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North Carolina Libraries

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Volume 99, Number 1
ISSN 0029-2540

IDRARIES

Spring 1997

Guest Editor, Suzanne Wise

WhatTs Wrong with Library Organization? Factors Leading to Restructuring in
Research Libraries, Joe A. Hewitt

A Holistic Look at Professional Development, Martha Kreszock

Public Libraries: An Important Piece in the Community Network Puzzle,
Jennifer Seavy Pratt

Technology and Educational Standards: Crossroads in the Media Center,
Milton J. Warden

Nailing Jell-O to the Wall? Collection Management in the Electronic Era,
Robert Galbreath

U.S. Government Publications in Time of Change, Ann E. Miller

Barbarians at the Gate: Civilizing Digital Information (An Annotated
Bibliography), Araby Greene

TCO PCRUS Steps erm meen oe RTE RIOT RE INR

From the President
Point: Raymond Chandler on Libraries, Suzanne Wise
Counter Point: Libraries Do Not Need Resuscitation, Thank You!, Harry Tuchmayer

& in Edition: Technology Use in North Carolina Public Schools: The School
Library Media Specialist Plays a Major Role, Carol Truett

Wired to the World, Ralph Lee Scott
North Carolina Books

Lagniappe: The Search for North Carolina Audiobooks: A Directory of Sources,
Melody Moxley

About the Authors
NCLA Candidates 1997-1999

Advertisers: Broadfoot's, 21; 50 NCLA Minutes
Checkpoint, 53;
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Ebsco, 14; : : : :

Mumford Books, 45; Cover: Photo courtesy of Gary Weathersbee, Joyner Library, East Carolina University.

Quality Books, 11;
SIRS, front cover; North Carolina Libraries is the official publication of the North Carolina Library Association.
UNC Press, back cover. Art direction and design by Pat Weathersbee of TeamMedia, Greenville, NC.

Sa

From the President

Dave Fergusson, President

2 " Spring 1997

ew" aving served over one year as President, I would like to comment on both the health of

NCLA, the best state association top to bottom in the country, and the directions in which

we find ourselves headed. I am having a good time working with everyone, including the
Executive Board and administrative assistant Marsha Wells, and I would love to hear from as many
NCLA members as possible. I try to respond to each one " but I do not hear from enough members,
so please contact me if youTd like at 910 727-2556 or d_fergusson@forsyth.lib.nc.us.

The good news is that we have 1,765 individual members doing great things to improve
libraries and our profession in North Carolina. The bad news is that we only have 1,765 members -
and we need more to remain active and effective.

You probably know by now that NCLATs financial health has not been particularly good during
the past few years. Why? Costs of operating have increased, including the administrative and
personnel costs associated with maintaining an office. Even with the State LibraryTs generous
provision of office space, these costs have risen as we have instituted essential new accounting
procedures and the software needed to facilitate efficient tax accounting. Income has decreased as
membership has slipped, but certain costs, such as the cost of our award-winning journal North
Carolina Libraries, do not decrease with membership. The initial cost of a print run is the main
determinant of cost; the journal is actually being printed very economically. For these reasons and
others, including the possibility that membership renewals have been affected by the recent switch
to annual dues, operating expenses overtook operating revenue.

As a result, Dr. Robert Burgin of NCCU was asked to head a Financial Vitality Committee,
charged with finding solutions. His committee, working very closely with the Finance Committee
headed by Teresa McManus, came up with both short and long term solutions. They are outlined
in detail in the minutes from the January 17 Board meeting printed in the back of this issue. Some
may seem more palatable than others, but they are aimed at spreading costs around so that all
segments of NCLA have a healthy structure upon which to build their activities. They are also

aimed at increasing the importance of membership.

As a member, you really should receive value for your investment. In addition to receiving one
of the best quarterly library publications in the nation, you gain access to groups of members
working very hard to improve and contribute to specific interests and types of libraries. One of the
new recommendations assures that members will receive a substantially lower rate when registering
for any NCLA-sponsored workshop or training session, the quality of which has remained consis-
tently high. NCLA members work diligently to arrange these opportunities, and for that reason
Association members should receive real value. Without the benefit of our mailing lists, bulk
mailing permits, our non-profit status, available office help, and the AssociationTs name and
reputation, these sessions would be harder to find and less likely to satisfy folksT specific needs.

Sure, there are cheaper professional associations. I did the research. You can join ISOH (Interna-
tional Society of Olympics Historians) for $15.00 a year. More typical are the $75.00 a year dues for
YABA (Yacht Architects & Brokers Association) or even the IFEC (International Foodservice Editorial
Council) dues of $225.00 a year. For $25.00-35.00 a year, NCLA looks very good.

In todayTs competitive climate, it has proven difficult to conduct an inexpensive public aware-
ness campaign. I hope that you have seen the televised pro-library public service announcement
featuring Tim Duncan and Tony Rutland of the Wake Forest basketball team. (We have learned
much this year: Beta-SP tapes cost about $30.00, not the $2.99 VHS costs; local stations are reluc-
tant to run PSATs that do not feature their own otalent;� telling a specific message creatively is not
easy; and finally, one needs GOBS of MONEY.) I believe that we really have only scratched the
surface in communicating the library ostory� " explaining the potential value of all libraries to our
users. As difficult as it will be, it must be done. No one else will do it, and getting the message out
will affect the value realized by our patrons, as well as our own survival. You may be asked to do
more in your area in the future.

Whew! I seem to have written a lot and left out a lot. The Association has finally taken judicious
steps to alter its governance structure in the near future. The Biennial Conference in Raleigh, Choose
Quality: Choose Libraries, October 8-10, is looking great. You will be voting on new officers and
perhaps some changes in the Constitution and Bylaws soon. We can be proud of our inaugural
Leadership Institute. I have cleaned out the treasury and bought a nice vacation condo in Aruba. Just
kidding " were you paying attention? The Association is really making great progress. It only needs
you and more like you. Convince every fellow librarian, paraprofessional, or trustee that you know to
join. We need their ideas to keep growing. We do not want to lose anyone.

North Carolina Libraries

WhatTs Wrong with Library
Organization?
Factors Leading to Restructuring in Research Libraries

by Joe A. Hewitt

he library literature and discussion in the profession
leave the clear impression that many academic librar-
ians, particularly in research libraries, believe that the
traditional organizational structures of academic librar-
ies are becoming obsolete. Factors such as increasing
automation, the growing availability of electronic re-
sources, the changing fiscal status of libraries, evolving
information needs of users, the need for staff to have more
autonomy and control over their work, and a general
reconceptualization of library services are forces that seem to
call for more flexible and dynamic organizational structures.
Carla J. Stoffle and her colleagues at the University of Arizona
recently have stated the case for radical organizational
change.! Others see the need for more gradual and evolution-
ary change.�

In spite of the widespread recognition that organiza-
tional change is needed, the predominant forms of organi-
zation in research libraries appear to be resistant to funda-
mental change in their underlying structure. Survey results
suggest that, while automation and other changing condi-
tions have caused organizational adjustments within divi-
sions and departments in a number of libraries, basic struc-
tural change on a library-wide scale remains relatively rare.*

The study on which this paper is based sought to dis-
cover and analyze the factors that energized change in a
small group of libraries that have experienced various degrees
of restructuring.* The libraries studied were the University
of Tennessee, the University of Texas, Vanderbilt University,
the University of Wisconsin, and Yale University. At the time
of the study in 1991, these libraries recently had undergone
reorganization or relatively rapid periods of organizational
transition within a traditional framework. The changes
ranged from the elimination of traditional technical services
departments and the use of self-management teams at Yale,
to a general library-wide restructuring at Wisconsin, to a
major but less radical change at Tennessee, to what might
best be described as modest administrative realignments at
Vanderbilt and Texas.

