Report on
Recent Activities of the Association of Research Libraries (ARL)
Prepared for the Meeting of Chief Collection Development Officers of Large
Research Libraries
January 19, 2002
ARL E-Metrics Project
The contracted portion of the ARL E-Metrics project is now complete and
project documents can be found at:
<http://www.arl.org/stats/newmeas/emetrics/index.html>. Printed versions
of the project documents will be available as a package early in 2002. The
project was conducted by the Information Use Management and Policy
Institute, Florida State University, under the direction of Charles
McClure. Rush Miller (Pittsburgh) and Sherrie Schmidt (Arizona State)
served as project managers. For more information, contact Martha
Kyrillidou at martha_at_arl.org or Julia Blixrud at jblix_at_arl.org.
The project consisted of three phases: a) knowledge inventory of ARL
libraries, providing indications of institutions worth considering for best
practices; b) definition and field testing of a set of measures, with
recommendations about which measures are most useful and how they can best
be collected; and c) data collection manual and training materials. In
addition, the project investigators also drafted an institutional outcomes
model that can be applied to research libraries.
One of the outgrowths of the project was the establishment of a working
group on database vendor statistics. Project participants and
investigators worked with 12 database vendors (those with which ARL
libraries spend the most money) in a field test data to determine if a
small set of data elements can be defined that are in line with library
interests that can be generated by the vendors with consistency. Work with
the database vendors will continue.
Next steps for this project will include more testing and refinement of the
measures by project participants, with likely expansion to most or all ARL
libraries. Project participants will also be meeting at ALA Midwinter to
discuss how best to move forward with efforts to relate the use of
electronic resources to institutional outcomes.
LibQUAL+
LibQUAL+, a research and development project undertaken by ARL in
collaboration with Texas A&M University to define and measure library
service quality across institutions and to create useful quality-assessment
tools for local planning, can be used to evaluate a library’s
collections-related services from the user’s point of view. LibQUAL+ was
spearheaded by Texas A&M University Libraries, which has been using a
modified version of the SERVQUAL instrument--a customer survey used widely
in the private sector--to evaluate their own library services since the
early 1990s. The spring 2000 pilot administration of the LibQUAL+ survey
collected data on 5,000 respondents’ minimum expectations of service,
desired levels of service, and perceived levels of service in 12 ARL
libraries. The second iteration of the survey ran in 43 libraries (35 of
which are ARL members) in spring 2001 with 34,000 individuals
responding. The LibQUAL+ homepage is at http://www.libqual.org/.
In fall 2000, ARL was awarded a $498,368 grant from the U.S. Department of
Education’s Fund for the Improvement of Post-Secondary Education (FIPSE) to
help defray the cost of further developing the LibQUAL+ tool and scaling up
its application to the full spectrum of libraries in the higher education
community. Over 170 libraries, including the OhioLINK consortium and
approximately 40 members of The Association of Academic Health Sciences
Libraries, will be participating in the spring 2002 administration of the
survey. Reports on LibQUAL+ were presented at the 4th Northumbria
International Conference, 12-16 August, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
http://www.arl.org/stats/north/, and the Library Research Seminar II, 2-3
November, College Park, Maryland http://www.dpo.uab.edu/~folive/LRSII/. As
the LibQUAL+ dataset becomes richer, those libraries whose users rate
collections-related services below minimum expectations can look to their
cohorts who excel in that area for models for improvement.
A proposal to assess service quality in digital libraries resulted in a
grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to ARL and Texas A&M of
$245,737 over a three-year period to adapt the LibQUAL+ instrument for use
in the Science, Math, Engineering and Technology Education Digital Library
community.
Institutions interested in participating in future LibQUAL+ projects or
for those interested in more details of the project should contact
Consuella Askew Waller at consuella_at_arl.org.
