edited by Todd Gilman. https:// rowman.com/ISBN/9781442278752/Academic-Librarianship-Today 3. Johnston, D. L. (1978). Scientists Become Managers — The “T”Shaped Man. IEEE Engineering Management Review, 6(3), 67–68. 4. Brown, Tim. “T-Shaped Stars: The Backbone of IDEO’s Collaborative Culture.” Chief Executive Magazine. January 21, 2010. https:// chiefexecutive.net/ideo-ceo-tim-brown-t-shaped-stars-the-backbone-ofideoaes-collaborative-culture__trashed/ 5. “The ARL 2030 Scenarios: A User’s Guide for Research Libraries,” Association of Research Libraries, accessed March, 4, 2019, https:// www.arl.org/focus-areas/planning-visioning/scenario-planning/1074the-arl-2030-scenarios-a-users-guide-for-research-libraries#.XOMRQVNKhTY. 6. John Bertot, Lindsay Sarin, & Paul Jaeger. “Re-Envisioning the MLS The Future of Librarian Education. January 6, 2016. http://publiclibrariesonline.org/2016/01/re-envisioning-the-mls-the-future-of-librarian-education/ 7. “Core Competencies for Scholarly Communication Librarians,” NASIG, accessed March 4, 2019, https://www.nasig.org/site_page. cfm?pk_association_webpage_menu=310&pk_association_webpage=9435. 8. “Competency Framework Self-Assessment Tool,” Society of Actuaries, accessed March 4, 2019, https://www.soa.org/professional-development/competency-assessment-tool/. 9. “CGMA Competency Framework 2014 edition,” CGMA, accessed March 4, 2019, https://www.cgma.org/resources/tools/cgma-competency-framework-2014.html.

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Op Ed — Opinions and Editorials

Op Ed — Epistemology Power, Control, and the Quest for Open Infrastructure Column Editor: T. Scott Plutchak (Librarian, Epistemologist, Birmingham, Alabama) <splutchak@gmail. com> http://tscott.typepad.com

t’s not news that many librarians see the future of scholarly communication as a fight between the forces of good and evil. Some examples from this week’s mail: A data services librarian asks, “I’m curious if anyone has any concerns around who ultimately owns Digital Science (and Dimensions and FigShare and Symplectic and Springer)? … I have some feelings when I see lines connecting to publishing entities, but maybe that’s unfounded.” (Not warm and fuzzy feelings, I’m guessing.) A research data manager replies, “Me, I have concerns! I definitely have concerns — DigSci/ FigShare/Symplectic/Dimensions all go back to McGraw Hill, so...yeah. So often commercial publishers are motivated by maximizing immediate share holder value, which is rarely in line with the values of academics/scholars/researchers, and is such a source of friction.”1 Pretty one-dimensional, but not as hostile as this post from Eric Elmore (UTSA Electronic Resources Coordinator). “Librarians are interested in getting the most content and value for our dwindling budgets in an ethical manner. Not an easy or simple task. Publishers, on the other hand, are concerned with extracting every penny, ruble, shekel, pence, yuan, yen, and/or ounce of blood they can from anyone who wants to use the content they “publish”. … It’s Capitalism 101. Once you understand the frame of mind of someone who works for a publisher, of course they think libraries are leveraging a free resource such as SciHub. Because that’s exactly what they would do if they were in the libraries’ position. When the only objective is the endless acquisition of money silly little things like whether or not a resource is legal or ethical no longer have relevance.”2 “Once you understand the frame of mind of someone who works for a publisher.” Elmore’s condescension is breathtaking. Fortunately, even among those who share the Manichean view of things, most stop short of claiming that every person who works for a publishing company considers legal and ethical considerations to be irrelevant. Mike Roy of Middlebury College also sees publishers and librarians working in opposition, but in much less inflammatory language: “The fight (and yes, it is a fight) over Open Access is about reclaiming control

36 Against the Grain / September 2019

over a system that is now largely controlled by corporate interests. Those who have power rarely hand that power over without a fight.”3 He makes a crucial point here. The fight over Open Access isn’t really about Open Access. It hasn’t been for a very long time. It’s a fight over control. It’s been obvious for years that the Big Five have fully embraced Open Access. And the version they embrace — immediate access to the version of record on the publisher’s site — is much closer to the iconic OA ideals enshrined in the BBB declarations than the various green versions championed by many OA partisans (embargoed access to an author’s manuscript version buried in an institutional repository). The disputes aren’t about whether to make articles open, they’re about who gets to set the terms. The pure of heart librarians are absolutists. Roy says, “A number of people have described the challenge as one of needing to organize and to act collectively in order to reclaim control and ownership over this system.” Shared control isn’t an option. Last December, Roy and a couple of his colleagues published a blog post in which they discussed their efforts to “map the infrastructure required to support digital scholarly communications.”4 They identify three “uncomfortable truths.” One, there are two sets of actors working in this space. There are several of the big commercial companies on the one hand, and on the other “a ragtag band of actors: open source projects of various sizes and capacities.” The conflict is “a bit like the rebel alliance versus the empire and the death star.” Good guys and bad guys. Second, the bad guy companies are well-resourced and the ragtag good guys are not. And third, there is very little transparency, so it’s impossible to see where investments are being made by either group. It’s this last truth that they hope to confront by setting up a mechanism for identifying what “the community” is currently spending on open infrastructure projects. They argue that better data and more transparency are essential in order to leverage whatever resources the academic community can muster and make sound investments in developing open infrastructure that can compete with the death star… erm, the big commercial companies.

But data and transparency are still insufficient. Figuring out where to make investments, and then making those investments happen, requires more, “…an organizational and governance structure that is trusted by the community. Such an organization does not exist today. We need to start to [sic] thinking about how to create it.” The results of some of that thinking were revealed in May with the launch of Invest in Open Infrastructure.5 IOI isn’t quite an organization. It’s billed as a global collaboration among a number of highly motivated organizations and individuals with a shared belief in the importance of open infrastructure for scholarly communication. The centerpiece of their effort, the fulcrum on which they hope to leverage their data and transparency, is The Framework. “To move [Open Infrastructure] forward, it is time to create a strategic, global body — The Framework — with a mandate to facilitate and shepherd a shared strategy and agenda across international stakeholders.” The IOI concept statement describes The Why, The Issue, The Vision, The Mission, The Framework.6 It is silent on The How, which is the crux of the issue. And which leads us back to The Who and how dogmatic IOI is going to be about power and control. One of the ironies missed by the commercial-organizations-bad folks is how many of the successful collaborative efforts in developing shared infrastructure have been publisher-led. ORCID, CrossRef, CHORUS — they all got off the ground because people in publishing recognized that they could contribute their expertise to a shared effort that would result in a public good. I suppose everyone involved wasn’t pure of heart, but they knew how to get things done. What people like Elmore miss every time they bitch about the misalignment of goals and values between publishers and academics is that every one of us operates out of a multiplicity of motivations in almost everything that we do. People talk about “mission-driven” and “maximizing revenue” as if they’re mutually exclusive. Yet every organization that has a mission needs to have a sound financial structure and a company that continued on page 37

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Op Ed — Epistemology from page 36 derives revenue from delivering a service can’t succeed if its services aren’t aligned with its customers’ missions. I suppose it’s human nature to try to whittle the complexities of human behavior down to simplicities of good and evil. But that’s not how people really operate. Scientists might be driven by the desire to make world-changing discoveries while also having financially rewarding careers and winning prizes and being admired by their peers. An actor or musician might be determined to use their art to change how people think about their own lives, and still want to make lots of money and become famous. People in publishing can be passionately committed to using their resources to promote the public good, while at the same time working to maximize shareholder value. We’re all a mix of idealism and venality, trying every day to live up to our best impulses while making up for how badly we failed the day before. Mike Roy is certainly right when he says that those with power rarely hand over that power without a fight. But it needn’t be all or nothing. The leadership of the Society for Scholarly Publishing includes librarians and publishers on their board. CHORUS recently announced the formation of an Academic

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Advisory Working Group (AAWG), with the avowed aim of increasing “the involvement of academic institutions in CHORUS’ development.”7 In 2006, when I went to my first STM8 meeting in Frankfurt, it was apparent that many people in publishing would have welcomed the involvement of librarians in figuring out how to take advantage of the new technologies in advancing scientific communication. But librarians didn’t step up. With SPARC as the dominant public voice of academic librarianship, they adopted an adversarial stance. No cooperation with the forces of darkness. Power and control. Dan Whaley, CEO of Hypothesis, is on the IOI steering committee and I was encouraged by his interview in the Scholarly Kitchen.9 He’s dedicated to open infrastructure, but he’s not dogmatic about who he’s willing to play with. Hypothesis, his organization, has a solid track record of working with partners of all stripes. But Whaley is just one of the twenty-one member steering committee and some of the rhetoric on the IOI website implies that the commercial outfits currently operating in this space won’t be welcome. Getting twenty-one passionate people to agree on anything is difficult. There are some hardcore anti-commercial folks in this group. What will be the points of friction and what will people be willing to compromise on? I want the IOI folks to succeed. I want to see them build something real. It’s important.

Even if you don’t fall for the simplistic canard that the people running commercial companies and the people running libraries can’t possibly have shared values and work together, you should welcome more experimentation and diversity and transparency in developing scholarly communication infrastructure. But there are big challenges. There’s a twenty-one person steering committee made up of passionate individuals with strong opinions. They haven’t figured out a governance mechanism yet, and they’re going to have to make some tough decisions. They have high ideals, but it’ll take more than those ideals to build something that makes a difference. I’ve worked on many different projects with librarians and publishers over decades. I know that there are many people, working for many different types of organizations, who have knowledge and skills and passion and resources to contribute to such an effort. If the purists insist that the commercial outfits or the people who work in them can’t participate, IOI will certainly run aground. Believing you’re on the right side of history isn’t enough. Building a wall of righteousness around open infrastructure is no substitute for some sound business sense. The people on the steering committee are going to have to decide who they’re willing to listen to and work with in order to succeed. Or if the most important thing is fighting for power and control. endnotes on page 40

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ATG Interviews Karen Phillips and Kiren Shoman Senior Vice President Global Learning Resource, and Vice President Pedagogy, SAGE Publishing by Tom Gilson (Associate Editor, Against the Grain) <gilsont@cofc.edu> and Katina Strauch (Editor, Against the Grain) <kstrauch@comcast.net> ATG: SAGE Publishing has recently expanded its learning resource offerings beyond scholarly content to include software/ technology tools that enable librarians to support teaching, learning, and research. Can you tell us more about this new direction? What is the strategy behind these initiatives? What role are each of you playing in this effort? KP: Our strategic direction is driven by our mission to build bridges to knowledge, to look for ways to improve the development and communication of ideas and knowledge between scholar and researcher, faculty and student. We work in partnership with the academic library to deliver on this goal, publishing relevant and reliable research and pedagogic materials, making sure to respond to library needs and goals as we do so. Our research shows academic libraries changing priorities from focusing on book and journal collection development to focus on new types of digital content such as video in response to changing student and faculty needs. You may have noticed that we responded to those shifts with our video and case collections, data products, and the Adam Matthew primary source collections. More recently, we have seen academic libraries invest in systems that can improve discovery, access, and usage of the library collections. We are keen to respond to the current need for good solutions that support student success and research; increase discovery and usage; and demonstrate ROI on library spend and services. As a result, beginning in 2018, we have shifted from focusing solely on publishing content to also offering software and technology that supports learning and research. This arm of the company was initiated by two acquisitions — Talis and Lean Library — and also includes transforming the technology behind some of our existing products so that they can be used as powerful library tools. I am the overall strategic lead in this area, and my role is to make the decisions about where we focus our efforts and set goals for what we want to achieve. KS: As Karen outlined, we have embraced the fact that as a mission-driven organization, SAGE can grow to deliver beyond content (traditional or digital) to also play a role in enabling libraries, faculty, and students to succeed using software as a service (SaaS). As VP of

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Pedagogy, I have been responsible for our UK books for several years and our global video products since they launched in 2015. Now I am also responsible for Talis, a SaaS organization providing resource list management systems (RLMS). Talis has developed software that helps drive library success, as well as student and faculty engagement with learning resources. We acquired Talis in 2018 in part because it supports our mission of building bridges to knowledge and could be enabled to do even more under SAGE’s ownership, while operating as a stand-alone company. ATG: What impact will this new commitment to software and technology have on SAGE’s ongoing efforts to create quality academic content for librarians and researchers? What are your plans for content creation going forward? KP: In short, this new development is in addition to our content-based publishing and does not replace other publishing plans at SAGE. We have a journals program with over a thousand titles, a leading social science college program, and a unique and fast-growing program of digital products for the library, such as SAGE Video. Our programs for eBooks and eReference, video, data, business cases, primary source archives and SAGE Research Methods are all resonating well with researchers and students; we have exciting plans for growth as we continue to deliver high-quality, relevant content to the library. ATG: From both of your perspectives, what would you say are the highlights of SAGE’s new software/technology portfolio? What has the market response been to these new products so far? KS: I’ll share a bit about Talis. What’s really interesting about their RLMS product Talis Aspire is how well it serves wider strategic needs of the whole campus. Talis Aspire is a cloud-based solution for the delivery, engagement, management, and evaluation of course materials. With this product, libraries can manage the cost of course materials by increasing discovery of learning resources

available via the library or through the integration of open educational resources, and ultimately, provide greater transparency around affordability to students. Libraries can thus support an innovative teaching and learning experience for students with constant access to an up-to-date library resource list that can serve up content right where the students are in the LMS. From the instructor’s point of view, the product offers opportunities to ensure the course design is working well for their students, giving them analytics that help assess progress in a time-saving way. Libraries can increase their productivity with better data on what resources are being used in courses, informing acquisitions strategies. The system is built to fit with the library’s workflows, including automated digitization and copyright solutions. Talis started in the UK and has the majority of UK HE institutions as customers, with its own annual Talis Insight library conference where librarians gather to share how they are using the software, and to engage in its constant development as institutional needs change. I’m inspired by how we see libraries involved in the teaching and learning agenda of the university in new ways. Issues around affordability, accessibility, open educational resources, library acquisition management and general library ROI are all part of the engagement we’ve been seeing. Talis is working on a new product, Talis Elevate, which enables faculty and students to collaborate on class resources, encouraging engagement and insight and to inspire better teaching and learning experiences. This is in “Early Access” with a small number of libraries, and we’re learning a lot from it already. KP: We are really excited to see the response to the Talis product within wider geographical markets. I will share a little about two very different products: Lean Library and Quartex. We acquired Lean Library in the fall of 2018 and see the potential for this tool to help librarians address issues that seemed insoluble for many years. Lean Library reliably extends library resources and services directly in the user workflow by providing a browser plug-in that allows seamless access to library and openly available content from anywhere continued on page 39

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Interview — Phillips and Shoman from page 38 (on-campus or off). Using the library’s unique branding, it illustrates the connection between accessed content and the library, improving the visibility of the library to patrons along the way. The product is unique in its fully supported range of services and is completely publisher agnostic. It has been a privilege to work with the responsive and passionate Lean Library team, who are highly aligned with both SAGE’s mission and that of the library. In fact, Lean Library’s founder, Johan Tilstra, is himself a librarian, and the company was born out of his desire to fill a critical unmet need in the library. Quartex is a new SaaS product, launched by Adam Matthew that extends the expertise the company brings to showcasing digital collections and makes it available to libraries that want to improve access to and usage of their own collections. Through the Quartex platform, libraries or societies can publish their special collections in an open access environment, where end-users can benefit from well-developed functionality for discovering and analyzing primary sources. Quartex includes handwritten text recognition technology, which employs AI to search manuscript materials. The product is just launched and we are hearing a lot of interest and excitement from libraries. ATG: What libraries can you point to that have been successful in implementing these products? And, regarding Talis Elevate, you mention it’s in Early Access, when do you expect Talis to widen access to the product? KS: It is important to Talis to maintain an openness around customer experience of their products, and you can find a range of blog entries from librarians in the UK on how they have been successful with Talis Aspire at www.talis.com/blog (read about the University of Oxford’s recent implementation, for example). The Talis Aspire User Group also shares examples of projects from universities such as Liverpool, Kings College London, and Sheffield Hallam. Further back (late 2018), there are also posts on the value of Aspire from the University of Kent, and the University of Worcester, for instance. Regarding Talis Elevate, this moved in to Early Access with a small number of libraries in early 2019. We are working closely with the faculty and librarians at those institutions to understand how they are using the product to increase resource collaboration, student engagement, and analytics that helps both teachers and librarians deliver evidence-based course improvement. We are now ready to increase access to customers of this product, while ensuring we’re listening to our early customers and developing Elevate further with their feedback and usage. KP: Lean Library has an international customer base; early adopters include Stanford University and University of Manchester in the UK. Librarians from both universities

Against the Grain / September 2019

have presented this year at ER&L and UKSG respectively on their experiences of implementing Lean Library and the difference it has made to usage and for remote access in particular. Recent libraries to implement the product include University of Pennsylvania, University of Newcastle and Utrecht University. ATG: This emphasis on software and technology seems to be an industry-wide trend. What do you think this tells us about the challenges that librarians and publishers are facing as they try to meet the needs of today’s scholar? KP: Today’s scholars and students are used to excellent technology in their everyday lives and expect the same standards when they are looking for relevant content in the library or learning management system. Today’s librarians have seen that they need to broaden their focus beyond collection development and include new skillsets and areas of focus to address this expectation and to grow the use of the collections they so thoughtfully curate. We’re seeing an increase in technology-focused roles within the library that support teaching, and outreach roles focused on promoting the content in the library, getting the library message out to students and faculty where they are. We see libraries increasingly using software to support access, discovery, and usage for library management, and to embed materials in the learning management system. From a publisher point of view, these changes mean not only that content needs to be delivered on reliable, robust, and accessible platforms, but also that the features and functionality within the platform are increasingly important. More recently, this has been a great space for intelligent innovation that can really add to the efficiency within the library and the service that the library has to offer, and this is the area that we are looking to move into with our new products. ATG: From your observations, what specific roles are librarians playing in promoting these products and assisting faculty and students using and implementing such products? How are librarians adjusting to these increased responsibilities? Can you cite specific examples? KS: Talis library customers have been able to deliver on a wider remit around teaching and learning success at their institution, which has increasingly been a key strategic drive at their universities. With the system, librarians can quickly report what required reading is not available in the library catalogue and make purchasing decisions accordingly, thus contributing to positive tracking on the affordability agenda. As an example, librarians at Auckland University of Technology have done great work in engaging academics, offering variation in their approach, from one-to-one sessions, to online support, resulting in a growth of reading lists and increased engagement by academics and students with the system. But there are a range of other interesting opportunities that software like this can bring, which we have

seen librarians embrace. For instance, I saw a fascinating case study of the University of Kent using the resource list tool to launch a project aiming to improve diversity in the curricula (bit.ly/talisinsight). KP: The library is the central partner for these products, which support the library and the universities’ core strategies for learning and research. On Lean Library, the library can market the tool using materials from Lean Library on how to download the browser extension and what it will enable. For example, the Lean Library team offers posters, email copy, social posts, discoverability checklists, and more to help with general promotion. Additionally, they offer outreach programs to faculty. Librarians also rely on word of mouth, which has often been noted as helpful in seeing increased usage. A great feature of the Library Assist module is the ability of the library to set up messages that are delivered to the end user as they search for and access resources. During implementation, the Lean Library team offers a workshop to help set these up. Key adjustments that libraries are making are implementing new roles and expertise — roles such as electronic resources librarian, or technology librarian, who work alongside collection development librarians. ATG: Again, from your observations, have these increased responsibilities taken resources from collection development activities? In times of decreased funding how are libraries stretching their budgets to purchase the content researchers need? What are you hearing from your customers about these issues? KP: While our research with academic librarians globally doesn’t specifically report a reallocation of resources from collections development to systems and software, it does show that there is some uncertainty about the expected growth in the collections development budgets, and there are signs that budget increases are just as likely to be seen in staff costs or new systems and software. KS: It’s also important to note that Resource List Management Software enables wider use of content in the collections which may not have been noticed to date as a learning resource. Of course, there is the opportunity to also engage Open Educational Resources alongside that, but this shouldn’t negatively affect the collections development budget. As the university’s strategic agenda evolves around student success, Talis Aspire has the ability to enable improved visibility around what is used for teaching and learning and thus provide good intelligence on how to spend the collections budget. ATG: And can you cite specific examples of intelligent innovations that Karen mentioned above that librarians are developing using these products? KP: I was referring to the products as intelligent innovations that libraries are adopting to have impact on their ability to deliver value continued on page 40

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Interview — Phillips and Shoman from page 39 to the institution. Taking the example of Lean Library: it enables the librarian to deliver seamless remote access, saving faculty and students precious time. It also enables them to get out clear messaging about the libraries role in bringing resources to patrons thus raising the profile of the library. And it can help the end user find alternative routes to access the resources that they are looking for, automating interlibrary loan, or suggesting OA materials where relevant. ATG: From your experience are these non-content offerings changing the dynamic among librarians, publishers, and scholars? Do these more sophisticated products call for changes and adjustments in the current relationship among stakeholders? In short, are they changing the traditional business model? If so, how? KP: I think the main change is that technology makes the stakeholders more connected and gives the publisher and library more visibility on the types of content that faculty and

Op Ed — Epistemology from page 37 Endnotes 1. Private email discussion list. June 25 & 26, 2019. 2. Elmore, Eric. “Re: Frustrating story on Times Higher Education.” Liblicense-L Discussion Forum. June 27, 2019. http://listserv.crl.edu/wa.exe?A2=ind1906&L=LIBLICENSE-L&P=73583 3. Roy, Michael D. “Re: Basic question about Plan S, OSI, and universal OA.” The Open Scholarship Initiative. December 18, 2018. 4. Lewis, David W.; Roy, Mike and Skinner, Katherine. “The First Step Towards a System of Open Digital Scholarly Communication Infrastructure.” In the Open. December 9, 2018. 5. IOI Leadership. “Invest in Open Infrastructure Launches.” Invest in Open Infrastructure. May 14, 2019. https://investinopen.org/2019/05/14/ioi-launch.html 6. “Invest in Open Infrastructure: A concept.” Version 0.2. Invest in Open Infrastructure. n.d. https://investinopen.org/ docs/statement0.2 7. Girard, Sara. “CHORUS Forms Academic Advisory Working Group.” CHORUS. June 6, 2019. https://www. chorusaccess.org/chorus-forms-academic-advisory-working-group/ 8. International Association of STM Publishers. https://www.stm-assoc.org/ 9. Schonfeld, Roger C. “Invest in Open Infrastructure: An Interview with Dan Whaley.” The Scholarly Kitchen. June 12, 2019. https://scholarlykitchen.sspnet. org/2019/06/12/invest-open-infrastructure/

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researchers are using. It can better inform collection development and make it more targeted and responsive to patrons’ needs. The library and publisher may also become more seamlessly integrated into the natural workflow of the patron. For instance, rather than expecting the student or researcher to sign into the library website, technology enables the library to get relevant content instantaneously, as delivered via Lean Library. Our Lean Library product is a good example of a technology solution that gets content into the researchers’ workflow. It not only supports remote access, but also enables access to content directly via the web browser that the researcher uses, giving them smooth access to library content. An example of technology enabling changing business models is Adam Matthew’s Quartex platform. It constitutes a service to libraries, enabling them to easily display their special collections — without technical knowledge or recourse to IT teams — and make available to academics, researchers, and the public — material that previously may not have been accessible or easily searchable. KS: I echo Karen’s point about increased connectivity. What’s also new and exciting for us is how these developments have encouraged us to develop a content-agnostic approach in some of our offerings. Talis Aspire, Talis Elevate, Lean Library and Quartex are all about software solutions that demonstrably make the best use of the content that students or scholars require from their libraries regardless of publisher, served up to them as readers wherever they are. But these tools are able to go beyond offering content to providing an experience of the task, be it learning or research, which can increase patron success. ATG: It also strikes us that such offerings provide opportunities for libraries and publishers to broaden their impact on the scholarly community. Are you seeing evidence of that broadening impact? If so, how are scholars reacting to this increased role for librarians and publishers? KS: We are certainly seeing evidence of opportunities to broaden library impact, be it through higher levels of engagement with materials, new ways of enabling engagement, or better ability to access data and analyze the use of resources. For instance, Talis Elevate shows how student anxiety around class engagement with scholarly material can be mitigated through anonymization of class comments, and how faculty members can position their course organization in ways that are responsive to student engagement. Talis’s Insight conferences tend to be filled with different institutional case studies on the impact of the product on wider university strategies and in particular on the teaching and learning provision (most videos of these sessions are freely available on the Talis website: https://talis.com/). KP: It’s too soon to assess the complete impact of these new technologies on scholarship. While Talis has years of experience that give a clear picture of their impact, for Lean Library it is early days, but we are seeing real-

ly good usage where the product is embedded. At UKSG this year, Tim O’Neill (Electronic Resources Co-Ordinator at the University of Manchester) gave a presentation showing the impact of Lean Library on usage at his institution with clear evidence that Lean Library is saving academics time as they get to the relevant materials for their research. ATG: Can you both look into your crystal balls and give us your forecast as to how you see the market for learning resources evolving in the next few years? Where do you see libraries fitting into that market? How about the individual scholar? KP: I see the library as resilient and evolving in a fast-changing higher education environment and would predict that librarians will remain the information experts responsible for enabling scholars and students access to relevant materials. I think collection development will remain important and technology will grow in importance: to support administration of the library, support efficient collection development, and contribute to the higher ed strategies in relation to both research and teaching. KS: I see libraries engaging more actively with reliable technology in ways that enable learning resources to add even more value, and also with new models and content types, including open educational resources. I feel we’re seeing libraries taking a stronger role in student learning and student academic success, especially as technology enables a more connected experience across faculty, students and librarians. With these developments, I expect individual scholars to have a better experience finding trusted content and recognizing the role of their libraries in enabling that. ATG: We’ve been asking some serious and important questions, but we’d like to end on a lighter note. We were wondering how you like to unwind and relax? What fun things do you do when you can get away from the office and find some down time? KP: I have two addictive hobbies that I love to follow when I have time. First, I love watching contemporary dance; I have a local theatre, Sadlers Wells, which shows the best contemporary dance in London. My next visit will be for a dance performance which combines Flamenco and Jazz! It should be interesting. My other love is football (or soccer as you call it in the U.S.). I am a season ticket holder at Arsenal (a top football team in England). I love following the team’s performance, the stadium is spectacular and it’s great just sitting out in the fresh air watching the drama of a match. Right now I’m enjoying watching the women’s world cup and I’m looking forward to the football league starting up again in August! KS: My hobby is swimming; I’ve always enjoyed the sensation of being in the water, it makes me feel free. I’ve been challenging myself to improve my stroke technique recently, and even signed up for a few lessons a month ago — and my tumble turn seems to be on the up!

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ATG Interviews Henry Owino Manager, Collection Acquisition Services, Qatar National Library (QNL) by Matthew Ismail (Director of Collection Development, Central Michigan University Library) <ismai1md@cmich.edu> Interviewer’s Note: Since this interview was conducted, Mr. Owino has taken a new position at the University of New England. — MI ATG: Can you tell us a bit about where you’ve worked during your career? HO: For over several years I have worked in mainly academic library environments in Uganda, Australia, and United Arab Emirates. I am now on a major assignment at the Qatar National Library (QNL) as Manager for Collection Acquisition Services. My portfolio at QNL commenced with a broad oversight on Copyright and Licensing of information resources. I was responsible for the acquisition of print and electronic resources through firm ordering as well as blanket purchase programs and gifts and donations. I am a graduate of RMIT University (Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology), Melbourne, where I did my undergraduate and graduate studies in Librarianship and Information Management. I also hold an MA from Loughborough University, UK. The program at Loughborough prepared me for teaching in library and information services programs. But my initial Librarianship training was at the East African School of Librarianship (EASL) at Makerere University in Kampala, Uganda. ATG: Please tell us where you were born and where you grew up. HO: I was born in the village of Mwenge in the Tororo district of Eastern Uganda. I grew up and undertook my primary school education not far from home. Then for high school I attended the first four years in a boys only school called Bukedi College Kachonga. I then went on to do the last two years Higher School Certificate in northern Uganda in a co-ed school then called Boroboro Senior Secondary School (but since reverted to its original name of Dr. Obote College). But my growing up was very rural based until I was 15 years then left home for boarding High School. I am the first son in a line of ten children (six sons and four daughters) raised up by parents who lived off subsistence agriculture. ATG: How did you decide to become a librarian? What was in your background that prepared you for it? HO: I might rightly describe myself as … an accidental librarian … But in my early school years once I had learned to read, I recall the lack of story books. All we had were graded school texts plus a few supplementary readers which were in each classroom. You got to read them only by permission and so a student whose family was able to buy them books became the friend of everyone. So we sometimes read the same books over and over. I recall in my junior secondary classes the Uganda

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National Library Service commenced a Book Mobile service and they used to stop in the schools. My school was near the main road in the local trading center so we were able to take advantage and enroll with the mobile library but again you could only borrow one book on each visit. Those were the longest months of waiting as we often finished reading those books quickly but had to wait for the return of the grey Book Mobile. Sadly by 1966 the service stopped. You may ask how does this relate to my becoming a librarian? I did not set out to be a librarian only due to my love for reading. I wanted to be a lawyer but couldn’t get into the law program at the only university for the country at the time. I then wanted to be a teacher and I did not get a place again due to stiff competition and the sheer large number of applicants. Now I was stuck and needed to do something, otherwise I was going to remain on the streets and not do anything beyond High School. But as I was visiting my uncle in the capital city I happened to be reading the newspaper and spotted an advertisement calling for applicants with High School passes to join the EASL for a two year program to become a librarian. The school was part of the national University-Makerere but catered for all of East African countries of Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda at the time and there were only ten places for Ugandan students. I was amongst the ten that got chosen in the 1974 intake and that is how I ended up in the Library profession. Once enrolled in the course I sought to know all I could about the profession and what I can really do with the qualifications. ATG: When did you decide to immigrate to Australia? HO: The story is long but needs to be told to understand how and when I went to Australia. Following on my initial Librarianship training at EASL, I was appointed Assistant Librarian at the National Business College. I

quickly realized that the undergraduate library diploma awarded from EASL was insufficient and I needed to upgrade to a degree either in the same field or another area of study. I applied to several institutions across the globe in search for a college that would recognize my initial training and give some exemptions but also provide scholarship to undertake further training. This was also the time of the military Government of Idi Amin in Uganda and scholarships were extremely hard to come by. Soon after Amin’s removal things changed and I got a part sponsorship from the Government of Uganda to undertake a conversion course in Australia at RMIT University. I took the opportunity and while in Australia got a full sponsorship to finish the four years program; after which I was to return to Uganda. I did and got a graduate fellowship at Makerere University and for a year taught undergraduate students of librarianship at EASL while awaiting an opportunity to undertake a master’s program which was a prerequisite for appointment to full lecturer (professor). So a British Council sponsorship enabled me to go to Loughborough to undertake the Masters’ in Librarianship. I returned to EASL in Autumn of 1986 and taught for a term. Towards the end of the year our application for permanent residence in Australia came through and we went through to Nairobi prepared to travel back to Australia which we did in February of 1987. ATG: What brought you to Abu Dhabi? HO: The adventures of international librarianship brought me to Abu Dhabi. A friend alerted me to an advertisement seeking a librarian with collections and acquisitions experience to support the development for a new engineering library at the Petroleum Institute in Abu Dhabi. I applied and got interviewed and at the time was told that I was over-qualified for the position. However, nearly a year later they came back to me and advised that the responsibility had been expanded and they would be keen to re-interview me for the position. I agreed to go for the interview but something really weird happened on my way to Abu Dhabi. We checked into an Emirates flight at the Tullamarine airport in Melbourne and sat ready to go and the plane was not moving. Half an hour later we were told the engine needed attention before we could go. An hour later they gave us dinner while we waited. Two hours later the flight was cancelled, and we were all put in buses to go to the Hilton Hotel. Now I was panicking. I had planned to arrive on a Saturday, rest and appear for the first day of the interview which was a Sunday. But now I had to ring ahead on Friday, a public holiday in the Gulf, to alert them that my flight was cancelled. I sent an email and fortunately my contact received it and by this time I had an internal flight arranged for the next day to fly continued on page 42

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Interview — Henry Owino from page 41 to Perth in Western Australia and catch another flight Saturday to reach Dubai then go to Abu Dhabi by road. I got into my hotel, showered and changed then fronted for my first interview session barely awake. After two days in Abu Dhabi I travelled on a very foggy April morning to catch my flight back to Melbourne. There was a major accident and pile-up just half way to Dubai. I did not get held up but it is just part of the adventures of international librarianship. I was offered the position and came back to Petroleum Institute in June of 2008. Just for information this university trained engineering staff who then got absorbed to various operating companies attached to the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC). ATG: To Doha? HO: Towards the end of 2012 we all read about the exciting development in Qatar and the establishment of the Qatar National Library. It was an attractive prospect and most library professionals felt that it would be an honor and a privilege to be associated with such a project of the century. So when an opportunity availed itself, I applied and was interviewed for one of the technical services positions to Head the Acquisitions portfolio. At the end of February 2013, I arrived in Doha to commence work at the Qatar National Library (QNL).

Qatar National Library ATG: Tell us a bit about the Qatar National Library. HO: The best description and highlight of the Qatar National Library is in the statement that sits on the official website… “Qatar National Library acts as a steward of Qatar’s national heritage by collecting, preserving and making available the country’s recorded history. In its role as a research library with a preeminent heritage library, the Library fosters and promotes greater global insight into the history and culture of the Gulf region. As a public library, we provide equal access for all of Qatar’s residents to an environment that supports creativity, independent decision-making, and cultural development. Through all our functions, we provide leadership to the country’s library and cultural heritage sector. The Library also supports Qatar’s transition from a reliance on natural resources to become a diversified and sustainable economy by providing support to students, researchers,

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and the public to promote lifelong learning and empower individuals and communities for a better future.” In one sentence all I can say is it is a masterpiece and an outstanding outcome in every aspect. The best so far and I believe that everyone needs to make it a point to visit and experience this space and the services. ATG: What was your biggest challenge in readying the QNL for the official opening? HO: There were several aspects and perspectives in readying the QNL for the official opening. Some people felt more pressure towards the opening day, for others it was pressure applied from several years earlier. From the perspective of collections, I would like to refer you to a paper presented at the 2016 Charleston Conference which gives a detailed description of the preparations and readying the ODC — Opening Day Collections. (Owino, Dudek, 2016.) I was responsible for the Acquisition of titles selected by both approval plans and firm orders. And once paid for the books were stored overseas as the library building was not ready and we did not, at that time, have an appropriate storage facility locally in Doha. By late 2015 the central storage location in Qatar became available and QNL was able to commence making a significant use of the state-of-the-art storage facility. Several large containers of books (with several pallets) were shipped at various times through 2016. The books were then delivered, and stored awaiting move to the new QNL building. Within Our Directorate of Content and Access the planned move of the materials from the central QF storage and shelving of the materials in the new building was undertaken by the Director, Head of Access, Head of Cataloguing and Head of Acquisitions (myself) who worked through tenders for the shelving companies to support the project. In the end the move of the collection and shelving was done through a combination of a British Shelving Company — Specialized Movers from Sheffield — a local company called Gulf Warehousing Company, (GWC Logistics) in short GWCL, and the Content and Access Service (Our own directorate) with a support crew employed for the shelving process. Our own in-house staff shelved the Children’s and Teens’ Library collection of over 135,000 items in a period of one month between April and May 2017. The Shelving Company and logistics staff from GWCL in Doha did a splendid job. GWCL ensured the prompt delivery of pallets from QF warehouse while the Specialized Movers staff ensured the shelving progressed as planned. Our challenge was keeping up the shelving company as they easily exceeded their set target of 10,000 books a day! In the beginning too the actual shelving plan for the tiers

was a challenge and the Head of Cataloguing spent many hours on this and the only technical challenge was …unblocking the Book Sorter whenever it got stuck. In all the companies finished their task well ahead of time on 14th August 2017 with 609,251 books shelved in the general collection tiers and compact shelves. Of course, there are other parts of the QNL collection, namely the Heritage collection, that were moved through another contractor as this required even more specialized handling, but all was finalized in time. ATG: Has the mission of the Qatar National Library changed over the years? HO: The current Mission of QNL as stated on the official site is… “to spread knowledge, nurture imagination, cultivate creativity and preserve the nation’s heritage for the future. QNL will achieve its mission by creating and sustaining an intuitive and trusted information environment in a culturally and technologically superior setting and by developing innovative programs and services.” Previously QNL started as a project of the Qatar Foundation as a central library to serve the Qatar Foundation community. In April 2012, the project was renamed “Qatar National Library” whose mission was three pronged: to function as National Library, University and Research Library and Metropolitan public library of the digital age (Medawar, Tabet, 2016). In 2017 in an interview for Insight I made the following comment “… We are all very curious how the QNL will be received by the people of Qatar. It is our hope that this building will become a global center for information, knowledge and technology but also will invigorate the imagination of the people with the creative possibilities of good design. Above all, it is a great pleasure to work in such a multicultural and international environment, with all experienced librarians. It helps finding an inspiration to achieve goals, succeed in everyday work, and think creatively and finally to grow professionally.” I was not wrong as today I come to the building on any day of the week — and it is completely full of very enthusiastic clients of all ages patronizing the services and enjoying the state of the art facilities. ATG: How does your professional experience in the Middle East differ from that in Australia? HO: As I look back on the last ten years I am challenged in the following arenas: 1. I think of professional titles assigned to trainees without the professional qualifications in the hope that they will attain the necessary experience or will eventually have formal qualifications to match those titles. 2. “On the job training …” takes on a new meaning when you have a tight deadline and an official opening looming. You do everything in your power to help the colleagues under your mentorship to get the best outcome. continued on page 43

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Interview — Henry Owino from page 42 3. Having a fairly diverse cultural mix of qualified librarians from all continents of the world calls for a lot of patience and a desire to learn from each other; being respectful; adapting the experiences and skills and being able to fulfil the set objectives. 4. Professions have a way of being interpreted with a cultural twist and this tends to color interpretations, training and expectations both in Australia and more so in the recent two countries I have lived outside of Australia. I would not want to over-generalize my comparison between Australia and the Middle East. Both areas boast of having multi-cultures, but the significant decisions are taken at levels that identify with very specific cultural taints. In Australia it is Anglo-American influence while in the Middle East it is a selection of the best options sifted through a local cultural base. In today’s environment I dare say that the professional experience in the Middle East is exposed to a much wider influence from the many expatriates while the Australian is focused on the locally developed workforce with minimal international impact. Anyone coming to join the library profession in Australia acclimatizes to the Australian way while the Middle East picks from the best of the expatriates. ATG: How has the City of Doha changed in the years you’ve been there? HO: Doha has indeed transformed in the six years I have been here. A lot of work has gone into the roads and other infrastructure and there is a substantial change. I am sure that if one goes away for a year and returns to Doha they will need to use a guide to find their way around the city and services. That is how fast and significantly Doha has changed! ATG: You’ve lived in a few different countries. Where do you consider home? HO: I have visited many countries; I have lived in a few but I would say home is the country where I have spent most of my time. So let’s see — from least time to longest; United Kingdom (Loughborough); United Arab Emirates (Abu Dhabi); Qatar (Doha); Uganda (my birth place) and longest is Australia. So, definitely Australia is Home.