The structures in place at the time of the study have long
since been altered by ongoing organizational development.
It is not the purpose of this paper to analyze and evaluate the
specific organizational structures in these libraries. Rather,
the paper will attempt to show the common threads of mo-

North Carolina Libraries

tivation in vastly different examples of reorganization.

The study might best be described as a qualitative field
study. On-site visits ranging from two days to one week were
made to each library. Internal background documents gener-
ously were provided by all libraries, but the principal data
consisted of transcripts of in-depth interviews with adminis-
trators and staff members at all levels. The study sought to
elicit and organize the perceptions of key respondents in the
libraries and to identify common themes, strategies, and in-
sights abstracted from the context of specific libraries. Re-
spondents had been participant/observers in the reorganiza-
tion process from a variety of perspectives and offered their
candid observations on the assurance of anonymity. As many
as thirty respondents were interviewed in some libraries.

The observations reported here were chosen because
they fell together as underlying themes when the observa-
tions from all of the libraries were aggregated. The precipi-
tating causes or official rationales for reorganization varied,
ranging from staff reductions due to budget retrenchment to -
the need to accommodate automation. These factors, how-
ever, would not have necessitated major organizational
change had leaders in the libraries not already been inclined
to restructure due to a sense of inadequacy in the existing
organizations. When observations from the libraries were
combined, considerable agreement existed on areas of orga-
nizational performance that needed improvement.

The observations constituting the oorganizational diag-
nosis� in the subject libraries can be grouped into four clus-
ters: those related to organizational rigidity, with a conse-
quent need for more flexibility and adaptability; the need for
a stronger external or client orientation; the need to improve
the library as a work environment and to revitalize the staff;
and the need to develop a structure that would improve vari-
ous management processes such as communication and li-
brary-wide coordination. These concerns appeared to be the
underlying motivations for organizational change, although
other reasons, such as automation, were often given official
prominence.

Need for Organizational Flexibility

A number of observations centered around the lack of flex-
ibility, adaptability, or oresponsiveness� in the organizational
structure. The composite image of earlier organizational

Spring 1997 " %

structures was of organizations that were rigid, fragmented,
and resistant to change. There was a perceived need for a
freer and more open organizational environment. Listed
below are observations relevant to this dimension as para-
phrased from the interviews.

e The organization was biased toward the status quo;
there was resistance to analyzing services, policies, pro-
cedures, and organizational structure to determine if
they could be improved.

e The library had not adjusted adequately to major
changes in emphasis or direction within the institution.
e Functional divisions were too rigid; it was difficult to
coordinate priorities operationally or to respond quickly
to acute changes such as budget shortfalls or reductions
in staff.

e Problem-solving capabilities were underdeveloped,
especially with respect to operational problems that
crossed traditional functional divisions.

e The structure was a barrier to assignment of staff to cross-
functional, interdepartmental, or interdivisional program-
matic initiatives.

¢ The library was not oriented to the future and to changes
that would be necessary to capitalize on new technologies;
the library was ofocused on the traditional� and not open
to new technologies or new ways of doing things.

¢ Many staff held to beliefs in otime-honored myths� that
had not been examined critically; the traditional organi-
zation reinforced this attitude.

e The otraditional walls� between functional units were
too strong; there was a lack of ocross fertilization� among
functions such as collection development, technical
services, and public services.

¢ The value system was not centered on flexibility and
responsiveness.

e The organization was stagnant; a oshake-up� was needed
to demonstrate that organizational change is possible and
desirable.

e The organization was ooverly structured� and too for-
mal; it did not encourage formation of informal working
groups and problem-solving teams (e.g., setting up
committees was a omajor deal� including formal
charges, elaborate schemes of representation, etc.).

A number of those interviewed, particularly those who
were strong advocates for organizational change, perceived
that previous organizations embodied values heavily ori-
ented towards stability, maintenance of the status quo, and
a lack of openness to change. The need to create an organi-
zational structure that was more adaptable and flexible than
previous forms emerged as the most prominent element in
the underlying motivations for change.

The need for flexibility and adaptability frequently was
described in connection with automation and the climate of
fiscal uncertainty. The goal of reorganization was not merely
to accommodate a specific new phase of automation, such as
adoption of an integrated library system, but it was to devise

Greater flexibility and adaptability were
seen as crucial to organizational
effectiveness in a changing environment.

4 " Spring 1997

an organizational structure that would be more receptive to
technological innovation in general and facilitate the adop-
tion of future technologies. Likewise, the goal of reorgani-
zation caused by retrenchment was not merely to absorb a
new round of budget cuts, but to develop an organization
that would be more responsive to continuously changing re-
source levels.

Flexibility and adaptability were discussed by
interviewees as closely associated concepts, but with differ-
ing emphases. Flexibility implies the ability of the organiza-
tion to deal with routine operational problems and program
development issues in a non-bureaucratic and responsive
manner; it relates to the ability to make graceful short-term
adjustments that do not interrupt a long-term, unified thrust
towards fulfilling established organizational goals.
Interviewees often associated flexibility with oproblem solv-
ing,� balancing staff resources with priorities in short- and in-
termediate-term time frames, and responding effectively to
operational crises and opportunities.

Adaptability, on the other hand, relates to the ability of
the organization as a whole to adjust to a new set of envi-
ronmental conditions. Adaptability implies flexibility in
a more general and strategic sense " the ability to change
directions, to incorporate major new technologies, and to
reorient the organization as a result of new resource levels
or institutional goals.

Problems of limited flexibility and adaptability were seen
as having two primary sources: a rigid, functional segmenta-
tion of the organization that fostered bureaucratic manage-
ment styles (a flexibility dysfunction); and the narrow and
insular view of the library within the university (an adapt-
ability dysfunction). Greater flexibility and adaptability were
seen as crucial to organizational effectiveness in a changing
environment.

Need for External or Client-Centered Orientation
A second group of observations revolved around the need for
a stronger client-centered orientation, more effective ties
with the institutional community, and an external rather
than an internal focus; previous structures were described as
tending toward insularity. IntervieweesT observations in this
category are transcribed or paraphrased below.

