From: hkordish_at_nypl.org
Chief Collection Development Officers of Large Research Libraries
Report on
Recent Activities of the Association of Research Libraries
Prepared for the CCDO Meeting at ALA, June 28, 1997
Deborah Jakubs
Visiting Program Officer, ARL
This report contains information on recent ARL activities that may be of
interest to the CCDO. For more detailed information on ARL's collections
program, please contact Deborah Jakubs by e-mail <jakubs_at_acpub.duke.edu>; for
additional information on the activities of ARL's Office of Scholarly
Communication, contact Mary Case <marycase_at_cni.org>.
1. Conference on the Scholarly Monograph
"The Specialized Scholarly Monograph in Crisis Or, How Can I Get Tenure If You
Won't Publish My Book?" will be held Thursday and Friday, September 11-12, at
the Marriott at Metro Center in Washington, DC. Co-sponsored by ARL, the
Association of American University Presses, and the American Council of Learned
Societies, this conference will bring together faculty, administrators,
publishers, and librarians to focus attention on the state of scholarship and
publishing in the monograph-based humanities and social sciences. Registration
is $250 if paid in full before June 30; $300 after June 30. See <http://
arl.cni.org/scomm/epub/program.html> for more details on the program and
registration. We would appreciate it if you would encourage appropriate faculty
and administrators from your campus to attend.
2. AAU/ARL Global Resources Program (GRP)
A key goal of the AAU/ARL Global Resources Program is to improve access to
international research resources. To that end, the GRP is sponsoring three
ongoing projects (on Japan, Germany, and Latin America) and is developing
several new projects, on Africa, South Asia, and Southeast Asia. Other GRP
activities include a clearinghouse of Web-based international resources, an
inventory of linkages and agreements that North American research libraries
maintain with libraries and research institutes abroad, and plans for symposia
to inform faculty and librarians about the network-based, distributed models of
cooperative collection development for global resources. The ARL Collections
Program web site provides background information on projects underway <http://
arl.cni.org/collect/collect.html>. A GRP Web page will soon provide more
information on all projects, as well as on institutional linkages, access to
international resources, and related initiatives.
AAU and ARL have formed an Advisory Board for the GRP. They will hold their
initial meeting on October 8. The Board will facilitate the implementation of
program activities and assist in determining the direction of new cooperative
initiatives designed to expand access to international research materials.
Members are: Betty Bengtson, Director of University Libraries, University of
Washington, and Chair of the Advisory Board; Myles Brand, President, Indiana
University; Marianna Choldin, Director, Mortenson Center, University of
Illinois; Jonathan Cole, Provost, Columbia University; Deborah Jakubs (ARL),
Head, International and Area Studies, Duke University Libraries; Stanley Katz,
President, American Council of Learned Societies; Hwa-Wei Lee, Dean of
University Libraries, Ohio University; Carole Moore, Chief Librarian,
University of Toronto; and David Wiley, Professor, Michigan State University
and Co-Chair, Council of National Resource Center Directors.
3. ILL/DD Performance Measures Study
Mary Jackson, ARL Access and Delivery Services Consultant, reports that the two-
year project to study the performance of ILL operations is entering its final
stage. In mid-May, the 108 research and academic libraries participating
received a draft of their institutional analysis report comparing institution-
specific data for costs, turnaround time, fill rate, and user satisfaction with
the performance of other project participants. As soon as the data is verified
by each library, ARL will begin the final analysis phase of the project. Final
individual institutional performance reports for each library will be released
in July; ARL is exploring options of holding a conference or a series of
workshops to share the findings, showcase the "best practices," and explore how
the findings of the study can be used to improve ILL/DD services. The study is
funded by a grant from The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation and is conducted in
collaboration with the Council on Library Resources. For more information,
contact Mary Jackson, ARL <mary_at_cni.org>.