References

Medawar, Katia and Tabet, Myrna. 2016. Libraries in the State of Qatar: Current Situation and Future Outlook. Journal of Library Administration 2016, 56:1, pp. 52-73. Owino, Henry and Dudek, Katarzyna. 2016. From the Concept to Results: A Case Study on the Collection Development for the ODC — Opening Day Collection at Qatar National Library. Charleston Library Conference 2016. (accessed 3/16/19).

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Obituary — Amanda Lou Harmon Amanda Lou Harmon passed away July 19, 2019. She moved to Charlotte from Bradford, PA in 1970, bringing her beloved horse “Pig” with her. During her early years in Charlotte she was active in the area hunter/jumper horse community. Due to her affection for her horse Pig, she amassed an extensive collection of equine and porcine décor — pictures, figurines, and especially pig Christmas ornaments. Amanda was a woman of varied interests. She liked sports, particularly equestrian events, ice skating, the Olympics, and UNCC 49er basketball. She held Charlotte Symphony season tickets for a number of years, attended theater around Charlotte on a regular basis, and had a special love for Broadway musicals. Amanda always looked forward to her week at the beach with a group of friends, a trip she made on an annual basis for almost 40 years. She was an enthusiastic and appreciative dinner guest. Amanda held degrees from Syracuse University and UNC Charlotte. She retired from UNC Charlotte’s J. Murrey Atkins Library in 2011 after 40 years of service. Most of that time was spent as Head of Acquisitions at the Library, during which she led the department though many major changes as automation took place. Amanda is survived by her niece, Cory Harmon Holst (Mark) of Castle Pines, CO, and nephews Scott Harmon of Palm Bay, FL, and Glenn Harmon of Acworth, GA. She was predeceased by her brother John O. Harmon, Jr. and her parents Bertha Redfield and John O. Harmon, Sr. She leaves behind many special friends and her cats Pearl and Cosette. Burial will be in Bradford, PA at a later date. Donations may be made to the Charlotte Humane Society, 2700 Toomey Ave., Charlotte, NC 28203. Online condolences may be shared through www.tallentfuneralservice.com. Published in Charlotte Observer on July 20, 2019.

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ATG Interviews Jason Dewland and Yvonne Mery Associate Librarians, Research & Learning, University of Arizona by Tom Gilson (Associate Editor, Against the Grain) <gilsont@cofc.edu> and Katina Strauch (Editor, Against the Grain) <kstrauch@comcast.net> ATG: Jason and Yvonne, as librarian/ inventors and co-founders of the new start-up Sidecar Learning, you all have created quite a stir. Can you tell us about Sidecar Learning? How did you all come up with the idea? What does each of you find most compelling about Sidecar Learning? What has been the most challenging aspect of the project for each of you? YM: I did not know we had caused a stir, but glad to hear it. Sidecar Learning is an e-learning platform where you can create interactive, authentic tutorials using any web content from databases to web pages to web forms. The idea really came out of necessity. It grew out of the Guide on the Side, an open source tool, which was developed at the University of Arizona some years ago. It was a great tool that won some national awards and that Jason and I used with our students daily. Unfortunately, our Library did not have the resources to make updates to it, add new features, or host it for other libraries. Jason and I still used it a lot and did not want to see it die, so we thought of different ways that we could maintain it and improve upon it. We eventually settled on developing a whole new product with our tech transfer office, Tech Launch Arizona, and received a grant from them to create a new product which turned into Sidecar Learning. I think the most interesting aspect of Sidecar Learning is how easy it is to create tutorials. I have been working with e-learning tools for over a decade now and each year they become easier and easier to use, so I knew we needed something that a librarian could learn to use in minutes. It is also incredibly interactive for the end user. Learners aren’t just watching how to do something like using a database, but rather they are learning as they are actually using it. That is authentic learning at its best. The most challenging part of starting Sidecar Learning has been the software design and development process. We knew what features we wanted but were never entirely sure if it could be done with our limited budget. We had a lot of help from some technology advisors along the way, but some did not really understand e-learning nor the user experience, so we had to know when to take advice and when to know that we knew better. So that was hard too, knowing when to trust our instincts even though we were navigating uncharted waters. JD: The time commitment. There is always something to improve and another person to talk to. Also, you need to let people

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go who aren’t fitting into your company; they can really slow down the process, especially in a small team. ATG: What specific role did each of you play in founding the company? What are your current roles? How many people are currently part of Sidecar Learning? How would you describe your business model? YM: At the beginning, we both interviewed a lot of potential customers to better understand their needs, their process, and their pain points. We also both worked on the software specifications. Jason has taken over software development management and many of the business aspects. I am more focused on marketing, customer support, the user experience, and I act as the education lead. Currently, it is Jason and myself and Kevin McLaughlin, our lead advisor who has been with us since day one. JD: We are both involved in every aspect of the company, but each of us has complimentary skills and each of us has our area of specialty where we take the lead. We are using the software as a service (SAAS) business model where individuals and institutions pay a yearly subscription fee for access to the platform. An individual can go to www.sidecarlearning. com and quickly sign up for a free trial or an individual subscription that can be paid monthly or by the year. Or an institution may choose to set up an enterprise-wide subscription that is discounted heavily and based off of the FTEs at the institution. ATG: We understand that you all worked closely with another office at the University of Arizona campus called Tech Launch Arizona. Who are they? What services do they offer the UA campus? What specific help did they provide in getting Sidecar Learning off the ground? JD: Tech Launch Arizona was formed by President Ann Weaver Hart with the goal of supporting the University of Arizona’s inventors to bring their intellectual property to market. The Tech Parks, Corporate Relations, Tech Transfer, and other resources were brought under one roof so that they could coordinate and better support the IP at the University of Arizona. Before, if you invented something

you had to form a company to bring it to market on your own, now TLA has a team of advisors to support your efforts to launch a startup. If the inventor chooses, they also support the inventor by finding companies that are interested in licensing the IP of the inventor, that way the inventor can maintain their focus on research and discovery without needing to be distracted by commercial interests. YM: Tech Launch Arizona has been amazing. They have provided us with excellent advisors, helped us out in putting together pitches, and awarded us with development funds through their Asset Development Program. They have also helped with our commercialization process and they licensed us. ATG: Evidently, the McGuire Program for Entrepreneurship and the UA Eller College of Management were also involved. What can you tell us about the roles they played? How did their efforts contribute to the project? JD: I have been the liaison librarian for the Eller College of Management since I began working at the University of Arizona in 2012. In 2013 or so I began working with the McGuire Center for Entrepreneurship which is part of Eller. Just being in an environment like Eller and McGuire exposes you to entrepreneurial thinking and provides a lot of opportunities to learn. I have been embedded in the McGuire program for the last four years and during that time period, I have taken the opportunity to not only teach competitive intelligence research but also learn and pick the brains of the many accomplished entrepreneurs who work there and have graduated from there. There is a real sense of community and an ethos of sharing. Many people at the McGuire Center have provided us with valuable feedback and guidance throughout the process of building the platform. ATG: Is seems that entrepreneurship is promoted on the UA campus, as well as the UA library. Based on your experience at UA, what role do each of you think entrepreneurship could/should play in today’s academic library? Do you all have any words of wisdom for other librarians that have a great idea they would like to pursue? YM: With rising costs especially when it comes to resources and shrinking budgets, I think academic libraries can’t afford to not consider entrepreneurship. At the onset of this continued on page 45

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Interview — Dewland and Mery from page 44 venture, Jason and I did not want to necessarily develop a software program for commercialization, but we realized it was the only way we could sustain the platform and enhance it. I think there are a lot of librarians and libraries doing some pretty innovative things that others outside of libraries and beyond academia would be interested in. My advice to other librarians would be if they have a great idea, find a way to pursue it and turn it into something bigger. That may happen with a grant, with another department, or with a tech transfer office. But first, talk to your potential customers, to a lot of them. Find out if your idea is something that they truly need and listen to them. Ask the right questions, and more than anything, listen to what they have to say. JD: Yes, entrepreneurship is promoted at the UofA. I think that the lean startup toolkit provides a strong framework to experiment and to fail fast in an attempt to understand our researchers and the public. It is a great tool to move away from the centralized decision making and allow the people on the front lines of libraries, the ones that know our users the best, to quickly recognize and respond to needs that align with the strategic initiative of their library. My only advice is to listen to your users and to create something that they need at the point of need. ATG: Jason you just mentioned the “lean startup toolkit” and the concept of failing fast. Can you clarify? What is the “lean startup toolkit”? What does it mean to fail fast? Why is it beneficial? JD: The lean startup tool kit originates from the Eric Ries book, The Lean Startup. You can watch his presentation on Google here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fEvKo90qBns. The idea behind this book is to build stuff that people want, not what you perceive that they need and to do this with spending as little money as possible. The idea behind failing fast is asking the people who are your potential customers if your idea/product/service solves a problem that they are willing to pay for in some way. That can be with their money, their time, their efforts, but they must be willing to invest in your product. Traditionally, what you find with engineers is that they are great at building things, but most of the time they build things that nobody wants. Failing fast is an attempt to get the engineers out of the office and to use their great skills to build things that solve problems that people are willing to pay for. When you fail fast you learn what people want without investing a lot of money. Research has shown that people who write the most articles, invent the most things, etc. are more likely to succeed; they also fail the most. We must embrace this in libraries so that we can create novel products and services that people need. We are lucky that we deal with people everyday who have real research needs because of this we can create beautiful products and services that solve real information problems.

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ATG: It also appears to us that the situation at the University of Arizona is unique. Academe is often not supportive of new initiative and entrepreneurial efforts. Why do you think the UofA is an exception to that rule? JD: I don’t know what it is like at other universities, but we have found a lot of support from Tech Launch Arizona, the McGuire Center for Entrepreneurship, Startup Tucson here at the University of Arizona, and Tucson in general. I think that we are all looking for new sources of revenue, and no, licensing and startups are NOT going to fill the fiscal hole that state institutions find themselves in due to unjustified budget cuts. It is still true; the best way to increase your city, state, or country’s GDP is to invest in education. An individual with a BA (on average) will out earn a person with just a high school degree by over a million dollars over their lifetimes and the person with a BA will have a better quality of life. For whatever reason this isn’t recognized in our budgets coming from the states and at the national level, so here at the U of A it has pushed us to look for novel ways to generate funding. Our institution from the last two presidents down has been quite supportive, and in that we are fortunate. ATG: How has the library community responded to Sidecar Learning? Has anything surprised either of you about how the community has responded? YM: We conducted a lot, a lot of interviews before we started designing the tool and when we shared our ideas and later our prototype, we received an overwhelmingly positive response. Librarians loved Guide on the Side, but many couldn’t use it because they couldn’t upload it on their servers. Others needed to track student progress and Guide on the Side could not do that, and those are some the features we built into Sidecar. What really surprised us was the response to creating a tool that was subscription based. We had anticipated some negative reactions but got just the opposite. One librarian we interviewed, told us “If you can do this, please charge us.” ATG: The University of Nebraska — Lincoln was your first customer. Can you tell us how that relationship started? What do you think led the University of Nebraska — Lincoln to Sidecar Learning? Have other libraries expressed similar interest? YM: We had previously worked with one of their librarians, Erica DeFrain, and knew she was a heavy user and fan of Guide on the Side. We interviewed some folks at Nebraska early on during our discovery process, and they helped us a great deal in understanding how they taught information literacy and what they needed from an e-learning program. It was a natural fit. We have had a lot of interest from some Greater Western Library Alliance libraries, some overseas libraries especially Leiden University in the Netherlands, and some smaller community college libraries. ATG: Do you have a formal marketing strategy to expand the company? If so, can you elaborate? Can you tell us a little bit about your funding and operational budget?

JD: We feel that we have a natural initial market with libraries and institutions of higher education, and that is our focus to start. But we have talked to people in other industries who feel that this tool would be an excellent fit for their training needs as well. There are also opportunities for us to partner with established vendors. Users who have success initially using their resources are more likely to return and use them again and this is something that database providers, libraries, and educators all would like to see. The Sidecar platform allows learners to experience success using academic research tools the first time and that makes them less likely to rely on the standard Google search. As far as funding is concerned, we have had the initial funding from Tech Launch Arizona. This funding allowed us to build the platform and we have taken a license from the University to be the sole vendor of the platform. We have talked to a number of people who are angel investors and venture capitalists who have shown interest in investing in the company, and we are moving forward in this manner to seek funding. But first, we want to get the platform out there, get more feedback, and see what type of interest there is. ATG: What do you see as the future for Sidecar Learning? How do each of you see the company evolving in the three years? Five years? JD: There are a number of different paths forward for the platform. We are really focused on making the tutorial creator’s life easier as well as the learners. So in the next three to five years, we will be rolling out enhancements to support those two goals. We are interested in building out the customer success side of our company so that creators will have a team supporting their efforts to educate their students as well as providing frameworks that drive the learners’ curiosity and aid their retention of information. YM: I really see this as just the beginning. We have a lot more ideas for the platform and would like to expand beyond libraries to schools, companies, and anyone doing online training or learning. In three years we would like to have a bigger team including marketing and sales teams and an expert designer that understands the user experience. In five years, it would be great to have the ability to offer the platform to K-12 teachers at no charge. ATG: Spearheading a start-up firm like Sidecar Learning — not to mention being fulltime librarians — demands a lot of time and energy. When/if you get that rare moment of down time, what do each of you enjoy doing? Do either of you have hobbies or outside interests? JD: I have two wonderful (most of the time) daughters and a partner that I try to spend as much time as possible with. Aside from reading, I love to cook, hike, and watch wrestling (collegiate & Olympic styles) and soccer. YM: Downtime is quite hard to find. In those rare moments, I like nothing better than hanging out with my amazing little girl and continued on page 47

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ATG Interviews Theodore Pappas Executive Editor and Chief Development Officer at Encyclopaedia Britannica by Tom Gilson (Associate Editor, Against the Grain) <gilsont@cofc.edu> and Katina Strauch (Editor, Against the Grain) <kstrauch@comcast.net> ATG: Mr. Pappas, please tell us a bit about your career path. How does one get to be the Executive Editor and Chief Development Officer of one of the most legendary names in publishing history? TP: My background is in history — American and European, with a specialty in Russian studies — and I’ve found that broad interests like these are well suited for a general encyclopedia’s wide swath of coverage. Plus, I routinely read encyclopedias as a child — I loved the serendipity that encyclopedias offer — so then working for one seemed like a natural fit professionally, and very rewarding personally. ATG: Encyclopaedia Britannica recently celebrated its 250th anniversary and both CNN (https://www.cnn.com/videos/ world/2019/06/27/100-club-encyclopedia-britannica.cnn) and CBS Sunday Morning have done wonderful stories about it. How did these opportunities come about? What was it like being the center of attention during a nationally broadcast news program? What has the reaction been to this nationwide exposure? TP: Britannica’s historic 250th anniversary has generated a lot of attention around the world, and both CBS Sunday Morning and CNN have nicely reported on the occasion with TV coverage. CNN incorporated its coverage of Britannica in its “100 Club,” (see above link) which is a program dedicated to companies 100 years and older and with global appeal. The response has been wonderful. ATG: A number of fascinating facts were disclosed during the CBS broadcast (https:// www.youtube.com/watch?v=d2g4oXAtIlU), but we were hoping that you could tell us more about two of our favorites — the “Answer Girls” and the “Whole Set Club”? TP: The “Answer Girls” refers to the all-female Library Research Service that Britannica created in 1936. Beginning that year, buyers of the print set received 50 gummed coupons that entitled them to ask 50 questions of Britannica over a ten-year period. In return, the buyer received a personalized report summarizing the latest information on the topic they asked about, all researched and typed up by one of Britannica’s “Answer Girls.” The women were all college-educated, some with graduate degrees, and at its height, the department had 100 women issuing upwards of 150,000 reports annually. This department was phenomenally successful, and newspapers and magazines like Glamour routinely highlighted the department, often with headlines — reflecting, of course, the common perception of working women at that time — like “Brains, Beauty, and Britannica.” In fact, the department has long been considered the inspiration for the 1957 Spencer

46 Against the Grain / September 2019

Tracy – Katharine Hepburn movie The Desk Set, in which Hepburn plays the director of an all-female reference library tasked with researching answers to a wide assortment of questions — the very task of the women of Britannica’s Library Research Service. Simply put, the department was a public relations bonanza, keeping the Britannica brand alive during the difficult days of the Great Depression and reflecting one of the many ways that Britannica has met the public’s need for information through the centuries. It reveals a truth about publishing that’s just as apt now: consumers need to be dealt with on their terms, meaning information needs to be delivered to them in the manner they desire. This is especially true today, in the digital age. The “Whole-Set Club” is what I term those special folks who have read an entire Britannica print set, and those hearty souls have included famous writers such as George Bernard Shaw, who read everything in Britannica except the science articles, and C.S. Forester, who supposedly read his Britannica print set an astounding three times. He reportedly could read at a rate of 4,000 words per minute. ATG: From your perspective, what are the most significant, landmark accomplishments in Encyclopaedia Britannica’s publishing history? In what ways has Britannica most influenced the modern world of information gathering and delivery? TP: Encyclopaedia Britannica’s First Edition (1768-71) was a marketing marvel, offering both quick definitional information as well as long academic treatises, all conveniently packaged in a mere three volumes, in an easy-to-use A-Z format, with helpful cross-references and 160 detailed illustrations. It proved how successfully information could be commodified and mass communicated, and it sowed the seeds of the publishing phenomenon called Britannica that continues to this

day, 250 years later, in digital form. Britannica continued this pioneering spirit in the digital age, creating the first digital encyclopedia for LexisNexis in 1981, the first multimedia CD in 1989, and launching the first encyclopedia on the Internet in 1994, seven years before Wikipedia. ATG: Encyclopaedia Britannica announced the end of the print set in 2012 and is now digital. Can you explain the economic model that has allowed Britannica to remain viable? What other factors have enabled you to make the successful transition from print to digital? TP: Britannica has long listened to consumers and taken note of the kind of information they want to receive, and so when readers in the late 18th century began increasingly reading biographies for their information on the world past and present, Britannica shocked traditionalists by incorporating biographies in the encyclopedia. Though this novel type of entry cost Britannica its editor, who resigned in protest, Britannica’s owners had sagely discerned the way the marketing winds were blowing, and the same holds true for Britannica today — we deliver quality content, content the public wants, and in the manner the public wants to receive it. Moreover, in the age of fake news and rampant misinformation on the Internet, Britannica’s value proposition as perhaps the largest fact-checked, general-reference database in the world is only growing in importance. Our encyclopedias, offered at differentiated reading levels, along with a slew of supplemental classroom tools and products, are now used in schools in 88 countries, and our combined websites are generating more than five billion page views annually. ATG: How has the availability of free online resources, in particular Wikipedia, impacted Encyclopaedia Britannica’s place in the information market? Why should researchers turn to Britannica rather than Wikipedia? What do you offer that Wikipedia does not? TP: Sites like Wikipedia, as well as many blogs and social media sites, that offer answers to questions of little critical importance (when you really don’t need to know for sure whether an answer is really completely right) will likely always be popular. After all, their content is free and they’re fast, and there’s little consequence if they’re wrong. But consumers, including students and teachers, are growing increasingly savvy, and they no longer are simply enamored with mere access to the millions of words of undifferentiated content that search engines like Google deliver up in continued on page 47

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Interview — Theodore Pappas from page 46 seconds. That’s why verified, reliable, curated content like that offered by Britannica is only growing in importance in an age of fake news and misinformation. That’s why an increasing number of companies (and the ministries of education of countries around the world) want to partner with Britannica, because they realize the importance of reliable information and the companies that produce it. ATG: However, you still do some print publishing. We noticed that Britannica’s 250th anniversary collector’s edition — your final yearbook — is a print product. In fact, you are listed as the author. Can you tell us about that project? TP: We produce an occasional print product, here and there, but for all intents and purposes we’re a 100 percent-digital company today. Our special one-volume collector’s edition of Britannica — the Encyclopaedia Britannica Anniversary Edition: 250 Years of Excellence, 1768-2018 — was a print product because it was the final edition of the print yearbooks that we’ve published since 1938. It was a pleasure and an honor to edit the final edition in this hallowed tradition. ATG: As you look into the future, what adjustments do you anticipate Encyclopaedia Britannica having to make going forward? Do you envision any new services or products? Where do you see Encyclopaedia Britannica in the next few years? TP: Britannica is thriving today, with products sold and used in 88 countries and contracts with companies and countries on every continent save Antarctica. And we’re moving into the realm of voice-activated games and appliances, powered by artificial intelligence. As Britannica has proven over 250 years, it’s not the medium (print) that made our products special, but rather our message and manner of producing and delivering reliable, verifiable, expert content. Our methods of publishing may have changed since 1768, but our mission hasn’t.

Interview — Dewland and Mery from page 45 taking my dogs out for long walks. I also try to travel abroad as much as possible. Of course, even when traveling I seem to be working! ATG: Jason and Yvonne, thank you so much for taking the time to talk to us. It’s great to see librarians pursuing entrepreneurial efforts like Sidecar Learning. We wish you the best of luck. JD: Thank you! We hope that your readers will find our platform useful and we can’t wait to hear their feedback. YM: Thanks so much for the opportunity!

Against the Grain / September 2019

Collecting to the Core — Gegenwartsromane, Contemporary German-Language Novels by Heidi Madden (Librarian for Western European Studies, Duke University; Germanic Languages and Literature Subject Editor, Resources for College Libraries) <heidi.madden@duke.edu> Column Editor: Anne Doherty (Resources for College Libraries Project Editor, CHOICE/ACRL) <adoherty@ala-choice.org> Column Editor’s Note: The “Collecting to the Core” column highlights monographic works that are essential to the academic library within a particular discipline, inspired by the Resources for College Libraries bibliography (online at http://www.rclweb.net). In each essay, subject specialists introduce and explain the classic titles and topics that continue to remain relevant to the undergraduate curriculum and library collection. Disciplinary trends may shift, but some classics never go out of style. — AD

uilding a core collection of contemporary German-language novels, or Gegenwartsromane, comes with unique challenges. There is a mismatch between a library’s budget and the huge publication output, so libraries often use core author lists as a collection development tool. The term “core” is a value judgement and any claims about the canon are debatable. How can a librarian gain confidence in creating such an author list? This article offers some context unique to German studies, together with a well-reasoned, sample core author list. One of the first challenges in building a collection profile is defining a time frame. What period is designated as “contemporary”? Some might interpret contemporary literature as all living writers, others as new and emerging authors. The term may also refer to recently published novels on the market. In terms of building a collection profile, contemporary can also represent novels that contextualize our understanding of the present, the Gegenwart, and, as the sample list below will show, this means that the author list may extend back in time. The second challenge in collecting contemporary literature is that it represents 25% of the publishing market in any given year, which makes it difficult to rightsize a library budget for the overall German studies collection. The bestseller list is not useful because both the German literary scene and German studies programs in the United States favor “serious” literature — literature recognized through prestigious literary prizes — over bestselling “entertainment,” Unterhaltungsliteratur. For example, Charlotte Roche (b. 1978) gained

popular attention with her book Feuchtgebiete / Wetlands (2008), but she is not (yet) considered a core author. Similarly, Jenny Erpenbeck (b. 1967) had international success with Gehen, ging, gegangen / Go, Went, Gone (2015), but has not (yet) received the volume of critical attention that suggests a core author. There are many metrics for ranking authors to help sift through the considerable number of candidates and some tools for researching authors and their critical reception are discussed below. The third challenge is discovery. What tools can librarians use to get an overview of potential works and authors? Catalog searches in Worldcat are not helpful in identifying contemporary novels and catalog records certainly do not denote “this is a core author.” Take, for example, the translation of Arno Geiger’s novel Der alte König in seinem Exil / The Old King in His Exile (2011); it is cataloged with subjects including Geiger, Arno; Dementia; Older people — Germany. The Worldcat search German literature — 21st century — History and criticism can be used to find literary histories, but authoritative literary histories, as we know them for established periods, have not yet been written for the contemporary period. Literary historians struggle with the tension between understanding the unfinished, evolving nature of a writer’s output and the desire to present an author’s oeuvre and its organizing principles within intellectual genealogies. Another problem with literary histories and dictionaries is that critical reception and appreciation changes over time. The history of the Kindlers Literatur Lexikon is a case in point.1 Its three editions illustrate the difficulty with defining the “canon”: the first edition was seven volumes, the second edition was twenty volumes, and the third edition was seventeen volumes. The third edition of the print Kindler was published in 2009 and actually contains fewer entries than the second edition because it focused on a canon wherein entries comply with editors’ criteria for world literature. The Kindler is an essential tool for literary research, but the print publication is now ten years old and while the online version is updated every year, it is not expanded with new entries. continued on page 48

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Collecting to the Core from page 47 The best resources for identifying authors (and also for understanding the area’s scope) are two specialized databases usually only available at PhD-granting institutions: Bibliographie der deutschen Sprach und Literaturwissenschaft / Bibliography of German Linguistics and Literary Studies (BDSL) and the Kritisches Lexikon zur deutschsprachigen Gegenwartsliteratur / Critical Encyclopedia of Contemporary German-language Literature (KLG).2-3 The BDSL is an index of literary criticism published from 1957 to the present, covering literature from the medieval to current eras. For the recent past, the BDSL uses the periodization of 1914-1945; 1945-1989; and 1990 to the present. BDSL includes hundreds of individual author headings under each period, with over 1,800 author entries for the time period from 1990 to the present alone. The KLG is a bio-bibliography of contemporary writers, defined as authors publishing after 1945 to the present, and provides substantial bio-bibliographies for 750 authors. A more accessible resource for college librarians is the open access bibliography of contemporary German literature published by the Max Kade Center for Contemporary German Literature and the Olin Library at Washington University in St. Louis. Currently produced by Paul Michael Lützeler and Brian Vetruba, the center has published an issue of the Annual Bibliography of the Special Contemporary German Literature Collection every year since 1985.4 In 2017, Olin Library purchased 828 volumes of contemporary “serious” German literature, including contemporary novels. This bibliography provides a good measure for what a comprehensive budget would look like, although the average college library probably buys fewer German-language books than this for their entire German studies profile. To face the collection challenges noted above — scope, volume, discovery — and more, many libraries create a core author list, usually with less than 100 authors, to help frame collection goals within budget constraints. How does a librarian define a small core author list in the face of such abundance of choices? Different types of institutions approach this challenge by developing lists aimed at their local users’ needs. University programs in literature often provide reading lists (the University of Trier has a well-designed list).5 Journals like Cicero offer bestseller and top 100 lists, such as Max A. Höfer’s yearly list of 500 intellectuals to watch.6 This list is accompanied by the ranking criteria, including a metric for whether an author is trending higher or lower than the prior year. Specialized German-language book vendors like Harrassowitz aggregate author metrics like the number of reviews, prestige of prizes received, and more to aid library selection.7 The Resources for College Libraries (RCL) Germanic Languages and Literatures subject collection features a taxonomy of author headings and a focus on identifying core works in translation as well as in the original.8 Every

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one of these author lists is different from the next one and the author list speaks to the institution that created it as much as the canon. A librarian should feel empowered to create their own list based on the RCL author headings, on a Harrassowitz list, or other resources, but scale it to their institutions’ research and curricular goals. What follows is a sample author list and accompanying narrative for collecting core contemporary German-language novels. Period concepts have a special significance for German and European literature because of the Nazi years, which restricted free artistic expression from 1933-1945 in Germany and occupied territories. For Germany, the immediate post-war period was distinct from the turbulent 1960s and the division of Germany into the Federal Republic of Germany / Bundesrepublik Deutschland (BRD) and the German Democratic Republic (East Germany) / Deutsche Demokratische Republik (DDR) effectively created two distinct literary universes from 1949-1990. The period from 1989-90, defined by the fall of the Berlin Wall and German reunification, is known as Die Wende and everything since is simply post-1990. Because of this history, writers producing work before 1933 still very much mattered in post-war, post-1945 Europe. To include these authors in a contemporary German literature list helps identify new editions, translations, critical editions, and publications of materials previously not available, like letters and archival materials. Heinrich Mann (1871-1950), the author of Professor Unrat oder das Ende eines Tyrannen / Small Town Tyrant (1904), a book made famous as the 1930 movie Der Blaue Engel / The Blue Angel, was politically engaged in exile and had planned to return to East Germany in 1950, but died unexpectedly. Thomas Mann (1875-1955) rose to fame with the novels Buddenbrooks: Verfall einer Familie / Buddenbrooks: The Decline of a Family (1901) and Der Zauberberg / The Magic Mountain (1924), won the Nobel Prize in 1929, went on to publish Doktor Faustus / Doctor Faustus (1947), and then returned to Switzerland in 1952 where he continued with autobiographical writings and shorter fiction until his death. Hermann Hesse (1877-1962), the author of Demian (1919), Siddhartha (1922), and Steppenwolf (1927), was rediscovered by a new generation of readers after winning the Nobel Prize in 1946. Robert Walser (1878-1956) received praise for Jakob von Gunten (1909), but had stopped writing around 1933 and had disappeared from public life by 1945. He is now hailed as a leading figure of Swiss-German literature with an output so prolific that even though editions of his collected works were published in the 1970s, new materials are still being discovered today. Alfred Döblin (1878-1957), the author of Berlin Alexanderplatz: Die Geschichte vom Franz Biberkopf / Alexanderplatz, Berlin: The Story of Franz Biberkopf (1929), returned to Germany and served in the cultural affairs department in Baden-Baden, amongst many other public humanities activities. Gottfried Benn (1886-1956) wrote post-war poems Statische Gedichte / Static Poems (1948) and an autobiography Doppelleben / Double Life

(1950), establishing himself as an important expressionist. Hermann Broch (1886-1951) never returned to Europe, but his novel Der Tod des Vergil / The Death of Virgil (1945) was published simultaneously in German and English at a key moment of history, right after the war. Erich Maria Remarque (1898-1970) wrote the enduring bestseller Im Westen nichts Neues / All Quiet on the Western Front (1929) and then reemerged with Arc de Triomphe / Arch of Triumph (1946), although he never returned to Germany. Anna Seghers (19001983) achieved fame in exile with her novel Das siebte Kreuz / The Seventh Cross (1942) and returned to communist East Berlin in 1947. Her long writing career and critical attitude toward East Germany attributed to her work’s import beyond German reunification. A full overview of the literary generation marked by emigration and exile is provided by the Deutsche Nationalbibliothek / German National Library in the exile collection “Deutsches Exilarchiv 1933-1945.”9 Many writers born between 1900 and 1930 slowly emerged to define German-language culture after 1945. Elias Canetti (1905-1994) had his first success with Die Blendung / Autoda-Fé (1935) and went on to write a celebrated three-volume memoir Die Gerettete Zunge / The Tongue Set Free (1977), Die Fackel im Ohr. Lebensgeschichte 1921-1931 / The Torch in My Ear (1980), and Das Augenspiel. Lebensgeschichte 1931-1937 / The Play of the Eyes (1985), winning the Nobel Prize in 1981. Wolfgang Koeppen (1906-1996) never achieved fame during his lifetime, but has since been acclaimed for his power of observation and representation of the political realities of post-war Germany in novels like Tauben im Gras / Pigeons on the Grass (1951) and Das Treibhaus / The Hothouse (1953). Max Frisch’s (1911-1991) dramatic work is defined by themes of guilt and responsibility, including his most appreciated novel Montauk (1975), a searing autobiographical exploration of relationships and memory. Arno Schmidt (1914-1979) emerged as an experimental writer with Leviathan (1949) and while his masterpiece Zettels Traum / Bottom’s Dream (1970) was not translated into English until 2016, Schmidt’s voluminous output established him as a major presence in German literature. Peter Weiss (1916-1982) is a celebrated playwright of works like Die Ermittlung / The Investigation (1965), based on transcripts of the Frankfurt Auschwitz Trials of 1963-1965, and his three-volume novel Die Ästhetik des Widerstands / The Aesthetics of Resistance (1975-1981), a novel about antifascist resistance. Ingeborg Bachmann (1926-1973) experienced Nazi occupation in her hometown of Klagenfurt, Austria, and became an influential public intellectual, poet, and writer after the war. Her novel Malina (1971) reflects the early feminist debates. Walter Kempowski (1929-2007) is best known for a series of nine novels summarized by the publisher as Deutsche Chronik / German Chronicle (1971-1984), but his many works and innovative projects still receive so much attention that a Kempowski-Archiv was founded for this effort in 2007. continued on page 49

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Collecting to the Core from page 48 For this cohort of post-1945 authors, one group of writers organized as “Gruppe 47” stands out. This group networked through meetings and literary accolades, influencing the trajectory of post-war literature. The group was active from 1947-1967, though many members are productive even today. Some of the most prominent authors associated with Gruppe 47 whether as a core member or invited guest at an annual meeting, like Paul Celan (1920-1970), are: Ilse Aichinger (1921-2016); Ingeborg Bachmann; Heinrich Böll (1917-1985, Nobel Prize in 1972); Hans Magnus Enzensberger (b. 1929); Günter Grass (1927-2015, Nobel Prize in 1999); Peter Handke (b. 1942); Uwe Johnson (1934-1984); Siegfried Lenz (1926-2014); Martin Walser (b. 1927); Peter Weiss; Gabriele Wohmann (1932-2015). The generation of writers born in the 1930s and 40s includes writers that came to prominence in East Germany. East German writers are usually studied as a phenomenon, not as canonical literature, with the exception of writers who kept a critical distance and were disassociated with the DDR. Those authors are included below, together with other authors from this generation: Günter de Bruyn (b.1926); Christa Wolf (1929-2011); Thomas Bernhard (1931-1989); Gabriele Wohmann; Peter Härtling (1933-2017); Uwe Timm (b. 1940); Barbara Frischmuth (b. 1941); Wilhelm Genazino (1943-2018); Bernhard Schlink (b. 1944); W. G. Sebald (1944-2001); Christoph Hein (b. 1944); Elfriede Jelinek (b. 1946, Nobel Prize in 2004); Rafik Schami (b. 1946); Bodo Kirchhoff (b. 1948); Patrick Süskind (b.1949); Zsuzsanna Gahse (b. 1946); Emine Sevgi Özdamar (b. 1946); Barbara Honigmann (b. 1949). Writers born in the 1950s and ’60s are still emerging as important contemporary authors, true to the adage that it takes 30 years of work to become an overnight sensation. These authors include: Herta Müller (b. 1953, Nobel Prize in 2009); Josef Winkler (b. 1953); Robert Menasse (b. 1954); Rainald Maria Goetz (b. 1954); Christoph Ransmayr (b. 1954); Maxim Biller (b. 1960); Yōko Tawada (b. 1960); Zafer Şenocak (b. 1961); Feridun Zaimoǧlu (b. 1964); Thomas Hettche (b. 1964); Ferdinand von Schirach (b. 1964); Thomas Brussig (b. 1964); Christian Kracht (b. 1966); Navid Kermani (b.1967); Arno Geiger (b. 1968); Uwe Tellkamp (b. 1968); Melinda Nadj Abonji (b. 1968). The generation of writers born in the 1970s, ’80s, and beyond have not yet made it into the canon and translation is lagging, which means a further delay in appreciation abroad. Researching authors around themes in their fiction, or grouping authors around identities and experiences proves to be a fruitful approach for authors born after 1970. An invaluable tool in this endeavor is the journal Gegenwartsliteratur: Ein germanistisches Jahrbuch.10 It offers the following emerging themes, together with author recommendations: multicultural; Jewish-German; Berlin;

Against the Grain / September 2019

literature and film; new East German literature; after the postmodern; and politically-engaged women writers. In addition to these broad themes from the Gegenwartsliteratur volumes, a review of literary genres like pop literature, pop feminism, graphic novels, and national or intercultural identity (German, Austrian, Swiss, Afro-German, Turkish-German, Russian-German, Russian-Jewish-German, Eastern European, refugee, etc.) yields further authors to consider. With an author name in hand, by browsing the BDSL index under Inhalt › Klassifikation › 1990 bis zur Gegenwart › Zu einzelnen Autoren, librarians can quickly judge an emerging author by the critical reception. A library trying to diversify or update their author list might consider adding some of the following emerging writers to their profile: Julia Franck (b. 1970); Judith Hermann (b. 1970); Julya Rabinowich (b. 1970); Terézia Mora (b. 1971); Kathrin Röggla (b. 1971); Lukas Bärfuss (b. 1971); Emma Braslavsky (b. 1971); Selim Özdoğan (b. 1971); Nico Bleutge (b. 1972); Thomas Glavinic (b. 1972); Jan Böttcher (b. 1973); Que Du Luu (b. 1973); Juli Zeh (b. 1974); Jan Brandt (b. 1974); Daniel Kehlmann (b. 1975); Benjamin von Stuckrad-Barre (b. 1975); Jens Steiner (b. 1975); Clemens Meyer (b. 1977); Xaver Bayer (b. 1977); Alina Bronsky (b. 1978); Arno Camenisch (b. 1978); Matthias Nawrat (b. 1979); Judith Schalansky (b. 1980); Marjana Gaponenko (b. 1981); Lena Gorelik (b. 1981); Nora Bossong (b. 1982); Ann Cotten (b. 1982); Benjamin Lebert (b. 1982); Nino Haratischwili (b. 1983); Olga Grjasnowa (b. 1984); Susanne Heinrich (b. 1985); Sabrina Janesch (b.1985). A typical contemporary German-language literature collection contains canonical authors, emerging writers, diverse themes and author backgrounds, as well as the associated literary criticism, all bound by a fixed budget. An author list can be an effective collection management aid. Libraries may use one of the many existing author lists as a starting point, including the sample list above that identifies under 100 contemporary authors. It is important to understand that because of the volume of output in contemporary literature and the shifting nature of appreciation towards authors or works, author