¢ The organization was too focused on internal procedures
rather than externally on constituencies; an insular view
prevailed both within departments in the library and in
the library with respect to the institution as a whole.

e There was a need to develop service programs more
responsive to the requirements of specific disciplines or
clusters of disciplines or more specifically oriented to
different levels of use " i.e., undergraduate and research.
e Insufficient attention was given to external liaison;
mote staff should be involved in this activity.

e An organizational structure (or management process)
was needed to assist management staff at the departmen-
tal level to transcend focus on departmental concerns.

¢ The entire organization was focused on day-to-day
activities; an organizational structure that would support
a more strategic approach within the broader environment
was needed.

e The library staff, management, and administration
should be more aware of and responsive to oeducational
issues� on campus.

¢ The library administration should work more closely
with the university administration and spend less time in
internal management.

North Carolina Libraries

e Some units did not have goals that reflected usersT needs;
too many operational decisions were made ofor the
convenience of librarians.�

e The library had a negative image as being unresponsive
to certain constituencies.

e Some departments were oself absorbed;� units were
oisolated within their own perspectives� and often worked
at cross purposes with other units in the library.

¢ It was important to understand the needs of new
constituencies that had not been served in the past.

e Operational decisions did not vary sufficiently accord-
ing to disciplines; policies and procedures were too gen-
eral and based on librariansT long standing assumptions
about users; librarians were uninformed about changing
information needs in various disciplines.

e Vital expertise in the library was isolated from both in-
ternal and external users by the organizational structure.
e The organization did not encourage strong oclient rela-
tionships� between individuals in the library and individu-
als in the user community.

In comparison to the problems of rigidity described in
the previous section, the perception of insularity was some-
what less pervasive among the various levels of staff inter-
viewed in the libraries. This concern was expressed most
strongly by administrators or change agents who had initi-
ated reorganization. Staff at lower levels tended to feel that
the library had always had a strong client orientation and did
not agree that the libraryTs general value system was insular
and self-absorbed. On the other hand, some interviewees at
lower levels observed that the organization did tend to make
the establishment of effective relationships with constituen-
cies and external units difficult. Some interviewees attrib-
uted this insularity to a lack of time away from internal re-
sponsibilities and a lack of information and/or delegated au-
thority to act effectively as liaison with external units.

The realignment of a library or a major division such as
technical services into a subject-oriented structure was the
central theme in two of the libraries studied. Although user-
centeredness was expressed as a concern in all libraries, vary-
ing perspectives existed as to whether it was primarily a matter
of organizational value or of structure. A noteworthy sub-theme
in this area of concern was the high degree of interest in bet-
ter service to specific constituencies and equity of service
across constituencies.

Empowering the Staff

A third category of dissatisfaction centered on the need to
improve the library as an organization in which to work,
both for reasons of staff morale and for operational improve-
ment. Certain units under the previous organizations were
seen as failing to provide staff with sufficient variety, chal-
lenge, and control over the immediate work environment.
The structure provided neither motivation for growth nor
opportunity for initiative and engagement in the broader
mission of the library. Interviewees felt that the library
needed an improved working environment in order to attract
and retain energetic and committed staff. Empowerment of
staff at the operational level also was expected to result in
greater flexibility and more efficient use of staff resources.
Observations related to this category are paraphrased below.

e The organization did not empower operational staff to
make decisions directly affecting their work. As a result, de-
cisions were not made close enough to the opoint of use�
and thus often did not reflect specific conditions and cir-
cumstances.

North Carolina Libraries

e Work assignments did not support staff growth by
employing their full capabilities; flexibility was needed in
the use of staff knowledge and skills.

e Approaches to supervision were too bureaucratic.

e The structure did not support a broad view of the
libraryTs mission among staff; staff needed to discern
their contribution to the broader goals of the library and
thereby enhance their sense of accomplishment.

e A oteam environment� should be created in which staff
performed their work in a less isolated way.

e Staff at operating levels needed to take more responsibil-
ity for day-to-day work; they needed to take initiative and
become less dependent on management; staff tended to
rely on the administration to oget things done� rather than
take initiative at the unit level; they needed oorganiza-
tional support� for adopting this attitude.

e Staff did not have access to the information required for
planning, organizing, and performing their work.

e There had been little encouragement of staff to get
involved in organizational problem solving.

e Some units were omicro-managed,� with little or no staff
participation.

e The organization encouraged staff to be more aware of
the limits of the workplace than the possibilities.

e Insufficient contact among staff at working levels was
made with staff in other departments and divisions.

e Staff were oin a rut,� job satisfaction was low, and many
staff did not feel that they were doing meaningful work.

Criticisms of the library as a work environment were not
prevalent in all of the libraries, but, in the libraries in which
this category of dissatisfaction occurred, it was fairly consis-
tent throughout the levels of staff interviewed. While some
criticisms of this type can be ascribed to dissatisfaction with
management performance, in general interviewees tended to
attribute the problem to the organizational structure itself or
to an ingrained corporate culture.

It is also clear that some persons emphasizing this di-
mension of organizational failure were influenced by per-
sonal philosophical convictions that worklife in general
needed to be more exciting and challenging. To them, the
librariesT failures were merely symptomatic of general condi-
tions in American life and they had been disappointed that
the library owasnTt any different� from other organizations.
In the case of some younger professional librarians, the li-
brary work environment had failed to live up to idealistic ex-
pectations. Many staff who were critical of the library work
environment seemed to hold the view that it is the respon-
sibility of administrators to improve the quality of the work
experience for staff and that this goal should be a high pri-
ority for the library.

Need to Improve Management Process

The final group of issues leading to reorganization combines
a variety of problems of management process, role defini-
tion, and communication, designated here under the gen-
eral rubric of omanagement process.� These observations
occurred frequently with reference to highly specific con-
ditions in the libraries and showed no clear pattern in the
composite analysis except for the fact that each library had
a collection of such problems. Some of these concerns had
been addressed by changes at the administrative level that
did not represent radical changes to general organizational
structure. They were rarely a part of the central themes of
major reorganizations and many of the concerns remained
unaddressed by the changes that did occur. Thus, in addi-

Spring 1997 " 9

rei aN i ys eS ek ae

tion to the three distinct categories of organizational
weakness described previously, there were expressions of
dissatisfaction with a variety of specific aspects of organiza-
tional performance. These observations are collected be-
low. As can be seen, some of these points appear contra-
dictory, suggesting that they came from different levels of
the organization.

¢ More channels of upward communication ought to be
opened, especially those by-passing the management
hierarchy.

e Horizontal communication needed improvement, not
only with respect to divisions and departments, but also
among committees, task forces, and informal working
groups.

e Administration and management needed to spend more
time in library-wide planning in longer time frames, less
time on management of divisions or departments.

e There was a need to provide coordination and a coher-
ent thrust to spontaneous entrepreneurial activities such as
user instruction and microcomputer-based automation.

e Management level group processes needed fuller
development; team concepts were needed in management
groups such as department heads.

e Role expectations at middle management level (espe-
cially department heads) needed better definition with
respect to unit versus library-wide responsibilities.

e Specialists needed to be placed within the organization
so that the staff in the various specializations could
omutually inform� each other.

e Better coordination across divisions and units was needed
for certain library-wide activities such as bibliographic
instruction, automation, and collection development.

e The organization needed to support a omore strategic�
approach to decision making rather than oad hocracy.�

e A better omanagement forum� was needed for odelibera-
tion of issues� rather than mere information exchange.