Learning Outcomes
The Learning Outcomes Project within the ARL New Measures Initiative is
intended to help identify measures that libraries can use to demonstrate
their contribution to campus learning outcomes. A Working Group was
established in August. At their meeting in October, the Learning Outcomes
Working Group reported on data gathering efforts for institutions,
accrediting agencies, and other organizations engaged in outcomes
assessment and discussed learning outcomes assessment activities conducted
on research library campuses. The group decided to focus on the following
activities: a) identifying commonly used learning outcomes from working
group campuses, particularly those used for general education requirements,
and determine if an instrument could be developed to be used across
libraries to assess those outcomes; b) identify potential national student
surveys to which specific library questions could be added and construct
questions for testing at the next survey cycle; and c) develop plans for
offering workshops that address both the process for becoming engaged in
campus learning outcomes assessment activities as well the specific skills
needed to work with faculty on developing learning outcomes for research
universities. The Working Group will meet at ALA Midwinter. For more
information, contact Julia Blixrud <jblix_at_arl.org>.
ARL Statistics Publications Published
ARL Statistics 1999-2000 (October) document the continued increase in costs
for the purchase of materials and the increased demand for library user
education and interlibrary borrowing. Available on the web:
<http://www.arl.org/stats/arlstat/00pub/00arlstat.pdf>
<http://www.arl.org/stats/arlstat/mrstat.html>
ARL Supplementary Statistics 1999-2000 (October) provides quantitative data
on how much individual ARL member libraries spend on a variety of
electronic resources. Highlights from this year's data show that overall
expenditures have increased on average from an estimated 3.6% of library
materials budget in 1992-93 to 12.9% in 1999-2000. Available on the web:
<http://www.arl.org/stats/sup/sup00.pdf>.
ARL/OCLC Strategic Issues Forum
More than 75 library leaders have registered for FUTURE LIBRARY
ARCHITECTURE: CONCEPTION, DESIGN, AND THE USE OF LIBRARY SPACE, the 3rd
ARL/OCLC Strategic Issues Forum. Scheduled for February 15-17, 2002 at
the Golden Nugget Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada, the Forum provides
thought-provoking presentations by colleagues and professional leaders
matched with audience discussion and debate.
Digital technologies, economic pressures, and shifting user needs and
expectations are among the forces that are dramatically reshaping libraries
today. Such compelling forces affect every dimension of library operations
and require a reconsideration of existing and planned library space along
many dimensions. The goals of this year's Strategic Issues Forum are: (1)
to engage library leaders in an exploration of important issues affecting
the future development of library space, and (2) to help prepare them to
envision and make the case for innovative library spaces that are directly
responsive to user needs and interests on their campuses.
Speakers include: Stephen Johnson, Principal and David Hart, Senior
Associate, of Hardy, Holzman Pfeiffer Associates; George H. Davis, Sr. Vice
President for Academic Affairs and Provost, University of Arizona;
and Gene Levy, Provost, Rice University.
Forum information, including a full speaker list and agenda, can be found
at: <http://www.oclc.org/institute/events/lv/index.htm>. Registration
information is at:
http://www.oclc.org/institute/registration/3rd_SIF_oireg.htm.
For further information, contact Julia Blixrud <jblix_at_arl.org>.
ARL and University of Michigan Library Sponsor Conference on Preservation
On March 7-8, 2002, ARL and the University of Michigan Library will present
Redefining Preservation, Shaping New Solutions, Forging New Partnerships, a
conference aimed at identifying, exploring, and examining current and
evolving preservation issues confronting academic libraries and
institutions. The conference is designed for library
directors, assistant/associate directors, preservation administrators, and
members of the vendor community that service library preservation
needs. The event will be held in Ann Arbor. Early bird registration
through Feb. 1 is $145. Information on the conference program and
registration details can be found at
http://www.lib.umich.edu/conferences/preservation/.
Knight Roundtable Report Released
The final report of the Knight Higher Education Roundtable on scholarly
publishing in the humanities and social sciences was published in late
December. The roundtable, jointly sponsored by ARL, NHA, and the Knight
Collaborative, with funding from the National Endowment for the Humanities,
was held in March 2001 to discuss the future of dissemination of scholarly
findings in the humanities and social sciences. Participants in the
roundtable, which included faculty, administrators, scholarly society
executives, scholarly publishers, and librarians, concluded that to attract
funds to support scholarly exploration and publication in these
disciplines, scholars need to
explore more intensively digital publication as a means to cultivate a
broader base of support. Recognizing that scholars need assurances that
their investment in electronic publishing will count for promotion and
tenure, the participants also recommended that universities establish
policies that establish peer-reviewed electronic publications as comparable
to peer-reviewed print publications in the review process. Participants
also recommended that active and continuing partnerships among the
stakeholders are necessary to provide the infrastructure, expertise, and
financial resources to help ensure the viability of electronic
publishing. Entitled "Op. Cit.," the essay is published as the December
2001 issue of Policy Perspectives and can be found online
at <http://www.irhe.upenn.edu/pubs/>. Copies will be sent to ARL member
libraries later in January.