Rumors from page 32 student perspective. Many of the articles will be open access on the ATG NewsChannel. www.against-the-grain.com/ And please use the hashtag#ATGDIGITALTEXTBOOKS to promote and access to the article! Congratulate the grand Ann Michael for starting a new position as Chief Digital Officer (CDO) at Public Library of Science (PLOS). Ann was a big hit during the 2018 Charleston Conference when as CEO of Delta Think she moderated a panel on “Data Expeditions: Mining Data for Effective Decision-Making”

lists are ever-evolving and seldom comprehensive. Author lists, whether compiled by a department, a book vendor, or RCL, should be used as a basis for evaluating what is relevant to support the local institutional needs. An author list that is reviewed every year will help inform and shape the local collection. Endnotes 1. Arnold, Heinz Ludwig. Kindlers Literatur Lexikon. Stuttgart: J.B. Metzler, 2009. 2. Stadt- und Universitätsbibliothek Frankfurt am Main. Bibliographie Der Deutschen Sprach- Und Literaturwissenschaft. Frankfurt am Main, 2004-. 3. Korte, Hermann, and Heinze Ludwig Arnold. Kritisches Lexikon Zur Deutschsprachigen Gegenwartsliteratur. München: Edition Text + Kritik, 1978-. 4. Vetruba, Brian, Leon Wiese, and Paul Michael Lützeler. “Thirty-First Annual Bibliography 2017 (Contemporary German Literature Collection).” University Libraries Publications. 24. Accessed April 21, 2019. https://openscholarship.wustl.edu/ lib_papers/24 5. Universität Trier FB II - Germanistik. “Trierer Leseliste. Neuere Deutsche Literaturwissenschaft.” Accessed April 21, 2019. https://www.uni-trier.de/fileadmin/fb2/prof/ GER/NDL/NDL/Ndl_leseliste.pdf 6. Höfer, Max A. “Ranking. Die 500 Wichtigsten Deutschsprachigen Intellektuellen.” Cicero: Magazin Für Politische Kultur 3 (2019): 17-29. 7. Harrassowitz. Accessed April 21, 2019. https://www.harrassowitz.de 8. Resources for College Libraries. Accessed April 21, 2019. http://rclweb.net/ 9. Deutsche Nationalbibliothek. “Deutsches Exilarchiv 1933-1945.” Accessed April 21, 2019. https://www.dnb.de/EN/DEA/ dea_node.html 10. Gegenwartsliteratur: Ein Germanistisches Jahrbuch = a German Studies Yearbook. Tübingen: Stauffenburg, 2002-. * Editor’s note: Due to space, not all of the titles listed in the essay appear in the endnotes, though many are in the Resources for College Libraries database. The dates listed in parentheticals within the essay note the work’s German publication date.

with Ivy Anderson and Gwen Evans. Here’s the URL to the video of the session https:// www.youtube.com/watch?v=PR4nf7zjEi0&feature=youtu.be. So what has happened to Delta Think? Lauren Kane has joined as CEO and Ann Michael becomes Chair of the Board as part of Delta Think’s expansion. Delta Think is a consulting and advisory firm focused on innovation and growth in scholarly communications. In this role, Ms. Kane will lead Delta Think’s expansion as the organization increases its footprint as an expert advisor in scholarly communications and a trusted voice in the evolving dialogue on Open Access and Open Science. https://deltathink.com

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Reader’s Roundup: Monographic Musings & Reference Reviews Column Editor: Corey Seeman (Director, Kresge Library Services, Stephen M. Ross School of Business, University of Michigan; Phone: 734-764-9969) <cseeman@umich.edu> Twitter @cseeman Column Editor’s Note: So this much is clear to me. If you need me to do something that I do not want to do, just reach out to Katina Strauch and have her ask me. I seem to be somewhat unable to tell her no…. The reason I bring this up is that this column is expanding. It was formerly just the Monographic Musings column in Against the Grain. But as of now, we have also included reference reviews in this column as well. So, I have decided with this change in focus (or an expanded one), maybe a change in title might be in order. And so, it is with great pleasure that I introduce you to the first Reader’s Roundup column. Hopefully, each column will feature both library-focused works (in Monographic Musings) and reference works (in Reference Reviews). I came up with this title to show the combined reviews in a single location, but all I did was get the song “Woody’s Roundup” from Toy Story 2 in my head! Thanks to my great reviewers for getting items for this column. Thanks to Julie Huskey, Jennifer Matthews, Katharine Swart, and my colleague from Kresge Library Services, Sally Ziph. As a reminder, I have introduced a standard rating reference. Being a big fan of Ebert and Siskel (may they both rest in peace), I loved the way that they presented a clear way to show if something was worth watching. Roger Ebert used four stars (for his newspaper reviews in the Chicago Sun Times) to let you know quickly if this is something worth the time and money. So to that end, I have created the ATG Reviewer Rating that would be used from book to book. I came up with this rating to reflect our collaborative collections and resource sharing means. I think it helps classify the importance of these books. • I need this book on my nightstand. (This book is so good, that I want a copy close at hand when I am in bed.) • I need this on my desk. (This book is so valuable, that I want my own copy at my desk that I will share with no one.) • I need this in my library. (I want to be able to get up from my desk and grab this book off the shelf, if it’s not checked out.) • I need this available somewhere in my shared network. (I probably do not need this book, but it would be nice to get it with three to five days via my network catalog.) • I’ll use my money elsewhere. (Just not sure this is a useful book for my library or my network.) If you would like to be a reviewer for Against the Grain, please write me at <cseeman@umich.edu>. If you have a book you would like to see reviewed in a future column, please also write me directly. Happy reading and be nutty! — CS

Arnhem, Jolanda-Pieta von, Christine Elliott and Marie Rose. Augmented and Virtual Reality in Libraries. Lanham, Maryland: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers (A LITA Guide), 2018. 978-1-5381-0290-9 (Hardback), 248 pages. $95.00. 978-1-53810291-6 (Paperback). $45.00. Reviewed by Sally Ziph (Business Reference Librarian and Instruction Coordinator, Kresge Library Services, Ross School of Business, University of Michigan-Ann Arbor) <sweston@umich.edu>

In both the library field and in higher education (well and everything else), we are continually seeing reference to augmented (AR) and virtual reality (VR). But what does it really mean and what can it really do? This is a question that many librarians have been asking right now. Luckily, there is a guide that can help navigate the reality of these new worlds. This book provides an introduction to augmented (AR) and virtual reality (VR) technologies for academic librarians, archivists, and other information professionals. The editors include a variety of case studies meant to illustrate “inexpensive and nontechnical ways to incorporate AR/VR into already existing endeavors.” While I wouldn’t say the book is “nontechnical” exactly, it does indeed provide inexpensive options for crowd pleasing AR/VR activities, with an emphasis on instruction and outreach. This book is edited by Jolanda-Pieta van Arnhem, a studio librarian at the College of Charleston Libraries and coauthor of “Augmented Reality for Discovery and Instruction” for the Journal of Web Librarianship and Christine Elliott and Maria Rose, both of whom are information services librarians at the Citadel, the Military College of South Carolina. Augmented reality (AR) is defined as follows: “In its simplest form, marker AR uses printed markers and software/applications to recognize programmed objects when markers are viewed through a camera.” In other words, marked images are superimposed over the viewer’s reality. A more sophisticated “markerless” example of AR is the very popular Pokemon Go, which uses “distinctive features, (physical edges, corners, textures) in the environment” as markers. Librarians using applications like Layar, Google Goggles, Wikitude, Aurasma, and Blippar can create their own AR content and effects. Virtual reality (VR), in comparison, “completely immerse(s) the user in a synthetic environment in which the real environment cannot be perceived.” The experience is heightened “by adding visual, auditory, and ... touch-based simulation, through means of headsets, earphones and specially designed gloves or controllers.” In other words, “AR enhances and VR creates.” Featured AR case studies in the book include the use of Aurasma to create an interactive animated treasure hunt for students, an archives project in which students also used Aurasma to create exhibits for a library display, and the use of Blippar for an actual “Pokemon Go Augmented Reality (AR) Library Orientation.” VR projects include the creation of a navigation tool for a campus library system and the use of Video 360 to create a virtual reality library tour that students could explore using headsets. Whereas VR is “sexy” and gets the attention of the media and administrators alike, I found the AR examples provided in this work to be currently more useful for academic libraries. VR is not quite there yet as a practical choice for library instruction or outreach. For example, one drawback with virtual reality is that the technology can create an unpleasant sensation of vertigo for some users. As one author suggests, VR’s uses as a pedagogical tool for libraries are still evolving. Overall I found the book to be an excellent overview of AR/VR in libraries, especially for instruction and outreach librarians who are interested in creating dynamic experiences and learning objects for students. ATG Reviewer Rating: I need this in my library. (I want to be able to get up from my desk and grab this book off the shelf, if it’s not checked out.) continued on page 51

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Book Reviews from page 50 MacKenzie, Alison and Lindsey Martin. Developing Digital Scholarship: Emerging Practices in Academic Libraries. London: Facet Publishing, 2016. 9781783301102, 184 pages. $49.95. Reviewed by Jennifer Matthews (Collection Strategy Librarian, Rowan University) <matthewsj@rowan.edu> While the field of Digital Scholarship is one of growing interest, varying approaches from scholar to scholar and differing takes from institution to institution means that one size cannot fit all. With such diversity, it is difficult for libraries to establish one common set of answers as to how digital scholarship should be practiced at their institution. For many in the field the focus is on the skills and relationships that should be developed to make the scholarship flourish. Recognizing this diversity is one of the key aspects of this work, a collection of ten articles curated by editors Alison MacKenzie and Lindsey Martin. Both editors hail from Edge Hill University (a public university in Ormskirk, England) where MacKenzie serves as the Dean of Learning Services and Martin is the Assistant Head of Learning Services. They are both quite active within the United Kingdom library community and that reflects in authors who participated in this book — with representation from United Kingdom, Australia, Canada and the United States. The case studies provided give a variety of different perspectives, from a beginning center to an established one, on how digital scholarship has been approached across the world. Of particular note among these chapters is Tracy C. Bergstrom’s titled, “Digital Scholarship Centres: converging space and expertise.” She illustrates an out-of-the box approach that collocates librarians and staff within the digital scholarship center at the University of Notre Dame, Hesburgh Library. Bergstrom skillfully discusses the issues of skills balance within the center, space usage, and technical infrastructure with a pertinent point made that “a digital scholarship center is perceived as a potential sandbox environment.” (109) Bergstrom also discusses the need for sustainability and the role that assessment plays to ensure that the center remains relevant to the institution. Jennifer Bremner’s chapter, “Lean in the Library: building capacity by realigning staff and resources” is about using the lean business model approach in academic librarianship. As Bremner states, “(l)ean principles are about maximizing value in a process as a customer sees it.” (84) Her chapter on modifying library processes through the lens of the customer is intriguing but it lost some of its impact with the over usage of bulleted lists. Bremner would present a list then explain that list with another bulleted list which became difficult to read. The lean principles, however, seem to have much value as they could apply towards libraries and digital scholarship centers as one of the measurable conclusions brought about at Bremner’s library was to “establish and foster distinctive and purposeful partnerships” (101), something that libraries can all strive towards. I found this book to be of value, particularly for those who may be evaluating (or re-evaluating) establishing a digital scholarship center at their institution. ATG Reviewer Rating: I need this in my library. (I want to be able to get up from my desk and grab this book off the shelf, if it’s not checked out.)

a wide variety of approaches to, and knowledge of, how a digital library may be built, developed or expanded as these resources become more central to our users. For libraries that may be undertaking the journey towards building a digital library, a resource such as this book is one way to organize collective thoughts around such a project. This work is described as a ‘how-to-do it manual’ for building a digital library. Over the course of ten chapters that span the gamut of “should you even build” a digital library to metadata formats to planning for the future, an organization can easily follow the steps laid out by the authors to establish a repository. Since this is a second edition of this work, this edition takes into account cultural heritage organizations and their “desire to create and integrate digital library platforms into their identities.” (xi) This book is co-authored by Terry Reese, Jr. and Kyle Banerjee, two leading figures in the digital library community. Terry Reese is the head of digital initiatives at The Ohio State University Libraries. He is the author and creator of MarcEdit, a program used by many systems and cataloging librarians everywhere. Kyle Banerjee is the Digital Collections and Metadata Librarian at Oregon Health and Science University. He has been writing and planning software to support library systems migrations since 1996. With these strong backgrounds, there is little wonder that this work possesses meticulous attention to detail throughout. One section of interest was about crowd-sourcing. Crowd-sourcing has become more popular in recent years as a way to outsource metadata for collections through volunteer contributors yet, as Reese and Banerjee point out, there are a number of issues that are often overlooked. For instance, how do you obtain volunteers or ensure quality of the contributions? Through thoughtful discussion the authors help organizations take an idea through all of the pros and cons that they may, or may not, have been aware of previously so that they can make an informed decision. As someone with good technical knowledge but not deep skills I appreciated the sections throughout the manual such as the one entitled “Facilitating Third-Party Indexing” (179) which explained the difference between indexing methods in a way I could understand yet without so much jargon that I would get lost. I, personally, would not have known that there was such a difference in these indexes discussed otherwise. Another example is the section on metadata formats as the authors patiently explain the difference between the many formats so that an organization can make an informed choice on what will work best for their repository. The chapter on preparing for the future is also thought provoking. While it discusses the increased move of library services to outsourced vendors it also talks about the history of libraries and what might be learned. Change is another topic that factors prominently. While none of this is surprising, to pull it together in this context and state this is “part of your planning process as well” is different since many organizations only see the immediate “how do we get the doors open” piece. I believe that this book has value, especially for those planning a digital library for the first time, updating a digital library, or expanding an existing one. ATG Reviewer Rating: I need this in my library. (I want to be able to get up from my desk and grab this book off the shelf, if it’s not checked out.)

Evans, Robert C., editor. Hamlet. (Critical Insights series) Ipswich, Massachusetts: Salem Press, 2019. 9781642650266, 298 pages. $105.00 (hardback)

Reese, Terry and Kyle Banerjee. Building Digital Libraries: a how-to-do-it manual for librarians. Chicago: ALA Neal-Schumann, 2019. 9780838916353, 249 pates. $85.

Reviewed by Julie Huskey (Head of Cataloging, Tennessee State University, Nashville, Tenn.) <jhuskey@tnstate.edu>

Reviewed by Jennifer Matthews (Collection Strategy Librarian, Rowan University) <matthewsj@rowan.edu>

There is no shortage of scholarship on William Shakespeare’s Hamlet, but students encountering it outside of lower-level survey courses may wish for supplemental works beyond the usual plot summaries and explanations of whether one should be, or not to be. Like other volumes in the “Critical Insights” series, Hamlet provides

The digital library has encompassed more of the traditional brick and mortar library’s footprint these past few decades. Yet, there is still

Against the Grain / September 2019

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Book Reviews from page 51 a collection of new essays on a major literary work. Evans’s volume includes fourteen essays, divided into “Critical contexts” (covering the essential approaches to the play) and “Critical readings” (which includes a broader variety of essays), as well as a few supplemental chapters, such as an annotated bibliography of recent editions of the play. Editor Robert C. Evans is the J.B. Young Professor of English at Auburn University at Montgomery. Since Hamlet is among the most filmed of Shakespeare’s plays, adaptations, as well as reactions to them, feature heavily in these essays. Additionally, chapters emphasizing the psychoanalytic approach to the play, not surprisingly, make up most of the remainder of the volume. Two “self-interviews,” one with Evans and one with the University of Maryland’s Kent Cartwright, discuss each author’s favored approaches to the play, and will be helpful to both those new to serious study of Hamlet and to those new to teaching it. The most unusual contribution is Graham Holderness and Bryan Loughrey’s “Hamlet in Helmand,” an analysis of the case of British Royal Marines Sergeant Alexander Blackman, who was reported to have quoted Hamlet as he killed an Afghan insurgent. All of the major characters are mentioned in multiple chapters, providing the undergraduate with a good start on research, and the generally extensive bibliographies supply leads to other, usually recent, sources. The writing style is surprisingly consistent for a volume with twelve contributors. While it is not an introduction to the play, nor a comprehensive guide to research, this volume provides a worthwhile supplement for readers wishing more extensive study, as well as for undergraduate faculty. ATG Reviewer Rating: I need this in my library. (I want to be able to get up from my desk and grab this book off the shelf, if it’s not checked out.)

Shally-Jensen, Michael, ed. Critical Survey of Mythology and Folklore: Gods and Goddesses. Ipswitch, MA: Salem Press, 2019. 9781642651164 (eBook), 9781642651157 (hardcover), 1,048 pages. $295.00. Reviewed by Katherine Swart (Collection Development Librarian, Hekman Library, Calvin University) <kswart20@calvin.edu> A student comes to the reference desk and asks for information about creation myths. Wouldn’t it be great to hand them an encyclopedia that includes a list of myths from around the world, short descriptions of the deities involved, and a little cultural background about where the myths originated? Critical Survey of Mythology and Folklore: Gods and Goddesses wants to be that book. Edited by Michael Shally-Jensen, a writer and editor with a PhD in cultural anthropology, this two-volume set is the latest in Salem Press’s Critical Survey of Mythology and Folklore series. Previous volumes include World Mythology; Heroes and Heroines; and Love, Sexuality, and Desire. Organized by world regions, this set ambitiously covers deities from Greece; Rome; Norse, Celtic, and European traditions; the Americas; the Near East; the Far East; India; Egypt; Africa; and the Pacific. The 524 entries (all signed by their authors) include overviews of each culture and its literature; gods and goddesses; sacred places, figures, practices, and text; selected stories; and further reading.

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The editor’s introduction gives an accessible overview of myth theory, while the set concludes with instructions for teaching mythology in the classroom. Aimed at advanced high school students through college undergraduates, this encyclopedia may confuse younger students when they encounter ancient Greek myths alongside the stories of currently-practiced religions, such as Islam, Judaism, and Christianity. A Muslim student will likely find it puzzling to see the Prophet Muhammad (who lived c. 570–632 CE) in the same set as Zeus, whose actual existence, I assume, many would debate. Moreover, without the editor’s introduction or classroom instruction, a typical reader may not understand the editor’s consideration of both universalist and culture-specific myth theory. As mentioned above, Gods and Goddesses accompanies three other books in the Critical Approaches to Mythology series. So, a student researching the folklore behind Disney’s film Mulan might consult Heroes and Heroines. For if you check the Gods and Goddesses index, you won’t find the heroine there, except that she is. Neither Mulan nor Mulanshi are in the index, but Mulanshi has an entry in the Far East sacred figures section. Likewise, if you can’t remember who was human and who was divine, you’ll likely have difficulty finding the figures in Gods and Goddesses. Then, there is the problem of alternative names. Demeter is in the index but not Ceres. Though, you’ll still find Artemis/Diana and even the poet Vergil/Virgil. The eBook version could certainly help with that issue, except that many gods and goddesses are transliterated into Roman characters and the eBook search function will not retrieve results unless you use the proper diacritics. You won’t easily find the Korean myth Ch’ŏnjiwangbonp’uri in the eBook, and even a search as simple as “Narayana” will not retrieve Nārāyaṇa. With unfamiliar gods and goddesses, it is typical for an encyclopedia to offer a pronunciation guide. Among the deities of the Americas, the entry for Chalchiuhtlicue includes a pronunciation, but look up Huitzilopochtli, and you won’t see one. That is, until you realize Huitzilopochtli’s pronunciation was given five pages earlier within the second paragraph of Chalchiuhtlicue’s entry. Hyperlinks in the eBook might help with that, but there are none. Reviews of other titles in the series compliment the maps and charts indicating the mythological figures from particular regions. However, this set’s “American Indian Nations” map is blurry and doesn’t correlate with its chart. For example, the chart lists Lakota gods, but the Lakota tribe is not shown on the map. Ottawa is nearly illegible on map, but it doesn’t matter because the tribe is not on the chart. Looking at the eBook’s version of the map is no better, as it is also blurry and flipped sideways. In addition to the maps, the photo quality is often poor in the hardcopy. A few sections include “Myth into Art” sidebars, but offer no corresponding images. And, the black-and-white picture introducing The Pacific section is both incomprehensible and has neither a caption nor any reference in the text. It will come as no surprise that I also found a few inconsistencies between entries, irritating typos, and formatting errors both in the hardcopy and replicated in the eBook. I suppose that this is simply not that book. ATG Reviewer Rating: I’ll use my money elsewhere. (Just not sure this is a useful book for my library or my network.)

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Booklover — Liquidation Column Editor: Donna Jacobs (Retired, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC 29425) <donna.jacobs55@gmail.com>

ne piece of historical truth inspired George Saunders to ask the question: “How do we live and love when we know that everything we love must end?” in his novel Lincoln in the Bardo. The newspapers of the day reported that President Lincoln repeatedly visited the crypt of his recently deceased son Willie to hold the body and grieve. From this sensational and fantastic report, Saunders weaves a story using both historical fact from this time and voices from fictional dead characters. His structure of the story is unique and the reader is left with a wild interpretation of what happens in the bardo. It is quite a read and set the tone for my next Nobelist choice, Imre Kertész’s Liquidation. The author was a random selection from the list of Nobel Literature Laureates because the novel’s title was delightfully intriguing. Sidebar — back to random since a systematic approach produced the very dark story for my previous column. And yet death, relationships, and horror are elements in Kertész’s Liquidation, too. Maybe Saunders’ question is everywhere to be asked. Imre Kertész won the 2002 Nobel Prize in Literature “for writing that upholds the fragile experience of the individual against the barbaric arbitrariness of history.” He was born in Budapest, Hungary in 1929 of Jewish parents. World War II broke out, and he was just 14 years old when he found himself among the many Hungarian Jews sent to Auschwitz and then later to Buchenwald. He had the good fortunate to be liberated in 1945 and made the decision to return to Budapest, graduate from school and pursue a career in journalism. Kertész discovered a much greater appreciation for his work once he moved to Germany and was living there when he became the first Hungarian to win the Literature Nobel. Liquidation is not the first book about a search for a book that I have read from Nobel Laureates. Yet this story is part detective, part introspective, part love story all entangled in the manuscript of a play entitled “Liquidation — a Comedy in Three Acts” discovered by the main character Kingbitter upon the death by suicide of his friend, Bee. Kingbitter successfully retrieves the bulk of his friend’s papers but the “One” critical manuscript that would “decipher the code name Auschwitz” is not among those he retrieves. The scenes and characters in the play deliver not only insights into the post-Holocaust political and personal struggles of the characters in the book but also foretells Bee’s course of action. Early in the story Kingbitter is perusing the play and he reads a scene that nine years later plays out exactly as Bee has written it. The publishing house where he and his colleagues, Kürti, Obláth, and Sarah (the other characters in the book and thus the play) — work is “to be liquidated.” “Kürti: The state is always the same. The only reason it financed literature up till now was in order to liquidate it. Giving state support to literature is the state’s sneaky way for the state liquidation of literature.” The ultimate fate of this “One” critical manuscript was incineration by a trusted friend, the last wish of Bee. I leave you with two excerpts from this story within a story, one from a scene that does not make the final manuscript of the play, and the other a musing of Kingbitter about a book he has read. The scene: Bee and Kingbitter are seated at “a table tucked away at the back of a café.” Bee is speaking about suicide to Kingbitter. “Bee: Dying is easy Life is one enormous concentration camp that God has established here on Earth for mankind and that man has refined yet further as an annihilation camp for his own kith

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Taking one’s own life amounts to outwitting those who stand on guard escaping deserting those who are left behind laughing up one’s sleeve In this big Lager of life the neither-in-nor-out neither-forward-nor-back in this wretched world of lives held in suspended animation where we grow decrepit without time moving any further forward… this is where I learned that to rebel is TO STAY ALIVE The great insubordination is for us to live our lives to the end and equally the big humiliation that we owe ourselves The sole method of suicide that is worthy of respect is to live to commit suicide amounts to continuing life starting anew every day living anew every day dying anew every day I don’t know how I should continue.” Kingbitter’s musing: “The fact is that in my nineteenth or twentieth year — it was the early sixties by then — a book came into my hands. I think I mentioned this book earlier, though I shall not identify either title or author here, because names and the perceptions that accrete to them have a different significance for everyone in every era. I knew about the existence of this book only from other books, in the way that an astronomer infers the existence of an unknown celestial body from the motion of other planets; yet in those days, the era of undiscoverable reasons, it was not possible to get hold of it for some undiscoverable reason. I happened to be grinding through university at the time; though I did not have much money, I staked it all on the venture, mobilizing antiquarian booksellers, denying myself meals in order to acquire an old edition. I then read the bulky volume in less than three days, sitting on a bench in the public garden of a city square, as spring was in the air outside while a constant, depressing gloom reigned within my sublet room. I recall to this day the adventures of the imagination that I lived through at the time while I read in the book that the Ninth Symphony had been withdrawn. I felt privileged, like someone who had become privy to a secret reserved for few…..Still, I don’t think it was that book which carried me into my fateful career. I finished reading it; then, like all the others, it gradually died down within me under the dense, soft layers of my subsequent reading matter. Masses of books, good and bad, of all sorts of genres are dormant within me. Sentences, words, paragraphs, and lines of poetry that, like restless subtenants, unexpectedly spring to life and wander solitarily about or at other times launch into a loud chattering that I am unable to quell.” And this is why I am a booklover….

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LEGAL ISSUES Section Editors: Bruce Strauch (The Citadel) <strauchb@citadel.edu> Jack Montgomery (Western Kentucky University) <jack.montgomery@wku.edu>

Legally Speaking — The Complications of Open Educational Resources by Anthony Paganelli (Western Kentucky University) <Anthony.Paganelli@wku.edu>

ER began in 1994 through a National Science Foundation grant by James Spohrer that would create and develop a way to engage and share educational information, which eventually led to the California State University’s creation of the MERLOT organization that would provide reduced or free online resources for higher education. Following the MERLOT project, the University of Georgia System, the Oklahoma State Regents of Higher Education, and the University of North Carolina System joined the California State University in a consortium in 1999 to increase the collection. Other institutions began implementing other OER programs, such as Rice University’s OpenStax. Since the inception of the OER, the movement has grown significantly in education. According to Grimaldi, et al., the leading producer of OER textbooks OpenStax stated that the “adoption of OER textbooks has saved students an estimated $500 million dollars since 2012.” Ruth also noted that 2.2 million students saved approximately $177 million with OpenStax’s textbooks in 2017, which 5,100 educational institutions are utilizing the resources that includes 48 percent of colleges in the United States. Open Educational Resources (OER) are becoming more common at educational institutions as budgets continue to decrease for education and students continue to struggle to afford educational textbooks and resources. The OER movement continued in 2002 as a Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) initiative to provide open access to educational resources for universities in developing countries. The United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) was also involved in the OER movement and in 2002 defined OER as “The open provision of educational resources, enabled by information and communication technologies, for consultation, use and adaptation by a community of users for noncommercial purposes.” In addition to savings for the students, Ruth added that the U.S. Department of Education’s National Center for Education Statistics stated that there was a decrease in textbook prices, which was the first time in over 50 years. While there is no information regarding the reason for the decrease in text-

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books, Ruth noted that the decrease in prices could be attributed to the increased usage of OER. Regardless, the costs of textbooks are issues for universities, students, libraries, and publishers as several legal issues regarding the prices of textbooks have reached the court systems. For instance, the U.S. Supreme Court made a decision regarding the First Sale Doctrine of the U.S. Copyright Law Section 109 in the Kirtsaeng v. John Wiley & Sons case, which mentioned the price discrimination of textbooks internationally and the outcomes of reselling textbooks. In 2013, the Supreme Court reviewed the matter of a graduate student from Thailand that attended school at Cornell University and the University of Southern California. While in the United States, Kirtsaeng imported textbooks from Thailand that were similar to the textbooks published by John Wiley & Sons at a lower cost. He created a business that resold the books through Ebay for profit. According to Einhorn, Wiley & Sons, they sold the textbooks in Thailand at lower prices than in the United States, which is a general business practice, “because economic conditions and demand for particular goods vary across the globe, copyright owners have a financial incentive to charge different prices for copies of their works in different geographic regions.” Yet, the U.S. Supreme Court “reversed the Second Circuit to hold that the first sale doctrine extended to distributions of copies of copyrighted works originally and lawfully produced outside of U.S. borders.” The courts’ ruling had an impact on libraries and campus bookstores, because both utilize the First Sale Doctrine. Libraries and museums import books and materials to lend to their patrons. College campus bookstores, as well as publishers would have an issue if the Supreme Court had allowed publishers to prevent the resale of copyrighted books from international sources. Einhorn noted a 2005 study by the U.S. Government Accountability Office that campus bookstores “buy used books from students and wholesalers at purchase prices that are 50% of the retail price of a new book, and resell their purchases at 75% of retail. The store markup is then 50% above purchase price, or a profit margin from its shelf price of 33%.”

Based on these practices by the bookstores and publishers, students are seeking other ways to obtain their class materials, which is the primary purpose for the increased use of OER. Universities are seeking the affordable textbooks and materials to not only assist students with the financial burden of a college education, but to increase retention and graduation rates. Yet, several studies regarding student learning outcomes by students using OER and commercial textbooks have varied results. Grimaldi, et al. reviewed numerous studies and concluded that the content of OER and commercial textbooks did not differ. Therefore, regardless of the books or materials, students received pertinent and relevant resources for course completion. However, providing OER can be complicated, such as a collaboration with third parties. Issues with third parties and affordable educational resource providers has also been introduced to the courts, as noted in the lawsuit filed by Greater Minds against FedEx in March 2016 in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York, which Greater Minds cited that FedEx violated copyright laws. Greater Minds is a non-profit organization that provides educational resources through public licenses and Creative Commons, which includes the reproduction of materials for non-commercial uses. Greater Minds noted that FedEx was reproducing materials in Michigan and New York for public schools without paying royalties. Greater Minds claimed that the school districts paid FedEx to reproduce the copies for faculty and students, thereby the transaction was for commercial use that FedEx made a profit by reproducing materials. The district and the appellate courts both agreed that the non-exclusive public license agreement did not prevent the school districts in utilizing a third-party from reproducing the materials for the school districts. While the courts’ decision was in favor of FedEx, the lawsuit raised issues of how educational institutions and third parties will need to carefully contend with providing resources to faculty and students based on public licensing agreements. For instance, the agreement with Greater Minds and the school districts, stated continued on page 55

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Legally Speaking from page 54 that the institutions had the right to “reproduce and share,” however this also pertains to the statement of sharing based on the statement, “that requires permission under the Licensed Rights.” Based on Greater Minds’ argument the school districts acted as licensing agents between the copyright holders and FedEx. Based on the court decision, the possibility of further interpretation of public licensing may become an issue in reproducing and providing materials. Of course, a major issue of OER is between the publishers and several OER organizations providing OER materials for students and educational institutions. In 2012, Pearson Education, Inc., Cengage Learning, Inc., and Bedford Freeman & Worth Publishing Group, LLC d/b/a Macmillan Higher Education filed suit against Boundless Learning, Inc. based on copyright infringement. The plaintiffs provide textbooks for higher education, which in this case produced introductory textbooks for economics, biology, and psychology for college courses. The defendant, Boundless Learning, Inc., is an organization that provides electronic textbooks, which includes textbooks for the three introductory college courses. The plaintiffs claimed in the document filed with the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York that Boundless Learning, Inc., “The Boundless textbooks copy the distinctive selection, arrangement, and presentation of Plaintiffs’ textbooks, along with other original text, imagery, and protected expression of Plaintiffs and their authors, all in violation of the Copyright Act.” In 2013, all parties came to a confidential settlement, which Boundless Learning, Inc. changed how the materials were produced and accessed. In this case, the issue is content used for the introductory type course was not the major issue, because the content is basic and standard. However, the materials used in the OER were similar to the information provided in the publishers’ works. Therefore, the information is primarily the same no matter the resource for certain subjects, yet the materials used to convey the subject content can be a legal issue.

ny.” The Chronicle of Higher Education. Last modified December 18, 2013. https:// www.chronicle.com/blogs/wiredcampus/ textbook-publishers-settle-suit-against-startup-boundless/49107 Bliss, T. J. and M. Smith. “A Brief History of Open Educational Resources.” In Open: The Philosophy and Practices that Are Revolutionizing Education and Science, edited by Jhangiani Rajiv S. and Biswas-Diener, Robert, 9-28. London: Ubiquity Press, 2017. Cavanagh, Sean. “FedEx Targeted in Open Educational Resources Lawsuit.” Education Week 36, no. 7 (2016): 13. D’Antoni, Susan. “Open Educational Resources: Reviewing Initiatives and Issues.” Open Learning 24, no. 1 (2009): 3-10. Einhorn, M. “First Sale Rights at SCOTUS: Regarding Kirtsaeng v. John Wiley & Sons.” Journal of the Copyright Society of the USA, 63, no. 2 (2016): 331-340. Greater Minds v. FedEx Office and Printing Services, Inc. 17-808 (2nd Cir. 2018). Justia Opinion Summary. (2018): https://law. justia.com/cases/federal/appellate-courts/ ca2/17-808/17-808-2018-03-21.html Grimaldi, Phillip J., Debshila, Basu Mallick, Andrew E. Waters, and Richard G. Baraniuk. “Do Open Educational Resources Improve Student Learning? Implications of the Access Hypothesis.” PLoS One 14, no. 3. (2019): 1-14. Pearson Education, Inc., Cengage Learning, Inc., and Bedford Freeman & Worth Publishing Group, LLC d/b/a Macmillan Higher Education v. Boundless Learning, Inc. and does 1-10, US (2012). Ruth, David. “48 Percent of Colleges, 2.2 Million Students Using Free OpenStax Textbooks This Year.” Rice University News and Media. Last modified August 1, 2018. https://news.rice. edu/2018/08/01/48-percent-of-colleges-2-2-million-students-using-freeopenstax-textbooks-this-year/ Weller, Martin. “Open Educational Resources.” In the Battle for Open: How Openness Won and Why It Doesn’t Feel Like Victory, 67-88. London: Ubiquity Press, 2014.

Despite these legal issues, legislatures have taken notice of the rising costs of higher education that includes the cost of textbooks and other materials needed for students to complete their degree programs. In 2018, Congress approved a five million dollar pilot program to support funding for OER. On April 4, 2019, the U.S. House of Representatives introduced the H. R. 2107 Bill regarding OER, the bill is known as the Affordable College Textbook Act. The bill is designed “to expand the use of open textbooks in order to achieve savings for students and improve textbook price information.” The bill currently resides in the Committee of Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions. According to the findings, students spend an average of $1,240 annually on textbooks at a public four-year university, due to an 82% increase in textbooks from 2002-2012. Furthermore, Congress addressed the issue of U.S. taxpayers’ investment in education, by noting that the high costs of textbooks was a barrier for students obtaining a four-year degree and that the bill would allow for an efficient use of funds in supporting OER. The findings also noted that OER could save billions annually. The bill is created to provide an Open Textbook Grant Program. For those institutions qualified, the grant program is designed “to support projects that expand the use of open textbooks in order to achieve savings for students while maintaining or improving instruction and student learning outcomes.” In addition to the U.S. Congress, several states are already investing in OER, which will place more pressure on textbook publishers to take legal actions regarding OER. Based on the OER movement, educational resources will begin to change drastically, especially with the government initiatives to combat the rising cost of textbooks and materials for not only higher education, but primary and secondary educational institutions, as well. The change will also complicate the way publishers and authors create content for education, which may involve copyright laws.

Bibliography

Biemiller, Lawerence. “Textbook Publishers Settle Suit against Boundless, Digital Startup Compa-

Cases of Note — Immoral Trademarks Column Editor: Bruce Strauch (The Citadel, Emeritus) <bruce.strauch@gmail.com> IANCU, UNDER SECRETARY OF COMMERCE FOR INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY AND DIRECTOR, PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE V. BRUNETTI. SUPREME COURT OF THE UNITED STATES (June 24, 2019). Following up from our insightful analysis of Matal v. Tam, 582 137 S.Ct. 1744 (2017)

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(ATG April 2019, v.31#2) your esteemed column editor and retired scholar will be allowed to say “I could see this coming.” Matal struck down the Lanham Act’s bar on “disparaging” trademarks (the band called “The Slants” if you recall) on the basis of viewpoint discrimination. Here we deal with “immoral or scandalous” trademarks.

Erik Brunetti pioneered an early brand of streetwear with the trademark FUCT. He says the brand name is pronounced one letter after the next: F-U-C-T. And of course, there is another way to read it as … ahem … profanity. Brunetti says it is an acronym for Friends U Can’t Trust. He and a skateboarder pal founded continued on page 56

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Cases of Note from page 55 the company in a one-bedroom apartment in Venice Beach, CA. They marketed through skateboarder magazines. It quickly became a market powerhouse and partnered via images with Snoop Dogg, The Notorious B.I.G., and Kate Moss. Celebrities like Leonardo DiCaprio, Rihanna, and Hailey Baldwin have been seen out and about in FUCT wear. Cultural impact? If Rihanna doesn’t convince you, in 1999, The Face magazine named it one of the top forty iconic labels in fashion. And … Cornell University Library’s Rare Book and Manuscript Collection has a collection of FUCT clothing due to its cultural significance. As he hit the big time, Brunetti wanted to register his trademark. It is not essential to register a mark. It can be used in commerce and enforced against infringers. But registration is prima facie evidence of validity and serves as constructive notice to infringers. 15 U.S.C. §1052(a) prohibits marks that “[c]onsist of or comprise immoral or scandalous matter.” Historically, the Patent and Trademark Office (PTO) has asked whether a “substantial composite of the general public” would find the mark “shocking to the sense of truth, decency and propriety.” Of course, they don’t actually run surveys or polls. They just pronounce. Perhaps they have in-office pow-wows.

PTO determined FUCT to be totally vulgar and unregistrable. They also did not care for images of “extreme misogyny, nihilism and violence” on the apparel. Going to their website, I’m having trouble seeing this. Am I hardened by a coarse society to the point where I no longer recognize it? I see a $125 t-shirt emblazoned with a skull and horned helmet. I see “Duct Tape It Can’t Fix Stupid But It Can Muffle The Sound.” It is very much slacker skateboarder attire. Or maybe something you’d see on meth-heads on Breaking Bad. Hmm. Here’s “Cocaine Cool” with a crow leaning against a mound of flake. And two women wrestlers with bared breasts. Brunetti sued, and the case made its way to the Supreme Court on certiorari. In Tam, the Justices all agreed that government may not discriminate against speech based on the ideas or opinions it conveys. See Rosenberger v. Rector and Visitors of Univ. of Va., 515 U.S. 819, 829-830 (1995). Being able to present ideas which offend are a bedrock First Amendment principle. Viewpoint discrimination is a no-no. By the PTO’s interpretation, the Lanham Act allows marks whose messages accord with society’s sense of decency, but not when they

defy it. The PTO has refused to register marks expressing drug use and terrorism (positive) and religion (negative). D.A.R.E. TO RESIST DRUGS AND VIOLENCE (yes). BONG HITS 4 JESUS (no). AGNUS DEI for safes and MADONNA for wine were refused registration. Also BABY AL QAEDA on t-shirts. The PTO knew they were on thin ice and argued the prohibition should be limited to lewd, sexually explicit or profane marks. They said the overbreadth in application by the PTO was not “substantial” relative to “the statute’s plainly legitimate sweep.” The Court kind of shook its head at that and said the PTO was trying to fashion a new statute. Once viewpoint bias is found, it’s all over. It would not compare permissible and impermissible applications if Congress banned “offensive” or “divisive” speech. And the current mania about “hate speech” really takes you down a rabbit hole. There are more immoral and scandalous ideas roaming the land than there are swearwords, and the Lanham Act is trying to forbid them all. So, big violation of the First Amendment. And in celebration of their signal victory, there is an “I Fuct the Supreme Court” t-shirt.