- e No one in the organization was dealing with the ointel-
lectual content� of issues (e.g., bibliographic control policy,
collection development, preservation policy).

e More oaccountability� in terms of goals related to the
library service mission was needed.

e Some levels of management just opassed things up and
down the line� without being involved in the decision
process.

This miscellaneous collection of points related to per-
ceived poor performance of the previous structure is difficult
to classify thematically. It appears, however, that an under-
lying factor in many of these observations is discomfort re-
lated to role ambiguity at various levels in the organization.
Examples of conflicting roles include: coordinating role ver-
sus directing role; communicating role versus decision-mak-
ing role; external versus internal role; team member versus de-
partmental or functional advocate; evaluative role versus per-
forming role. These problems could reflect the stresses on an
organization oabsorbing� change without reorganizing " the
gradual emergence of new demands on individuals that are
not sanctioned or supported by the established structure nor
by newly defined roles in a new structure. These underlying
concerns were expressed by interviewees from at least two
perspectives " implied criticisms that others were not fulfill-
ing their appropriate roles in light of new challenges facing
the library, and discomfort that they themselves were not able
to function in appropriate roles as they conceived them due
to limited support from the organizational structure.

6 " Spring 1997

Conclusion

Aggregating problems from several libraries tends to exagger-
ate their extent and severity. These lists should not be taken
as negative reflections on the subject libraries. Issues of or-
ganizational performance in these libraries are no different
from those faced by all research libraries. The point to em-
phasize, however, is that perceived inadequacies such as
those described in the four categories above, sometimes
coupled with acute situations or opportunities, are the un-
derlying factors that impel leaders to initiate organizational
change.

Other surveys have concentrated on factors such as de-
clining resources, new patterns of scholarly communication,
information technology, and user demand as factors contrib-
uting to reorganization.T While important, these factors are
not sufficient cause for major reorganization unless there is
an underlying lack of confidence in the capacity of the ex-
isting organization to handle these conditions. Another
finding of the study, which will be analyzed in detail in a
paper on the change process, is that staff respond most posi-
tively to organizational change aimed at correcting specific
problems in the existing organization. Reorganizations based
on the convictions of administrators that all libraries must
change as a result of general conditions in the information
or higher education environments have less credibility.
There are also differences in perspective with respect to
whether or not radical structural change is the preferred ap-
proach to changing the organization. Sound judgment in
these areas requires a refined understanding of the strengths
and weaknesses of the existing organization as well as the
environmental challenges facing the library.

The four categories of organizational failure can serve to
focus systematic assessments of organizational effectiveness.
They also can provide a framework for defining areas that re-
quire ongoing attention in a library following a course of
gradual or evolutionary organizational development rather
than radical reorganization. New organizational structures
also can be designed specifically to address issues of flexibil-
ity, user orientation, staff empowerment, and management
process if improvement in these areas is established as a goal
of reorganization. In short, a thorough understanding of
these areas of potential weakness in our present organiza-
tions can be critical to developing successful approaches to
restructuring research libraries.

References

1 Carla J. Stoffle, Robert Renaud, and Jerilyn R. Veldof,
oChoosing Our Futures,� College & Research Libraries 57 (May
1996): 213-25.

? Two papers written specifically in response to the Stoffle
article state a more moderate position on organizational
change. Susan Lee, oChange: But Not So Fast and Not So
Much,� College & Research Libraries 57 (May 1996): 226-28,
and Richard Hume Werking, oChanges and Continuities,�
College & Research Libraries 57 (May 1996): 231-33.

3 Joanne D. Eustis and Donald J. Kenney, Library Reorgani-
zation & Restructuring; ARL SPEC KIT 215 (Washington, DC:
Association of Research Libraries, 1996), 4.

4 The study was conducted by the author with support
from the Council on Library Resources. (CLR-851) A full re-
port was submitted to the Council in July 1991 under the
title The Process of Organizational Review in Research Libraries.

5 Eustis and Kenney, 4.

North Carolina Libraries

A Holistic Look at Professional

he articles in this issue speak

to the complexity of challenges

facing libraries and librarian-

ship. New technologies and in-

creasing numbers and formats of

resources, combined with decreas-

ing budgets and the ever-present politi-

cal issues associated with library ser-

vices, create a challenging venue. This

ever-changing landscape necessitates

flexibility at every level of librarianship
and in every type of library.

We know that library schools are
faced with educating their entering stu-
dents for a profession that may look
very different ten years from now. In a
recent article in Southeastern Librarian,
Margaret Myers uses the term omind-
boggling� to characterize the list of de-
sirable skills and attributes pulled from
the library literature to describe librar-
ies and library workers for the twenty-
first century.! Her list of skills includes
problem solving, critical thinking, team
building, synthesizing, and fund-rais-
ing, as well as negotiation abilities, po-
litical savvy, and an awareness of
multicultural and group process con-
cerns. Desirable attributes include flex-
ibility, lifetime learning, risk-taking,
proactivity, service orientation,
articulacy, self-confidence, curiosity,
and adaptability. Being an innovator,
possessing the ability to thrive on
chaos, and tolerating ambiguity round
out the list. What seems to be expected,
notes Myers, is oa super-person or a Re-
naissance person.�� Nor do we have to
wait for the next century; Myers notes
that current librarians need these skills
as well. Indeed, we all face daily the
need to learn new skills, new sources,
new ways of navigating in and amongst

North Carolina Libraries

Development

by Martha Kreszock

these sources, and new ways of organiz-
ing and making information accessible.
Patrons add another layer of complex-
ity as we encounter a variety of capabili-
ties and needs among our users. The
formula is complicated further by the
fact that, increasingly, these users are
physically removed from us.

There are perhaps few other profes-
sions for whom the concept of olife-
long learning� is so important. A review
of the literature, a look at the variety of
continuing education and professional
development opportunities available,
an examination of the variety of work-
shop and conference offerings attest to
that fact. We have come far since
WilliamsonTs 1933 conclusion that
there was oa conspicuous lack of both
opportunity and incentive on the part
of library workers, including library
school graduates as well as others, to
seek continued professional growth and
improvement.�?