International Scholarly Communications Alliance
ARL joins sister organizations around the globe as an initial member of the
International Scholarly Communications Alliance (ISCA). The ISCA is an
action-oriented global network that will collaborate with scholars and
publishers to establish equitable access to scholarly and research
publications. The Alliance is being formed by research library
organizations around the world to facilitate development of global
solutions to a global problem in scholarly communication. The creation of
such an organization was first proposed by the Consortium of University
Research Libraries, U.K. (CURL). Meetings were held in Washington in
August and October with interested organizations. In addition to ARL and
CURL, the Association of Japanese National University Libraries (ANUL), the
Canadian Association of Research Libraries (CARL), the Committee of New
Zealand Librarians (CONZUL), the
Council of Australian University Librarians (CAUL), and the Ligue des
Bibliotheques Europeennes de Recherche (LIBER) have signed on. A formal
announcement will be made in early January. Paul Ayris, Director of
Libraries at the University College London, is the Interim Secretary of the
group.
IMLS Funds Preservation Survey Project
We are pleased to report that the IMLS has funded a joint CLIR, ARL,
University Libraries Group, and Regional Alliance for Preservation project
to research and document current conditions and challenges in preservation
programs in American college and research libraries. The first phase of
the project will focus on collecting quantitative data on preservation and
digitizing activities, and institutional context for the non-ARL libraries
represented in the group. The ARL Preservation Statistics survey and other
instruments will serve as the basis for this inquiry. The second phase of
the project is intended to document preservation needs and will be
undertaken through the development of case studies to obtain qualitative
data. Site visits to 20 representative institutions (planned for late
spring and summer 2002) from all of the participating libraries will be
conducted. The results
of the study will document current conditions and provide the knowledge
base for the partners to use in developing strategic initiatives to address
preservation needs in an increasingly complex and changing
environment. IMLS awarded CLIR, on behalf of the partners, a National
Leadership Grant for Libraries in Research & Demonstration of
$71,930. Anne Kenney, CLIR and Cornell, is the project director, and
Deirdre Stam is the project consultant. ARL staff Martha Kyrillidou and
Mary Case are providing support for the project. In addition, Mary Case
and Nancy
Gwinn, Chair of ARL's Preservation Committee, serve on the project’s
Advisory Committee.
Special Collections: An ARL Agenda
The June 2001 conference at Brown University, “Building on
Strength; Developing an ARL Agenda for Special Collections,” brought
together library directors and special collections librarians in a
successful working symposium. The resulting “action agenda” was discussed
in detail at the October 2001 ARL membership meeting, at sessions of the
Research Collections Committee and the Committee on Access as well as at a
special small-group breakout session. Since then, a new Special
Collections Task Force has been established to take the next steps toward
implementing the recommendations that emerged from the Brown
symposium. For more information, see:
http://www.arl.org/collect/spcoll/index.html.
AAU/ARL Global Resources Program
The Advisory Board of the Global Resources Program is meeting at ARL
headquarters on January 14, 2002 to consider the Program’s achievements and
next steps, including funding options for the future. All seven of the
regional projects have continued to make progress towards the original
goals of the Program, to enhance access to international materials through
new uses of technology and collaboration.
The African Newspaper Union List Project (AFRINUL) is a multi-institutional
project to produce and maintain and electronic union list of sub-Saharan
African newspapers. A joint initiative of the Africana Librarians Council
(ALC) of the African Studies Association (ASA), and the Cooperative
Africana Microform Project (CAMP) of CRL, AFRINUL also complements CRL’s
ICON project. AFRINUL currently has 15 participating libraries. For more
information, see http://wwwcrl.uchicago.edu/info/camp/afrinul.htm.