Questions & Answers — Copyright Column Column Editor: Laura N. Gasaway (Associate Dean for Academic Affairs, University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill School of Law, Chapel Hill, NC 27599; Phone: 919-962-2295; Fax: 919-962-1193) <laura_gasaway@unc.edu> www.unc.edu/~unclng/gasaway.htm QUESTION: A Texas school librarian asks about a recent court decision in which the Houston Independent School District was ordered to pay $9 million in damages for copyright infringement. ANSWER: In a case that was little publicized until the decision was rendered, the Houston Independent School District (HISD) was found liable by a federal jury and ordered to pay $9.2 million in damages for allowing illicit copying and posting of the plaintiff DynaStudy’s copyrighted works. DynaStudy, a small Texas company, repeatedly warned the school district that its actions violated copyright laws and that the company suffered lost sales and a devaluing of its work. The company produces course notes with reference guides for various subjects and grade levels throughout the year along with study aids before unit tests and standardized assessments. Some teachers in the district had duplicated the materials and then

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posted them on the web with the trademarks and copyright notices removed. DynaStudy presented evidence that the initial postings were reposted in various school districts across the state. The 13-year-old company says that it provides supplemental materials that “fill the wide gap between large textbook publishers and teacher-created materials. It has sold its product DynaNotes to more than 650 Texas school districts and a few others outside the state. HISD rejected four offers of settlement including one in 2016 for $250,000 but it decided to proceed to trial. Both school districts and attorneys for districts typically issue warnings to teachers about illicit copying of materials. HISD officials have now added training on copyright laws that is required annually for all employees of the district. It is unclear whether the district will appeal the jury verdict.

QUESTION: A public librarian asks about copying book jackets for display or to be included in the library’s calendar of monthly events. Is this permissible? ANSWER: Section 109(c) of the Copyright permits the display of lawfully acquired copyrighted works. So, if the library creates a display with original book jackets, there is no problem. Reproducing those book jackets is another issue since it involves making a copy of the book jacket. The artwork on the book jacket is copyrighted, and the book publisher may not own the rights to it but instead acquired only the right to use the art on book jackets. In fact, the publisher may acquire the right for reproduction on the jacket only for the hard cover book only. (Have you noticed that paperback editions of a book often have different cover art?) Making a copy of the book jacket is a reproduction for which permission is required. However, there seem to be no instances in which a copyright owner has complained about a library reproducing a book continued on page 57

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Questions & Answers from page 56 jacket for a display or to include in a calendar or newsletter. It is possible that publishers would consider this to be advertising for their product and not object. QUESTION: A university archivist reports that it owns a handwritten manuscript. If a staff member prepares a transcription, who owns the rights? Is the transcription an adaptation? ANSWER: A transcription of a manuscript is considered a reproduction of the work and not an adaptation. A transcription merely puts the handwritten text into typed text. If the manuscript were still under copyright, the author of the manuscript would own the copyright in the transcription, as well. If the manuscript is in the public domain, then the transcription is also in the public domain. Assume that the work is still protected by copyright. Thus, what is done with transcription is important. If it is made available to individual researchers in lieu of the original manuscript, and, if the donor agreement permits such access, there is no problem. Making multiple copies or posting the transcription on the web would require permission of the copyright owner unless the donor agreement already permits such copying. QUESTION: A college librarian has

several questions about databases. (1) Who is liable for the content in databases, the provider of the content or the distributor? (2) If the library acquires the database, what liability does it incur? (3) How is it determined what country’s law is used if a dispute arises? ANSWER: (1) It is the provider of the content in the database that is responsible for the content, not the distributor. (2) A library’s access to a database is governed by a license agreement, and the license spells out any liability incurred by the library. Typically, libraries agree only to provide notice to its user community to comply with the terms of the license agreement and not to police its users. Liability tends to be one of the license terms that libraries negotiate with the database provider. (3) The license agreement usually contains a choice of law provision. Many of the database providers are located outside of the United States and will tend to name their country for choice of law. State institutions likely are bound by state law that require disputes against state entities be litigated in that state under its laws. Libraries should negotiate this license term also since trying a case in a foreign jurisdiction is difficult and expensive. QUESTION: An author asks how copyrights are enforced in this country and who can bring suit. ANSWER: In the United States, copyrights are enforced by copyright owners or by their exclusive licensees. Because the section

106 rights are divisible, many people and companies may have exclusive licenses for a particular work. For example, someone may have the performance license while someone else has a license to reproduce the work in copies. There is no government enforcement agency. Owners or their exclusive licensees may sue in federal court for infringement of the exclusive rights protected by copyright, and federal courts have exclusive jurisdiction over copyright actions. If the action involves breach of a license agreement, that suit may be brought in state court, however, since they are contract actions as opposed to copyright. Most copyright litigation involves civil actions in which the plaintiff is seeking monetary damages for infringing the reproduction, distribution, adaptation, performance or display rights (and for sound recordings, public performance by digital audio transmission) and/ or an injunction to stop the infringing activity. Such actions typically begin with a cease and desist letter to the alleged infringer. There are also criminal actions that may be brought by the federal government at the request of the copyright owner for willful infringing activities for commercial gain such as counterfeiting or similar activity. There is a three-year statute of limitations after the claim accrued for civil actions and five years for criminal actions.

The Scholarly Publishing Scene — Bill Begell’s Legacy Column Editor: Myer Kutz (President, Myer Kutz Associates, Inc.) <myerkutz@aol.com>

or the first dozen years or so after I left Wiley — I had been vice-president and general manager, scientific and technical publishing — I fielded annual phone calls from analysts who follow the fortunes of publishing houses. I was a source for a perpetual question: Would the Wiley family be amenable to selling their controlling interest in their eponymous company? My response to the question was another question: Would the family want their name attached to a long-lived and venerable institution, or would they be satisfied with taking the money and becoming very rich? While other industry insiders I knew who were asked about the Wiley family’s intentions responded in favor of the take-the-money-andrun option, I stuck with the legacy option. I believe that legacies are important to some people, and my interactions with family members had convinced me that they were in that category and were likely to remain there. Now some publishing house owners may look at their legacies independently of whether they keep or sell their firms. One owner I got to know was Bill Begell, with whom I spent some pleasant times in the 1980s, mainly. I fondly recall a Metroliner trip from New York to Washington, during which we talked about some of Bill’s favorite non-publishing topics. When you had the good fortune to be in Bill’s company, from my admittedly limited

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vantage point (more on this below), you invariably laughed a lot, and it’s laughter that I remember from that train ride. Indeed, humor, sometimes self-deprecating, often seemed to be Bill’s stock-in-trade. He would give a closing summary at the end of Association of American Publishers’ Professional and Scholarly Publishing Division annual conferences that brought the house down. He liked to recall the time he’d been introduced to an audience as the chairman of something or other. A man of ample girth, Bill protested: “I’m not a chair, I’m a sofa.” “No you’re not,” an audience member shouted, “you’re a love seat!” Bill owned the small, well-respected Hemisphere Press, which he’d founded in 1966. Hemisphere specialized in thermal science and heat transfer monographs, in addition to engineering and biomedical journals. Hemisphere’s principal areas were key for me, as well, both as a Wiley acquisitions editor and later as a division general manager, so Bill and I were gentlemanly competitors, not shying away from publishing successive works by an author we both courted. (An Egyptian-American academic, who produced very fine books, comes to mind.) When Bill sold his firm to Taylor & Francis in 1988, the legacy subject didn’t come up, at least not so far as I can remember. In any case, I may have been convinced at that time, as an author and editor of my own books,

that author and editor names would outlast publisher imprints Bill’s academic and professional credentials exceeded mine. While I held MIT and RPI engineering degrees and had worked in the aerospace industry before writing pulp novels and biographies until I was recruited in 1976 as a Wiley acquisitions editor, Bill earned a PhD, taught at Columbia, and was engineering director of the Heat Transfer Research Facility there. His publishing career actually started in 1962, when an assignment for a U.S. Air Force intelligence project led to his co-founding Scripta Technica, which specialized in translating engineering materials from foreign languages into English. Later, we were both active in the American Society of Mechanical Engineers. I chaired the Publications Committee for a time in the 1980s, and Bill was the long-time chair of Mechanical Engineering Magazine’s Editorial Advisory Board, where, as I recall, he managed with his affable style to make peace between the magazine’s editorial staff and ASME members who demanded that particular viewpoints be reflected in the magazine’s pages. Our life histories differed in a most fundamental way. I was born in 1939 and grew up in the safety of a middle class Jewish family in Boston, far from the atrocities in Europe. Bill continued on page 58

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The Scholarly Publishing Scene from page 57 was born Wilhelm Beigel in 1927 in Vilna, then in Poland (now in Lithuania), where there was also safety in his Jewish family; his father was a Polish army officer and the family owned the city’s largest hotel, where they lived. But in 1940, the Soviets seized control of Vilna, then the Germans invaded in June 1941 and established a ghetto a few months later Two years later, Bill’s father, who, with his military background, became a member of the Jewish police, was executed by the Latvian SS. The following year, Bill was sent to a labor camp with his mother and maternal grandmother. As Bill would casually tell the story, decades later, he escaped from the camp simply by walking out of it one day. You can read the complete story of the escape in Bill’s privately published memoir, Conspicuously Invisible, Wartime Memories of a Jewish Boy from Wilno, edited by technical journalist and documentary filmmaker Karen A. Frenkel, whose mother was a close friend of Bill’s wife. Bill actually jumped down twenty feet from a window and was prevented from rescuing his mother and grandmother. The memoir’s title derives from Bill’s learning, after the June 1941 German invasion,

that, in Karen Frenkel’s formulation, “in order to survive he must be utterly inconspicuous in some situations and outrageously visible in others.” I found the memoir, even though it is sprinkled with the humor I remember about Bill, harrowing to read. Bill was the only member of his large family to survive the Holocaust, so I read with a sense of foreboding. For any reader who comes to Conspicuously Invisible without knowing much about Bill, there is other terrible news at the end, where he tells about the loss of his son, Freddie, to an illness at the age of 36, the loss of his daughter, Alissa, to sickness in her mid-40s, and the death of his wife, Tusia, six months later. When you close the book (if you can locate a copy — not many copies are available, as far as I can tell), you will understand that it was not written by a forgiving man. At the end, Bill makes clear he “hate[d] the Germans” because the Nazis had murdered the other 14 members of his family and he had been “orphaned.” Years after the war, when he “first came to Frankfurt and Berlin they were in shambles and Germans lingered around me as I sat in cafes smoking cigarettes. They were waiting for the butts, but I would deliberately smash them under my heel. That was my revenge.” Later, however, Bill heard a speech by the German Ambassador to Israel that recounted suffering of German families at the hands of the Nazis.

It “changed my mind, that some Germans were not included in my hatred.” The memoir, which was written over a period of almost 30 years and which Bill kept to himself until Karen Frenkel began to edit it, was completed shortly before his death in 2009, after a protracted illness at the age of 82. While he left no family, there is a living legacy. There is Begell House, the publishing firm he started after selling Hemisphere to Taylor & Francis. And there is the William Begell Medal for Excellence in Thermal Science and Engineering. It is awarded every four years to an individual, or, in 1918, to a team of two researchers, from among those selected to deliver Keynote Lectures at the International Heat Transfer Conference. “I believe the only reason I was able to withstand both tragedies and continue my life,” Bill says in Conspicuously Invisible, “was the fact that during the ghetto and camp times I developed a drive to survive regardless of the occurrences around me. It is obviously a very selfish attitude; nevertheless, it allowed me to continue my life, sad as it may be, without being surrounded by my closest family.” And now, with his legacy, his life will continue without him.

And They Were There Reports of Meetings — 38th Annual Charleston Conference Column Editors: Ramune K. Kubilius (Galter Health Sciences Library & Learning Center, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine) <r-kubilius@northwestern.edu> and Sever Bordeianu (Head, Print Resources Section, University Libraries, MSC05 3020, 1 University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM 87131-0001; Phone: 505-277-2645; Fax: 505-277-9813) <sbordeia@unm.edu>

Issues in Book and Serial Acquisition, “Oh, Wind, if Winter comes, can Spring be far behind?” Charleston Gaillard Center, Francis Marion Hotel, Embassy Suites Historic Downtown, and Courtyard Marriott Historic District — Charleston, SC, November 5-9, 2018 Charleston Conference Reports compiled by: Ramune K. Kubilius (Galter Health Sciences Library & Learning Center, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine) <r-kubilius@northwestern.edu> Column Editor’s Note: Thanks to all of the Charleston Conference attendees who agreed to write short reports highlighting sessions they attended at the 2018 Charleston Conference. Attempts were made to provide a broad coverage of sessions, but there are always more sessions than there are reporters. Some presenters posted their slides and handouts in the online conference schedule. Please visit the conference site, http://www.charlestonlibraryconference.com/, and link to selected videos, interviews, as well as to blog reports written by Charleston Conference blogger, Donald Hawkins. The 2018 Charleston Conference Proceedings will be published in 2019, in partnership with Purdue University Press: http://www.thepress. purdue.edu/series/charleston. In this issue of ATG you will find the fourth installment of 2018 conference reports. The first three installments can be found in ATG v.31#1, February 2019, v.31#2, April 2019 and v.31#3, June 2019. We will continue to publish all of the reports received in upcoming print issues throughout the year. — RKK

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THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 2018 MORNING CONCURRENT SESSIONS Demonstrating Library ROI: Success Stories and Strategies to Replicate in Your Library — Presented by Kristi Ward (SAGE Publishing, moderator), Melvin Davis (Coastal Carolina University), Rebecca Fernandez (University of Texas at Tyler), Carol Tenopir (University of Tennessee School of Information Sciences), and Nick Wooley (Northumbria University) — https://sched.co/GB4B Note: In an earlier program version, Kimberley Robles Smith was listed in lieu of Carol Tenopir. Smith did not present in this session. Reported by Nicole Eva (University of Lethbridge) <nicole.eva@uleth.ca> continued on page 59

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And They Were There from page 58 In her brief introduction, moderator Ward shared a publisher initiative related to the session’s topic. SAGE is working on data evidence metrics to help libraries tell their stories to university administrators. Tenopir described the Representing Library Value project (http:// www.libvalue.org/home) she has been leading, which has a suite of tools libraries can use to articulate value in a variety of areas. Davis stressed the ephemerality of library value; it’s a moving target, ranging from size of collections, to gate counts, to programming. Fernandez and Wooley both mentioned the importance of matching the library vision to the institution’s strategic plan in order to communicate the support the library provides to the institution. Fernandez suggested visualizing the data in a way to best communicate with your audience, echoed by others who stressed tailoring the message to the stakeholder (i.e., an engineer vs. a classicist, who will be swayed by different figures/ narratives). We can’t assume that the various stakeholders know what libraries do. An evidence-based narrative also has to emphasize how the library contributes to research success/output. Use champions (student/ faculty/alumni) to tell your story. Fernandez also mentioned the utility of having librarians on various campus-wide committees to bring the library voice to the table, in addition to keeping abreast of any changes on campus and forming partnerships.

Getting E-Books into Courses: How Libraries can Partner with Faculty to Ease the Textbook Affordability Crisis — Presented by Dave Comeaux (Louisiana State University), Kara Kroes Li (EBSCO), and Jeanne Pavy (University of New Orleans) — https://sched.co/GB4E Reported by Martha Smith (Winthrop University) <smithms@winthrop.edu> Affordable learning and OERs (Open Educational Resources) have become significant issues for colleges and universities. At many institutions, libraries are involved in helping faculty and students identify more affordable alternatives to traditional textbooks. In this session, Comeaux gave an overview of Louisiana State University’s (LSU’s) e-textbook program, and Pavy and Kroes Li discussed the EBSCO Faculty Portal that has been developed for the LOUIS Consortium. At LSU, each semester the library receives a list of required texts from the bookstore, identifies what they already own and what needs to be purchased, and generates a website that students can browse or search for assigned texts. LSU has also constructed a portal to enable faculty to search for DRM-free eBooks available from a variety of publishers, plus OERs. They can then notify the library to add the resource to the website or acquire it for a class. Through the LOUIS Consortium/ EBSCO Faculty Portal, faculty can search for OER and DRM-free material, and request materials for purchase by their library. In general, these initiatives have been successful, but there is room for growth and improvement: faculty are often unaware of the options available for affordable learning materials; putting links to eBooks on course pages greatly increases the chances that students will find and use them; and eBook platform functionality can be confusing for users.

Librarians are the enemies of scholarship! *Print collection management during a major renovation — Presented by Beth Blanton-Kent (University of Virginia), and Timothy Morton (University of Virginia) — https://sched.co/GB4F Reported by Jeanne Cross (University of North Carolina Wilmington) <crossj@uncw.edu> The Alderman Renovations Collection Team is leading the project to assess and relocate all collections of the library in anticipation of a one-phase renovation of the main library at the University of Virginia. A near site shelving facility with reading room and scanning facilities will host most of the collection. This research collection will contain low

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use titles that are valuable to retain. In addition compact shelving will be installed in Clemons Library, another campus library, to allow for access to a browseable collection of approximately 500,000 titles which are anticipated to be in greater demand. Decisions about which items to have available in Clemons were based on data including collection use, circulation rates of various subjects, and percentage of the collection by subject. Different thresholds were applied for different subjects. Important collections based on the history of UVA will also move to Clemons. Community engagement has been a priority including open town meetings, user surveys, one-on-one meetings and a website for renovation information. Still, concerns about the collection from faculty remain. Plans for future communication include increased liaison engagement and in-context collection information included on the website.

Other Duties as Assigned: A Reexamination of Roles in Resource Acquisition and Management — Presented by Rachel Arkoosh (Pacific University) and Christine Fischer (UNC Greensboro) — https://sched.co/GB4I Reported by Roger Cross (The University of North Carolina at Pembroke) <roger.cross@uncp.edu> This session focused on a trend in technical services, work that traditionally was classified as paraprofessional is being done by MLS graduates. Typically these jobs, though becoming more complicated, centered on the routine processing of books. They generally are not tenure-track and they lack faculty status. The major cause of this increase of MLS graduates working as staff has been the economy. MLS graduates face an economy that has been weak, with a surplus of capable and qualified people competing for available jobs. The result is more librarians moving into entry-level paraprofessional positions. The results of over 600 survey responses, from librarians and staff, show the majority saw this development as acceptable, if not ideal. Overall, opinions in the survey ranged from viewing the hiring of MLS graduates to paraprofessional positions as exploitive to accepting the development simply as a matter of financial survival. A staff position can be the stepping stone to a better position for some, but that also raises questions about the responsibility of a library to mentor these staff members and adjusting their pay. Clearly technical services is evolving and libraries may soon need to reevaluate their definitions and duties of these positions.

Preparing Researchers for Publishing Success: How libraries are impacting outcomes — Presented by Beth Bernhardt (University of North Carolina—Greensboro), Kate McCready (University of Minnesota), George Stachokas (Auburn University), and Gwen Taylor (Wiley Researcher Academy, Wiley, moderator) — http://sched.co/GB4P Reported by Alicia Willson-Metzger (Christopher Newport University) <awillson@cnu.edu> This informative session outlined ways in which various libraries are providing opportunities for publishing training to their faculty members and graduate students. For instance, the UNCG Library provides access to Sage Research Methods, APA Style Center, Wiley Research Academy, the Chicago Manual of Style Online, and Zotero. Among other forms of research assistance, faculty may apply for “time grants” from the library (personal consultation time with librarians). The library actively partners with other campus entities including the Teaching and Learning Center and the Office of Research and Engagement to assist faculty in their publishing endeavors. At the University of Minnesota, librarians co-author science articles, contributing literature reviews to faculty articles, and offer consultations with faculty to help them focus on their work, create manageable projects, and to develop an awareness of scholarly communication topics such as predatory publishing and OER. Auburn University is examining ways to provide more resources to faculty, while reducing costs. They are creating teams to liaise with new interdisciplinary subject areas, and continued on page 60

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And They Were There from page 59 are considering new analytics. This was a helpful session providing a wide array of techniques for assisting campus authors.

Seasons of Change: Digital Preservation in an Ever-Changing Digital Environment — Presented by Robert Boissy (Springer Nature), Shannon Keller (New York Public Library), and Heather Staines (Hypothes.is) — https://sched.co/GB4G Reported by Mallory Kasinec (Boston University, Fineman & Pappas Law Libraries) <mbbreon@bu.edu> The NASIG Digital Preservation Task Force was created to raise awareness, deliver best practices, and educate a wider range of information professionals about digital preservation. In this session, it was reported that the team has successfully created three preservation guides, and will soon be releasing official results of a survey designed to get an idea of how NASIG can facilitate and support digital preservation efforts. Early survey findings suggest that while libraries used to be the main entity in charge of preservation, in the digital arena that is not so; uncertainty as to who is in charge of digital preservation indicates a need for libraries, publishers, consortia, and authors to collaborate. Another major takeaway from the survey was that while financial concerns are the number one barrier to expanding digital preservation initiatives, institutional priorities may need to be addressed simultaneously or beforehand in order to garner institutional buy-in. The panelists also touched on LOCKSS, CLOCKSS, Portico, and the Keepers Registry from publisher (preservation) and library (access and use) points of view. A lively discussion of pre-arranged and audience questions closed out the session.

On the Winds of Change- Repositories, Researchers and Technologies (the 18th Health Sciences Lively Lunchtime Discussion) — Presented by John Felts (Carolina Coastal University), Jean Gudenas (Medical University of South Carolina, moderator), Ramune K. Kubilius (Northwestern University, Galter Health Sciences Library & Learning Center), and Anthony Watkinson (CIBER Research) — https://sched.co/GB2n Note: This sponsored session took place off-site and registration was requested, but was open to all. Reported by Ramune K. Kubilius (Northwestern University, Galter Health Sciences Library ) <r-kubilius@northwestern.edu>

Moderator Gudenas introduced the sponsored but no holds barred session. Wendy Bahnsen of Rittenhouse, sponsor of the boxed lunch, gave brief greetings. Kubilius highlighted trends observed since the 2017 conference (handout is attached in the schedule: https://sched.co/GB2n), and moved on to describe a 21 question survey she and two co-authors conducted December 2017-January 2018 of medical institutional repositories (IRs) in AAHSL (Association of Academic Health Sciences Libraries). The survey response rate was 41.7%: 16 % of respondents do not even have IRs; 40% manage their own IRs. Content varies (theses & dissertations predominate; 3 respondents each reported all original content or none). Many institutions have IR managers; library staff are involved in IR work; collections staff do not predominate. (An article more comprehensively describing survey findings is in progress.) Watkinson shared medical participants’ responses from a three year (2015-2018) longitudinal study, “Early Career Researchers: the harbingers of change?” conducted by CIBER, commissioned by the Publishing Research Consortium. There are differences in U.S. and international early career researchers under age 35 regarding support, knowledge, or attitudes about libraries and publishers. Many have knowledge, awareness or interest in OA, sharing, transparency, and social media, but feel that for their careers, they need to follow the rules of their academies. (Year 1 and 2 reports are in the PRC site: http://publishingresearchconsortium.com/). Felts highlighted the RA21 (Resource Access for the 21st century, https://ra21.org) initiative. IP authentication has been in place since the 1970s, but an IP address doesn’t uniquely identify users, resulting in publisher shutdowns of sites when “bad actors” are at play. Libraries mismanage IP registrations and IP Registry (Publisher Solutions International) is one initiative to better manage this area. Will RA21 meet its goals to improve remote access, improve usability, provide personalization, and a secure, single-sign on solution? That remains to be seen. During discussion, Felts mentioned a higher privacy threshold in health and that resonated with the audience: one participant raised clinical tool access challenges, and Ralph Youngen (American Chemical Society), co-chair of the RA21 Steering Committee, mentioned the importance of having a medical community focus group.

That’s all the reports we have room for in this issue. Watch for more reports from the 2018 Charleston Conference in upcoming issues of Against the Grain. Presentation material (PowerPoint slides, handouts) and taped session links from many of the 2018 sessions are available online. Visit the Conference Website at www. charlestonlibraryconference.com. — KS

Marketing Touchpoints — Putting Marketing Planning in its Place Column Editor: Jill Heinze (Director, User Experience, University of Virginia Library, Charlottesville, VA 22904; Phone: 434-243-1368) <jill.ux@virginia.edu>

hen it comes to any sort of large-scale planning exercise, there seem to be two kinds of people: Those who recoil in horror at the mere prospect of planning detracting from their “real work,” and those who eagerly welcome the process with their fresh packs of sticky notes, markers, and flip charts. I confess that I fall into the latter Planning Enthusiast camp. I work best when I can connect my regular tasks to more encompassing goals, and I thoroughly enjoy stepping back to reflect on the bigger picture. (It’s a special treat for me when someone throws a couple of two-by-two matrices into a strategy session!)

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Despite my penchant for planning, I recognize it can become too much of a good thing. Like yours, my work queue is awash with tasks that just need to get done quickly, and one can only anticipate but so much even with a meticulously constructed plan. It’s understandable, then, if the prospect of adding a marketing plan on top of a strategic plan, departmental goals, and performance plans seems unnecessarily onerous. The perceived overhead may also partially explain why so few academic libraries appear to have written and enacted marketing plans. continued on page 61

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Marketing Touchpoints from page 60 However, if you’re missing a marketing plan, you’re missing a useful bridge between high-level strategy and daily decision-making. Establishing this connection can be efficient and painless when you know how it fits within the planning landscape and how it can be leveraged to turn lofty ideals into practical realities.

What’s So Great About Marketing Plans

Marketing plans fit within the sweet spot between strategic plans and their resulting tactical action plans. I won’t go into painstaking detail about marketing plan components in this article, but there is an abundance of resources on the topic.1 These core elements may vary slightly depending on which template you use, but they generally consist of the following: • Business summary: Often this includes a SWOT Analysis, mission statement, major initiatives, and sometimes and environmental scan • Target market description: Details about the people you intend to use your services • Marketing mix elements: The variables marketers can control to make their service offerings useful to their target markets, often referred to as the 7 P’s of service marketing2: ° Product (service description) ° Price (what is exchanged) ° Place (how the service is distributed) ° Promotion (communications plan) ° People (those who provide the service) ° Process (the steps in the process of service delivery) ° Physical evidence (the tangible aspects of the service) • Marketing goals: What you want your marketing efforts to achieve • Budget: Resources allocated to achieving goals While at first glance this list might appear overwhelming, it becomes less so when you consider each element as it relates to other planning activities that many of us already do. If you have a strategic plan in place, for example, you almost certainly have a solid grasp of your mission and your major goals, which represent the bulk of the business summary portion. Ideally, those goals were conceived with an understanding of the broader environment, and the marketing plan gives you an opportunity to articulate that knowledge. Likewise, we all have some implicit or explicit ideas about the audiences we’re serving and the relative importance of their needs, which addresses the target market section. Putting those assumptions in a written plan ensures clarity and exposes any hidden assumptions about users that could derail your goals. The remaining items, primarily the marketing mix elements, are the actionable links between planning and execution — they specify in detail how you intend to realize your strategic plans and align your service activities with your missions. To illustrate the utility of marketing planning, I’m borrowing from the detailed, five-year strategic plan produced by the Portland State University Library (PSUL).3 Per PSUL’s site, one of the library’s goals is to, “Support student success with library services, collections, and spaces that meet students’ educational, research, and informational needs in equitable and inclusive ways.” The related Objective and Action Item that support this goal are: “Objective 1.4: Continue to offer excellent direct user interactions at service points in the Library. Action 1.4a: Assess, analyze, prioritize, and refine services.” Most likely, staff in the relevant units have adopted this mandate in various forms and created sub-goals to achieve it. It’s in this act of translating the broad strategic goals into concrete frontline actions where marketing plans prove their worth. Using the PSUL example, a marketing plan would help staff define and critically evaluate their primary user base, those users’ point-of-service needs, and how library services could be designed, delivered, evaluated, and communicated to achieve ‘excellence’ in the minds of users. In this way, marketing plans are not isolated exercises, but important extensions of strategic plans that orient an organization’s activities around market-centered outcomes.

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Why Marketing Planning Fails

You may be asking, if marketing plans are so helpful, why doesn’t everyone use them? The marketing literature yields some insights into these planning pitfalls, the sources of which have changed over time. According to a literature review by Simkin, hostility to marketing and lack of senior-level buy-in seem to be declining in organizations.4 Instead, the most formidable barrier is insufficient internal communication about marketing goals. As Simkin asserts, “Information and debate are central to effective marketing analysis, strategic thought, program development and implementation. [Marketing] recommendations must be clearly conveyed and readily actioned. Good communication is pivotal to this process.”5 Another common shortcoming according to this research, is the lack of non-marketing personnel in the planning process.6 Their considerable on-the-ground knowledge is indispensable for effective planning and timely understanding of customers’ needs. Other research by Sashittal and Jassawalla focused on small and midsize industrial firms. These smaller firms are characterized by their habit of on-the-fly decision-making and little formal planning. In these firms, marketing can fail to take hold when the dual needs to plan and improvise are unbalanced. As the authors observed, “Entirely emergent strategies without clear anchors to the deliberate strategy leave the firm directionless and in a constant firefighting mode. On the other hand, we find that strict adherence to the deliberate strategy in changing environments tends to spell failure.”7 In addition, like Simkin, Sashittal and Jassawalla identified poor communication as problematic, “Very few marketing goals are accomplished unless managers can influence team and organizational members to take actions commensurate with the emerging plans and engage key market constituents.”8 Anecdotally, I have hunches about why even the most enthusiastic marketers fail to see marketing planning through to fruition in their libraries. Paramount among these reasons is a historical and practical library tradition of favoring a production orientation over a market orientation. In other words, libraries tend to be structured according to functional units that produce specific deliverables. For example, much library work entails purchasing, cataloging, and making resources available, as well as delivering instruction and research consultation services. Communications functions, where they exist, usually reside in their own unit. All of these activities intersect with each other to create user value, but they are often managed separately. Achieving a viable marketing plan requires high-level leadership to recognize the ways in which independent functions interact to contribute to an overall service and end user value proposition.

Improving the Odds of Marketing Planning Success

It’s true that taking on marketing planning means committing to another planning activity, which demands resources and sustained effort. The potential return on this investment is a more purposeful use of limited resources to earn users’ enthusiastic library support. Generating a willingness to adopt marketing planning is not necessarily in easy task, but it’s not impossible. Both the literature and my experience with colleagues over time point to some prerequisites and tactics that can help you give your marketing planning efforts the best chances of adoption: • Reframe the marketing planning exercise. Rather than suggest adding another planning task, encourage colleagues to think of marketing planning as a natural extension of the strategic planning process. Connecting the strategic and marketing plans clarifies how individual teams can help achieve overarching library goals and could even substitute for other unit-level planning exercises so that there is little or no net increase in planning time. • Start with one service. Generally, it’s advisable to have a marketing plan for each service offering, but to get started with a plan, try selecting one service as a pilot. This service should be closely linked to the strategic plan and accountabilities may span multiple units. Starting small will allow you to discover implementation blockers and how to overcome them for larger-scale adoption. • Talk the talk. Marketing plans often introduce a new vocabulary and mindset among library staff. The idea of thinking about planning in terms of target markets and the marketing continued on page 62

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nothing else, use a marketing plan to prompt internal conversation, and you’re likely to find tremendous value and inspiration in viewing your library services with a market-oriented perspective.

Marketing Touchpoints from page 61 mix can be alienating. When staff surface new ideas for services and communications, try prompting them to think through marketing details like defining their intended market and articulating their market’s needs. You can invoke these and other marketing concepts to instill them in your organization while using familiar, comfortable terms. • Improve or establish internal communication channels. Marketing literature clearly identifies the need for solid communications that span all levels in the organization. Does your library have the means to enable cross-unit conversations throughout the hierarchy? Are staff able to easily share user needs they encounter to inform service improvements? If not, try initiating some communication improvements to establish this important prerequisite for marketing work. In addition to more faithfully fulfilling the spirit and goals of a strategic plan, I find that marketing conversations nearly always offer an opportunity to be more rigorous in my planning thought process. The mere act of filling out a couple of sentences for each marketing plan element surfaces questionable assumptions and logic problems that should be reconciled, even if the plan never gets widely adopted. If

Endnotes 1. See the guided marketing template at http://www.ala.org/aboutala/ sites/ala.org.aboutala/files/content/publishing/editions/webextras/ fisher09096/Worksheet04.pdf. 2. For additional details and resources, see https://en.wikipedia.org/ wiki/Marketing_mix#Modified_and_expanded_marketing_mix:_7_Ps. 3. https://library.pdx.edu/about/strategic-plan/ 4. Simkin, Lyndon. “Barriers Impeding Effective Implementation of Marketing Plans – A Training Agenda.” Journal of Business & Industrial Marketing 17, no. 1 (2002): 9. 5. Simkin, 14. 6. Simkin, 15. 7. Sashittal, Hemant C. and Avan R. Jassawalla. “Marketing Implementation in Smaller Organizations: Definition, Framework, and Propositional Inventory.” Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science 29, no. 1 (2001): 65. 8. Sashittal and Jassawalla, 61.

Optimizing Library Services — Food for Thought: Leveraging Library Services to Address Food Insecurity by Kymberly Goodson (Program Director for Spaces, Lending, & Access (SLA), University of California San Diego) <kgoodson@ucsd.edu> and Rachel Conry (Circulation Services Manager, University of California San Diego) <rconry@ucsd.edu> Column Editors: Caroline J. Campbell (Marketing Manager, IGI Global) <ccampbell@igi-global.com> and Lindsay Wertman (Managing Director, IGI Global) <lwertman@igi-global.com> www.igi-global.com Column Editors’ Note: This column features IGI Global contributing author Kymberly Goodson, the Program Director for Spaces, Lending, & Access at the University of California San Diego, USA, and her colleague Rachel Conry, the Circulation Services Manager at the University of California San Diego, USA. Ms. Goodson is a contributor to and editor of the publication Incrementally Building Community and User Engagement in the UC San Diego Library, and she is also a contributing author to Innovative Solutions for Building Community in Academic Libraries, edited by Sheila Bonnand and Mary Anne Hansen from Montana State University, USA.— CJC and LW

Introduction

In June 2018, the University of California (UC), San Diego Library held an inaugural Food for Fine$ drive, collecting non-perishable food items benefiting the year-round campus food pantry in exchange for fine forgiveness. The drive has continued twice annually, in December and June, intentionally timed to coincide with students moving out of their dorms and residences at the end of the school year. Steadily gaining popularity among the

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student community, each instance evolves in response to observations and feedback. Complementing the Library’s myriad de-stress and wellness activities, this campaign supports students’ basic needs and raises awareness about often hidden food scarcity issues on campus. Providing an incentive for library users to give back to fellow students sets an example for collaboration and generosity and encourages students to consider alternatives to food waste, both in the immediate and long terms.

Literature Review

Food drives, often called Food for Fines, have long been popular in public libraries across the nation for patron relations and retention, resumption of borrowing privileges, and return of overdue items. Some offer one-forone exchange of grocery items for forgiveness of fines associated with a single overdue item, while others specify a per-item credit value. Beyond non-perishable food, some public libraries have accepted pet supplies (Library Administrator’s Digest, 2013); paper, cleaning, and hygiene products (Library Adminis-

trator’s Digest, 2014, p. 5); and contributions to Ethiopian relief (Simpson, 1984, p. 29) for credit toward fines. Many libraries report positive exposure for the library and positive user response to such initiatives (Library Administrator’s Digest, 2010, p. 17-18). Opponents criticize such initiatives for reducing an important source of library income and as labor intensive activities not directly related to the library’s primary mission (Library Administrator’s Digest, 2014, p. 5). With greater awareness of the growing prevalence of food insecurity on college campuses, academic libraries have begun to tap into the opportunities this kind of programming affords. See examples in the Resources section. Some Food for Fines policies vary across participating academic libraries, while others are more universal. • All require donations in good condition, unopened, and not expired. Some refuse items in glass containers. continued on page 63

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Optimizing Library Services from page 62 • Most exclude replacement fees and fines for lost or damaged items. • Most allow users to donate food items even without fees to be waived. • Most designate a fixed per-item value, typically $1.00-$5.00, while a few offer a range of credit depending on the item. • Many set a maximum amount of credit that can be earned, often ranging from $20.00 to $50.00. • Some allow for credit toward already paid or future fines, while others specifically exclude these. • Some specify a limited time for their initiatives, typically one to three weeks, while others do not. The University of Dayton scheduled its food drive to correspond with April’s National Library Week. • Some specify a time during which eligible fines must have been accrued, such as the current academic term. • Some offer the initiative once annually, while others host it several times each year. • Some specify most-needed items (often breakfast items, canned meat, and non-perishable milk) and may offer additional credit for those. • Some accept toiletries and hygiene products in addition to food donations.

Context

Food insecurity is defined by the U.S. Department of Agriculture as “limited or uncertain availability of nutritionally adequate and safe foods or limited or uncertain ability to acquire acceptable foods in socially acceptable ways” (2018). Despite a wealth of negative impacts on the academic experience, food insecurity is common among college and university students nationwide. Most of these institutions offer a food pantry for their students, though many remain under-resourced and face ever-increasing use of their services. Twelve (Wood, Harris III, & Delgado, 2016, p. 3) to forty-eight (Dubick, et al., 2016, p. 7) percent of college student respondents in two 2016 reports experienced food insecurity that year. Despite the perceived affluence and privilege of UC San Diego students, national trends in food insecurity are present. Understanding this challenge, UC President Janet Napolitano launched the Global Food Initiative in 2016 to “develop solutions for food, health, and sustainability throughout the UC system and beyond” (Wong, 2019). UC and California State University in-state tuition has more than tripled over the past two decades (Robbins, 2019). Though regular tuition increases leveled off in recent years, the San Diego area maintains a high cost of living (79% above national average, according to Salary Expert), making covering basic expenses like food and rent

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challenging for many students. Approximately one-third of UC San Diego’s students come from homes with an annual family income of less than $60,000 (Robbins, 2019). The 2018 University of California Undergraduate Experience Survey (UCUES), a biennial survey of student behaviors and circumstances conducted at UC’s nine undergraduate campuses, found 18-43 percent of respondents experienced some elements of food insecurity during the 2017-18 academic year. It was in this context that the UC San Diego Library chose to contribute to wider campus efforts to support student success beyond traditional library services.