The best evidence of our commit-
ment to continued professional growth
is found in our library associations. The
Continuing Library Education Network
and Exchange Round Table (CLENERT)
was incorporated into ALA in 1984. The
unit evolved from The Continuing Li-
brary Education Network and Exchange
(CLENE), established at the Catholic

~University of America in 1975, was for

some time the only association in the
profession which held continuing edu-
cation as its sole mission. Other library
associations have followed suit by fo-
cusing on continued professional edu-
cation as a priority and providing a wid-
ened selection of opportunities for
members. Some have hired professional
staff to initiate institutes, workshops,

and even self-study programs. A series
of national seminars on continuing
education has evolved into a compe-
tency-based certification system that is
in place for the Medical Library Associa-
tion (MLA). Each year the Office of Li-
brary Personnel Resources (OLPR) issues
a brochure, oALA Is Continuing Educa-
tion,� to provide an overview of con-
tinuing professional education opportu-
nities available through the eleven di-
visions and sixteen round tables of ALA.
In addition, participants can obtain
ALA-awarded Continuing Education
Units (CEUTs) for many continuing pro-
fessional education activities.*

Professional Development Is a

Lifelong Journey

Our professional development begins
the first time the image of self as librar-
ian flickers in our mind. We enter the
profession with a mental image of who
a librarian is and what a librarian does.
Library school provides the founda-
tions, philosophy, and specialties of the
profession. The education we receive
presents the opportunity, the mandate,
to take control of our own direction and
professional development. Upon gradu-
ation we are immediately faced with a
mass of continuing library education
opportunities.

Looking at professional develop-
ment programs for research librarians,
Shaughnessy has observed a general lack
of focus. The assumption, he says, is that
oin offering a smorgasbord of staff devel-
opment opportunities, staff develop-
ment occurs.� This situation is not
unique to any particular group of librar-
ians. It is fair to assume that the notion
applies to our profession as a whole.

Spring 1997 " 7

0 OO OO OO OE eeOoOrOre ee

That brings us face-to-face with the
maze of opportunities out there. Build-
ing on the analogy of a smorgasbord,
we are confronted with many decisions.
Where do we start? In what order do we
sample the offerings? How much is
enough? Can we go back for seconds?
There are broader considerations as
well. What is the quality of each prod-
uct? What are the costs? What is the
return on our investment?

Several authors have attempted to
sort out the mass of professional devel-
opment opportunities for librarians.
This is no small task given the different
types of libraries, our specialties within
the profession, the level of academic
preparation a librarian brings to the job,
and even the point at which the librar-
ian may be in his or her career.

Typical purposes of continuing
education, according to Heim and
Myers, include the introduction of new
techniques or the continued develop-
ment of special skills. They note four
designations " institutes, seminars,
conferences, and workshops " terms
often used with little distinction.® Spon-
sors include universities, professional
and educational associations, and gov-
ernment agencies. The offerings that li-
brary systems, corporations, and educa-
tional institutions provide their em-
ployees, as well as formal doctoral or
certificate of advanced study programs,
can all be considered continuing educa-
tion, as can the various regularly sched-
uled conferences sponsored by library
associations. Along with formal pro-
grams and committee meetings, these
conferences often include exhibits,
workshops, and opportunities for pro-
fessional networking. The training that
commercial vendors supply for their
products falls under the umbrella of
continuing education as well.

Another approach has been to sur-
vey groups of librarians to identify
preferences for types of professional de-
velopment opportunities. In an early
study of continuing education prefer-
ences, Elizabeth Stone found atten-
dance at professional meetings, profes-
sional committee activity, and work-
shop attendance to be the preferred
modes of continuing education for li-
brarians.T In a study of special librar-
ians, Fisher found that in order of pref-
erence these librarians relied on vendor
workshops, workshops organized by
professional groups (library associa-
tions), in-house training, and work-
shops sponsored by academic institu-
tions.® A later study of special librarians
found that self-study ran a somewhat
distant third to workshops and in-house

& " Spring 1997

training in order of preference.°

Given the front-line positioning
and attendant stresses faced daily by
many librarians, one might be forgiven
the tendency to let the sheer weight of
sO Many opportunities and so little time
(and money!) press us into a lethargy of
sorts. While we pick and choose from
among the many options, little long-
range planning is involved in our indi-
vidual journeys of professional growth.
Something akin to omanagement by
crisis� takes over as we frequently pur-
sue new skills and learning on a spur of
the moment, as-needed basis.

Seeing the Big Picture

This may not be so bad. It reflects, in
fact, one of the most basic of adult edu-
cation tenets. Adult learners have real-
world problems and are in search of
real-world solutions. We want applica-
bility. We want to take our newly ac-
quired information and immediately
put it into practice. With that in mind,
the oshotgun� approach to profes-
sional development might seem to
meet our needs.

Indeed, this approach is in keeping
with one school of thought concerning
how adults go about their learning.
This scenario depicts a process which,
rather than being linear, emphasizes
oopportunities that people find within
their own environments or on chance
occurrences. What is stressed is that
adults do not sit down and plan exactly
what they want and where and when
they are going to learn. Rather, the pro-
cess is more haphazard in nature and
is often a series of trial-and-error occut-
rences. This does not mean that there
is no pattern to their learning, but the
patterns vary from person to person
and learning project to learning
project.�!° From this perspective, our
maze of professional development op-
portunities might be viewed as a bless-
ing of sorts. The abundant selection
provides the arena in which we can as-
sume primary responsibility for our
learning experiences.

But there are some overarching is-
sues to keep in mind. In a 1991 article,
Paul Frantz considered the subject of

how a reference librarian goes about
developing his or her orepertoire of ref-
erence.�!! A process of bibliographic
osmosis, a gradual accumulation of ref-
erence knowledge, will occur simply
through time spent as a reference li-
brarian. That is of little value, however,
to the patron who needs an answer
right now and is dealing with the li-
brarian whose repertoire is not yet suf-
ficient to meet this particular need. The
scene is set for a frustrated patron as
well as a frustrated and probably em-
barrassed librarian. This dilemma is not
unique to reference librarians. What-
ever the type of library or the job re-
sponsibility, a learning curve, an osmo-
sis comes with time spent on the job.
New technologies and the growing
number of products ensure that we
never reach the end of our learning
curve. As Frantz points out, the chal-
lenge lies in finding ways to supple-
ment and accelerate the process.

The second issue deals with trans-
fer of training. In a thought-provoking
chapter in Developing Library Staff for
the 21st Century, Duncan Smith ad-
dresses othe educational ecology� of
librarianship.'* Smith, formerly the
Continuing Education Coordinator at
the School of Library and Information
Sciences at North Carolina Central Uni-
versity, characterizes the nature of con-
tinuing library education as oevent-fo-
cused� and occurring in organizational
contexts that do not necessarily facili-
tate the transfer of the training back
into the workplace. Shaughnessy, too,
questions not only whether the learn-
ing that occurs at professional develop-
ment programs is actually put into prac-
tice upon return to the workplace, but
also whether new learning and ideas ac-
tually impact the organization itself
upon oneTs return. Libraries, he main-
tains, owaste considerable sums of
money on staff development programs
that lead to zero growth for the librar-
ian and have virtually no impact on the
organization.�!%

To those of us who take advantage
of professional development activi-
ties " who take classes, attend confer-
ences, pre-conferences, workshops,

... little long-range planning is involved in our individual
journeys of professional growth. Something akin to
omanagement by crisis� takes over as we frequently
pursue new skills and learning on a spur of the moment,

as-needed basis.