The German Resources Project carries out its work through four working
groups: collection development, document delivery, digital libraries, and
bibliographic control, and currently has over 46 member
libraries. Highlights of Project achievements include:
· A proposal to enable Project libraries to subscribe corporately to
a list of German database through xiplois.net has been concluded. This
online reference service was announced in December 2001 and will be
launched early in 2002. See
http://www.library.northwestern.edu/grp/xipolisoffer.html.
· Negotiations are underway to provide access for Project
participants to USMARC cataloging records for items in the Bibliothek der
deutschen Literatur (microfiche set published by G. K. Saur) at a
substantially discounted price.
· The records for 78,000 volumes of the library of the former
Paedagogische Hochschule, Erfurst, are available as an EndNote database for
Project members to examine in anticipation of negotiating exchanges for
these materials.
· Twenty-seven subject areas have now been included in the Project’s
Partnerships program. These are working personal linkages between
specialists in German and North America, beyond Germanistik extending to
such f ields as geography, mathematics, art, Judaica, South Asian
studies, Latin American studies, and American studies.
· The promotion and refinement of the GBVdirekt/North America
document delivery service for North American libraries has been a Project
focus. Over 25 institutions now participate and the number is increasing.
The Japan Journal Access Project has focused on interlibrary loan (ILL) and
document delivery (DD) issues during the past six months. The Association
of National University Libraries (ANUL) project was successfully concluded
in February 2001 with the Conference on Improvement of Academic Information
Access between the U.S. and Japan. Japanese and American delegates agreed
to resume "regular ILL" until NII completed implementation of the ISO ILL
Protocol, the international standard that permits ILL/DD requests to be
exchanged between different systems. NII indicated that they would like to
use the ILL Protocol with the OCLC ILL system. After a meeting with NII
and OCLC staff in March, the two organizations have been exchanging test
messages this fall.
On December 15, 2001 Sachie Noguchi and Mary Jackson represented the Japan
Project and NCC at a meeting held at the University of Tokyo General
Library. The aim of the meeting was to establish the framework for the
next phase of global ILL/DD exchange. ANUL and NII are aggressively moving
toward the realization a Global ILL Framework (GIF) and their efforts will
be actively supported by the Japan Project. Over the next six months, we
can expect to see expanded exchange of ILL requests between Japanese and
North American libraries.
The Latin Americanist Research Resources Project is in the final year of a
three-year grant of over $400,000 from the U. S. Department of Education’s
program “Technological Innovation and Cooperation for Foreign Information
Access” (TICFIA), focused on expanding the Latin American partnerships
program. Through this program, libraries in Bolivia, Guatemala, Puerto
Rico, the West Indies, and Argentina have begun contributing to the table
of contents database (LAPTOC). In November, another TICFIA proposal was
submitted, addressing the need for improved control of and access to Latin
America’s “grey literature,” through the Latin American Open Archives
Portal. The project has 50 members.
The Slavic Document Delivery Project. In its start-up stage, this
project’s goal is to create a mutually beneficial document delivery system
between libraries in Slavic countries and in North America. Initially, six
libraries in East Central Europe and the countries of the former Soviet
Union will participate and will be provided with Ariel for a one-year trial
period, courtesy of RLG. The goal of project organizer Brad Schaffner
(University of Kansas) is to have six different countries and languages
represented.
The Digital South Asia Library (DSAL). DSAL and the closely related
Digital Dictionaries of South Asia (DDSA) project both originated with the
support of the Global Resources Program. Since then, the projects have
attracted funding from the U. S. Department of Education ($595,000 for DSAL
and $444,031 for DDSA) to expand web resources. Together, the projects
have digitized books and journals, dictionaries, bibliographies, images,
statistics, and maps.
The Southeast Asia Indexing Project/Thai Journal Index. This project
consists of two parts: a project based at Cornell University Library to
enhance the range of materials represented in the Bibliography of Asian
Studies (BAS) and a project based at the University of Washington to
provide access to Thai journals, using scanned images of part of the
original text and transliterated metadata. Both are cooperative projects
sponsored by the committee on Research Materials on Southeast Asia
(CORMOSEA), a subcommittee of the Association of Asian Studies.
Received on Thu Jan 31 2002 - 10:37:16 EST