Implementation

Preliminary considerations for the food drive included identifying appropriate fees to waive, waiver limits, eligible food items, credit values, training for service and billing staff, outreach strategies, documentation, and statistics collection. While monies collected from fines and fees add negligible amounts to the Library’s budget, replacement costs for lost or damaged items do represent a modest but important portion of the Library’s replacement fund. As such, replacement charges are the only fees excluded from waiver eligibility. Administrative billing and processing fees associated with replacement charges are eligible, along with overdue fines for recalls and course reserves. Individual waiver limits were set at $40.00 — sufficient to clear four overdue reserves charges (by far the most common charge), processing fees for two replacement items, or nearly three recall or billing fees — to incentivize participation. For many students, this can completely resolve outstanding charges, and for others it can significantly reduce the amount owed. Paid charges were also eligible for refund, but all fees must have been accrued during the current academic quarter. Guidelines for donations were largely established by the food pantry and followed traditional restrictions such as unopened, unexpired items. Further restrictions imposed were informed by lessons learned by other institutions such as excluding “junk” items like gum and candy items and items in glass containers. Examples of eligible and ineligible items were included in promotional and training materials. For the first Food for Fine$, for instance, all items were assigned a credit value of $2.00, while in the subsequent drives, a special promotion was offered for full-sized donations of oatmeal and cereal, identified by the food pantry as one of their greatest needs. These highlighted items earned $5.00 each. In the 3rd instance, single serving items such as nutritional bars and oatmeal packets were accepted at $0.50 each. Always mindful of service desk transaction and wait times, the acceptance process was made as simple as possible. Desk staff were given training materials to help determine acceptable items but were also empowered to make independent decisions about anything ambiguous. Staff were asked to note the number of items collected per user and total dollar value to be credited. Behind the scenes, billing

staff determine fines eligibility, process waivers, and send confirmation emails thanking all donors and confirming the credit amount. All donors receive confirmation and gratitude, even if they donated without fees to waive. Outreach and promotion strategies, particularly regarding timing, presented the biggest challenges. Heavily promoting the campaign early can potentially encourage incurring fees and abusing the program, perhaps to the disadvantage of other users who might not gain access to needed materials. Alternately, limiting event promotion also limits awareness and participation. Promotion for the first instance was limited to two weeks immediately preceding the campaign and took the form of handouts and posters in the library, digital signage, social media posts, and a campus newspaper article. Adjustments were made following underwhelming participation. Later, the event was promoted throughout the quarter, primarily when users were notified of accrued fees, with business cards advertising brief details. Other expanded outreach efforts included: • Flyers and digital signs in the student center and other campus locations • Ads on campus shuttles • Events posted to University and student calendars • A message to the University’s Reddit group and other social media outlets • Displays of eligible food items in busy Library spaces and at the Front Desk After each drive, donations are categorized, counted, and documented, including the number of unique contributors and average and overall value of collective donations. Photos are taken of student employees showcasing the collection, both in the library and with food pantry staff, for use in future promotional materials. Library assessment staff compile results and statistics into a report, and Food for Fine$ organizers use the data to identify trends and strategies that inform the next iteration.

Outcome

Participants, donated items, and fines waived all increased during each instance of the initiative. Across three instances, donations were accepted from 93 individuals, who benefitted by receiving a collective total of $1,126.50 in waived library fines. Perhaps more importantly, the initiative provided 530 items to the campus food pantry. When the initiative launched, the food pantry indicated its greatest need as that for boxed cereals and oatmeal. The two latter instances incorporated a Breakfast Bonus ($5.00 per item) for these items. The response was positive, resulting in this category garnering the greatest number of items in both instances, while it was very low when not highlighted in the inaugural instance. Across all instances, highlighted items, canned/dry fruits and vegetables, and pasta constituted the most frequent donations. More nutritionally valuable items were also received over time, while junk food donations decreased. Over time, donors without fines to continued on page 64

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Optimizing Library Services from page 63 waive also increased, as did participants donating items well beyond the amount of their fines.

Scalability

The planning invested prior to the foundational Food for Fine$ campaign enabled the Library to easily re-create the initiative. Furthermore, the infrastructure is in place to extrapolate this concept for non-food-related drives benefiting the campus and local community in additional ways and furthering the Library’s increasing sustainability efforts. In addition to ideas generated from the literature review (pet supplies, cleaning products, world aid, etc.), the UC San Diego Library is considering future drives for toothbrushes and other personal hygiene supplies, benefiting San Diego’s growing homeless population which heartbreakingly includes university students, with a tagline to “Brush Away Your Fines.” Similarly, a drive around the holidays could collect toys and books to support Active Duty and Veteran families, recognizing San Diego’s substantial military presence. Another unique, possibly Halloween-themed idea was Loyola Marymount University’s initiative to award $2.00 off library fines to participants of the campus blood drive. Cycling through themes keeps the events fresh and engaging, sheds light on other issues facing underrepresented groups, and maximizes the Library’s philanthropic impact on the campus and local communities.

Conclusion

Food for Fines drives, while more common in public libraries, are relatively simple to organize and have many benefits for academic libraries and the populations they serve. Academic libraries share a mission of supporting student success, and contrary to criticisms of these campaigns, food drives and other cross-promotional initiatives promote a more holistic approach to achieving that goal. It instills goodwill between the library and both participating and non-participating library users, as well as with campus partners and administrators, and creates a welcoming atmosphere for the student population. A Food for Fines campaign can help convert the negative experience of accruing fees into a positive one and presents the Library as a compassionate entity deeply committed to the success and well-being of both student Library users and those who utilize the campus’ food assistance services. Academic libraries have a largely untapped opportunity to play a larger role in optimizing the student experience, and when that opportunity comes with a low cost and a high reward, it makes the effort even more worthwhile.

Works Cited

Dubick, J., Mathews, B., and Cady, C. (2016). Hunger on Campus: The Challenge of Food Insecurity for College Students. Retrieved April 22, 2019, from http:// studentsagainsthunger.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Hunger_On_Campus.pdf.

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Library Administrator’s Digest (2010). Food for Fines: A promising win-win project. Library Administrator’s Digest, 45(3), 17-18. Library Administrator’s Digest (2013). And now pets! Library Administrator’s Digest, 48(7), 6. Library Administrator’s Digest (2014). Food for fines is back in September. Library Administrator’s Digest, 49(9), 5. Library Administrator’s Digest (2014). Park Ridge Library Board asked again to end ‘Food for Fines.’ Library Administrator’s Digest, 49(9), 5. Robbins, G. (2019). The university is dealing with “food insecurity,” a growing problem on American campuses. San Diego Union-Tribune (May 6, 2019). Retrieved May 20, 2019, from https://www. sandiegouniontribune.com/news/education/ story/2019-05-06/uc-san-diego-begins-alerting-needy-students-when-leftover-food-is-available?utm_source=Voice+of+San+Diego+Master+List&utm_campaign=fb55ce76d9-Culture_ Report&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_ c2357fd0a3-fb55ce76d9-84043949&goal=0_ c2357fd0a3-fb55ce76d9-84043949. Simpson, T. (1984). Fines for food: Turning delinquent borrowers into good Samaritans. Unabashed Librarian, 52, 29-30. U. S. Department of Agriculture (2018). Measurement. Retrieved May 2, 2019, from https://www.ers.usda.gov/topics/food-nutrition-assistance/food-security-in-the-us/ measurement.aspx. University of California (2018). University of California Undergraduate Experience Survey (UCUES). Retrieved May 2, 2019, from https://www.universityofcalifornia.edu/ infocenter/ucues-data-tables-2018. Wong, J. (2019). The UC’s quest for basic needs. UCSD Guardian (January 21, 2019). Retrieved April 22, 2019, from http:// ucsdguardian.org/2019/01/21/ucs-quest-basic-needs/. Wood, J. L., Harris III, F., and Delgado, N. R. (2016). Struggling to survive – striving to succeed: Food and housing insecurities in the community college. San Diego, CA: Community College Equity Assessment Lab (CCEAL). Retrieved May 20, 2019, from https://cceal. org/food-housing-report/.

Resources

AAC&U News (2017). Facts & figures — Food and housing insecurities disproportionately hurt black, first-generation, and community college students. Retrieved April 22, 2019, from https://www.aacu.org/aacu-news/ newsletter/facts-figures/jan-feb2017. Brandeis University (no date). Food for Fines. Retrieved May 2, 2019, from https:// www.brandeis.edu/library/borrowing/privileges/food-for-fines.html. Campus Food Banks Network (2017). Retrieved April 22, 2019, from https://www. mealexchange.com/campus-food-banks. Campus Food Systems Project (2015). Retrieved April 22, 2019, from http://www. studentfood.ca/projects/beyond-campus-foodbanks-working-group/.

Goldrick-Rab, S. and Kendall, N. (2016). The real price of college. Wisconsin Hope Lab. Retrieved June 5, 2019, from https://tcf.org/ content/report/the-real-price-of-college/. Goldrick-Rab, S., Richardson, J., and Hernandez, A. (2017). Hungry and homeless in college: Results from a national study of basic needs insecurity in higher education (Wisconsin HOPE Lab). Retrieved May 2, 2019, from https://basicneeds.ucsd.edu/_files/2017hungry-and-homeless-in-college-report.pdf. Loyola Marymount University (2016). Food for Fines: November 16-December 16. Retrieved June 5, 2019, from https:// librarynews.lmu.edu/2016/11/food-fines-november-16-december-16/. Loyola Marymount University (2009). Food for Fines! Retrieved June 5, 2019, from https://librarynews.lmu.edu/2009/11/foodfor-fines-2/. Meal Exchange (2019). It’s time to #EndStudentPoverty! Retrieved April 22, 2019, from https://endstudentpoverty.causevox.com/ and https://www.mealexchange.com/. Oregon State University (2019). Food for Fines is happening at the Valley Library. Retrieved May 2, 2019, from https://library. oregonstate.edu/food-4-fines-happening-valley-library. Schmalz, J. (2018). Hungry to learn: Five students describe their struggles with food and housing insecurity and what colleges can do to help. Chronicle of Higher Education. Retrieved May 19, 2019, from https://www.chronicle.com/interactives/ insecurity?cid=wcontentlist&mkt_tok=eyJpIjoiWlRnNE1URXhZVFkxT0RaaiIsInQiOiJmVElybnFGNDJ5Vk1scVNwSHJ5TW1nNStGT1ZVeFQrS2JlV2ZBbm9WZ3orUnJzeTczRjBKSWJyXC9VRHc1YWMxMGVCNVl6M1wvbGNHWW9OWVpXTzhTRTQrcHIrVEV4emFicmZXY09SR2duaGdwemxzRytMYnk5R0MwdnhLQVZFVzVTIn0%3D. Syracuse University (2019). April 29-May 10 is “Food for Fines.” Retrieved May 2, 2019, from http://libnews.syr.edu/april-29-may-10is-food-for-fines/. Tangeman, C. (2019). Feed the hungry with Food for Fines (University of Dayton). Retrieved May 2, 2019, from https://udayton. edu/blogs/libraries/2019-04-03-food4fines. php. Texas A&M University (2019). Sixth annual Food for Fines program begins in February. Retrieved May 2, 2019, from https://library. tamu.edu/news/2019/01/Sixth%20Annual%20 Food%20for%20Fines%20Program%20Begins%20in%20February%20.html. UC San Diego Basic Needs Insecurity Committee (2016). Report on food and housing insecurity at UC San Diego. Retrieved June 5, 2019, from https://basicneeds.ucsd. edu/_files/BASIC-NEEDS-REPORT.pdf. University of California (2017). Global Food Initiative: Food and housing security at the University of California. Retrieved June 5, 2019, from https://www.ucop.edu/ global-food-initiative/_files/food-housing-security.pdf. continued on page 65

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Optimizing Library Services from page 64 University of Texas, Arlington (2017). Food for Fines. Retrieved May 2, 2019, from https://events.uta.edu/event/food_for_ fines_8515#.XL5ZXKR7nmF. Virginia Commonwealth University (2019). “Food for Fines” benefits RamPantry. Retrieved May 2, 2019, from https:// www.library.vcu.edu/about/news/2019/ food-for-fines-benefits-rampantry.html. Wright State University (2019). 4th annual Food for Fines drive. Retrieved April 29, 2019, from https://www.libraries.wright. edu/community/blog/2019/04/09/4th-annualfood-for-fines-drive/.

Recommended Readings

Clarance, M. M., and Angeline, X. M. (2019). User Opinion on Library Collections and Services: A Case Study of Branch Library in Karaikudi. In S. Thanuskodi (Ed.), Literacy Skill Development for Library Science Professionals (pp. 343-375). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-5225-7125-4.ch015 Ene, C., Voica, M. C., and Panait, M. (2019). Green Investments and Food Security: Opportunities and Future Directions in

the Context of Sustainable Development. In I. Management Association (Ed.), Green Business: Concepts, Methodologies, Tools, and Applications (pp. 1630-1659). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-5225-7915-1.ch079 Goodson, K. (2018). Incrementally Building Community and User Engagement in the UC San Diego Library. In I. Management Association (Ed.), Library Science and Administration: Concepts, Methodologies, Tools, and Applications (pp. 834-856). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-5225-3914-8.ch039 Ikolo, V. E. (2018). Users Satisfaction With Library Services: A Case Study of Delta State University Library. In I. Management Association (Ed.), Library Science and Administration: Concepts, Methodologies, Tools, and Applications (pp. 881-891). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-5225-3914-8. ch041 Juliani, D. P., Silva, A., Cunha, J., and Benneworth, P. (2019). Universities’ Contributions to Sustainable Development’s Social Challenge: A Case Study of a Social Innovation Practice. In I. Management Association (Ed.), Socio-Economic Development: Concepts, Methodologies, Tools, and Applications (pp. 379-399). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-5225-7311-1.ch021

Kumar, A., and Thanuskodi, S. (2018). Using Social Network Sites for Library Services in Public Libraries: Possibilities and Challenges. In I. Management Association (Ed.), Library Science and Administration: Concepts, Methodologies, Tools, and Applications (pp. 556-572). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-5225-3914-8.ch026 Twait, M. (2018). Peer-to-Peer Outreach and Promotion. In I. Management Association (Ed.), Library Science and Administration: Concepts, Methodologies, Tools, and Applications (pp. 325-344). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-5225-3914-8.ch015

Column Editor’s End Note: Librarians’ roles are constantly evolving to include services such as Food for Fines programs and the like, which tackles topics such as library programs and services, community involvement, food security, and sustainability. For years, IGI Global has been aware of these ever-changing roles and has worked to include the most recent and quality peer-reviewed research on these topics. Research surrounding the topics in this article can be found in IGI Global’s databases, InfoSci-Books and InfoSci-Journals specifically, which act to provide valuable content to librarians and their patrons.

Let’s Get Technical — St. Thomas Library, Automating for the Future by Tia Felock (Technology and Automation Coordinator) <tia.felock@neric.org> and Rebecca DeJesus (Librarian II, Electronic and Media Resources, Capital Region BOCES - School Library System) <Rebecca.dejesus@neric.org> Column Editors: Stacey Marien (Acquisitions Librarian, American University Library) <smarien@american.edu> and Alayne Mundt (Resource Description Librarian, American University Library) <mundt@american.edu> Column Editor’s Note: In this issue’s column, we profile how a regional organization helped a private elementary school automate their catalog. — SM & AM

Introduction

Capital Region Board of Cooperative Educational Services (BOCES) partners with and supports 24 component school districts in Albany, Schenectady, Schoharie and Southern Saratoga counties. Capital Region BOCES also provides service to more than 150 school districts outside the Capital Region area and delivers more than 300 programs and services designed to support the entire educational process. Capital Region BOCES helps school districts receive access to high-quality educational services and resources at an affordable cost. The School Library System, a part of Capital Region BOCES, supports the component districts as well as nineteen private

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schools in New York’s Capital Region. We provide professional development, resource sharing, and print and digital products in support of our school librarians, teachers, and Students. In July of 2018, the Capital Region BOCES School Library System was approached by Thomas Kane, Principal of St. Thomas the Apostle School, a small, private Catholic school serving students in grades pre-kindergarten through eighth in Delmar, New York, about automating their library collection. Automating the school’s collection of an estimated 4,000 titles would provide greater ease-of-use, more accurate records, and access to a wide network of libraries with which to share resources. Automation is important for students as it helps them gain the skills to search more efficiently for what they need. On behalf of St. Thomas the Apostle School, Capital Region BOCES School Library System Director Dr. Jen

Cannell assisted the school in applying for and receiving a Regional Collections Grant from the Capital District Library Council in the amount of $4,982 for the purpose of creating the MARC records needed to automate the St. Thomas the Apostle School Library. Members of the School Library System team working on the automation project were the following: Tia Felock, Library Automation Coordinator; Rebecca DeJesus, Electronic and Media Resources Librarian; Sophia Geitgey, Senior Library Typist.; Regina Boyles, Administrative Assistant; Shelley Viola, Secretary to School Library System and Arts in Education; and Tim Furgal, School Library System Clerk.

The Problem

St. Thomas the Apostle School does not have a full-time professional librarian. Prior to this project, its library records were contained continued on page 66

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Let’s Get Technical from page 65 in an old-fashioned card catalog, and the middle school collection of young adult titles, which are housed separately from the main library in a classroom, were poorly organized. It was difficult to locate the desired title(s), difficult to keep accurate records of what items the library owned, difficult to record statistics of library circulation and lending periods, and a wide network of interlibrary loan partners was unavailable to the St. Thomas School. With little time, expertise, or funding to complete the project, it was necessary to enlist the help of outside organizations to get the St. Thomas School’s library automated. The School Library System had the knowledge, staffing, and tools to create an electronic catalog for the school’s library; through the grant received from Capital District Library Council, the School Library System was able to procure the necessary funding to complete the automation project.

The Process

Principal Kane invited us to meet with him and some school representatives on July 12, 2018 to discuss his vision for the school library and what his students’ and staff’s needs were. We looked at the physical space and number of books and were able to assess their needs and estimate the time required to meet the project goals, develop a plan, including making a list of needed materials, and gathering a team of staff members to execute the plan. We ordered customized scannable barcodes for the books as well as a handheld barcode scanner for the school library; these costs were covered by the grant money. We determined that the project of automating the St. Thomas School Library would take four people working six-hour days approximately three weeks in order to complete the automation project before the start of the 2018-19 school year. The School Library System team worked throughout August and September 2018 on completing the automation project. Our first

step, once working on-site, was to remove all the books from the shelving, organize them by genre or Dewey Decimal classification, and, working on laptops seated at the school library tables, start searching for the titles, one by one, in the School Library System library automation catalog, Follett Destiny. A barcode sticker was placed on the upper right corner of each book cover. Titles were located electronically in the Destiny catalog using ISBN or title; for titles which were already present in our collection we simply added a new copy record for the St. Thomas site. If a title was not present in the Destiny catalog, we would find the title, using the book’s ISBN or title in OCLC. We downloaded the records as needed from OCLC and then imported them into Destiny; from there, we attached a copy record for the St. Thomas School Library. Once titles were added to the Destiny catalog, we physically organized them on newly constructed library shelving that the school had purchased. Keeping in mind that the library serves a population of students from pre-kindergarten through eighth grade as well as the faculty and staff of the school, we divided the collection into “everybody” picture books, organized alphabetically by author’s last name, juvenile nonfiction organized by Dewey Decimal numbers, juvenile fiction organized alphabetically by author’s last name, and the middle school collection of young adult fiction and nonfiction, organized alphabetically by author’s last name or Dewey Decimal number, as appropriate. The books were clearly and accurately labeled and placed in proper order on the shelves for easy locating. After three weeks of cataloging, organizing books, and getting the library ready for the start of the school year, the St. Thomas Library was ready for digital circulation. The team once again worked with Principal Thomas Kane to develop a plan to train the certified retired public-school librarian who would be volunteering two to three days a week, along with some parent volunteers on how to access and use the library catalog. We covered the basics of using the Destiny catalog, including searching, circulation, and requesting books

through interlibrary loan, and running basic reports such as overdues.

Outcomes

The automation project was completed in September 2018; the students, faculty, and staff of St. Thomas have access to a fully-functioning, accurate and up-to-date library catalog capable of circulation, interlibrary loans, catalog searching, access to eBooks and audiobooks purchased by the School Library System, and patron maintenance. Reporting capabilities include inventory, overdue notices, and many more options for a thorough, accurate portrait of the school library, its patrons, and library activity at any given time. Linda Berry, retired school librarian, was appointed to be the school’s volunteer librarian; she works at the school several days a week, teaching library skills such as searching the catalog and locating library books on the shelves as well as instilling a love of literature and learning through story time read alouds and other activities. St. Thomas is excited to have the addition of the automated library catalog in their school and the support of the School Library System team and access to the eighty-three other school libraries in the shared catalog.

The Future

Principal Thomas Kane and library staff have reached out to request additional training on using the Destiny catalog. Looking to the future, the School Library System plans to work with St. Thomas to help them stay up to date on 21st century learning, collaborating with the faculty to incorporate the library into the curriculum, and to continue growing and adjusting as the needs of library users evolve. We hope to see St. Thomas School become involved with our professional development and become active learners and participants in the School Library System and all it has to offer as their comfort level with the Destiny system increases.

Headwaters — The Subversion of Referees Column Editor: Kent Anderson (Founder, Caldera Publishing Solutions, 290 Turnpike Road, #366, Westborough, MA 01581-2843; Phone: 774-288-9464) <kent@caldera-publishing.com> Column Editor’s Note: This essay is an updated, revised, and expanded version of a post published on “The Geyser,” an e-newsletter written by the author and available at https://thegeyser.substack.com.

ichael Lewis — the author of Moneyball, The Blind Side, and The Big Short — has an uncanny knack for tapping into themes developing in the

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zeitgeist. His recent podcast, “Against the Rules,”1 examines a trend he’s observed in society — the decline of the human referee in many parts of daily life, and what that’s doing to our idea of fairness. Disrespect of referees strikes me as profound and highly relevant to publishing, especially scholarly and scientific publishing. Gatekeepers, referees, and the consequences of these have been targeted for years as irrelevant, outmoded, or objectionable. In their

place, we’ve been given algorithms, feeds, and search engines, all of which gatekeep in their own ways, but without an identifiable (or accountable) human behind them. It’s almost as if we accept humans expressed through technology more than we accept humans expressed through a time-tested process. Lewis’ first episode examined the travails of actual refereeing in the NBA, talking about how, in the past 1-2 years, the level of argumencontinued on page 67

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Headwaters from page 66 tation with referees from superstar players has skyrocketed, despite the refereeing being better than ever — thanks to replay, referee training, and more, NBA referees are demonstrably fairer and less biased than ever. To tell his story, Lewis visited the replay center in Florida, where calls are reviewed by referees off-site. He talked to psychologists who have found that entitlement makes people more likely to flout rules, believing rules don’t apply to them. He noted how referees are being worn down by the threats they experience on- and off-court. Finally, he described how children mimic the exasperated, angry reactions they see from star NBA players, driving the cycle of disrespect for referees further into the bloodstream of the sport, and life in general. An interesting observation among many is that the reason superstar players react so badly to increasingly unbiased and “fair” refereeing is entitlement — they expect their fame and prominence to grant them dispensations from referees. This always makes me return to the anger some scholars and scientists express toward reviewers and editors, which can seem similar in key ways. Do they feel refereeing doesn’t apply to them anymore? Or that they are entitled to special privileges? Lewis’ podcast explores other topics — the abdication of regulations around financial institutions that exploit lenders and dodge responsibility for the messes they make, causing financial hardships for students, teachers, and soldiers; the growing disrespect for editors and grammar; and, why ethicists and ombudsmen are losing leverage. What’s causing this trend is a bit of a mystery. There seem to be many sources of subversion of umpires in society, the people calling balls and strikes. There’s also been a surge of mildly or wildly corrupt practices enabled by those seeking to disrupt society in some manner — technologically, politically, or economically. The “disruptive” aspect is interesting to ponder. We’ve been inundated by people praising disruptive thinkers, disruptive businesses, and disruptive leaders. It’s nearly axiomatic in such an environment that anyone seeking to impose order or boundaries looks like a tool or a fool. Who needs or wants order when disruption is the way of the world? What is the reward for order when disruption makes some people billions? Instant replay has also helped to erode the authority and position of referees in sports. Coaches and spectators are now high-powered armchair referees. For referees, any call might be questioned and overturned. Getting it “right” now counts more than the action, the fluidity, the spontaneity of sport. I personally hope American baseball never goes to an automated strike zone, as the ability for a pitcher to fool a batter and an umpire seems like a great part of the game. The same goes for players who make plays that so astound fans and referees alike that the game is distorted

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by them. What’s wrong with a player able to generate a “reality distortion field”2 ala Steve Jobs? That’s part of the magic. We’re increasingly seeing referees criticized from the top, where the entitled people live. As a psychologist noted to Lewis, entitled people sometimes feel the rules don’t apply to them. As Lewis notes, superstar players are complaining more than ever, rather than modeling excellent sportsmanship. Income inequality may play a factor, as entitled people are actually so well-off now that they do live in a different reality, in effect. What referee will or must they respect? The recent U.S. college admissions scandal involving celebrities and entitled parents 3 (and their children) provides an interesting window into this issue. Here were entitled people who felt confident going around the admissions referee. When caught, some confessed and plead guilty, while at least one has defied the courts and prosecutors, apparently convinced her entitled status will ultimately prevail. A grammarian Lewis interviews focuses on the moral relativism that has permeated intellectual life, focusing on his dislike for “descriptive grammar” (in which no native English speaker can be said to ever make a grammatical error) and preference for “prescriptive grammar,” in which there are rules and preferences. His feeling is that most writers and speakers no longer feel shame about mistakes in grammar or spelling. At the same time, people and places that should be acting as referees are not, adding to the erosion of even the concept of an umpire calling balls and strikes. Facebook, Twitter, Google, and YouTube are notorious in my mind because they refuse in most cases to act as referees relative to their own platforms. Only now are some controls coming into place, but the idea that it should be a free-forall remains strong. Finally, there is the information space of today, where innuendo is easy to purvey, smears are simple to amplify, and doubt easy to sow. We’ve seen judges, investigators, and referees of all kinds undermined by allegations of racial bias, corruption, and political motivation, all in an attempt to make them appear less fair and impartial. As referees have been knocked down a few pegs in various ways, we find ourselves in a world where our assumptions about referees have been modified, so that more of us think referees are: • Not that different from us, and perhaps just as fallible • Not worthy of respect, and possibly deserving of resentment • Possibly corrupt or malign, or able to be portrayed as such

• Irrelevant and unnecessary to the modern information age • Replaceable by the “crowd” or the empowered individual (see first point) • Adding little value, slowing things down, and basically annoying us Given all of the above, how this resolves for scholarly publishing seems to be informed lately by these very dubious questions and claims. Why do we need referees or editors? These people are fallible, aren’t respected, aren’t necessary in the modern information age, may be malign, are replaceable by the crowd or some rando, and add little value and only slow us down and annoy us. What Lewis finds, however, is that there are people who are natural referees, arbiters, and umpires — individuals who by disposition, inherent ability, and natural demeanor command respect, deliver just decisions, establish zones of fair play as easily as anything, and keep things from becoming imbalanced. But today, we don’t celebrate the excellent judge, the superb and consistent editor, or the judicious moderator. We bristle, we rebel, and we push away. Lewis is onto something here. There is no easy answer, so I’ll be listening to his podcast and reading his books for as long as he’s productive. He’s a good judge of what matters.

Kent Anderson is the CEO and founder of Caldera Publishing Solutions, editor of “The Geyser,” a past-President of the Society of Scholarly Publishing, and founder of “The Scholarly Kitchen.” He has worked as an executive of a technology startup, and as a publishing executive at numerous non-profits, including the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), the Massachusetts Medical Society, and the American Academy of Pediatrics.

Endnotes 1. https://atrpodcast.com/ 2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reality_distortion_field 3. https://thegeyser.substack.com/p/colleges-reject-freelance-corruption

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Library Analytics: Shaping the Future — The SPAN Monograph Project: Shared Print Archiving in Western Canada by Jean Blackburn (Collections Coordinator, Vancouver Island University) <jean.blackburn@viu.ca> and Lisa Petrachenko (Associate University Librarian, Learning and Research Resources, University of Victoria Libraries) <lmiles@uvic.ca> Column Editors: John McDonald (EBSCO Information Services) <johnmcdonald@ebsco.com> and Kathleen McEvoy (EBSCO Information Services) <kmcevoy@ebsco.com>

s collections shift toward primarily electronic delivery, and pressures on library spaces increase, academic librarians must manage print collections to acknowledge both decreasing use and an enduring need to preserve the print scholarly record. How do we manage these competing demands? Increasingly, libraries are turning toward shared print archive initiatives to harness the power of group collaboration within our networks to achieve both objectives. The Council of Prairie and Pacific Libraries (COPPUL) is one such network. This regional Canadian consortium, formally established in 1991 and representing the four Western provinces (British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba), has maintained an active shared print archive program since 2012: the COPPUL Shared Print Archive Network or SPAN (https://coppul.ca/programs/shared-print). COPPUL’s core membership consists of 22 university libraries, ranging from very small teaching-focused institutions to large research universities, spread over a vast geographical expanse. The character and distribution of COPPUL’s membership has resulted in the evolution of a shared print archiving approach that is more distributed than centralized. Maintaining a single shared print repository is neither practical nor desirable in COPPUL’s context. Rather, sharing the responsibility for building and holding shared print archives across the network, according to each member institution’s capacity, has emerged as a more feasible approach in the Canadian West. COPPUL’s well-established resource sharing network has helped to ensure continued access to shared print archives within COPPUL and beyond. After several phases of journal archiving, COPPUL’s SPAN launched a shared print monograph archiving project facilitated by Sustainable Collections Services (SCS), a small consulting company now owned by OCLC. Ten COPPUL institutions, representing mid-sized research universities and small teaching-focused institutions, signed on to participate. Project goals included identifying unique or scarcely-held titles for retention and preservation, contributing toward the “print safety net” within the COPPUL network, and facilitating the de-selection of print monographs with minimal impact on library users and partners within the network. The SPAN Monograph Project provided an opportunity for smaller libraries to meaningfully contribute to the network’s print safety net (in previous SPAN phases, Western Canada’s two largest research libraries shouldered most of the physical archiving burden on behalf of the network). Resource sharing relationships with other Canadian consortium partners also contributed to the retention model development, in which analysis of holdings of Canadian research libraries outside COPPUL was an important factor in retention decisions. The project entailed designing shared retention scenarios based on group collections data from OCLC. A key premise of the SPAN Monograph Project was that holdings allocated for retention would remain circulating and able to be shared through interlibrary loan. Hence, the project’s work was conceived and carried out through two main perspectives or “lenses”: preservation and access. Because access and sharing were central to the project, monographs in non-circulating collections (e.g., special collections, reference) were considered out of scope. In scope were circulating monographs classed in LC or DDC, including juvenile materials and music scores. Retention models, along with treatment of retained titles, were decided collectively with the intent that once retention commitments were

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allocated, participating libraries (and other COPPUL libraries) could move forward with local collection management projects (including weeding of non-retained titles). Representatives from participating libraries, with the support of COPPUL’s SPAN Coordinator, formed a committee to undertake consensus-building and decision-making throughout the project. COPPUL staff provided project support and liaison with SCS, and the SPAN Management Committee advised on policy matters and best practices. The project intended to complement and support other “last copy” shared print initiatives from Library and Archives Canada and other library consortia. Group and comparator library data were loaded and available in SCS’s data modelling and visualization tool, GreenGlass, by May 2016. In addition to catalogue extracts from each participating library, SCS loaded OCLC holdings data for many other comparator library groups, e.g., all non-participating COPPUL libraries, COPPUL’s two R1 libraries (University of British Columbia and University of Alberta), other Canadian research libraries, etc. Further, project participants defined criteria to identify materials published in or about the COPPUL region, which were applied to participants’ holdings data in GreenGlass as a “COPPUL Canadiana” flag. With the resulting access to big data, and the means to manipulate and visualize the data in GreenGlass, the SPAN Monograph Project committee began exploring retention scenarios and building consensus around a preferred model. The group chose to focus on rarely-held materials (both within COPPUL and in other Canadian research libraries) and those of regional or local interest; the COPPUL model did not, in the end, factor in usage (circulation numbers and dates), publication years or acquisition dates. In September 2016, after much experimenting, the consensus retention model — actually a combination of two models, “Rarely-held” and “COPPUL Canadiana” — looked like this: Rarely-held Model: Retain 1 copy if: UofA/UBC holdings equal 0 (same edition) Other COPPUL holdings fewer than 3 (same edition) CARL Libraries* fewer than 2 (same edition) Not flagged as COPPUL Canadiana combined with COPPUL Canadiana Model: Retain 2 copies if: UofA/UBC holdings greater than 0 (same edition) Flagged as COPPUL Canadiana Retain 3 copies if: UofA/UBC holdings equal 0 (same edition) Flagged as COPPUL Canadiana

*Non-COPPUL CARL libraries

This model resulted in a 20 percent retention rate averaged across participating libraries — a fairly low retention rate compared with other shared print monograph projects such as Eastern Academic Scholars’ Trust (36 percent) and Washington Research Library Consortium (61 percent) — which SPAN Monograph Project members felt balanced the continued on page 69

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Library Analytics ... from page 68 “print safety net” preservation imperative with local collection management and space reallocation goals. However, more consensus-building within the group became necessary when participants reviewed their retention allocations and experienced various degrees of “buyer’s remorse” at the thought of being compelled to retain items on the list that did not seem truly rare. For example, 7 Habits of Highly Effective People appeared on at least one list — not a rare title by any measure, but because the model specified “same edition” in comparator library holdings, the retentions included items for which a particular edition might be rarely held for a title otherwise considered widely-held. Guided by SCS staff, the committee adjusted the retention model by adding a further criterion to the “Rarely-held” model: CARL Libraries* fewer than 5 (any edition) This adjustment reduced the average retention commitment across participating libraries from 20 percent to 16 percent. The SPAN Monograph Project’s collective holdings data comprised 7,276,328 title holdings, of which 1,147,232 were allocated for retention. Research libraries within the group tended to have higher retention rates than those at teaching-focused, primarily undergraduate institutions. The bulk of our combined holdings (60 percent) are unique to our respective libraries, i.e. held in only one participating library. The holdings that are unique have a much higher percentage of zero-use titles — not really surprising, but since the SPAN Monograph Project is focusing on preserving rare materials, it also means that participants are committing to retain many items which have had very low use (i.e., items which may have been good candidates for weeding if not for the SPAN Monograph project). Other critical consensus decisions included settling on a retention period: fifteen years (with a review every five years), designated by a standard 583 field note for MaRC records (**** is a placeholder for the OCLC library symbol): 583 1#$aCommitted to retain$c20170101$d20321231$f COPPUL SPAN Monograph$5**** It was understood within the group that participants may make local decisions to add public notes to bibliographic, holdings or item records. With respect to a central registry for up-to-date SPAN Monograph Project holdings, the group is using the new OCLC shared print registry service since COPPUL does not maintain a union catalogue for members, our access to collective data in GreenGlass ended on March 31, 2019, and 583 fields are not visible in Worldcat. The SPAN Monograph Project committee also decided to observe a limited-time “rejection period” during which participants could review their adjusted retention commitment lists and identify items for removal according to criteria pre-determined by consensus. The Project committee agreed that rejection decisions should not be based on a library simply not wanting to keep certain titles; rather, participating libraries would need to balance the perception of local value with the regional “print safety net” goal. In the interests of furthering the collective “print safety net” goal, the group agreed retention rejection criteria as follows: • Damaged items • Outdated textbooks, study guides, and workbooks • Out of scope materials captured in GreenGlass in error (e.g., non-circulating reference materials, serials) The group felt strongly that a process to shelf-validate final retention allocations (adjusted for rejections) was critical for identifying missing items, particularly given that many participating libraries had not undergone an inventory process for many years. However, most participating libraries also felt that they could not spare the staff time necessary to validate every item. As a compromise, the Project committee agreed to adopt the sampling methodology developed by

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the EAST Shared Print Initiative — a group comprised of large and small university libraries much like SPAN Mono Project — which requires a randomized sample of 6000 items, generated by SCS from the project data in GreenGlass, to be verified per participating library (see https://eastlibraries.org/validation for more information). The group further agreed that item location in remote storage facilities was an acceptable proxy for shelf verification. The shelf validation process revealed an average missing rate of about five percent among reporting participants. With respect to missing items, it was decided that within the SPAN Monograph Project purview, participating libraries would not be obliged to replace items discovered missing in the shelf verification process. However, it was acknowledged that libraries might make local decisions to replace missing items on a case by case basis, and agreed that project members would share information about missing items with one another. Data on missing items, replacements and item transfers between libraries are reported and shared via the COPPUL web site. The Project committee debated whether or not to designate a preservation copy for each retained COPPUL Canadiana title. Given the SPAN Monograph Project’s access and sharing goals, and since the “Rarely-held” model only retained one copy within the group, the designation of preservation copies was not possible under that model. It was possible, however, under the “COPPUL Canadiana” model which retained two or three copies depending on the criteria. The University of Calgary — the only library in the SPAN Monograph Project group to have preservation storage capacity — carefully considered the possibility of becoming an Archive Holder for preservation copies, but ultimately determined that it was not in a position to offer the necessary storage. As no other participating libraries had storage capacity, the group confirmed that preservation copies would remain out of scope for this particular project. Related concerns have emerged from scholars at participating institutions about that ensuring adequate interlibrary loan periods are in place for shared print monographs. This has resulted in a national conversation, begun by COPPUL, toward reducing access barriers within Canadian resource sharing networks by increasing interlibrary loan periods to six weeks with the possibility of renewal, and ceasing service fees for interlibrary lending. Since settling on a shared retention model and retention period, participating SPAN Monograph project members have used project data within the GreenGlass tool to model scenarios for de-selecting low use, widely held materials and advance other local collection management goals in responsible, sustainable, evidence-informed ways. Several members have contracted with SCS separately to load more up-to-date holdings extracts in GreenGlass for continued collection assessment purposes. The COPPUL SPAN Monograph Project demonstrates a distributed model of shared print archiving wherein smaller institutions, without explicit preservation mandates or extensive storage facilities, can effectively contribute to solving the problem of preserving the print scholarly record into the future. All academic libraries have rare or unique materials within their collections; if shared print archives can be seen as a “print safety net,” ensuring reliable access to the print record into the future, then the distributed shared print archive model allows all libraries the opportunity to form part of the fabric. As a related benefit, participating libraries can move forward with local collection management decisions with increased confidence, knowing that rare and regional-interest materials have been identified and retained within the consortium.