North Carolina Libraries

even conduct them ourselves upon oc-
casion, such judgments may sound
harsh. Many of us partake of the smor-
gasbord, sometimes even at our own
expense. We travel to distant locations;
we allow travel time to encroach upon
our personal time. We give up time with
our families. I do not believe that any-
one is implying that we do not gain
from such activities or that our pursuits
are not commendable. The issue, I be-
lieve, is how effectively all of this con-
tributes to the overall context of our
own professional growth.

Given the time and budgetary con-
straints under which each of us operates,
we have a responsibility to ourselves and
to our constituents to ensure that any
professional development activity,
whether experienced as a one-hour in-
house training session or a week-long
conference at the other end of the world,
provides us with maximum mileage. It
must be fully put to use.

This brings us to a third issue.
Smith urges librarians to become in-
formed consumers of continuing educa-
tion.!4 Addressing a 1995 meeting of
the Continuing Education Special Inter-
est Group of the Association for Library
and Information Science Education
(ALISE), Mary Biggs, Dean of the Library
at Trenton State College, urged her au-
dience always to ask the question, oWas
it worth it?� Biggs cited her own cumu-
lative memory oof infuriating wasted
days. Of unprepared or inept speakers.
Bad handouts. Dreadful transparencies.
Tenth-rate multimedia. Outdated no-
tions. Promotional promises not kept.
Courses pitched to the wrong level.
Clichés, truisms, and greasy doughnuts.
And yards and yards of white space in
the form of late starting times, early
ending times, long lunches, all designed
to stretch four or five content hours
over a whole day, or four days of con-
tent into a whole week.�!5

But, we conference-goers argue,
what about the networking, the sharing
of ideas and practices, the things we
learn from each other between the for-
mal sessions? Biggs noted her concern
that we are so often willing to accept
the learning that occurs between con-
tent sessions as sufficient. She decried
oour readiness to admit that the eventsT
supposed focal points are of compara-
tively little value.� 16

Again, this may sound harsh to
those of us who attend or provide con-
tinuing education events, but the point
is that by being discriminating consum-
ers, and by offering constructive feed-
back to the providers, we serve as bet-
ter stewards of our personal and profes-

North Carolina Libraries

sional investments. In BiggsTs case, she
was mindful of the taxpayers footing
her bill. For all of us, no matter what
type of library, there is a source of fund-
ing to whom we owe good stewardship,
be it taxpayers, employers, or student
tuition. There is another contingent of
which we also must be mindful. When
you attend a professional conference,
what about those left behind to mind
the store? Particularly with the increase
of team-based organizations, we have
an obligation to get maximum mileage
from our professional development ac-
tivities by ensuring the best use of our
time away from the workplace.

How do we ensure maximum mile-
age? In order to do so, all three issues "
accelerating our learning curve, trans-
ferring the learning back into the work-
place, and actively ensuring high qual-
ity professional development activities,
must be addressed.

A Learning Experience

I recently experienced first-hand an ap-
proach to professional development
that I found challenging and effective.
The opportunity presented itself in the
form of the Training Skills Institute
sponsored by the Association of Re-
search Libraries (ARL) Office of Man-
agement Services. Prior to the work-
shop, I received several mailings which
began to set the stage, providing not
only the usual information about
where and when, but what to expect as
well. A statement about the InstituteTs
theoretical base, drew from the adult
learning theory of David Kolb. Infor-
mation about what the organizers
planned to provide (content, structure,
and conducive climate) and what par-
ticipants were expected to provide (in-
terest, energy, and enthusiasm) also
was spelled out.

As I read through the material, I re-
alized that we would not just talk about
a theoretical framework; we would in-
corporate theory into our practice. The
presenters would model the theory and
the participants then would do the
same. It was going to be an opportunity
on two levels " learning the content
(training skills) and purposefully ob-
serving my own learning process.

The first order of business was a re-
quest for information. I was asked to re-
spond to a brief survey in which I told
the presenters about my current respon-
sibilities, my expectations for the Insti-
tute, and needs that may be of particu-
lar interest to me. Also I was encouraged
to meet with my supervisor prior to the
Institute to discuss my goals, perfor-
mance, and ways the Institute might

apply to my work. By gaining feedback
from participants prior to the Institute,
the providers were indeed modeling
adult learning theory. Content and for-
mat could be adjusted to respond to
specific learner needs. Encouraging pat-
ticipants to focus on their needs and ex-
pectations prior to arrival ensured our
active engagement in the process. The
Institute itself was a lively blend of ac-
tivities that provided opportunity for
individual reflection, small and large
group interaction, timely feedback, and
active participation.

Of particular value was a closing
discussion on the concept of transfer of
training. A flip-chart activity resulted in
a grid which delineated responsibilities
of learner, trainer, and administrator to
ensure that learning is successfully
transferred back into the workplace.
Stepping back to observe the learning
process of the group, I was aware of the
excellent timing of this activity, as in
reality our next task would be to put our
new knowledge into practice.

A final component of the Institute
was a follow-up letter to participants
mailed after the event. In this letter the
presenters shared the results of the In-
stitute evaluations. They also encoutr-
aged us to review and continue working
on action plans we had designed for
ourselves.

As promised, the Institute did
model adult learning theory. The
knowledge and experience of the par-
ticipants served as a starting point for
learning and discussion. Activities were
designed in response to needs expressed
by the participants. At the encourage-
ment of the presenters, we had ample
opportunity to reflect and experiment
with our ideas. We were learning to-
gether. We were finding solutions to our
real-world problems.

It also was an excellent example of
addressing the three overarching issues
mentioned earlier. Grounding the work-
shop in a theoretical base and facilitat-
ing participantsT reflections on specific
needs and expectations did, I believe,
accelerate the learning curve. Self-evalu-
ation instruments and readings offered
a chance for self-analysis and self-reflec-
tion. The opportunity then to take
these ideas into small and large groups
for discussion and commentary also en-
hanced the learning curve by providing
a context in which we could try out
newly formed ideas.

The issue of transfer of training was
built into the curriculum of this particu-
lar event by virtue of content. Having
participants identify goals prior to the
event, deliberately discuss goals and

Spring 1997 " 9

expectations with supervisors and col-
leagues, and identify ways to incorpo-
rate new ideas once back on the job
enhanced the opportunity to transfer
the training back into the workplace. In
my own case, I was able to select and
articulate specific strategies to incorpo-
rate as goals for the coming year.

As for the third issue, actively en-
suring high quality professional devel-
opment activities, the presenters incor-
porated a cyclical feedback model
which made it easy for participants to
provide input and for adjustments to be
made as needed. The final summary of
participantsT evaluations served not
only as potentially useful feedback for
the providers, but also as an incentive
to participants to continue to apply
new learning in the workplace.