4. Research Library Investments in E-Resources
Timothy Jewell, University of Washington, described his work as ARL Visiting
Program Officer as at a mid-point. With funding from the Council on Library
Resources, Tim has investigated the state of what we know -- and don't know --
about the character and nature of research library investments in electronic
resources. During this ALA conference he is reporting on his findings and
discussing recommendations for next steps, including clarifications in the ARL
Supplementary Statistics questionnaire and a periodic special survey on e-
resources that would be conducted less frequently than annually. For more
information, contact Tim Jewell, University of Washington <
tjewell_at_u.washington.edu> of Julia Blixrud, ARL <jblix_at_cni.org>.
5. Future of Area Librarianship
In 1995 a conference on this topic was hosted by Indiana University, supported
by a U. S. Department of Education Title VI grant to the IU international/
area centers. It built on the results of a national survey of librarians,
directors of ARL libraries, deans of library schools, and directors of area
centers. The proceedings of that conference, distributed widely in 1996,
contain seven recommendations, condensed as follows: 1) refine, publish,
and publicize the data collected; 2) interview area directors and librarians
to supplement the data; 3) use the data to redefine the positions of area
specialists; 4) disseminate information through area librarian associations and
within institutions; 5) develop a structure for continuing communication among
conference participants; 6) develop mechanisms to ensure discussion of area
studies librarianship within contemporary library environments; 7) hold a
meeting of the officers of area librarian organizations to discuss common
issues.
On July 18-19, 1997, Indiana University will host another small workshop for
officers of area librarian organizations and several members of the library and
scholarly communities. Entitled "Area Librarians in Higher Education: Defining
the Future," the meeting will focus on three issues: recruiting and educating
area librarians; the roles and functions of area librarians; and reconnecting
to scholarship. A web site on this topic is being created. For more
information, or to obtain a copy of the proceedings of the 1995 conference,
contact Nancy Schmidt <schmidtn_at_indiana.edu>.
6. The Future of the Conspectus
In the early 1990s, an agreement was reached among RLG, ARL, and WLN on the
continued development and maintenance of the Conspectus. Under the terms of
that agreement, RLG would continue to host the database, ARL would be
responsible for the intellectual oversight of the tool (e.g., revisions to the
worksheets), and WLN would continue to be the largest user of the Conspectus.
In July 1996, RLG announced that they will no longer support the Conspectus in
the new online environment. RLG will no longer produce Conspectus worksheets.
ARL's role and continued involvement with the Conspectus were discussed by the
Research Collections Committee at their May 1997 meeting. There was consensus
that the Conspectus is no longer a priority for ARL libraries, although it
continues to be a useful tool for collection description and analysis. The RCC
recommended to the ARL board that ARL staff seek options for moving intellectual
oversight of the Conspectus to another body. One possibility that has been
suggested is that a collection development committee of ALCTS take on the
responsibility for ongoing Conspectus management. Deborah Jakubs has discussed
this possibility with Ed Shreeves and with Tony Ferguson, who takes an active
interest in the future of the Conspectus, and who has offered to assist with
the transition.
7. International Newspapers Symposium
On May 27-28, 1997 ARL co-sponsored, with CRL and the Library of Congress, a
Symposium on Access to and Preservation of Global Newspapers. A summary of the
Symposium can be found on the Web <http://arl.cni.org/collect/symp/index.html>.
8. Licensing Principles
ARL has participated with the AALL, ALA, AAHSL, MLA, and SLA to develop a
statement of principles for licensing electronic resources. This statement has
gone through an extensive writing and revision process and should be ready for
distribution by ALA. The principles are intended to guide libraries in license
review and negotiation and to provide licensers with a sense of the issues of
importance to libraries in the licensing and use of electronic resources.
9. Licensing Workshops
ARL will be offering two-day workshops on licensing beginning this fall. The
purpose of the workshops will be to review the legal foundations of license
agreements; to engage the participants in a review of license terms and
conditions; to highlight the importance of developing a community process for
license review, negotiation, and administration; and to provide participants
with an opportunity to review and practice negotiation skills. The workshops
will be led by Trisha Davis, Head, Continuation Acquisition Division, The Ohio
State University Libraries, Karen Hersey, Intellectual Property Counsel, MIT,
and Mary Case, ARL. Information on dates, location , and registration will be
available at ALA.