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ATG Food + Beverage Roundup — Charleston, SC Column Editors: Nicole Ameduri (Licensing Manager, Springer Nature) <Nicole.ameduri@springernature.com> and Melanie Masserant (Account Development Manager, Springer Nature) <Melanie.masserant@springernature.com> www.springernature.com Nicole Ameduri, Springer Nature Licensing Manager, loves eating her way through conferences. Through some random twist of fate or luck, she ended up with a number of chefs, restaurant managers, famous sommeliers and food writers in her close circle of friends. They have steered her in the right direction for every destination on her calendar. Melanie Masserant, Springer Nature Account Development Manager, fancies unique cocktails while gallivanting to conferences across Canada and the U.S. She collects interesting cocktail vinegars and syrups to concoct her own creations. Her favorite is a Bloody Mary mixed bourbon, cider vinegar and pickle juice. We’re excited to share fabulous Charleston restaurants and bars with you!

Nicole’s Picks — Restaurants

#1. Zero Restaurant & Bar: Conde Nast named Zero George one of the Top 5 foodie hotels in the world. Rightfully so, dining there was one of the best dining experiences of my life! Their interpretation of the amuse bouche is unforgettable — radishes in a clay pot that appeared as though it was filled with soil, but is actually filled with toasted quinoa and decadent butter. Diners pull the radishes out by the fronds, just as you would pull them from soil. Years ago, I created a community garden and recall pulling my first radishes out of the soil and eating them. The way Zero Bar serves them brought back the farm-to-mouth experience I had growing them in New York. For our main entrées, I ordered the cobia. It was grilled and glazed with yuzu and chili. My husband ordered the chicken with carrots in smoked butter with warm herbs. For dessert, we had cheese and the tres leches with young coconut and honeycomb. The creativity and perfect execution made me suspect the chef was from New York. Upon speaking with the chef, my hunch was verified. He is from Brooklyn. Zero Bar features a creative mix of craft cocktails; beer and curated wines — they have a private label from their sister winery in Virginia. They also have a cooking school that offers classes. I’m taking one before the Charleston Library Conference and can’t wait! Address: 0 George Street, Charleston, SC 29401, https://zerorestaurantcharleston.com/. #2. Butcher & Bee: Hands down, my favorite brunch spot in Charleston — I even had my 40th birthday brunch here. They cre-

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ate their menu based on the freshest, seasonal ingredients. All produce is locally sourced and meats are sustainably raised. Their breakfast menu features unlikely pairings like whipped ricotta toast with chili honey. Depending on the season, lunch could be heirloom beans with jalapeno vinaigrette, Jimmy red cornbread or a roast beef sandwich with smoked onion jam. Dinner combines midday elements such as kebab platters and crispy half chicken. My Turkish husband especially enjoys the Middle Eastern touches on the menu like the roasted beets with labneh, hummus and the semolina cake. Must haves: house-made pickle plate, Moroccan carrots, falafel, grilled radishes, Persian herb salad, pan seared local fish and the cheese board. Address: 1085 Morrison Drive, Charleston, SC 29403, https://butcherandbee.com/ food. #3. The Wreck of the Richard & Charlene: Nestled on the water, this seafood restaurant overlooks the beautiful Shem Creek in the Old Village section of Mt. Pleasant, which is a 20 minute drive from downtown Charleston. Their no frills dining room is a screened in porch with plastic furniture. They serve free boiled peanuts, cold beer, fried shrimp and my favorites — hush puppies and banana pudding. They also have key lime pie and bread pudding. Based on the suggestion of an old friend who once lived in Mt. Pleasant, I added it to the itinerary for my husband’s surprise 40th birthday trip to Charleston. It’s nearly impossible to find, being located on a dirt road, but worth the search. Upon arrival a black cat greeted us and led us out onto the deck where we watched the sun set while dining. My husband and I go back annually! Address: 106 Haddrell Street, Mt. Pleasant, SC 29464, CASH ONLY, https://www. wreckrc.com/.

#4. The Obstinate Daughter: The Obstinate Daughter is a masterful convergence of rustic Italian cooking and Low Country Seafood on Sullivan’s Island. This nautical themed space is green certified, and its chef Jacques Larson was recently nominated for a James Beard Award. During last year’s conference two of my librarian friends were game for the excursion. I’m a native of Massachusetts, so I had to try the oysters. Alexandra had a wood-fired pizza with local clams. We also sampled roasted beets with pomegranate molasses, which is a Turkish ingredient that has become available in U.S. restaurants. Some other favorites include farro with brussel sprouts and black truffle, grilled octopus with olive tapenade and ricotta gnocchi with short rib ragu. Save room for dessert — there is a gelateria downstairs! Address: 2063 Middle Street, Sullivan’s Island, SC 29482, http://www.theobstinatedaughter.com/. #5. Grace & Grit: Chef Kline’s fresh and playful approach to Low Country cuisine has earned his restaurant Platinum status from the Sustainable Seafood Initiative. The menu is creative yet approachable. Diners enjoy fresh local fish and shrimp, seasonal produce and inhouse smoked bacon, which enhances hits like fried green tomatoes and she-crab chowder. Southern staples like cornbread, collards, butter beans and grits take the center stage. Speaking of grits, THEY HAVE A GRIT FLIGHT – 15 VARIETIES! There are sweet options like blueberry and coconut cream. Originally a skeptic, I actually loved the blueberry grits! My favorites of the savory variety were pimiento cheese and brussels pesto. Guests can choose from three types of local fish and six different preparations in the chef’s menu. My favorite is the blackened wreck fish with butter beans and creamed corn. Address: 320 Wingo Way, Suite 100, Mt. Pleasant, SC 29464, https://gracegrit.com/.

Melanie’s Picks — Bars

#1. Rarebit: If you favor bold and boozy Mad Men inspired cocktails, stop by the Rarebit. This retro-styled bar’s cocktail menu offers an array of old classics from the Sazerac to the Singapore Sling. They also serve Corpse Reviver, a gin cocktail which was popularized by the 1930s Savoy Cocktail Book and originally devised as a hangover cure. Their tonics, bitters + ginger and root beer are house made. In continued on page 71

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ATG Food + Beverage Roundup from page 70 fact, their Moscow Mule (Smirnoff vodka, limeade and Sweatman’s ginger beer) is so popular that it’s on tap — and accounted for 20 percent of their sales on their opening night in 2012. I despise vodka, but their ginger beer gives it perfect balance. I’ve been fortunate enough to attend the Charleston Library Conference for the past five years, and no matter how packed my schedule is I always make time to knock back a few Moscow Mules. Address: 474 King Street, Charleston, SC 29403, https://therarebit.com/. #2. Bar Mash: This popular whiskey bar is part of the Old Cigar Factory’s restaurant and bar pair, Mercantile and Mash, and creates high-quality cocktails. Their menu highlights domestic spirits, beer, wine and craft cocktails, as well as elevated bar food. For whiskey lovers, sip The Slow Burn, made of Highland Park Magnus, chamomile tea, cayenne maple, lemon and ginger. If you’re craving something sweet, try the Pablo Pibb made of Wyoming whiskey, cherry syrup, fernet branca, lemon and cola. Bar Mash is ideal for small to mid-size groups as it hosts a bevy of house entertainment options, such as live bluegrass, a bocce court, shuffle board, the 1980s game Defender and an old-fashioned jukebox. Address: 701 E Bay Street, Charleston, SC 29403, https://www.barmashchs.com/.

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#3. Cocktail Club: Located in the historic 1881 building, the Cocktail Club is above its sister restaurant, the Macintosh, and draws inspiration from Prohibition era speakeasies — but only its interior, not the cocktails. It occupies 2,500 square feet and their custom bar is made of reclaimed wood salvaged from the original structure from 1881. It features three lounge areas with leather couches, chairs, fireplaces and wood barrels — and a rooftop terrace with a garden which produces fresh garnishes for their creative cocktails. This upscale lounge has an extensive selection of unique liquors and cocktails like the Johnny Dagger, made with Jefferson small batch bourbon, Pierre Ferrand dry curaco, walnut liqueur, all spice and Angostura Bitters. If you crave gin, try the Macho Man Dandy Savage, made with dandelion-infused gin, yellow chartreuse, wildflower honey, house-made orange bitters and fresh lemon. If you’re drinking as a group, go in on the Pimm’s Punch — serves 4-6 — made of Pimm’s Kronin Punsch, curacao highlighted with strawberries, mint, lime, cucumber & ginger ale. Address: 479 King Street, #200, Charleston, SC 29403, https://www.thecocktailclubcharleston.com/. #4. Vintage Lounge: Last year the Vintage Lounge was named the most beautifully

designed bar in South Carolina by Architectural Digest. The décor is a mix of Casablanca vibes and eclectic antiques from Paris, and features an incredible barrel ceiling with gold-leaf detailing. Husband and wife team Kathleen and Mike Shuler created the Vintage Lounge to be a haven for oenophiles. They offer wine flights that include Burgundy, Aligote, Gamay and Pinot Noir as well as wine cocktails like the New York Sour with bourbon, lemon and red wine. They also challenge guests to test their wine knowledge blindfolded — if you’re correct the glass is on the house! Address: 545 King Street, Charleston, SC 29403, https:// vintagechs.com/. #5. Citrus Club: This rooftop bar above the Dewberry has the highest viewpoint in the city, and one can see as far as the Atlantic Ocean, weather permitting. To enter, visitors must make a reservation two weeks in advance and check-in at the host stand in the Dewberry lobby. This secluded spot is ideal for meetings with library vendors and publishers. Libations range from the tropical — frozen pina coladas, frozen banana foster and Polynesian Pearl Diver — to craft beer and wine. Address: 334 Meeting Street, Charleston, SC 29403, https://www.thedewberrycharleston.com/.

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Biz of Digital — Developing and Growing a New Repository Service: Part 2 Procedures for Library Submissions by Column Editor: Michelle Flinchbaugh (Acquisitions and Digital Scholarship Services Librarian, Albin O. Kuhn Library & Gallery, University of Maryland Baltimore County, 1000 Hilltop Circle, Baltimore, MD 21250; Phone: 410-455-6754; Fax: 410-455-1598) <flinchba@umbc.edu> Column Editor’s Note: This is Part 2 of a 3 part series on Creating a New Repository Service. Part 1: Getting Started appeared in the June issue (v.31#3). Part 3: Expansion will appear in the November 2019 issue. — MF

Introduction

The University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC), a research-intensive institution with 546 Full-time and 292 Part-time faculty, participates in the Maryland Shared Open Access Repository (MD-SOAR) and has the MD-SOAR DSpace platform available to it. The Digital Scholarship Services Librarian (DSS Librarian) at UMBC’s Albin O. Kuhn Library shifted duties from Acquisitions to work full time on the repository. Four months into a soft roll-out with minimal outreach only to individual faculty members, she had attempted to get faculty to submit items themselves with little success. She also began identifying new faculty publications via Google Scholar Alerts and adding these to the repository when appropriate with this method of populating the repository proving to be far more successful. Processing Google Scholar Alerts requires determining if items were appropriate for the repository, checking rights, asking faculty for the item or a particular version when needed, then adding the work. Sometimes when the librarian corresponds with faculty about their works, they also request that she load other materials as well. After four months of this approach, the librarian was inundated by requests to add items to the repository for faculty, so she further developed processes and procedures to handle those requests as well. With new procedures being developed primarily by one librarian, it became critically important to document in detail both so that items would be entered consistently and so that another person could find and follow the procedures for processing and submitting items to the repository for faculty. In approaching the development and documentation of procedures, there were a number of questions that arose: • Given the MD-SOAR scope that requires items be available for free, either via a link to a free version online or via an attached pdf file, and UMBC’s policy decision to add items to all relevant collections, including Student, Faculty and Staff Collections, what are the steps for processing an item on a Google Scholar Alert? • How does processing vary when the works don’t come from a Google Scholar Alert, but another repository, from a publications website, a Google Scholar Profile, a CV or from a list?

Processing Google Scholar Alerts

Creating and De-Duping Google Alerts Results for any search performed in Google Scholar includes the option to “Create alert.” When the searcher chooses “Create alert,” the terms of the search fill into an “Alert query” box, and the searcher’s email auto-fills into another box. Once the searcher clicks “Create alert,” she receives an email of new items whenever new items with that search term are added. The DSS Librarian chose to monitor the search terms “The University of Maryland Baltimore County” and “UMBC.” The two Alert emails come with many duplicates, and the first step is to print both the UMBC and University of Maryland, Baltimore County Alerts that came on a given date, and remove duplicates by crossing them out on one of the Alert printouts. At first it was unclear if both printouts are necessary. Indeed, most UMBC publications come on the Alert with the full name, University of Maryland, Baltimore County. Yet there are still consistently unique UMBC publications on the Alert for the abbreviated form of the university name, especially for preprints and other informally published items where the full name of the university wasn’t included on the work.

Figure 1 Google Scholar Alert Example Determining if the Works on Alerts are Appropriate About half the items the DSS Librarian receives on Google Alerts are inappropriate to the repository, already loaded into the repository, or not UMBC publications at all. Some items are only abstracts without the full work, CVs, obituaries, patent applications, or a description of a grant funded project. These aren’t added to the repository, so they’re crossed out on the printout. Google Alerts include theses and dissertations, but they have their own separate workflow and are periodically loaded, so not processed when received on a Google Scholar Alert. continued on page 73

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Biz of Digital from page 72 Some items have no UMBC author, but include UMBC in a citation or credit, or UMBC stands for another organization. Therefore, the first step in processing Google alerts is to determine if the format of the item is appropriate, if it’s appropriate to add it via this workflow (it’s not a thesis or dissertation), and that at least one author is affiliated with UMBC. Since these are new publications, they aren’t generally duplicates, but in instances where the title sounds familiar, the DSS Librarian also searches the repository to see if the item has already been added. Otherwise duplicate searching is done right before items are entered. Paywalls Once the DSS Librarian determines that an item is appropriate for the repository, she notes on a printout of the email alert if the item is paywall protected. When she’s asked faculty for permission to load a work in ArivX.org, or a pre- or post-print pdf to add, a month or two later she follows up on works that she’s requested but not received a response. Works not paywall protected are free and can be added with just a link if permission wasn’t granted for the file or a pdf wasn’t provided, so she adds these without a file attached once it’s clear that no response is ever coming. Paywall written next to an item indicates that the item can’t be added unless the faculty member granted permission or provided an appropriate version because it’s not available for free, so no follow-up is necessary. Determining Collections Collections in ScholarWorks@UMBC include both departmental collections, e.g., UMBC History Collection, UMBC Physics Collections, and author status collections, e.g., UMBC Student Colletion. Determining collections may be done early in the process, or at the end. If the DSS Librarian is searching the directory to determine if an author(s) is affiliated with UMBC, or searching for author(s) email address, she’ll do it while already in the directory. Often the department(s) of the UMBC author(s) is given on the work, and the item will go in each of the collections for all departments listed as affiliations for that author. Then she searches the UMBC Directory to determine if the author(s) are faculty, staff, or a student, and indicates whichever one(s) are appropriate. She also uses the campus directory to find the departmental affiliation of authors when it’s not given on the work. Making determinations of what collections an item belongs in is sometimes hampered by the limitations of the UMBC Directory. Those who have graduated or otherwise left the university are no longer listed. Generally, the directory explicitly states that someone is faculty and their department. Sometimes it also explicitly states that a person is a graduate assistant and their department. For graduate students who aren’t graduate assistants, and for undergraduates, there is no information on a person’s status or affiliation, but status can sometimes be determined from the department’s website. Occasionally there is no information to determine a person’s status or affiliation. If the DSS Librarian has an email address for the author (either given on the work or via the e-mail system), she’ll ask the author. Items can only be mapped to collections if a determination on status and affiliation is possible based on the available information. If both the status and affiliation cannot be determined, the item cannot be added to ScholarWorks@UMBC because it must go into at least one collection. If making the collection determination early on in the process becomes problematic or time consuming, the DSS Librarian generally puts it off until the end so as not to be overly distracted from the steps she’s currently working on, and because she might not be able to add the item, and won’t actually need to make collection determinations.

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ArXiv Many UMBC faculty consistently post pre-prints on ArXiv, and the DSS Librarian receives notices of all of UMBC posts to ArXiv through Google Scholar. ArXiv allows reposting to institutional repositories with the author’s permission, so the DSS Librarian emails the author, with the title of their work in the subject line, to seek permission. She uses a canned request in a Google template for this.

Figure2 ArXiv email example Response to these emails has been very high. Some faculty have become “regulars” always saying yes. Once they become a “regular” she omits the explanation and niceties and just sends a single sentence question asking if it’s ok. With a positive response, she proceeds with adding the pdf of the item. With a negative response, she adds the item, linking to it on ArchivX without providing the pdf. Finally, with no response, after a period of time has elapsed she also adds the item to the repository, linking to it on ArchivX without providing the pdf. Rights — Creative Commons Licenses If the item is not on ArXiv, the next step is to investigate rights for the item. First she looks for a Creative Commons license on the work, and if there is one, she adds the item to ScholarWorks@UMBC on the same Creative Commons license. If the item says open access on it, this requires some investigation, as sometimes it means everything in a particular journal is on the same Creative Commons license, and other times they’ve defined it in a particular way. Oftentimes she can load these into the repository, but sometimes the publisher means only open on their website and doesn’t allow distribution via a repository, in which case she simply adds the item with a link to the publisher’s version without providing a file. Discovering that an item is on a Creative Commons license sometimes doesn’t happen until later in the process. If a publisher is completely open access, they may provide information on their website about what Creative Commons license all of their journals are on, but not provide that information on the journal page or on individual articles. When this is the case, we may not realize an item is on a Creative Commons license until we see that information in a reference such as our Policy of File or in the Sherpa-Romeo database. Rights — Federal Government Publications and Federal Government Employee Authors Part of investigating rights is determining if the item is a U.S. government publication, or a work authored by a U.S. government employee as a part of their job. If so, these items are in the public domain, so she adds them to the repository, putting them on a Creative Commons Public Domain license, adding a note that states, “This is a work of the United States Government. In accordance with 17 U.S.C. 105, no copyright protection is available for such works under U.S. Law” or “This work was written as part of one of the author’s official duties as an Employee of the United States Government and is therefore a work of the United States Government. In accordance with 17 U.S.C. 105, no copyright protection is available for such works under U.S. Law.” Rights — Our Policies on File and the Scherpa-Romeo Database If a work isn’t on a Creative Commons license, or in the public domain, and it’s a journal article, the DSS Librarian finds the journal’s continued on page 74

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Biz of Digital from page 73

open access is defined some other way, she stays within the publisher’s definition of it. Sometimes the DSS Librarian learns from Scherpa-Romeo that she can post the published version, and if that’s accessible to her, she goes ahead and adds it. If it’s not accessible, she asks the author for it. Most frequently she finds in Scherpa-Romeo that only the pre-print or postprint of an article can be posted. These are also known as the submitted and accepted version of the article. The pre-print or submitted version is the manuscript before peer-review took place. The post-print or accepted version is the manuscript after the author has made peer-review edits, but before the publisher has done any work on it. To get these versions of an article, she generally has to email the author to request them. Her first email about this simply stated she was trying to add items to a new repository. This resulted in a decent number of responses, but a second email that focused on how much open access can increase the citations to works only available for a fee improved the responses significantly.

self-archiving policy using a “Policies on File” document (https://wiki. umbc.edu/display/library/Policies+on+File) or the Scherpa-Romeo database of publisher copyright policies and self-archiving (http://www. sherpa.ac.uk/romeo/index.php). Initially she used only the Romeo-Scherpa database, but conference proceedings publishers aren’t included, and as these became quite numerous she created a “Policies on File” document for them. In this document, she keeps a summary of each publisher’s policy that includes all terms to address, and a link to the full policy. Eventually she added all publishers’ policies she frequently uses to the “Policies on File” document, and additionally, policies that were emailed to her by the publisher. By including frequently used publishers in this document, she saves time in that she doesn’t have to search for policies for those publishers, which sometimes takes a great deal of poking around on their website. Additionally, it saves time in that she doesn’t have to read complex, confusing, or lengthy legalese in policies and author agreements to find the information she needs each time she has another work from that publisher. Eventually, it also provided a way to enable students and staff to make decisions without them also having to review such complex and confusing documents and agreements. By including policies emailed to her by the publisher, Figure 3 Asking for a pre-print or post-print with explanation she retains a record of what she was told of how open access increases citations so that she doesn’t have to ask each and every time she receives a work from that If an author sends the pre-print or post-print, she adds it to the republisher. The Policies on File document is available on the UMBC Library’s intranet with other documentation, here: https://wiki.umbc. pository. In the event the author provides the published version rather edu/display/library/Policies+on+File. It will be important to period- than the pre-print and post-print, the DSS Librarian explains the risk ically check this document against the publisher’s policies to note any of copyright infringement and provides more detail on the version she changes that have been made and to ensure that links are still working. actually needs; sometimes they respond with an appropriate version The scope of Google Alerts is journal articles and case law, so the and sometimes they don’t. If they don’t respond, or don’t provide an initial procedure for finding rights information assumed that all works appropriate version, she addresses the work during the follow-up process retrieved via Google Scholar Alerts were journal articles, but they also described above under “Paywall.” Google Scholar Alerts procedure documentation is available here: include conference papers, presentation slides, book chapters, reports, unpublished items etc. To address this, she systematically focused on https://wiki.umbc.edu/display/library/Google+Alerts. The DSS Libraronly journal articles and conference papers, both of which were avail- ian updates it as time permits. able in substantial quantities. The first step for these was to check them Rights — Terms against the “Policies on File” document, frequently adding publishers’ Unless a submission to the repository is only a link or unpublished, policies as she receives quantities of their works. If the DSS librarian specific terms must be adhered to. The terms of all Creative Commons doesn’t get the self-achiving information there, what she does varies licensed materials require that a citation be included, and the inclusion based on whether the item is a conference proceeding or journal article. of a citation is so ubiquitous that it can be assumed to be required on all For conference proceedings, she searches the conference, conference published works. Most publishers also require a link to the final pubwebsite, and conference proceedings to look for a posted policy. If she lished version of the work, and/or a DOI linking to the final published can’t locate a posted policy for a conference, she’ll link to them without version of the work. Some require copyright statements, and some providing a pdf if the content is available freely on the web; if it’s not require specific statements with information on the work, sometimes freely available, that one will be skipped. If there is a large quanitity the full citation, plugged in. Finally, some require embargo period be of works from the same conference, she’ll look for a contact and ask adhered to, a period of time after official publication and before which about their policy. For journal articles, she searches the Scherpa-Romeo the work can be made available via repositories. Care must be taken database, and if there’s no information there, she’ll search for the journal to note and adhere to the specific terms each publisher requires for or journal publisher and try to locate a self-archiving policy on their inclusion in the repository. site. When trying to find self-archiving policies for either conference Processing Requests to Load Materials papers or journal articles, the publishers don’t usually call them that, so it often takes some poking around on their website and perusing a few When the DSS Librarian contacts faculty with a request related different pages before finding the one(s) with the information needed. to content discovered via Google Scholar Alerts, they occasionally When the DSS Librarian locates rights information, she some- respond with their own requests for additional materials for the repostimes discovers that the entire conference proceedings or journals are itory. The first of these types of requests came from faculty that had open-access, or everything that publisher publishes is open access, even come from another university that had a repository, and they wanted though this isn’t indicated on the work itself. She has to determine if their materials from that repository added to ours. Sometimes when by open access they mean that it’s on a Creative Commons license, faculty respond to our requests for a work, they attach the pre-print or free on their website, or are using some other definition of open access. post-print of other papers that they’ve written. Other times, they’ve It can also take some searching on the publisher’s website to find the directed us to their public Google Scholar Page, their Lab publication Creative Commons license the proceedings or journal are on. If she page, or a facility publication page. Sometimes they send a list of has confirmed it is on a Creative Commons license, then she handles everything that they’ve published or their CV. Later in outreach, the as described above under “Rights-Creative Commons Licenses.” If continued on page 75

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Biz of Digital from page 74 Digital Scholarship Services Librarian would tell them that they can send lists, CVs, or a link to their Google Scholar profile and the library would process and add these items. The additional publications that the DSS Librarian receives are handled exactly in the same manner as she handles the Google Alerts, with some key differences:

Variations in the Materials and Information Provided

PDFs: When working from Google, there is usually a link to the full-text version of a work on the publisher’s website, or to the publisher’s record for the item with the link to the work. Most often this isn’t a version the DSS Librarian can load and she has to ask one of the authors to provide the pre-print or post-print. The pdf on a local website (e.g., a lab or faculty webpage) may or may not be a version that can be loaded in the repository. Publisher’s versions which usually can’t be posted in repositories, are readily identified by the publisher’s trademark, their copyright statement, and with pagination that doesn’t begin with one. Pre- and post-prints can be identified by the lack of this information. When in doubt, the version posted can be compared to the published version. Depending on the age of the item in question, the DSS Librarian may or may not ask the author for a version to load. When working with some sources, she finds the versions to almost always be a version that can’t be added, and with others, they’ve consistently posted a version that can be added. Links: Google usually links to the record for a work, so metadata with a great deal of information and the published version of the work is instantly available. But sometimes Google links directly to the pdf, in which case the DSS Librarian searches to find a record with metadata because she wants to link to the published version, provide a DOI, and get metadata and a citation from the publisher’s record. When a lab or faculty website has a link to a pdf of the full text, the lab or faculty website may or may not have a link to the published document — when it’s omitted she searches for it because, again, she wants to link to the published version, provide a DOI, and get metadata and a citation from the publisher’s record. Metadata: Google usually provides accurate but limited information about a work, e.g., the work’s title, the name of the journal it was published in, volume and number, pages, and publisher’s record can be used to complete that information. On the other hand, when working with websites, lists, and CVs, titles don’t always exactly match the title of the published version, or might include abbreviated or even erroneous journal information, making it difficult to locate the published version of the work. Generally, a title search on Google will yield the published version of the item. If it can’t be located that way, the DSS Librarian searches the journal title or an abbreviated form of it to try to find the item on the journal’s site. On the journal’s site, she title searches, but sometimes when the items that aren’t coming up by title, she’ll also search by the author. Some journal websites don’t have search capability and she has to navigate to the work by volume and issue. Locating pre-prints and post-prints: The DSS Librarian seldom searches titles of works coming on Google alerts. First, she doesn’t need to locate the publisher’s record since there’s usually a link to it, and also because publications are usually new, the work isn’t usually posted on other sites yet. With websites, CVs, and lists of publications, she usually title searches items, both to locate the publisher’s record if necessary, and also to look at the work on other sites, where she can sometimes find a free full text version of the article that she can either load or link to. For example, frequently she finds biology works available for free on PubMed and is able to load the version on PubMed or link to the version on PubMed. Variations in the age of items: Google Alerts only provide notification for newly published items. The DSS Librarian also consults other lists of items published before the author was at UMBC which sometimes include items that were published more than 20 years ago. When a work is more than 20 years old, a publisher’s current self-archiving policy certainly doesn’t apply to it. Additionally, it is not always feasible to determine status and departmental affiliation of authors on older works because authors are more likely to have left UMBC and are no longer in

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the directory. Therefore, unless it’s freely available or on Creative Commons license, she does not do anything with items published that long ago. For more recent content, if an item was written before the person came to UMBC, she adds the item on their department’s page but doesn’t add it to the Faculty Collection since the individual wasn’t UMBC faculty when they wrote it. Permissions: When the DSS Librarian discovers a UMBC publication via Google Alerts, she asks permission to load when the item isn’t on a Creative Commons license and the author(s) own the copyright. However, when she receives a request to load the item, either individually or as part of list or Google Scholar page, permission to load is implied, so she doesn’t ask. Fewer out-of-scope works: When working from websites and CV’s, out-of-scope works and works without an author affiliated with UMBC are extremely rare compared to Google Alerts and Google Profiles. Information on status/department: When loading publications from a center or lab website, authors’ profiles are sometimes available, precluding the need to search the directory for that information. When it’s not on the work, and she sometimes get a lot more information from the website than she’d get from the directory if the department maintains historical records as opposed to deleting people when they leave UMBC. Keywords for labs: When loading materials from a lab’s publication page, she adds the name of the lab as a keyword. This allows for keyword searching that will generate a link to the lab’s publications which can then be shared with the lab.

Determining How to Document Procedures for Different Types of Sources

While there is a lot of variation in the different sources of items to be processed, there are also enough key similarities and overlaps to make it preferable to manage a single long procedure, outlining when you do and don’t perform certain steps. The DSS Librarian didn’t begin this integrated document until a student began working on this. It’s intended to eventually be a catch-all document that describes how to handle 9095% of works received with any exceptions to be referred to the DSS Librarian for processing. This procedure will be discussed in more detail in the upcoming Part 3, Expansion, for this series. Procedures for other formats weren’t documented until a student was hired and began working on this, when the existing procedure and documentation proved inadequate in failing to provide information on anything but serials and conference proceedings. Those procedures will also be discussed in more detail in Part 3, Expansion.

Adding a Work to ScholarWorks@UMBC

Early on, when creating metadata records in ScholarWorks@UMBC, the DSS Librarian realized that she was handling some things inconsistently, so she documented what goes into each field (available here: https://wiki.umbc.edu/pages/viewpage.action?pageId=73893118). She would process an item, and then enter it. When doing this, she would have to note or remember information as she found it to fill in the metadata accurately. However, it was still easy to forget to add some bits of information, so she needed a consistent method of adding items that guided her through everything that she needed. Additionally, some of the information required judgement calls that a new student assistant or staff person wouldn’t be able to make. Further, the text in the documentation was very dense, making it difficult for a student assistant or staff person to follow while actually entering new items in the repository. Most of these issues were resolved later in advance of hiring and are discussed in the next session.

Conclusions

Initial procedures and documentation for an operation relying on one librarian were an important stepping stone. While they weren’t completely satisfactory, or always thoroughly documented, opportunities for changes were identified and made, in an iterative process. It allowed time to accumulate information, test, and revise. This made the procedures work better, and the documentation more complete and easier to follow. Having these interim procedures and documentation in place facilitated the expansion of the service described in Part 3 by allowing for intense focus on making the procedures and documentation complete, easily understood, and readily usable by student assistants and potentially eventually by staff.

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Don’s Conference Notes by Donald T. Hawkins (Freelance Conference Blogger and Editor) <dthawkins@verizon.net> and Leah Hinds (Executive Director, Charleston Library Conference) <hindsl@gmail.com>

The 2019 ACRL Conference: Recasting the Narrative Column Editor’s Note: Because of space limitations, this is an abridged version of our report on this conference. You can read the full article which includes descriptions of additional sessions at https://www.against-the-grain.com/2019/09/v31-4-donsconference-notes/. — DTH & LH

ore than 3,000 attendees from 23 countries met in Cleveland, OH on April 10-13 for the biannual conference of the Association of College & Research Libraries (ACRL). The conference featured traditional plenary and concurrent presentations, poster sessions, an exhibit hall with 223 exhibitors, round-table discussions, and a reception at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.

Audience at the Opening Keynote

Opening Keynote

Michelle Norris, the opening keynote speaker, is an award-winning journalist, founder of the Race Card Project,1 and Executive Director of The Bridge,2 a program of the Aspen Institute on race, identity, connectivity, and inclusion. She began her address by noting that not only do the stories we tell define us, but they can also confine us and keep us from seeing things. Race is a big topic and is often difficult to discuss. So she founded the Race Card Project, which challenges participants to reduce their thoughts to six words and send it to her. The response to the project was huge; thousands of cards were sent. Many of them used humor; many were about people’s identities; and others were aspirational. (Norris’s six words Michelle Norris are “still more work to be done.”) Sometimes the stories are difficult, but in this project, people find ways they can celebrate their differences and realize what they have in common and what they do not, which helps us to understand diversity. The most work we can do is to create spaces where people can listen to each other. Libraries are places where that can happen. It is always good to listen first and figure out what you can agree on, stay together with people that you do not agree with and who may have pilloried you, and then work on recapturing lost relationships.

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How Faculty Members Demonstrate Impact

This standing-room-only session featured six reports describing a multi-dimensional study of faculty members’ understandings, perceptions, and strategies regarding impact metrics. Dan DeSanto and Aaron Nichols from the University of Vermont created a survey and presented a report on it at ACRL 2017. • How familiar are faculty members with scholarly metrics and altmetrics? • How accurate do faculty members perceive scholarly impact metrics to be? • How important are scholarly metrics to faculty members? • How much weight do faculty members believe should be given to scholarly impact metrics? • How are scholarly impact metrics used in the promotion and tenure (P&T) process? There were 1,222 responses to the survey; here are some results: • In general, faculty members were less familiar with altmetrics than traditional ones; the majority of Arts & Humanities (A&H) faculty members said they were “not at all familiar” with altmetrics. • A&H faculty members perceived scholarly metrics to be less accurate than faculty members in the sciences, social sciences and health sciences, and faculty members in those disciplines reported higher perceived importance. • A&H faculty members perceive, value, and use metrics differently than faculty members in other disciplines. • The role of scholarly metrics in the P&T process remains unclear to most faculty members. These results suggest that we need a better understanding of what A&H disciplines value in metrics, how metrics are being used in general, and why they struggle for visibility.

Understanding Graduate Students’ Knowledge of Research Data Management (RDM)

Two librarians from the University of Pittsburgh and one from nearby Duquesne University noticed a significant interest in RDM by graduate students and suspected that there was a more widespread need on their campuses. Not only was there a need for RDM training, but graduate students were doing most of the work on RDM, and in many cases faculty members did not know what they were doing. Students learn from courses, hands-on experiences from labs and projects, and individually. Differences in student workflows depended on the discipline in which they were working: science students’ work was influenced by instruments and experiments; those in the humanities and social sciences had more ad hoc and individual practices. Many students are concerned about losing data and do regular backups (one even mailed a hard drive to parents for safekeeping!). Some students do not know the source of the data they are working with because they are not integrated into the overall workflow but are just assigned tasks. Libraries can play a role in the RDM process. Students want certifications, courses, workshops, and practical training to help them streamline what they do. Libraries can provide help with citation management, such as conducting workshops on EndNote and even the intricacies of Excel. Most students are focused on data creation and are not aware of what happens to it throughout its life cycle, which suggests that libraries can teach RDM as a system and should consider embedding RDM education into research practices. continued on page 77

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Don’s Conference Notes from page 76 Reshaping the Library Literature

Heather Getsay and Aiping Chen-Gaffey, Professors in the Bailey Library at Slippery Rock University (SRU), PA, reported on research they conducted on publishing activities of technical services librarians at smaller institutions like SRU and the challenges such librarians have faced. They collected a sample of library literature published from 2013 to 2018 and also a sample of 15 job descriptions from institutions of different sizes and found the following:

to be the colonizer. The problem is not that we are voiceless; it is that we are not heard. The desire of a voice for the voiceless is a symptom of colonization, but we need de-colonization. Some of the ways to do that include abolishing the present industrial complex, de-militarization, etc., which are difficult but not impossible.

ACRL Roadshow Showcase: Move Your Library Forward with Local, Affordable, In-Person Training

The ACRL Roadshow4 is a series of one-day traveling workshops that bring the learning to you. There are six different choices of topics, from assessment to data management to standards, and each is led by expert presenters in the field.

We Don’t Need That Any More: Impact of Digitization on Print Usage

Opportunities for librarians at smaller institutions are: • Maintain awareness of trends in the field, • Develop research from their technical services work, • Co-author with colleagues from larger institutions, and • Partner with larger institutions.

Open Textbook Toolkit: Developing a New Narrative for OER Support

Presented by Will Cross and Mira Walker from NC State University, this standing-room-only session focused on IMLS-funded research that was completed to help faculty in the psychology department at NC State implement open education resources (OERs). They discussed perceived barriers for faculty to implement OERs on campus, and provided actionable recommendations to support adoption of OERs at other institutions and in other fields. A faculty guide to OERs is available on the NC State website.3

Thursday Keynote

Viet Than Nguyen, Professor of English and American Studies and Ethnicity at the University of Southern California, a writer, and winner of the Pulitzer and Macarthur prizes, came to the U.S. as a refugee from the Vietnam War in 1975. He was unable to find a sponsor for all four members of his family; separating from his parents still affects him as a traumatic experience. Now that he is a father, he can see what the experience was like for them. Being a refugee gave him the necessary experience to become a writer. Today, we are living in the worst refugee crisis since World War II. There is something stigmatizing a refugee because Viet Than Nguyen nobody knows what to say to you after you disclose that. In 1975, most of the American public did not want to accept refugees from Southeast Asia, but immigrants and refugees have the right to be as ordinary as every other American. We need more diverse representation — the publishing industry is 87% white, which tells us that there is a persistence of colonization in the U.S. Successful colonization occurs when the settlers never leave; it is called the American dream. We need to recognize that Vietnam is a country, not a war! We have made some bad choices in the past: when we have had the choice of being the colonizer or being colonized, we have chosen

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In a standing-room-only session, Thomas Teper and Vera Vasileva from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign discussed their research on differences in demand for print titles before and after digitization and the difference in demand for those published before and after 1923. Results of their study indicated that: • There are measurable differences in demand based on the subject classifications of the items and their circulation. • Average annual use for print resources decreases after digitization. • The results appear to contradict speculation that the free access to pre-1923 items decreases demand. In fact, after digitization, pre-1923 items circulated more frequently than post-1923 items.

Scientists Don’t Use Books — Or Do They?

Michelle Wilde, Coordinator, College Liaisons, Colorado State University (CSU), investigated how eBook statistics can challenge conventional wisdom and inform collection decisions. Today, attitudes toward eBooks are changing rapidly. Usage and adoption seems to vary by institution. At CSU, after a flood in 2012 destroyed many of the print books in storage, eBooks have been the preferred format for monograph purchasing, and now they have over 500,000 of them. eBooks are purchased from publishers in three packages: • Ownership (from Springer and Elsevier): The content is DRM free, and users have access to a wide variety of holdings. Usage of these works is increasing. • Lease: Some high-impact titles are only available in a lease arrangement, which has the disadvantage that monographs become treated like serials. • An evidence-based model is emerging. CSU has experienced a dramatic increase in demand-driven acquisitions of eBooks.

The Eyes Have It: Using Eye Tracking to Evaluate a Library Website

Tracey Kry from Western New England University and Emily Porter-Fyke from Fairfield University wanted to evaluate how a library website was used (reading vs. scanning), the use of buttons, navigation, and terminology. They developed a list of tasks that students could do, recruited testers (mainly engineering students), and used Tobii-2 glasses5 to observe and record which parts of the site were being looked at. Nine first-year students used a talkaloud protocol to describe how they used the website in performing the assigned tasks. The resulting data told the investiTobii-2 Glasses gators which ones were the most difficult to complete and the optimal path that the students used. The most frequently viewed section of the web pages was the left side. Participants rarely scrolled down to look at the lower (“below the fold”) sections of the page, but they were willing to use a search box if one was provided. They usually scanned pages rather than reading them. Jargon was a problem for the participants. continued on page 78

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Don’s Conference Notes from page 77 Start Something New: How Libraries Support Cross-Campus Entrepreneurship Education

This session featured four librarians showing how they support entrepreneurship through the library in a variety of ways on diverse campuses. Ash Faulkner (The Ohio State University), Genifer Snipes (University of Oregon), and Marlinda Karo (Houston Community College) discussed topics such as outreach, instruction, campus and community engagement, and collection issues. Some examples of library support were helping to coach students for “pitch” style contests, providing space and support for entrepreneurial club events and workshops, and more. Another discussion was on collections issues, and the unique challenges faced in providing entrepreneurship resources. Most databases still focus on brick-and-mortar/traditional industries and keeping up with the landscape of available resources is challenging.