Summary

For the moment, and in my estimation
for the foreseeable future, librarians will
continue to be faced with the challenge
of making appropriate selections from
the smorgasbord of professional devel-
opment opportunities. A particularly
promising trend is the assigning of re-
sponsibility for training and profes-
sional development to specific person-
nel within libraries. Once left to either
individual motivation or administrative
directive, we now see libraries not only
actively encouraging professional devel-
opment activities, but also working
with personnel to ensure that the new
learning and ideas actually do impact
the organization. Some libraries are able
to designate a position for this activity,
although seldom full-time. Smith cites
a 1991 survey of library continuing edu-
cation officers in the southeast which
found that a large majority of those sur-
veyed devoted less than one-quarter of
their time to these activities.!7

Libraries sometimes charge person-
nel development committees or teams
with facilitating access to professional
development opportunities. Admittedly
those libraries dedicating personnel and
resources to continuing education and
professional development are doing so
in ways that are limited, and not every
library is providing even this level of
support. A beginning has been made,
however, and happily the numbers con-
tinue to grow.

We are fortunate that North Caro-
lina has been a leader in technology as
the State Library migrated the North
Carolina Information Network (NCIN),
now known as the North Carolina Li-
brary and Information Network
(NCLIN), to the Internet environ-
ment.!8 With NCLIN in place, the

10 " Spring 1997

State Library has made continuing edu-
cation for public librarians a prime area
of emphasis.!? Workshops and train-
ing sessions have already been imple-
mented to respond to a statewide needs
assessment conducted during 1995,
and more are planned. Public library
staff, trustees, and Friends also are eli-
gible for continuing education grants,
funded by the North Carolina Library
Services and Construction Act (LSCA).
The aim of the continuing education
grants project is to improve public li-
brary services by supporting atten-
dance at continuing education oppor-
tunities offered across the country.

The North Carolina Department of
Public InstructionTs Division of Instruc-
tional Technologies offers a broad vari-
ety of professional development oppor-
tunities for school media coordinators
in the state. STAR Schools, a federal dis-
tance learning initiative, represents a
three-year project aimed at integrating
technology throughout the curriculum.
Staff development delivery sites estab-
lished in each school system provide
access to a variety of satellite networks.
The Department of Public InstructionTs
Video Conferencing Center targets both
media coordinators and teachers, and
the Staff Development Video Library
houses materials that can be checked
out. In addition, a number of publica-
tions and documents are produced
regularly by the Department of Public
Instruction, including Infotech: The Ad-
visory List, a bimonthly magazine that
reviews materials and provides updated
information for school librarians.

The North Carolina Library Asso-
ciation also has addressed the issue of
continuing professional education by
encouraging sections and roundtables
to offer programs throughout the year.
In an effort to maintain the continuity
and benefits of professional activity,
these groups particularly encouraged to
plan programs for the years between the
biennial NCLA conferences. The confer-
ences also offer excellent opportunity
for professional development. North
Carolina Libraries, the official publica-
tion of NCLA, provides yet another ay-
enue for professional growth.

It should be noted that these op-
portunities and challenges apply to all
library personnel, not just librarians.
The profession has come to realize that
professional development opportuni-
ties are important for all library work-
ers. In 1990 the first national confer-
ence directed toward paraprofessionals
was sponsored by the School of Library
and Information Studies at the Univer-
sity of Wisconsin-Madison.2° Again,

North Carolina is fortunate to have the
North Carolina Library Paraprofes-
sional Association, an active round
table within NCLA. Their vision state-
ment notes that the group is oabout
promoting the development and recog-
nition of the paraprofessional as an im-
portant and vital member of the library
workforce.�*! The statement also in-
cludes the commitment not only to
sponsor programs and training sessions
on a regular basis but also to reach a
larger number of paraprofessionals in
the state by ensuring that each program
or session is held in each of the four re-
gions of the state. A fact sheet entitled
oWho We Are, What We Do and Where
We Are Going� promotes the round
tableTs activities.

We are fortunate, too, that training
and development opportunities pro-
vided are generally available to person-
nel from many types of libraries. While
some offerings might be very specific
and draw participants from only one
type of library, many opportunities for
us to pursue our professional growth
together still exist. The combined per-
spectives of public, academic, special,
and school librarians provide yet an-
other source for our learning. In addi-
tion to NCLA, another example of this
approach is found in the western part of
North Carolina. The Western North
Carolina Library Association (WNCLA)
is a regional library association which
promotes closer cooperation among li-
brarians in 28 western counties. In ad-
dition to providing programs of inter-
est to librarians, the group also has es-
tablished a Paraprofessional round table
and recently has published a regional
directory of library services, resources,
and staff.

In summary, there is indeed a diz-
zying array of options open to each of
us, and it becomes an individual choice.
We cannot and should not pursue them
all, nor should we throw up our hands
in confusion and simply choose ran-
domly. As we select our activities, we
can consider them with an eye to their
potential for accelerating our learning
curve. In addition to taking time to re-
flect on our expectations prior to an
event, we can take a few moments at
the close of the event, before we return
to the demands of the workplace, to
identify specific strategies that we will
employ to make use of our new knowl-
edge. And finally, we can carefully
choose our activities based on our
knowledge of the quality of products
generally offered by the provider. When
we are unfamiliar with the quality of
providers, we can check with colleagues

North Carolina Libraries

who may know about them. This strat-
egy is equally applicable when choosing
resources for self-study activities. Once
the activity is over, we can make the
effort to offer genuinely constructive
feedback to the providers.

The library continuing education
ecology may indeed be fragile, as Smith
notes, but I think it may not be endan-
gered, as he suggests.2� We are large and
fragmented, and as such have experi-
enced exponential and somewhat un-
controlled growth in our professional
development activities. The growing
commitment to continued library edu-
cation is apparent, however, and gives
evidence of our understanding not only
of the importance it holds for us as in-
dividuals, but the importance it holds
for our library organizations and ser-
vices as well.

References

! Margaret Myers, oLibrary Human
Resources for the Twenty-First Cen-
tury,� Southeastern Librarian 45 (Summer
1995): 60.

2 Ibid., 60.

3 Elizabeth W. Stone, oSome Histori-
cal Antecedents of Continuing Library
Education,� in Continuing Education for
the Library Information Professions, Will-
iam G. Asp, et. al. (Hamden, CT: Library

Professional Publications, 1985), 20.

4 Robert Wedgeworth, ed., World En-
cyclopedia of Library and Information Ser-
vices, 3rd ed. (Chicago, IL: American
Library Association, 1993), 493.

* Thomas W. Shaughnessy, oAp-
proaches to Developing Competencies
in Research Libraries,� Library Trends 41
(Fall 1992): 285.

© Kathleen M. Heim and Margaret
Myers, Opportunities in Library and Infor-
mation Science Careers (Lincolnwood, IL:
VGM Career Horizons, 1991), 66.

7 Elizabeth A. Stone, Continuing Li-
brary and Information Science Education:
Final Report to the National Commission
on Libraries and Information Science
(Washington, DC: American Society for
Information Science, 1974), 64.

8 W. Fisher, oDoes Education for Spe-
cial Librarianship Need To Be ~Special
EducationT?� Education for Information 5
(March 1987): 15.