10. NHA Principles
At its membership meeting in May, ARL joined the American Council of Learned
Societies in endorsing the National Humanities Alliance (NHA) Basic Principles
for Managing Intellectual Property in the Digital Environment. The principles
are intended to help build consensus within the educational community on the use
of intellectual property in the digital environment. The principles grew out of
the NHA Board's concern with the limited progress being made by the Conference
on Fair Use (CONFU). The NHA Board believed that is agreement could not be
reached by the various groups represented at CONFU, it was important for the
educational community itself to come to consensus on these issues. The NHA is
seeking broad endorsement of these principles by universities, scholarly
societies, and other research and educational organizations. The NHA principles
are reprinted in ARL Newsletter #192 (June 1997) and are available on the NINCH
web site at <http://www-ninch.cni.org/ISSUES/COPYRIGHT/PRINCIPLES/
NHA_Complete.html>.
11. Library, Educational Community Pledges to Define Fair Use
ARL, ALA, and a number of other national organizations representing educators,
scholars, librarians, and institutions that support learning and research have
pledged to undertake a renewed effort to explore the appropriate parameters of
fair use of copyrighted materials in the digital environment. The pledge comes
in the aftermath of the May 19, 1997 meeting of the Conference on Fair Use
(CONFU) at which no agreement was reached on proposals for fair use guidelines.
The goal of the educational organization in this effort is to encourage the use
and sharing of fair use policies and practices that provide for the special
needs and concerns of education and scholarship while also providing as much
clarity as possible about the boundaries of fair use as experience and good
faith permit.
Collection Development librarians are encouraged to keep the ARL office informed
about local or consortial policies, practices and experiences that may advance
understanding of creative and responsible applications of fair use in the
digital environment. The contact person at ARL for the initiative is Patricia
Brennan, Program Officer <patricia_at_cni.org>.
SELECTED RECENT ARL PUBLICATIONS AVAILABLE IN MEMBER LIBRARIES
* Electronic Resource Sharing, compiled by Donna R. Hogan and Barbara J.
Dahlbach, University of Alabama. Laura Rounds, editor. (Issued in June as SPEC
Kit 222.) Reviews levels of electronic resource sharing activity in ARL
libraries and addresses accounts, procedures, and trends.
* Transforming Libraries: Issues and Innovations in Electronic Scholarly
Publication, by George Soete with editorial advisor Mary Case, ARL. (Issued in
June 1997 as Transforming Libraries #3 and SPEC Kit 223.) Offers a snapshot of
current activity underway in this developing arena. Efforts by fourteen
institutions are showcased, highlighting emerging issues and trends, including
cost models, licensing issues, distribution choices, and partnership
arrangements. Supporting material will be available on the web <http://
arl.cni.org/transform/index.html>.
* Evolution and Status of Approval Plans, compiled by Susan Flood, Auburn
University. Laura Rounds, editor. (Issued in May 1997 as SPEC Kit 221.)
Examines use and management of approval plans (for foreign and domestic
materials) and compares current data to previous studies undertaken in 1982 and
1988.
* Video Collections and Multimedia in ARL Libraries: Changing Technologies, by
Kristine Brancolini, Indiana University, and Rick Provine, University of
Virginia. Laura Rounds, editor. (Issued in April 1997 as OMS Occasional Paper
#19.)
* ARL #191, the April 1997 Newsletter, featured an essay on "The AAU/ARL Latin
Americanist Research Resources Project: A New Direction for Monographic
Cooperation," by Harvard's Dan C. Hazen. Also available on the web <http://
arl.cni.org/newsltr/coll.html>.
* ARL #192, the June 1997 newsletter, is a special issue devoted to the topic of
copyright in the networked environment and the challenges facing the educational
community. Also available on the web <http://arl.cni.org/newsltr/copy.html>.
Received on Fri Jun 20 1997 - 17:15:18 EDT