Talking About Research: Applying Textual Analysis Software to Student Interviews

What does the term “research” mean to students and how do they form narratives to make sense of the research process? Sarah Wagner and Ann Marshall from Purdue University Fort Wayne used Voyant Tools6 to analyze the conversations of 20 undergraduate students who were involved with a research project. Common words associated with “research” included “paper,” “project,” “class,” and “presentation.” Many students thought of research as work. It is important to note that libraries need a deep appreciation of students’ perspectives on their work.

Impact of Artificial Intelligence on Libraries

A panel of librarians and publisher representatives noted that there is no common definition of artificial intelligence (AI), but the Projects in Artificial Intelligence Registry (PAIR)7 maintained at the University of Oklahoma Library can give us a view of its scope. M.J. Tooey, Associate VP, Academic Affairs, University of Maryland Baltimore, started a Journal Club to discuss topics such as: • What do Google and Facebook know about us and how do they know? • AI in healthcare, • Data accuracy (or inaccuracy) and its effect on AI, • Intelligent agents and how they work, • Ethical and privacy considerations, and • Where do we go from here? Bohyun Kim, Associate Professor, University of Rhode Island (URI) Libraries, described an AI lab at URI8 that offers workshops on basic programming, robotics, etc. She said that we will soon be interacting with machine intelligence; should we delegate high-level tasks to the machine? AI may appear magical but it is based on the data given to the system, so we must pay close attention to the algorithms used to generate the data. Adam Griff, Managing Director, Brightspot Consulting, presented new roles for the library in the age of AI: • The library as a convenor: bringing people together to discuss AI, particularly around ethical issues such as privacy and equity. • The library as creator: supporting AI and machine learning projects in the library and finding relationships across disciplines. Librarians have functional expertise around tools; AI will enhance this trend. • The library as service adaptor: using AI to provide library services such as Strayer University’s student service chatbot and the University of Oklahoma’s SoonerBot. • The library as discovery adaptor: using AI to enable and assist with discovery and research, creating metadata. Ann Gabriel, Senior VP, Global Strategic Markets, Elsevier described how knowledge is created and used. No sector of knowledge is focused on ethics.

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Elsevier’s AI resource center9 provides free access to research and expert commentary on AI as well as a link to a newly issued report entitled “Artificial Intelligence: How knowledge is created, transferred, and used.” In response to a set of three questions, panel members’ responses included: • Librarians bring a special perspective to the issues of ethics and privacy. • How can we track truth in research and understand what is embedded in articles? • Claims for AI are not reproducible if the data is not published. • How do we prepare students for an environment where they need higher level thinking skills? • AI is not just one thing; it is an infrastructure and integrated already into many things we already use (Google, robotics, etc.).

Ithaka S+R Faculty Survey 2018

Christine Wolff-Eisenberg and Roger Schonfeld of Ithaka S+R unveiled key findings from the 2018 Faculty Survey that has been tracking the attitudes and behaviors of U.S. faculty members since 2000 to provide longitudinal data on key issues and trend analysis of changes across survey cycles. Key takeaways from the survey results include: • Discovery starting points are shifting towards Google Scholar and other general search engines. • Faculty members increasingly prefer to manage and preserve their data using cloud-based storage services. • While faculty are increasingly interested in an open access publication model, traditional scholarly incentives continue to motivate their decision-making. • There is substantial interest in use of open educational resources for instructional practices, particularly from younger faculty members. • Faculty are skeptical about the value of using learning analytics tools. • The role of the library in archiving materials is increasingly important. The full report can be found online.10 Against the Grain will also be publishing a special report from librarians in the field on their response and experiences with faculty on the key findings presented here.

Creating Ideas Into Reality: Spaces and Programs that Open Up the Imagination

Kari Kozak, Head, Engineering Library, University of Iowa developed an innovative tool library after receiving an email from a frustrated professor who had 38 hand tools to donate. Now the library has more than 225 tools that can be checked out; in the fall semester of 2018, 1,703 were borrowed. The most popular tools are calculators, tape measures, ruler sets, and calipers. The tool library has given rise to the creation of a creative space to teach prototyping, virtual reality, computer programming and circuit building in a welcoming and fun environment. Topics include how to solder, create a poster, and program a computer. Using funding provided by the Engineering Technology Center, five kick-start awards of $500 each were given to individual students or teams to help them bring their projects into reality. The response to this program was very positive.

Reconceptualizing the Conference Experience This panel presented tips and best practices on how and why to start your own grassroots conference, especially focused on inclusivity and accessibility for small conferences. Each person on the panel had been involved with starting or organizing a small-scale conference event. The panel was composed of Rebecca Halpern (The Claremont Colleges Library), Elizabeth Galoozis (University of Southern California), Nataly Blas (Loyola Marymount University), Kayleen Jones (University of Minnesota Duluth), Stephanie Pierce (University of Arkansas), and a video presentation from Ali Versluis (University of Guelph). They posited that although conferences are seen as a central continued on page 79

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Don’s Conference Notes from page 78

list of poster sessions, descriptions, and presenters, and some PDF image files are listed in the conference program.11

component to spread knowledge, gather new ideas, and network within the library profession, they often remain inaccessible to many library staff, thus reinforcing inequalities in the profession. Some tips and takeaways included setting clear goals, a meaningful mission, and a theme that supports conference goals; designing an engaging space; looking for funding through local grants. Always remember to have fun and embrace the setbacks to learn for next time.

Publish Not Perish: Real Talk About Content Management Systems

Courtney McDonald, Learner Experience & Engagement Librarian, University of Colorado Boulder, and Heidi Burkhardt, Web Project Manager & Content Strategist, University of Michigan, noted that libraries are publishers, and their Content Management Systems (CMSs) are powerful because staff at all levels can create and publish content using them. But creating content takes time, and producing more noise than signal can become the norm. Challenges that can arise include: • So many authors producing content that it becomes difficult to track them, • Lack of a consistent voice for the organization, • Content bloat with repetition and duplication, • Lingering content without regular updates so that it becomes “crusty,” • Sites based on the organization chart, and • Poor accessibility, quality, etc. Organizations need a content strategy to manage content and ensure that it is useful, usable, well structured, and easily found and understood. This requires the following five steps: Why — Why is the content being produced and why would someone be interested in it? Why would they choose your content and not someone else’s? If you cannot say why someone would use your content, you need to think about your site. Who — Who is authoring, editing, approving, and publishing the content? Who are the internal decision makers? Who is the primary target audience? Who are the frequent users and who does not visit the website at all? What and Where — What do you have? Where does it live? Who owns and maintains it? What is the audience and purpose of the platforms? What kinds of actions make sense in the culture of the organization? Where are you putting your content? Is it running wild? What do you control and have influence on? When — When was the content born? When will you get around to fixing errors? When do you plan to revisit this content and this platform? Figure out your priorities. No page should be alone for its entire life; have an editorial calendar. How — Write well and write well for the web. Be thinking about things to make your content more accessible and play to your strengths. Produce high quality standards-compliant content. Decide which is the most critical of these questions to address and use your CMS for good!

Poster Sessions

ACRL hosted a series of digital-only poster sessions across several days of the conference. The platform used touch-screen laptops that enabled presenters and attendees to swipe and zoom on the poster images, as well as enter their name and email address to receive a PDF copy of the poster or more information. Each poster session timeslot had 24 posters organized in innovative groups of six in a hexagonal arrangement. The full

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Typical poster

A user sending a message to the author of the poster

Options for communicating with the author

Closing Session

Alison Bechdel, author of the graphic novel Fun Home (Houghton Mifflin, 2006)12 and the long-running comic series “Dykes to Watch Out For” closed the conference with stories connecting her work with what she called an “intense library cathexis,” with libraries and books as central themes in all of them, and of the often messy relationship between narrative and truth. “Libraries are crucial as one of the last Alison Bechdel spaces that exist not to sell you something, but to give you something for free.” continued on page 82

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Mayflower: Ode to New Beginnings — Beautiful Connector: Collection Showcase Exhibits as Teaching Tools and Community Builders Column Editor: Antje Mays (Director of Collections, University of Kentucky Libraries) <antjemays@uky.edu> Column Editor’s Note: Libraries’ quest to strengthen connections with their constituencies often finds expression in new services and repurposed user spaces. Some literature portrays libraries as focusing away from collections toward new trends in library portfolios, but showcasing collections can prove very effective in bringing the library and user communities closer together. This article recounts two recent library collection showcase exhibits as successful examples of bolstering stakeholder connections. — AM

Background: Why Collections Exhibits?

Expansion into new services abounds and reflects the changing nature of research, scholarship (Albitz, Avery, & Zabel, 2017; Eden, 2015), and ambitious libraries’ pursuit of distinction (Harris, 2016). As a long-established core feature of libraries, collections for their own sake are increasingly viewed as outmoded and secondary to outreach, assessment, instruction (Linden, et al., 2018; Way, 2017), and to new initiatives steeped in technologies or revamped spaces (Fernandez & Tilton, 2018). Yet as distinctive foods remain the defining prerequisite for sustained excellence in renowned restaurants (Jin et al., 2015; Stone et al., 2018), so do library collections remain central to intellectual rigor in teaching, learning, and research by providing information as raw materials for knowledge and discovery (Scull, 2017). Academic faculty acknowledge the importance of collections in the broader contexts of instruction and research support, but many are unaware of the library resources available to them (Schwartz & Albers-Smith, 2015). Learning is enhanced through skilled navigation of information and resources, but meaningful engagement with the curriculum is weakened by incomplete awareness of the collections’ extent (Swanson & Jagman, 2015). Providing information resources and expertise in fostering users’ research skills and lifelong learning is among the University of Kentucky Libraries’ strategic goals (UK Libraries, 2015). Exhibits for showcasing collections and related research strategies, especially when combined with marketing and outreach, can prove effective in helping campus communities more fully harness the power of library resources in their research.

Tools for Collections Exhibits

The University of Kentucky’s nine campus libraries’ rich collections support undergraduate through doctoral programs across all disciplines. Our library exhibit spaces host a variety of displays — some exhibits are collaborations with other campus areas, while others showcase special-topic collection areas. In the main university library, physical exhibit spaces include multiple wall spaces for image exhibits, seven locked acrylic exhibit cases in two sizes (complete with lining fabric and display supplies), and six free-standing seven-foot movable kiosks for mounting poster-sized materials. In addition, six wall pillars in a high-traffic location are fitted as digital display screens for virtual exhibits. Two recent library collection exhibits highlighted particular focal points: The Spring 2018 exhibit focused on Chinese materials from the Window of Shanghai program; the Fall 2018 exhibit showcased jurisprudence and informed citizenship in honor of Constitution Day. Both physical exhibits featured focused samplings of library materials, related artifacts, and pertinent research strategies — all arranged with artistic flair and marketed to campus communities. The larger exhibit in Fall 2018 was augmented with a virtual display in the busy hub area. Companion webpages for each exhibit fed into library marketing, direct invitations to campus contacts, and interactive learning activities. This multi-prong approach boosted exhibit visits and participation in related activities. Both exhibits sparked new conversations and heightened awareness of the library collections’ breadth and depth.

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Exhibit 1: Window of Shanghai

The Window of Shanghai exhibit (Spring 2018) consisted of a physical exhibit and a companion website with related research strategies. This exhibit highlighted some of the books received through our library’s participation in the Window of Shanghai program. China’s Shanghai Library launched this cultural exchange program in 2002 as a way to introduce Chinese culture to overseas readers. The Shanghai Library donates new Chinese publicaAn Illustrated tions to overseas book page libraries during the partnership’s active threeyear program period ( Wi n d o w of ShangManga biography of hai, 2019). Confucius Books in this program include heavily illustrated children’s books, manga, heavily illusA traditional threadtrated books on artistic, architectural, bound book and cultural traditions, as well as handcrafted books thread-bound with traditional silk cord. Coverage includes Chinese medicine, language study for all ages, literature, history, culture, and the arts. The books’ breadth of topics and readership levels support undergraduate and graduate students as well as Education students Children’s book with learning to teach foreign languages and practice letters cultural heritage in schools. Supplies and preparations: A few months after my arrival at UK Libraries during summer 2017, the library monograph manager and I began brainstorming and collaborating on ideas for showcasing Window of Shanghai materials. To broaden instructional reach, we decided to combine a physical exhibit with a companion website. The physical exhibit in the cases showed representative samples from the wide range of books and related cultural artifacts on loan from two library colleagues. The exhibit’s companion webpage (Window of Shanghai, 2018) showed selected photographs of materials on display and included a PDF version of our trifold Window of Shanghai ex- exhibit brochure. The webpage also hibit companion website continued on page 81

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Mayflower: Ode to New Beginnings from page 80 featured two small sections with research tips to help exhibit visitors find related library materials: One section’s live search links focused on specific topics; the other section’s live searches linked to materials from specific publishers of library books from the Window of Shanghai program. These live searches facilitated further engagement with related library resources. This successful engagement inspired new ideas for a comprehensive language guide and integrating the Window of Shanghai page therein.

Exhibit 2: Constitution Day

A larger-scale exhibit honoring Constitution Day ran during September 2018. More elaborate in scope, this multifaceted exhibit was a collaboration with the federal regional depository librarian as well as staff and students from her unit. Our brainstorms led us to develop a multimodal exhibit consisting of five distinct yet interrelated elements: (1) a month-long physical exhibit in the atrium, (2) month-long virtual companion exhibit, (3) month-long online learning activities, (4) a reception with U.S. Constitution-themed cake and learning activities on Constitution Day proper, and (5) a companion website used to interlink these physical and online components. Supplies and preparation: For the collections display, we chose a variety of our books and Government Documents related to the United States Constitution. The federal regional depository librarian worked with the GIS mapping specialist in reproducing several Constitution-related posters published by the U.S. government, identified a set of National Archives historical facsimiles of our nation’s founding documents, designed patriotic decorations, and lent several Constitution-related artifacts from her personal collection to enhance the exhibit’s historical styling. She also compiled voter registration information for all U.S. states and territories for the exhibit website, planned the learning activities for Constitution Day, designed a Government Documents scavenger hunt, and obtained from the U.S. Government Publishing Office (GPO) pocket Constitutions, Ben’s Guide to the Constitution bookmarks, and other Constitution-themed items as giveaways during the activities on Constitution Day. My part of the exhibit included creating posters of Constitution-related search strategies and sample results, photographing the exhibit and reception, designing three Constitution-related one-question Qualtrics surveys and analyzing responses, posting survey responses to the kiosks and website, and designing the virtual exhibit and companion website. Event support: To enhance the exhibit and related activities, our library administration supported purchase of historic document facsimiles, learning materials, a promotional banner, and Constitution-themed cake for the Constitution Day reception. The National Archives’ set of parchment-printed historical facsimiles includes the Declaration of Independence, the four-page U.S. Constitution, and the Bill of Rights. We incorporated these historical facsimiles in the physical exhibit — in one of the large cases, the federal depository librarian arranged the parchment Constitution with artistic flair and added her tricorn hat for historical ambiance. To produce our promotional banner, we secured from the United States Government Publishing Office (GPO) permissions and vector files of two versions of GPO’s mascot, a stylized image of Benjamin Franklin (Ben’s Guide, 2019). From GPO’s two image versions, the regional depository librarian chose her preferred Ben Franklin image for the banner. My design for the banner layout incorporated her preferred image version against a gradated sky background and anchored by UK Libraries branding; we

Against the Grain / September 2019

worked with a local sign company who produced the retractable and portable stand-up banner. The banner prominently marked the exhibit entry and drew visitors to the poster displays, pointers to online learning activities, and exhibit cases. Since the exhibit, the federal regional depository librarian has incorporated the historical documents and banner in some conference presentations, professional meetings, and collaborative projects. The physical exhibit comprised five exhibit cases, two tall freestanding kiosks, and the locally designed seven-foot promotional banner. The exhibit cases featured books, U.S. Government publications, artifacts, and pointed to instructional materials for hands-on and online learning activities. Constitution-related scholarly books encompassed constitutional history, legal scholarship, political science, citizenship education, and biographies of the nation’s founders, including a 1973 Russian biography of George Washington published by the Young Guard in Moscow (then USSR). Displayed U.S. Government publications included the U.S. Constitution with Amendments in book form, pocket Constitutions, a recent Congressional debate on First Amendment protections on college campuses, a citizenship toolkit with educational books and civic flashcards, small posters with Constitution-related research strategies, and Constitution-era documents reproduced on parchment. The kiosks displayed reproductions of five Constitution-related posters, parchment facsimile of the 1789 Resolution of the First Congress Submitting Twelve Amendments to the Constitution, and posters with URLs to three online Constitution surveys. Constitution Day reception and activities: September 17th, 2018 marked the 231st anniversary of the Constitution’s signing. The Constitution Day celebration kicked off with a cake reception and continued with learning activities including the Government Documents scavenger hunt, a selfie station at the 7-foot BenFranklin-themed stand-up banner, Constitution-related conversations, a Constitution-themed jigsaw puzzle, giveaways of Constitution education materials from GPO, and encouraging visitors to complete the online Constitution surveys. The virtual exhibit comprised a digital slideshow of founding milestones in Constitutional history, search strategies and sample results on several nuanced research topics, the three one-question Exhibit poster and ConstituVirtual exhibit slide: tion survey Discovery search with URLs, viresults for “United sualizations States’ “Constitution” of survey AND (education OR responses, teaching OR study) and the QR code and URL to the exhibit website. Survey respondents’ Three online surveys were designed insightful comments on to gather in-person and virtual visitors’ their favorite Constituthoughts on the Constitution: (1) Add your tional amendments continued on page 82

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Mayflower: Ode to New Beginnings from page 81 own Constitutional amendment (free-text write-in), (2) Which Constitutional amendment is your favorite? (multiple-choice, plus optional free-text entry for stating why), and (3) interactive preference ranking of all 27 amendments. Compilation of survey Survey responses were gathered respondents’ preference and updated regularly, with visualizations posted to the exhibit rankings for all 27 Constitutional amendments website and physical display kiosks. The exhibit’s companion website featured selected photos from the physical exhibit and Constitution Day activities, a PDF version of the virtual exhibit, links to the three Constitution surveys, and a gallery of survey response visualizations. A dropdown

Dropdown menu for site navigation menu facilitated navigation to the full-text U.S. Constitution and all 27 Amendments, voter registration information for all U.S. states and territories, and library research strategies and resources (Constitution Day, 2018). Constitution Day exhibit companion website

Observations and Conclusions

Both collection showcase exhibits grew out of successful collaborations. Both exhibits drew visitors and created engagement with research topics and library materials. The Window of Shanghai exhibit spawned conversations related to language teaching and study. The Constitution Day exhibit and hands-on learning activities generated widespread student interest and sparked conversations about campus collaborations for future events. Both exhibits triumphed as purposeful teaching tools and campus connectors, providing a successful blueprint for future outreach.

Don’s Conference Notes from page 79 The next ACRL conference will be on April 14-17, 2021 in Seattle, WA, with the theme “Ascending in to an Open Future.”

Donald T. Hawkins is an information industry freelance writer based in Pennsylvania. In addition to blogging and writing about conferences for Against the Grain, he blogs the Computers in Libraries and Internet Librarian conferences for Information Today, Inc. (ITI) and maintains the Conference Calendar on the ITI Website (http://www.infotoday.com/calendar.asp). He is the Editor

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References

Albitz, B., Avery, C., and Zabel, D. (2017). Leading in the new academic library. Santa Barbara, California : Libraries Unlimited. Ben’s Guide to the U.S. Government (2019). Washington, D.C.: United States Government Publishing Office. https://bensguide.gpo.gov/ Constitution Day (2018). (Library Collections Showcase: Exhibits & Events). Lexington: University of Kentucky Libraries. https://libguides.uky. edu/collshow/const Eden, B. (2015). Cutting-edge research in developing the library of the future : New paths for building future services (Creating the 21st-century academic library ; 3). Lanham, Maryland : Rowman & Littlefield. Fernandez, P., and Tilton, K. (2018). Applying library values to emerging technology: Decision-making in the age of open access, maker spaces, and the ever-changing library (ACRL publications in librarianship ; no. 72). Chicago, Illinois : Association of College and Research Libraries, a division of the American Library Association. Harris, S. (2016). Distinctive services in academic librarianship. New Library World, 117(9/10), 596-625. Jin, N., Goh, B., Huffman, L., and Jessica Yuan, J. (2015). Predictors and Outcomes of Perceived Image of Restaurant Innovativeness in Fine-Dining Restaurants. Journal of Hospitality Marketing & Management, 24(5), 1-29. Linden, Julie, Tudesco, Sarah, and Dollar, Daniel. (2018). Collections as a Service: A Research Library’s Perspective. College & Research Libraries, 79(1), 86-99. Schwartz, M., and Albers-Smith, J. (2015). Bridging the Librarian-Faculty Gap in the Academic Library. Joint Study by Library Journal and Cengage Learning. Scull, A. (2017). Developing dynamic intersections between collection development and information literacy instruction (Innovations in information literacy). Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield. Stone, M., Soulard, J., Migacz, S., and Wolf, E. (2018). Elements of Memorable Food, Drink, and Culinary Tourism Experiences. Journal of Travel Research, 57(8), 1121-1132. Swanson, T., and Jagman, H. (2015). Not just where to click : Teaching students how to think about information (ACRL publications in librarianship; no. 68). Chicago, Illinois : Association of College and Research Libraries, a division of the American Library Association. UK Libraries (2015). Strategic Plan 2015-2020. Lexington: University of Kentucky Libraries. https://libraries.uky.edu/forms/UK_Libraries_2015-2020_ Strategic_Plan_Mission_Values_Goals.pdf Way, Doug. (2017). Transforming Monograph Collections with a Model of Collections as a Service. Portal: Libraries and the Academy, 17(2), 283-294. Window of Shanghai (2019). Shanghai, China: Shanghai Library Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of Shanghai. http://windowofshanghai. library.sh.cn/ Window of Shanghai (2018). (Library Collections Showcase: Exhibits and Events). Lexington: University of Kentucky Libraries. https://libguides.uky. edu/collshow/shanghai

of Personal Archiving: Preserving Our Digital Heritage, (Information Today, 2013) and Co-Editor of Public Knowledge: Access and Benefits (Information Today, 2016). He holds a Ph.D. degree from the University of California, Berkeley and has worked in the online information industry for over 45 years. Leah H. Hinds was appointed Executive Director of the Charleston Conference in 2017, and has served in various roles with the Charleston Information Group, LLC, since 2004. Prior to working for the conference, she was Assistant Director of Graduate Admissions for the College of Charleston for four years. She lives in a small town near Columbia, SC, with her husband and two kids where they raise a menagerie of farm animals. endnotes on page 90

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ATG PROFILES ENCOURAGED

Marta Brunner

College Librarian Skidmore College 815 N Broadway Saratoga Springs, NY 12866 Phone: (518) 580-5506 <mbrunner@skidmore.edu> Born and lived: I’m originally from the Great Lakes region (both sides of the border) but have lived nearly everywhere else since, including stints abroad. Professional career and activities: I came to academic librarianship through the Council on Library and Information Resources postdoctoral fellowship program, based at UCLA Library. In my spare time: I recently took up ice hockey.

Favorite books: The Broken Earth trilogy by N.K. Jemisin.

Pet peeves: Poorly cooked rice, tacos made with flour tortillas.

How/where do I see the industry in five years: Though we will not, by any means, have completed the transition to open access, we will have gained important clarity on the question of how best to fund open access publishing more sustainably.

Alaina C. Bull First Year Experience Librarian University of Washington Tacoma 1900 Commerce Street Tacoma, WA 98402 Phone: (253) 692-4395 <alainac@uw.edu>

Born and lived: Greater Puget Sound region – Born in South Seattle, resident of Tacoma for past 15 years. I’ve lived in Georgia, and Montana at different points in my life also. Professional career and activities: Graduate of UW iSchool in 2015, spent a year consulting and doing freelance information architecture work, then joined Project Information Literacy, and worked as an adjunct in the local community college system before joining UWT in April of 2018. On campus I work with several units to better embed the library in both curriculuar and co-curricular activities, one of my favorite projects is a social justice themed book group that we co-facilitate with the Center for Equity and Inclusion. Family: I have a wife who works as a pediatric nurse, and we have two boys under three. In my spare time: I have two very young kids, I am not sure what spare time is at this moment. Favorite books: This changes with my mood and current interests, but the ones I can circle back to and read again and again are any of the Harry Potter series, and anything by Neil Gaiman. Pet peeves: Privacy violations in the name of “better data.”

Most memorable career achievement: Presenting on behalf of PIL in Berlin at the Next Library Conference: the entire conference site was a pop-up plywood site that was built in the five days prior to the conference. It was the most unique setting and conference I’ve attended.

Sunshine Carter Electronic Resources Librarian and Interim Collection Development Officer University of Minnesota Libraries 170 Wilson Library, 309-19th Avenue South Minneapolis, MN 55455-0414 USA Phone: (612) 625-5615 • <scarter@umn.edu> https://www.lib.umn.edu/about/staff/sunshine-carter

How/where do I see the industry in five years: In five years we will have more content available open access but costs will continue to rise for academic institutions whose faculty and staff publish.

Jason Dewland Co-founder/CEO; Associate Librarian Sidecar Learning, LLC; University of Arizona Tucson, AZ Phone: (520) 425-7123 <jason@sidecarlearning.com> <jasondewland@email.arizona.edu> www.sidecarlearning.com

Born and lived: Athens, OH; Parma, MI; Boston, MA; Washington, DC; Dnipropetrovsk, Ukraine; Oxford, MS; and Tucson, AZ. Early life: Grew up in Parma, Michigan awarded a scholarship to Boston University and have been learning and moving about ever since. Professional career and activities: I have worked in the automotive, tech, and retail industries and was a Peace Corps volunteer in Macedonia and Ukraine before becoming a librarian. My first job in libraries was working for my father in his high school library. My first professional job working in academic libraries was when Duryea Callaway hired me as one of her graduate assistants at Wayne State University in Detroit, MI. I have also worked at the University of Mississippi and the University of Arizona. Family: Wife and two teenage children.

In my spare time: Family, cooking, hiking, reading, watching collegiate/Olympic wrestling and soccer. Favorite books: Master and Margarita, The Bean Trees, Tomorrow and Yesterday, Neuromancer, and more. Pet peeves: Misinformation. Philosophy: Learn and do.

Most memorable career achievement: Building the Sidecar Learning platform and starting SCL. Goal I hope to achieve five years from now: Help close the graduation gap for first-generation students and raise the four-year graduation rate for all. How/where do I see the industry in five years: I see libraries becoming much more involved in student success and being a hub for learning and collaboration. We will begin to create interventions and use nudging to encourage our learners on the path of greater academic success. I am also excited to see how AR/VR will enhance discovery and search as well as open up research to new styles of learning such as Tucson’s All Souls Procession in 360 VR as well as Dr. Bryan Carter’s Virtual Harlem. Its about “Research. Lots of Research.” https://youtu. be/5oZi-wYarDs?t=4 continued on page 84

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Born and lived: Albany, NY ’76-’94, Brussels ’94-’95, Charlottesville ’95-’99, NYC ’99-’01, DC ’01-’03, Boston ’03-’06, NYC ’06-present.

ATG Profiles Encouraged from page 83

Early life: I grew up with life-threatening food allergies that created a unique combination of optimism and risk-taking on the one hand and caution on the other. I also had an amazing art teacher and mentor who piqued my interest in architecture and its impact on people, putting me on the professional path I’m still following 30 years later.

Alison J. Head Executive Director Project Information LIteracy 4760 Montecito Avenue Santa Rosa, CA 95404 Phone: (707) 800-7590 <alison@projectinfolit.org> http://projectinfolit.org

Born and lived: Sonoma County.

Early life: Sonoma County and San Francisco Bay Area.

Professional career and activities: See my CV at: https:// www.projectinfolit.org/uploads/2/7/5/4/27541717/cv_alison_head_3-1419.pdf. Family: Yes.

In my spare time: Garden.

Favorite books: William Zinsser, On Writing Well, Howard Rheingold, Tools for Thought, and Joan Didion, The White Album. Pet peeves: Hmm, forms like these?!?

Philosophy: Work hard, give it your all, and be sure to sleep at night.

Most memorable career achievement: man-Klein Research Fellow at Harvard in 2011.

Became a Berk-

Goal I hope to achieve five years from now: Living well, having more free time!! How/where do I see the industry in five years: Information literacy will be totally redefined, especially how it is taught by librarians, because of the impact of algorithm-driven platforms on information seeking and creation.

Shannon L. Farrell Natural Resources Librarian University of Minnesota 390A Hodson Hall, 1980 Folwell Avenue St. Paul, MN 55108 Phone: (612) 624-4799 <sfarrell@umn.edu> https://www.lib.umn.edu/about/staff/shannon-farrell

Professional career and activities: Previously worked as Agricultural & Biological Sciences Librarian at Colorado State University. Have held numerous offices within ALA, ALA-APA, and ACRL. Currently co-chair of the ACRL Science & Technology Section Professional Development committee. How/where do I see the industry in five years: I would like to see libraries responding more systematically to the perpetual problem of the rising costs of journals and doing more to facilitate open access publishing. I would hope this would free up library budgets from primarily collections to allow them to have more flexibility in responding to other important services, such as data management and community outreach.

Elliot Felix Founder brightspot 434 West 33rd Street, Suite 1101 New York, NY 10001 Phone: (347) 960-6365 <elliot@brightspotstrategy.com> www.brightspotstrategy.com

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Professional career and activities: Elliot founded and leads brightspot, a consultancy that is transforming the higher education experience with smart strategy that connects people, programs, and places – on campus and online – to increase student success, improve research support, and enable staff productivity. Elliot is an accomplished strategist, facilitator, and sense-maker who has helped transform over 75 colleges and universities. Elliot is a frequent speaker on reimagining the higher education experience, having presented at more than 50 conferences including EDUCAUSE, NACUBO, SXSWedu, SCUP, and Tradeline. He has written dozens of articles in publications such as Planning for Higher Education, the Journal of Learning Spaces, Library Journal, EDUCAUSE Review, and in Touchpoint: The Journal of Service Design. Family: Wife Liz, Daughter Nora (3.5 years), Son Theo (0.75 years).

In my spare time: Spend time with family, Exercise, Cook, and Read what I call “action movie fiction” (Lee Child, David Baldacci, Michael Connelly, John Grisham, James Rollins). Favorite books: Jack Reacher Series.

Pet peeves: Using the word “framework” when really you don’t know what you mean and so can’t be more specific. Philosophy: “We do these things not because they are easy but because they are hard. Because that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and skills.” – JFK Moonshot Speech at Rice University Most memorable career achievement: Creating the vision, program, service model, and staffing model for Hunt Library at NC State. Goal I hope to achieve five years from now: Close student success gaps by race, income, and first gen status to create a more equitable and engaging student experience How/where do I see the industry in five years: I’d hope we’d have closed three gaps today – 1) connecting spaces, services, and staffing to learning and research outcomes; 2) the gap in time between assessment and decision-making by using real-time data; 3) good predictive models as the norm not the exception, able to look ahead as easily as we look back.

Jennifer S. Ferguson Team Lead, Arts & Humanities Tisch Library, Tufts University 35 Professors Row Medford, MA 02155 Phone: (617) 627-2669 <jennifer.ferguson@tufts.edu> https://tischlibrary.tufts.edu/about-us/people/ jennifer-ferguson

Born and lived: Born in Portage, Indiana. After graduating from high school in Indiana, lived in: California, New Jersey, New York City, and currently in Andover, Massachusetts. Professional career and activities: Prior to becoming an academic librarian I spent several years working as a Senior Research Associate in the financial industry. Since that time, I’ve worked as Lead Reference Librarian (Rivier University); Liaison Librarian for Arts, Humanities & Careers (Simmons University), and Team Lead for Arts & Humanities (Tisch Library/Tufts University). During my time as an academic librarian, continued on page 85

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ATG Profiles Encouraged from page 84 I’ve published on topics that include education for librarianship, discovery layer usability, and streaming video in academic libraries, and won the Association of College & Research Libraries-New England Chapter 2017 Best Paper Award. In October 2018, my book, Using Authentic Assessment in Information Literacy Programs, was published by Rowman & Littlefield. I’ve also been invited to speak at regional, national, and international conferences on a wide array of topics, including streaming video, information literacy, and assessment. I have a BA from UCLA, an MA from Rutgers University, and an MSLIS from Simmons College and have worked in both special and academic libraries. Family: I’m married and have one son. My husband is an English professor and, not surprisingly, my son is a graduate student in English. In my spare time: I’m a cinephile and love watching classic films – from all eras and all countries. I love to read and would also appreciate having a lot more time to travel! Favorite books: The Master and Magarita and The White Guard (both by Mikhail Bulgakov); Catch 22 by Joseph Heller; Slaughterhouse Five by Kurt Vonnegut; To the Lighthouse by Virginia Woolf; The House of Mirth and The Age of Innocence (both by Edith Wharton); anything by Shirley Jackson or Toni Morrison. Pet peeves: Texting while driving.

Most memorable career achievement: In October 2018 I published my first book – Using Authentic Assessment in Information Literacy Programs – http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/1062359671. Goal I hope to achieve five years from now: Perhaps write one more book. How/where do I see the industry in five years: Five years from now, I see academic libraries continuing to experience a sort of “punctuated equilibrium,” during which change will happen in spurts in between periods of stasis. For example, as eBooks began to be widely adopted, there was a spurt in acquiring large packages from established vendors. But as we started to learn more about how students learn and what formats they prefer for what purpose, it became apparent that eBooks and print books will coexist for a very, very long time – if not forever, and not just for special collections. And, implied in that realization, is that perhaps eBooks work best in particular formats rather than as blanket replacements for print books. That same experience is true of streaming video platforms – where a large spurt of acquisitions is now being followed by a period of reevaluation, with concerns about long-term preservation and access, to say nothing of cost, becoming more urgent. Thus in five years it is likely that we will have adopted new platforms/technological tools, which will represent mostly a format change rather than a paradigm shift. Indeed, the biggest change will likely be to position descriptions and the skill sets that hiring committees will be looking for rather than how information is organized and disseminated or how our buildings are designed. Managing new technology platforms, pursuing open access initiatives, teaching around the information explosion, grappling with increasingly large datasets, and increasing our support for the digital humanities will require a mix of skills and positions that we are currently in the midst of establishing. With online products and services firmly entrenched in higher education, our task is to determine what the right mix of those products and services will be, along with the best models to support their use, in order to best serve our user populations. I think we’ve just come out of an evolutionary spurt and are heading for a (perhaps relatively short) period of statis. We should take this time to assess all of the changes that we’ve experienced over the past ten years to determine what we should keep, what we should enhance, and what we should discard so that we’re ready for the next big spurt.

John M. Jackson Head of Outreach and Communications William H. Hannon Library Loyola Marymount UNiversity 1 LMU Drive MS 8200, Los Angeles, CA 90045 Phone: (310) 338-5234 • Fax: (310) 338-4484 <john.jackson@lmu.edu> • johnxlibris.com

Born and lived: I was born in Arkansas, but I grew up in Brandon, Florida. Early life: I was a band geek and spent most of my high school and college years in the marching band. Eventually, my interests turned to medieval studies and then to library science. Professional career and activities: Before coming to LMU, I was the Reference & Instruction Librarian at Whittier College. I have been heavily involved with ACRL for the past six years. Family: Married with two kids and a pug.

In my spare time: I garden every day. I am lucky to have about 800+ square feet of space in my backyard (in Los Angeles!). Currently, I’m growing onions, garlic, corn, beets, kohlrabi, cucumbers, tomatoes, sunflowers, dephiniums, flavia, snapdragons, oranges, apples, and peaches. Favorite books: Mindfulness in Plain English / Bhante Henepola Gunarantana. Pet peeves: Email.

Philosophy: We are all trying to do what we think is best for the people we love. Most memorable career achievement: Developing and co-teaching a full day workshop on professional development for a statewide conference. Goal I hope to achieve five years from now: Publish my first book. (or at least get started on it) How/where do I see the industry in five years: Libraries will continue to assert their role as third spaces in the life of campuses and communities. As the world becomes increasingly privatized and surveilled, we can be the holdouts and still fight for the users.

Margy MacMillan Senior Researcher Project Information Literacy 859 Bank Street Victoria, BC V8S 4A8 Phone: (250) 595-1970 <margymac@gmail.com> http://projectinfolit.org

Born and lived: Vancouver Island/Calgary (Canada). Early life: As much time on the beach as possible.

Professional career and activities: 28 years as a librarian at Mount Royal University, now retired/Professor Emerita; worked at the intersection of information literacy and scholarship of teaching and learning, primarily with students in communications. Research communications and interests include student reading/use of scholarly articles. Family: Yes.

In my spare time: Cooking, gardening, cycling, Twitter.

Favorite books: Social Life of Information by John Seely Brown and Paul Duguid; To Say the Least, edited by P.K.Page; On Beyond Zebra by Dr. Seuss; 1066 and All That by W. C. Sellar and R.J. Yeatman. Pet peeves: Misuse of Journal Impact Factors. Philosophy: Be kind.

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ATG Profiles Encouraged from page 85 Most memorable career achievement: Quoting 1066 and All That in a published professional paper. Goal I hope to achieve five years from now: Growing Himalayan Blue Poppies. How/where do I see the industry in five years: I hope there is a more expansive view of information literacy beyond academic environments, that moves beyond teaching students hunting and gathering practices to find information into deeper critical understanding of the systems and structures driving how information finds them.

Kristen L. Mastel Outreach & Instruction Librarian University of Minnesota Libraries Magrath Library, 1984 Buford Avenue St. Paul, MN 55108 Phone: (612) 625-0918 <meye0539@umn.edu> https://www.lib.umn.edu/about/staff/kristen-mastel

Born and lived: Minnesota.

Professional career and activities: Kristen is a Past President of the Minnesota Library Association and currently the immediate Past President of the United States Agricultural Information Network. She has held numerous offices within ACRL and ALA. She currently is Chair of the Assessment Committee within the Science and Technology Section, and Chair of the Sustainability Round Table Online Education Committee, along with being active in the Academic Outreach Committee, LMAO and contemplative pedagogy groups. Family: My husband and I live in Apple Valley with our English Springer Spaniel, Jiggs. He is a therapy dog and comes to campus bi-weekly to participate in animal therapy visits with Boynton Health Services to advocate for student and staff mental health. How/where do I see the industry in five years: Outreach assessment is seeing a flourish of attention in articles and presentations as of late! I find this encouraging and want to help push the profession forward in all areas of assessment through more online education, professional development, publishing, and shifting teaching within MLS curriciulum in order to build sustainable assessment at the institutional and cooperative levels.

Yvonne Mery Co-founder, Sidecar Learning; Associate Librarian, University of Arizona Libraries Tucson, AZ Phone: (520) 626-3850 <ymery@email.arizona.edu> www.sidecarlearning.com

Born and lived: Was born in Tucson, AZ and lived abroad in Spain, and later in Cairo, Egypt. I also lived in Portland, OR for a few years. Early life: I grew up in Tucson, AZ to immigrant parents from Chile, so early on I had the opportunity to experience another culture, and another language different from the one outside my front door. Growing up bilingual and bicultural has really shaped my view of the world. Professional career and activities: I am part of the Research & Learning department at the University of Arizona where I serve as an instructional design librarian. I am also an adjunct instructor in the iSchool at the UA where I teach courses in e-learning and research methods. I have designed and implemented online courses in information literacy skills for

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undergraduate students and collaborated with departments across campus to support students and instructors in their research needs. I have also co-authored several papers and a book on the integration of information literacy in online classes and presented at numerous national and international conferences on best practices for online information literacy instruction. In addition to my library degree, I hold in MA in Applied Lingusitics and an undergraduate degree in English literature. Family: I have one child, an amazing, intelligent, and talented daughter who is about to start high school. In my spare time: I like to spend time with my daughter. I especially love traveling with her and cooking with her. Favorite books: Anything by Isabel Allende, The Moon and Sixpence by W. Somerset Maugham, and the Secret History by Donna Tartt. Those all sound old school! I am dating myself. Pet peeves: Lack of critical thinking.

Philosophy: Lifelong learning. Having an education has given me so much and allowed me so many opportunities. It is the one thing they canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t take away from you. Know that there is always more to learn and seek it out. Most memorable career achievement: Probably starting Sidecar Learning and completing a book on e-learning. Goal I hope to achieve five years from now: I would love to see Sidecar Learning succeed and become the go-to e-learning tool for libraries. The opporturnity to own a business was never something I pictured myself doing, but I am loving every step of it and canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t wait to do more. How/where do I see the industry in five years: I see academic libraries continuing to change. We have seen our physical buildings change, our collections change, and our instruction change and this will continue. We will continue to be the knowledge hub on campus, although not the physical hub. Libraries will be where students come to not only learn and read but also to create, share, and collaborate. That is already happening in many libraires.

Emma Molls Publishing Services Librarian University of Minnesota 65L Wilson Library, 309 19th Ave S Minneapolis, MN 55455 Phone: (612) 626-5218 <emolls@umn.edu> https://www.lib.umn.edu/about/staff/emma-molls

Professional career and activities: Previously served as Scholarly Communication & Social Science Librarian at Iowa State University. Currently serves on: Journal of Librarianship & Scholarly Communication, Editorial Board; Directory of Open Access Journals, Associate Editor; ALCTS Scholarly Communication Interest Group, Vice Chair; ACRL Publications Coordinating Committee, Member. 2019 recipient of Award for Outstanding Scholarship in Library Publishing from Library Publication Coalition. How/where do I see the industry in five years: Libraries will have fewer and fewer traditional journal subscriptions. Publishers will continue to focus on becoming service providers versus content providers. Newer, less established, open access publishers will begin to consolidate in order to compete with long-standing publishers.

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Theodore Pappas Executive Editor, Chief Development Officer The Britannica Group 325 N. LaSalle Street, Suite 200 Chicago, IL 60654 Phone: (312) 347-7491 <tpappas@eb.com> https://corporate.britannica.com/brands/

since 2010 have focused on developing a digital publishing program including new products such as SAGE Research Methods, SAGE Knowledge, SAGE Video, Adam Matthew, Data Planet, Talis and Lean Library. Family: I am married with two children who are now adults at 24 and 26 years old. in my spare time: I follow football or soccer as you call it in the U.S.; the local team that I support is Arsenal. I also love contemporary dance and the local theatre that I love is Sadlers Wells. favorite books: Mary Wollstonecraft: A Vindication of the Rights of Women; Much of Anne Tyler’s writing but was particularly moved by The Amateur Marriage.

Born and lived: Born in Rockford, IL, grew up in northern Illinois and west Georgia, and attended Beloit College in Wisconsin and Harvard University in Massachusetts.

philosophy: Don’t regret the things you didn’t do. I think we put more weight behind decisions to do things than decisions not to act, when at times non-intervention can have profound consequences.

Early life: Primary-school years spent in Illinois and Georgia.

how/where do I see the industry in five years: In five years I expect we will see — A continued shift from print to digital; New types of digital materials – more video, audio, data, virtual reality, augmented reality; More sophisticated discoverability and access to relevant research content; A significant shift to open access for journals; Publishers offering new types of software as a service to support the library, faculty and students; The role of the library evolving, still a major budget holder within the institution and negotiating access to research and teaching materials for their institution but increasingly offering teaching and support services and technology for students and researchers and becoming the institutional experts in information literacy, special collections, and research data management.

Professional career and activities: Theodore Pappas is Executive Editor and Chief Development Officer of Encyclopaedia Britannica in Chicago, where he cultivates editorial and PR opportunities for Britannica and its many products and services. He is the author of four books; his writings have been taught, anthologized, as well as discussed in publications such as the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, The New Yorker, and Vanity Fair; and he has appeared on the NBC Today Show, CBS Evening News, CBS Sunday Morning, CNN, Fox News radio and television, NPR’s All Things Considered, and BBC Radio. His latest books are True Grit: Classic Tales of Perseverance and the Encyclopaedia Britannica Anniversary Edition: 250 Years of Excellence (1768-2018). Family: Three children.

In my spare time: I enjoy spending time with my loved ones, playing the piano, exercising, and conducting research for new books. Favorite books: The historical narratives of Erik Larson.

Pet peeves: Breaches of cell phone, airlines, and train-commuting etiquette. Most memorable career achievements: My two decades of work on behalf of Encyclopaedia Britannica and my latest book, True Grit: Classic Tales of Perseverance. Goal I hope to achieve five years from now: Publish two additional books (under research now) — one on train travel and the other on U.S. presidential tragedies. How/where do I see the industry in five years: The publishing industry, and our culture in general, will swing away from a fascination with mere access to facts (and reams of facts) toward a greater desire and appreciation for expert, verified, relevant information. As we know, current search engines and algorithms excel at highlighting information that’s related to our topic and answers that sound right, but not information that’s reliably relevant and verifiable. Quality, not quantity, will be the call of tomorrow’s knowledge-seekers.

Karen Phillips Senior VP, Global Learning Resources SAGE Publishing, SAGE London SAGE Publications Ltd. 1 Oliver’s Yard, 55 City Road London EC1Y1SP UK Phone : +44 (0) 7534 606573 Fax: +44 (0) 207 324 8600 <Karen.phillips@sagepub.co.uk>

Julie Rashid Manager, Acquisitions and Rapid Cataloging University of Minnesota Libraries 309 19th Avenue South Minneapolis, MN 55455 Phone: (612) 625-0629 <jarashid@umn.edu> https://www.lib.umn.edu/

Born and lived: I was born in a suburb of Seattle, WA, but grew up in Cozad, NE. Early life: In my formative years I had a dream of traveling the world and had a passion for languages. I majored in French in college and participated in the International Student Exchange Program in Angers, France. After graduation I took a job teaching English at the Belarussian State Polytechnic Academy in Minsk, Belarus (where I met my husband!) We moved to the U.S. for 11 years before moving to Rawalpindi, Pakistan, where we lived for 12 years. We moved back to the states in 2015. Professional career and activities: I started in libraries at the American Institute of Baking, working my way up to Head Librarian. From there I transitioned to Kansas State University, where I worked my way up to Acquisitions Librarian. I then moved to Pakistan and worked as Head Librarian at Fatima Jinnah Women’s University (Rawalpindi, Pakistan) and then shifted to Sheikh Zayed International Academy (Islamabad, Pakistan) where I was first Head Librarian and then Head of the Senior Section. I then taught grades 4 and 5 at Ace International Academy (Rawalpindi, Pakistan) before coming back to the United States to work at the University of Minnesota as the manager of print acquisitions. Family: I live with my lovely husband Rashid and my two boys Abdul-Rahman and Ali Abdullah.

Born and lived: I was born in North London, grew up just outside London and have lived in London since graduating from university.

In my spare time: I enjoy reading, quilting, cross-stitching and bullet journaling. I am currently dabbling in video editing and graphic design.

professional career and activities: I have worked at SAGE Publishing for 32 years, starting in marketing and moving to editorial. I have worked across our textbook, reference and journals programs and

Favorite books: I am a sucker for love stories and adore Jane Austen! I also will devour books on management self-improvement and health/

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ATG Profiles Encouraged from page 87 nutrition. My current favorites are Mindset by Carol Dweck, Atomic Habits by James Clear and How Not to Die by Dr. Michael Gregor. Pet peeves: I dislike it when people cut into line in front of me! Grrrr! This is true for cars as well, which is one of the reasons I love the public transportation system in Minneapolis! Philosophy: Life does not give you more than you can handle. Breathe deeply and enjoy the spectacle! Most memorable career achievement: Under my supervision, my team at Fatima Jinnah Women’s University in Rawalpindi, Pakistan were able to catalog the entire book collection (20,000+ books) and implemented a new ILS system. I did the same at Sheikh Zayed International Academy in Islamabad, Pakistan a few years later. Goal I hope to achieve five years from now: I hope to learn enough SQL to make Analytics report writing a breeze! I would also like to tame our serials claiming … it really is a wild beast! How/where do I see the industry in five years: We are already seeing a large shift away from print to electronic and I think that will continue. I do think there will always be a place for print, only maybe a smaller place. There will be more spaces for digital media labs and maker spaces that allow patrons to express themselves creatively. I think libraries will continue to remove barriers to access to information, whether that is making resources more accessible to patrons with special needs or supporting open access initiatives. They will embrace and champion diversity and inclusion and be a welcome space for patrons from every walk of life.

Kiren Shoman Vice President Pedagogy SAGE Publishing 1 Oliver’s Yard, 55 City Road London EC1Y 1SP UK Phone: +44 (0)207 342 8525 <kiren.shoman@sagepub.co.uk> www.sagepublishing.com

Born and lived: I was born in Belize, but moved to the UK in 1988. I lived for a few years in Henly-on-Thames, followed by my undergraduate years in Brighton (I was at Sussex University). I’ve been living in London for the last 25 years now. early life: I grew up in San Ignacio, in the Cayo District of Belize; I have fond memories of daily swims in the river after school to cool down. professional career and activities: I have worked at SAGE Publishing since 1995, where I started as an editorial assistant, and moved through the organization as an editor, publisher and then manager. I’ve worked across the books and journals programs and am now enjoying working on our digital publishing, while overseeing the UK books program. family: I have two children – Kamal, 17 and Maya, 13.

in my spare time: As the kids have become more independent, I’ve been enjoying finding space and time for myself, to read more, and learn new things. I’m trying to learn Arabic, improve my Spanish, and have, through the Cuban novel The Man Who Loved Dogs, accidentally fallen in to a phase of being really interested in learning more about global events around the time of the Russian revolution and after. favorite books: There are so many books to enjoy out there that I tend not to re-read books. So I feel a bit unusual in that I don’t have old favourites that I return to time and again. A book I’ve only recently read and was really struck by is Ghost Wall by Sarah Moss (2018). pet peeves: I’m feeling quite easy going right now; I actually can’t think of one! Philosophy: I try not to hook up to just one philosophy.

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most memorable career achievement: The first book I ever signed on my own as a newly minted commissioning editor is my most memorable career achievement. It was on researching race and ethnicity, and I remember it well as a key moment launching this new piece of scholarship into the world. goal I hope to achieve five years from now: We’re in a position to learn a lot about how our products are resonating, and I’m keen to see other SAGE products such as our video collections and online courses really resonating. I’d particularly like to see Talis succeed in the U.S. market and have the same positive impact in terms of institutional and individual value it has been having in the UK and Asia Pacific. how/where do I see the industry in five years: We’ve all been noting that the world is changing fast, and while I’m often reminded how the industry’s been experiencing massive change for decades, it’s hard not to feel change is speeding up in the present. But I do think in five years we will have achieved a lot more synthesis between student, faculty and librarian engagement with our need for technological change in higher ed, and the products and tools that publishers are able to provide that are felt as useful and valuable for this community.

Craig E. Smith Assessment Specialist and Senior Associate Librarian, University of Michigan Library Hatcher Graduate Library 913 South University Ave., Ann Arbor, MI 48109 Phone: (617) 875-9469 <craigsm@umich.edu> https://www.lib.umich.edu/users/craigsm

Born and lived: I was born in Boston, and have lived for meaningful parts of my life in Concord (MA), Olympia (WA), Bloomington (IN), Portland (OR), Somerville (MA), and Ann Arbor (MI). Professional career and activities: I earned a doctoral degree in Human Development and Psychology from the Harvard Graduate School of Education. I then completed two postdoctoral fellowships in psychology at Harvard University and the University of Michigan. During that time I also developed and taught multiple courses. I gained institutional research experience as a senior member of the research and evaluation team at the University of Michigan ADVANCE Program. Since May 2018, I have been the assessment specialist and a senior associate librarian at the University of Michigan Library. Family: I have a partner and two sons who are 14 and 17.

Goal I hope to achieve five years from now: To be completely honest, my goal is to be a part of an increasingly effective movement that helps the U.S. and the world reject alt-right/trumpist/fascist ideologies and embrace things like compassion, inclusion, openness, humility, justice, democracy, and science. How/where do I see the industry in five years: I am new to libraries. One thing I hope to see is libraries doing more effective collaborating on collections of all types. I would love to see library collections access become more open, efficient, and comprehensive, while freeing up space and time for the provision of a wider array of services that will come to define modern libraries.

Yumiko Toyota-Kindler Library Program Specialist 1 University of Minnesota Libraries 170 Wilson Library, 309 19th Ave. South Minneapolis, MN 55455 Phone: (612) 625-2837 Fax: (612) 626-8968 <y-toyo@umn.edu> continued on page 89

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ATG Profiles Encouraged from page 88 How/where do I see the industry in five years: I would expect a collective effort or movement toward more open access (e.g., Plan S) to continue into the future. Being an e-resource acquisitions staff, I am not sure exactly how that would affect the traditional model of paid subscriptions.

David Woodbury Department Head, Learning Spaces & Services NC State University Libraries, NC State University 2 Broughton Drive Raleigh, NC 27695 Phone: (919) 513-7192 <dnwoodbu@ncsu.edu> www.lib.ncsu.edu

Born and lived: Kansas, Illinois, New York, Missouri, Maryland, Scotland, North Carolina.

Professional career and activities: Worked in publishing with John Wiley & Sons for seven years then went to the University of North Carolina for a MSIS and then began my career as a librarian at NC State in 2009. Family: Two kids in elementary school.

In my spare time: I enjoy travel, eating, and getting outside. Favorite books: Library books. Pet peeves: Traffic.

Philosophy: Everything is connected to everything else. Everything has to go somewehere. And there is no such thing as a free lunch. Most memorable career achievement: Being a part of opening Hunt Library at NC State. Goal I hope to achieve five years from now: Show demonstrable connections to student success in our library renovation (opening in 2020). How/where do I see the industry in five years: More focus on measuring the success of our students and having to show how are resources are connected to this mission.

COMPANY PROFILES ENCOURAGED The Britannica Group 325 N. LaSalle Street, Suite 200 Chicago, IL 60654 Phone: (312) 347-7000 https://corporate.britannica.com/ brands/ Affiliated companies: The Britannica Group includes Encyclopaedia Britannica, Britannica Digital Learning, Merriam-Webster, Melingo, and Britannica Knowledge Systems. Officers: Karthik Krishnan (Global CEO)

Key products and services: The Britannica Group is a global leader in knowledge-based products and tools. A pioneer in digital learning since the 1980s, the company today serves the needs of students, lifelong learners, and professionals by providing curriculum products, language-study courses, digital encyclopedias, as well as professional readiness training. Its key products and companies include Encyclopaedia Britannica, Britannica School, Britannica LaunchPacks, LumieLabs, Britannica ImageQuest, Original Sources, Merriam-Webser, Britannica Knowledge Systems, Melingo, and Angie & Tony (teaching English as a second language). Core markets/clientele: Global

Number of employees: 550 employees in 6 offices around the world.

History and brief description of your company/publishing program: Britannica’s most famous product, Encyclopaedia Britannica, is the oldest continuously published and revised work in the English language. Its First Edition was pubished in Edinburgh, Scotland, between 1768-71. The last print version of the encyclopedia was published in 2010, and it’s been available in digital form since 1994, making it the first encyclopedia on the Internet. But Britannica also produces a whole suite of products and tools for teachers and the classroom, in assorted languages, and our sister companies include Merriam-Webster, the famed language and dictionary publisher, and Britannica Knowledge Systems, which provides the training management platform used in numerous industries, especially the airlines industry.

Is there anything else that you think would be of interest to our readers? Britannica is one of the leaders in the push to bring reliable information to the public in our age of fake news and questionable websites. Two examples of this are Britannica’s partnership with YouTube, where Britannica’s summary article is offered alongside YouTube videos on controversial topics around which conspiracy theories have long swirled, to serve as a great primer on the topic to read over first or in tandem with the videos; and our free browser extension for Chrome called “Britannica Insights,” whereby readers can now receive for free the factchecked Britannica article related to their topic of interest — the Britannica article is delivered at the top-right side of their search-results page from Google, Yahoo, Bing et al. As we like to say, truth needs a champion, and Britannica strives to be part of the solution in an age overwhelmed with misinformation and unverified facts. SAGE Publishing Telephone: 1-800-818-7243 Fax: 1-800-583-2665 www.sagepublishing.com Main address and affiliated addresses: SAGE Thousand Oaks (Headquarters) 2455 Teller Road Thousand Oaks, CA 91320 USA Phone: 1-800-818-7243 • Fax: 1-800-583-2665 SAGE Washington, DC 2600 Virginia Ave NW, Suite 600 Washington, DC 20037 USA Phone: (202) 729-1800 SAGE Asia-Pacific 3 Church Street #10-04 Samsung Hub Singapore 049483 Phone: 65 6220 1800 • Fax: 65 6438 1008 continued on page 90

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Total number of journals currently published: More than 1,000.

ATG Profiles Encouraged from page 89 SAGE Toronto 77 Bloor St W #600 Toronto, ON M5S 2B4 Canada Phone: (416) 575-8667 SAGE London 1 Oliver’s Yard, 55 City Road London, EC1Y1SP UK Phone: +44 (0) 207 324 8500 • Fax: +44 (0) 207 324 8600 SAGE India B-1/I-1, Mohan Cooperative Industrial Estate Mathura Road, Post Bag 7, New Delhi 110 044 INDIA Phone: +91-11-4053 9222 • Fax: +91-11-4053 9234 SAGE Melbourne Level 9, 2 Queen Street Melbourne VIC 3000 Australia Affiliated companies: CQ Press: www.cqpress.com Adam Matthew: http://www.amdigital.co.uk/ Corwin: www.corwin.com Learning Matters: http://www.uk.sagepub.com/learningmatters/ Lean Library: https://www.leanlibrary.com/ Talis: https://talis.com/ Officers: Blaise R. Simqu, President & Chief Executive Officer; Tracey A. Ozmina, Executive Vice President & Chief Operating Officer, US; Chris Hickok, Senior Vice President & Chief Financial Officer; Stephen Barr, President of SAGE International; Ziyad Marar, President of Global Publishing; Karen Phillips, Senior Vice President, Global Learning Resources. Association memberships, etc.: SAGE Publishing has forged strong partnerships with societies and associations for more than 50 years, publishing on behalf of more than 500 societies in 2019. Vital information: SAGE has been a privately owned company since its founding in 1965. Our founder and executive chairman, Sara Miller McCune, has put in place an estate plan that guarantees our independence indefinitely. After Sara’s lifetime, SAGE will become owned by a charitable trust which allows us to uphold our mission of supporting the dissemination of usable knowledge and educating a global community for the long-term. Key products and services: Journals, books, digital resources, courses, and technology solutions for researchers, instructors, students, and librarians. Core markets/clientele: Academic, educational, and professional markets. Number of employees: More than 1,800.

History and brief description of your company/publishing program: Guided by an unwavering dedication to academia and an entrepreneurial spirit, the passionate and determined Sara Miller McCune founded SAGE Publishing in 1965 just a few months shy of her 24th birthday with the help of her mentor and future husband George McCune. The company’s name – SAGE – is derived from their names (SAra and GEorge). From the start, the company was guided by Sara’s vision to allow scholars to disseminate quality research in their own voices, often breaking ground in new or emerging areas of study. Nearly 55 years later, SAGE remains an independent company that shares with librarians the belief that flourishing educational programs and engaged scholarship create healthy minds and healthy societies. Our publishing program ranges across the social sciences, humanities, medicine, and engineering and includes journals, books, and digital products such as case studies, data, video, courses, and technology solutions for academic and professional markets. We value working closely with librarians to achieve shared goals, including partnering on white papers and research projects to ensure that together we meet the changing needs of students, researchers, and instructors. Anything else that you think would be of interest to our readers? SAGE is investing in new ways to support researchers in response to big changes in the instruction and practice of social science research methodology. For example, we recently acquired Data Planet, a dynamic repository of officially sourced statistical data, and launched SAGE Ocean, an initiative to help social scientists navigate vast data sets and work with new technologies. From our first methods journals in 1972 to the QASS series published since the 1970s (the “Little Green Books”), to the launch of SAGE Research Methods in 2011, we’ve been honored to serve social scientists at the forefront of research methods publishing for more than four decades. And we are dedicated to supporting librarians as they help patrons through this journey. SAGE has also recently launched a new effort to improve the methods currently used to measure the impact of the social sciences and, ultimately, bring sustained attention to the value of these sciences. While measurement of science impact has traditionally been synonymous with citation counts in academic journals, such metrics fail to capture the influence that research has on policy, practice, and the public. And while the social sciences are uniquely positioned to make this impact and thus benefit society, their true impact is often ignored or overlooked. SAGE’s impact initiative kicked off with a new report “The Latest Thinking About Metrics For Research Impact in the Social Sciences,” based on a workshop we convened at Google’s main campus earlier this year. Those interested in the report, or in engaging in the social science impact debate can do so at socialsciencespace.com/impact or on Twitter using #SocialScienceImpact.

Number of books published annually: More than 800.

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Endnotes for Don’s Conference Notes — from page 82 1. https://theracecardproject.com/. Participants in the project can send their cards using a form at http://theracecardproject.com/send-yourrace-card/. 2. https://www.aspeninstitute.org/programs/the-bridge/ 3. https://www.lib.ncsu.edu/alttextbook/guide 4. www.ala.org/acrl/roadshows 5. https://www.tobiipro.com/product-listing/tobii-pro-glasses-2/ 6. https://voyant-tools.org/

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7. https://pair.libraries.ou.edu/ 8. https://web.uri.edu/ai/ 9. https://www.elsevier.com/connect/resource-center/artificial-intelligence 10. https://sr.ithaka.org/publications/2018-us-faculty-survey/ 11. https://s4.goeshow.com/acrl/national/2019/conference_schedule.cfm 12. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fun_Home

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LIBRARY PROFILES ENCOURAGED Lucy Scribner Library Skidmore College 815 N Broadway Saratoga Springs, NY 12866 Phone: (518) 580-5506 http://lib.skidmore.edu/library Background/history: Visit http://lib.skidmore.edu/library/index. php/about-the-library-homepage. Number of staff and responsibilities: 10 library faculty, 15 library staff.

If so, what is your budget and what types of materials are you purchasing? Print or electronic or both? Both. What proportion of your materials are leased and not owned? Majority are owned.

What do you think your library will be like in five years? It will be more focused on the needs of researchers and the success of students. What excites or frightens you about the next five years? Uncertain budgets.

Types of materials you buy (eBooks, textbooks, DVDs, video streaming services, databases, other): Everything except textbooks.

Tisch Library Tufts University 35 Professors Row Medford, MA 02155 Phone: (617) 627-3347 https://tischlibrary.tufts.edu/

Does your library have an ILS or are you part of a collaborative ILS? We’re still on Voyager for now. Do you have a discovery system? EDS

Does your library have a collection development or similar department? Collection development responsibilities are shared by everyone. What do you think your library will be like in five years? Even more dynamic than it already is. What excites or frightens you about the next five years? Our campus is hiring a new president in the coming year, which is both exciting and anxiety-provoking at the same time. NC State University Libraries North Carolina State University 2 Broughton Drive Raleigh, NC 27695 Phone: (919) 515-3364 www.lib.ncsu.edu Background/history: The NCSU Libraries is the gateway to knowledge for the North Carolina State University community and partners. The Libraries’ collections reflect the historic strengths of the University as well as its vision for the future. With extensive research holdings in the areas of engineering, science, technology, and agriculture, the NCSU Libraries is recognized as a national leader. Library facilities include two main libraries – the D. H. Hill Library and the James B. Hunt Jr. Library – as well as the Harrye B. Lyons Design Library, the Natural Resources Library, and the William Rand Kenan Jr. Library of Veterinary Medicine, with more than 2.5 million total user visits per year. Number of staff and responsibilities: Aproximately 200 employees. Overall library budget: $11,593,241

Types of materials you buy (eBooks, textbooks, DVDs, video streaming services, databases, other): All of the above. What technologies does your library use to serve mobile users? Responsive web site.

Does your library have an ILS or are you part of a collaborative ILS? Collaborative ILS. Do you have a discovery system? Yes.

Does your library have a collection development or similar department? Yes.

Against the Grain / September 2019

Background/history: about-tisch-library

Visit https://tischlibrary.tufts.edu/about-us/

Number of staff and responsibilities: Visit https://tischlibrary.tufts.edu/sites/default/files/FULL%20Tisch%20Library%20Organization%20Charts%20Updated%202.7.2019.pdf Types of materials you buy (eBooks, textbooks, DVDs, video streaming services, databases, other): eBooks, textbooks, DVDs, streaming video, print serials, electronic serials, print monographs of all types; rare books; primary source document collections; and more based on need. Does your library have an ILS or are you part of a collaborative ILS? ExLibris Alma Do you have a discovery system? ExLibris Primo

Does your library have a collection development or similar department? Yes, Scholarly Communications & Collections. If so, what is your budget and what types of materials are you purchasing? Print or electronic or both? Both - $8.2 million. What proportion of your materials are leased and not owned? Not sure.

What do you think your library will be like in five years? We are in the midst of strategic planning and trying to answer that very question. At this point, we are considering some practical moves that will enable us to realize a broader vision (noted below): a plan to weed a large print reference collection to open space for students and more visible space for staff; a plan to move a large microform collection to less visible space to create additional space for student use; a plan to weed the print collection to free up space for new materials.

What excites or frightens you about the next five years? I think over the next five years Tisch Library will begin to catch up with some of the changes that other libraries have already made, including opening up space and sightlines, reconsidering how and what we collect, reevaluating our mix of online resources, and advocating for more open access. Tisch has been relatively slow to move in these areas, but we have a chance now to see what’s worked over the last few years and what hasn’t, which will help us to invest in valuable change rather than change for change’s sake. continued on page 92

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University of Michigan Library

ATG Profiles Encouraged from page 91 Is there anything else you think our readers should know? Inherent in every challenge is an opportunity. In the case of Tisch Library, or relatively slow pace of change over the past few years will enable us to make much more thoughtful change going forward! University of Arizona Libraries University of Arizona 1510 E. University Boulevard Tucson, AZ 85721 Phone: (520) 621-6442 Fax: (520) 621-9733 library.arizona.edu Background/history: The first library at the University of Arizona was founded in 1891, the same year the university was established. Today, we have five locations, including the Main Library, the Albert B. Weaver Science-Engineering Library, the Fine Arts Library, the Health Sciences Library, and Special Collections. We are focused on taking the UA Libraries to new levels of impact as essential contributors to student and faculty success through our strategic map (see https://new.library.arizona.edu/ strategic), which highlights our commitment to four long-term directions. Number of staff and responsibilities: Our library has nearly 200 employees in 10 departments, which include: Access & Information Services, Administration, Content & Collections, Delivery, Description & Acquisitions, the Office of Digital Innovation & Stewardship, Research & Learning, Special Collections, Technology Strategy & Services, the UA Health Sciences Library, and the UA Press. In FY17-18, we had more than 2.3 million total visits to our libraries and responded to 7,670 reference questions. Overall library budget: $31M.

Types of materials you buy (eBooks, textbooks, DVDs, video streaming services, databases, other): All types of materials that can be acquired and used by all of our campus users, not limited to a class or subset. Does your library have a collection development or similar department? Yes, Content & Collections, formed in 2017.

What proportion of your materials are leased and not owned? 25% of total holdings are subscriptions, the rest are owned. Do you have a discovery system? Yes, it is Primo.

What excites or frightens you about the next five years? The UA Libraries is excited to be an integral part of the UA Student Success District renovation project in progress right now. The unique design of the District is distinctive to the University of Arizona because it encompasses two libraries, two student services buildings, and their adjacent outdoor spaces to create a seamless experience. The Main Library and the Albert B. Weaver Science-Engineering Library renovations is scheduled for completion by spring 2020, and the entire project will be completed in 2021. In five years, the UA Libraries will be a well-known partner in the District, empowering UA students to utilize a broad array of services and indoor-outdoor spaces that support collaborative, handson learning, deep engagement with technology, and ultimately, academic success and career preparation. https://successdistrict.arizona.edu/

University of Michigan 818 Hatcher Graduate Library South 913 S. University Avenue Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1190 Phone: (734) 764-0400 https://www.lib.umich.edu What do you think your library will be like in five years? I think our library will be more engaged in collaborative and strategic collecting, more focused on using its spaces to house exciting and impactful services, and more capable of providing quick, browsable access to materials in many formats even as we reduce the number of library stacks. University of Minnesota Libraries University of Minnesota 499 Wilson Library, 309 19th Avenue South, Minneapolis, MN 55455 Phone: (612) 624-3321 (Wilson Library front desk) https://www.lib.umn.edu Background/history: The University Libraries is a strategic resource of the Twin Cities campus and also provides key information system support for the Universityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s four coordinate campuses in Crookston, Duluth, Morris, and Rochester. Composed of 12 library facilities with collections of more than 7.6 million volumes and 86,676 serial subscriptions, and is the No. 1 lending library to other research libraries in North America. The Libraries has a history of strength in research collections and a longstanding record of contribution to resource sharing within the state and beyond. Number of staff and responsibilities: 321 Overall library budget: $57.9 million

Types of materials you buy (eBooks, textbooks, DVDs, video streaming services, databases, other): The University of Minnesota Libraries will purchase or subscribe to any/all types of materials as appropriate. Does your library have an ILS or are you part of a collaborative ILS? Alma (Ex Libris) Do you have a discovery system? Primo (Ex Libris)

Does your library have a collection development or similar department? Yes If so, what is your budget and what types of materials are you purchasing? Print or electronic or both? $18,195,967 (FY2019) for both print and electronic materials. William H. Hannon Library Loyola Marymount University 1 LMU Drive, MS 8200 Los Angeles, CA 90045 Phone: (310) 338-2788 Fax: (310) 338-4484 library.lmu.edu Background/history: The William H. Hannon Library opened in 2010 and is the main library at the Westchester campus, serving the research needs of the LMU students, faculty, and staff. The 120,000 squarefoot building is LEED Gold certified and contains 580 individual reading stations, 33 group-study rooms accommodating, various collaborative study spaces, two library instruction classrooms, the Terrence L. Mahan, S.J. Gallery, the Thomas and Dorothy Leavey Foundation Information Commons, a Faculty Innovation Center, the Carrie Estelle Doheny Foundation Faculty Lounge, and the Von der Ahe Family Suite. continued on page 93

92 Against the Grain / September 2019

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ATG Profiles Encouraged from page 92 Number of staff and responsibilities: The library is staffed by 26 professional librarians and approximately 25 library staff. Overall library budget: ~$10 million

Types of materials you buy (eBooks, textbooks, DVDs, video streaming services, databases, other): As of 2018, its collections included 582,406 print monographs, 686,285 eBooks, 105,877 bound periodicals, 53,941 e-periodicals, 337 databases, and 5,544 linear feet of archives and manuscripts. What technologies does your library use to serve mobile users? Virtual chat, ILL.

Does your library have an ILS or are you part of a collaborative ILS? Sierra Do you have a discovery system? EDS

Does your library have a collection development or similar department? Yes If so, what is your budget and what types of materials are you purchasing? ~$5 million

What do you think your library will be like in five years? We are exploring new ways to utilize library space as we simultensouly work to increase/improve the way use library space for existing collections. What excites or frightens you about the next five years? Our university is in a period of rapid growth (more students, more fundraising, more administrators, more programs). We can expect there will be difficult changes and growing pains in the next five years.

Against the Grain / September 2019

Back Talk from page 94 fitting doors, unbreakable locks (and hooks to hang things on and shelves to put things on). This is emphatically an all-gender issue and often a place where nickels are unwisely saved. 7. Fight and win the battle for maintenance priority. When a toilet goes bad, don’t let them bag it in plastic and leave it for a month — this happens — on the pretext that if there are several other toilets in the same room, it should be ok. Nobody takes that approach to toilets in their home, right? There’s a start. More ideas? I’d love to hear them. But there’s one more important point. We found out that on our campus, the libraries had been categorized as “tier 2” housekeeping facilities, like office and admin buildings. We believe we should be “tier 1” — like student housing. The difference? How often cleaners come around, how carefully they cover for folks who call out sick, and how much they respect the late or round-the-clock hours that we observe. We had a real mess this spring when, just at the height of finals week, a key housekeeper called out sick two days running. Facilities sent around a “porter” to do a quick spiff and trash emptying in the restrooms and let the rest of the building go. Doing that at the height of finals week? Ugh, ick, I won’t describe it. Think food trash. The overall message: fight for your users. If they find that you’re providing clean, comfortable, safe, reliable restrooms, they’ll spend more time in your building: and students who spend more time in the library do better in their work — it’s as simple as that. Good restrooms make for good students who get good grades. And student success is our day job.

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Back Talk — Speaking of Bathrooms? Column Editor: Jim O’Donnell (University Librarian, Arizona State University) <jod@asu.edu>

any people have been asking me what we’re focusing on most in the complete gut-and-reno of our largest ASU Library building, the 1966 Hayden Library. The project has been going on for about three years since conception, so the answer to that question changes. We’re in the home stretch, looking to a full opening in January 2020, so we’re getting to some very specific issues. Here’s one I’ve never heard discussed in a plenary session at ARL meetings or even at a Charleston Conference: bathrooms. Bathrooms? Yes, yes. Why should librarians care? Two reasons: (1) If we’re going to have a building that is genuinely homelike and welcoming for all staff and users, then doing the things it takes to make that building as comfortable as home is important. (2) Unfortunately, nobody becomes famous as an architect for designing bathrooms, and a good many contractors have made their budget by doing a little “value engineering” when it comes to these functional rooms. (I do exaggerate about “nobody.” The mayor of Suwon Korea, on the occasion of the 2007 World Toilet Association meetings in Korea, built himself a special house. See photo. No comment.) The underlying issue is of great importance around the world, of course. Inadequate public sanitation is at least a serious health hazard, but it’s important in other ways. A wonderful book (Golden Arches East by James Watson) records what happened when anthropologists were dispatched to East and Southeast Asian cities to see how McDonalds, which tries to be the same everywhere to all peoples, adapted to different cultures. One of their striking results was to observe that

in several countries, Mickey Dee turned out to be the place where middle class and upper middle class ladies of a certain age gathered in the afternoon to chat with their friends. Why? Mickey Dee believes in really clean facilities — and people who had hitherto been hindered in spending time out of their homes in public places by concern for finding a decent restroom had decided that Mickey Dee was just the place. That’s empowerment! And we all know that there are gender differences in patterns of bathroom use. At intermission at concerts or halftime at the football game, you’ll find lines outside one restroom and not the other. Building codes are beginning to recognize this disparity and mandate appropriately differential facilities based on average time of use, but we also all know that parity is still an ideal on the horizon in too many places. So, early on in the renovation planning process, I began to call myself “the one who’s obsessed about bathrooms.” At first, they thought I was joking, until the tense meeting when we sent the designers back to the drawing board to count just how many porcelain receptacles would be in each room and to make sure there was an advantage on one side. They had resisted for a perfectly nonsensical reason. “Since we’re exceeding the code requirement for bathroom stalls overall, it’s ok that we have the same number for both genders, because we’re sure there will be enough for everybody.” Hear that? As long as we give each gender enough, it’s ok to give one gender plenty of extra facilities. If you look back over the last couple of paragraphs, you’ll see that I’m not specifying which gender I might be talking about. But does anyone reading this column have any

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doubt which is which and what I’m saying? And you’re probably pretty sure you can tell which other gender is more involved in the design and construction decisions. So I’m going to list things to think about when you start looking at your library bathrooms. First, let me praise my colleague Terry Cranmer at ASU, facilities manager at the huge Frank Lloyd Wright-designed Gammage Auditorium. Quite a place, but until recently all it had was several pairs of tiny bathrooms in each floor and with more porcelain in the men’s room per floor than in the women’s room. Terry is a force of nature, though, and she successfully got plans made and executed for an additional large, bright, and brilliantly-designed women’s room on the main level. I learned a lot from talking to her. OK, the list: 1. The count of toilets for women should exceed the combined total of toilets/urinals for men. 2. There should also be any-gender restrooms on every floor. Our old complex had exactly two any-gender one-seaters spread over five floors. The new tower of five floors will have larger restrooms on the busiest floors plus two any-gender restrooms on each floor. In addition, on the busiest floor, we are fitting out two wellness rooms intended to provide privacy and comfort for people with special needs: nursing mothers, insulin-dependent diabetics, or folks who bike to work in Arizona heat and need a place to freshen up. (There is also an ablution room convenient to our dedicated prayer/meditation room.) 3. We’re being less successful with matching sinks and counters and I’m still fighting that one, but the principle should be that counters are for putting things on and not simply as a place for water to puddle because the sinks are carelessly designed to splatter water on them. (There’s a gender issue here too, in a world where one gender carries around more nice bags than another.) 4. Do not allow them to install hand-dryer-only bathrooms. Ever tried washing your face and drying it with a hand dryer? Or using a wall-mounted hand dryer to mop up the water on a sink counter six feet away? Fight to keep paper in the bathrooms. 5. Be aware of access and egress and make it easy for people to leave the restroom with clean hands, without touching drippy door handles. 6. Design the various stalls and facilities to maximize privacy — good continued on page 93

94 Against the Grain / September 2019

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