9 Ann Thompson, oSpecial Libraries
Association Membership Needs Assess-
ment Survey,� Special Libraries 83 (Win-
ter 1992): 42.

10 Rosemary S. Caffarella, oSelf-Di-
rected Learning,� in An Update on Adult
Learning Theory, New Directions For Adult
and Continuing Education, no. 57 (San
Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass, Spring
1993)228.

11 Paul Frantz, oExpanding the Reper-
toire of Reference,� Reference Services
Review 19 (Winter 1991): 85.

12 Duncan Smith, oThe Greening of
Librarianship: Toward a Human Re-
source Development Ecology,� in Devel-
oping Library Staff for the 21st Century, ed.
Maureen Sullivan (New York, NY:
Haworth Press, 1992), 37-53.

13 Shaughnessy, 290.

14 Smith, 51.

IS Mary Biggs, oReflections on Con-
tinuing Education ... Near a Window,�
Journal of Education for Library and Infor-
mation Science 36 (Spring 1995): 177.

LOR Ibideely is

17 Smith, 49.

18 Charles R. McClure, William E.
Moen, and Joe Ryan, Libraries and the
Internet/NREN: Perspectives, Issues, and
Challenges (Westport, CT: Meckler-
media, 1994), 164.

19 Sue Farr, oPositioning Your Library
for the New North Carolina Informa-
tion Network,� Tar Heel Libraries 19
(January/February 1996): 4.

20 Wedgeworth, 492.

21 oNorth Carolina Library Association
Section and Round Table Biennial Re-
ports,� North Carolina Libraries 53 (Win-
pera OOS) ORs

22 Smith, 49.

John Higgins, Sales Representative

ww
OXFORD

North Carolina Libraries

P.O. Box 21011
Columbia SC 29221

1-800-222-9086
Fax: 803-731-0320

OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS se QUALITY BOOKS INC.

Spring 1997 " 11

Public Libraries:

An Important Piece in the Community Network Puzzle

community electronic network
is much more than a gateway to
the Internet and its wealth of
global information. It is an elec-
tronic community center bring-
ing citizens access to informa-
tional, educational, and social
activities. oEach system is locally
owned, locally operated, and designed
to wrap itself around the information
needs of the community. They are
driven by the information and com-
munications needs of the local com-
munity. Their governance and organi-
zational roots are in the community
itself. They are dedicated to bringing
the benefits of the Information Age to
as many people as possible.�! The orga-
nization of a community network is
like a jigsaw puzzle; each piece is nec-
essary and each piece has its own place.
Public libraries are emerging as key
pieces in the community network
puzzles that are being assembled all
over the country.

The public libraryTs unique history
of providing equitable access to infor-
mation and its broad service mission
place it in the forefront of the planning
and design of electronic community
networks. The public library tradition-

ally has served as the communityTs in-
formation provider. This role is en-
hanced by the libraryTs centralized loca-
tion and neutral ground. It facilitates
public meetings, cultural events, and
social opportunities for everyone.

Leadership

Many community networks exist be-
cause of the leadership and advocacy of
public libraries and librarians. Public li-
braries are collaborating with other

12 " Spring 1997

by Jennifer Seavy Pratt

county agencies, citizens, businesses,
and schools; forming alliances and part-
nerships to provide community
Internet access. In a number of net-
works such as CharlotteTs Web,
Prairienet, and the Seattle Community
Net, librarians have spearheaded the
project or served in active roles during
the initial stages of organization. For
instance, the library director of Beamis
Public Library in Littleton, Colorado,
was directly involved in the formation
of the original group, and the Web
server is housed in the library. Phyllis
Larison, head of adult services at
Beamis, reports that she is oin charge of
the government section and has devel-
oped web pages for all of the city de-
partments as well as pages on our city
council. The head of technical services
has worked on the technical aspects of
the network and was recently elected as
chairperson of the board for the
Littleton Community Network.�? Jef-
frey Krull, director of Allen County Pub-
lic Library in Fort Wayne, Indiana, is the
president of Infonet, the local network.
The director of the Iowa City Public Li-
brary is the chair of the founding part-
ners of the the Johnson County Com-
munity Network in Iowa, a community

The organization of a
community network is like
a jigsaw puzzle;

each piece is necessary and
each piece has its own place.

network in the planning stages.

Local Information Provider

Respondents in a 1992 Gallup poll of
community opinion leaders believed
the two o most important roles of the
public library in the community are to
support the educational aspirations of
the community and to provide the
community with access to informa-
tion.�? Community members look to
the library for the majority of their lo-
cal information needs. They expect to
find census data, tax forms, local bud-
gets, town and county ordinances, and
building codes. Librarians have devel-
oped a variety of databases to fulfill
their community-based information
and referral needs. These include files
listing government services; social ser-
vices and human service resources; an-
swers to frequently asked questions; ge-
nealogy files; local newspaper indexes;
reading lists; and local history. The
next logical step is to make this infor-
mation available electronically. The
Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh noted
that odespite the international scope of
this online environment, the local in-
formation needed to galvanize our
communities is missing from the

Internet.�* However, a growing

number of libraries are taking the

plunge. The Johnson County

Public Library in Overland Park,

Kansas, has developed and main-

tained a community organization

database on their OPAC comput-

ers for the last four years. This da-

tabase of nearly 4,000 organiza-

tions is a cooperative effort with

the Kansas City, Missouri; the

Kansas City, Kansas; and the

North Carolina Libraries

Johnson County libraries. Susan
Bogart, a reference librarian at Johnson
County Public Library, describes a new
project on the Internet called the
CLOUD database:

oIIt] is in its infancy, but eventu-
ally expects to be an all-inclusive, state-
wide database of community organiza-
tions, social service organizations,
avocational groups, local government
groups, etc. It is mounted on a WEB-
server housed at the University of Kan-
sas Medical Center ... ~Blue SkywaysT is
the actual website name " http://
skyways.lib.ks.us/kansas.�° A commu-
nity online information center is being
designed by the Saint Paul Public Li-
brary, the Hamline Midway Coalition,
and the Twin Cities Free-Net. This sys-
tem will provide information about
housing, government services, jobs, li-
censing and crime statistics. It will be
available through Internet worksta-
tions at the library and through the
Free-Net.

Access

One part of the National Public
Telecomputing NetworkTs (NPTN) mis-
sion statement sums up the impor-
tance of community networks: oAt its
heart, our business is empowerment.
By providing people with affordable
access to computerized information
and communications services, they are
able to function better not only as citi-
zens of this nation but also as members
of a global community in whose hands
the future of this planet will ultimately
reside.�© Libraries are providing access
to the Internet in every state in the
country, offering information services
to people who could not otherwise af-
ford it: oA country that works smarter;
that enjoys more efficient, less costly
government " guided by a better in-
formed citizenry; that supports job
growth through small businesses; that
promotes lifelong learning " will be a
country laced with a high-speed infra-
structure for information with civic
purpose.� Citizens who lack access to
electronic information will be left be-
hind more rapidly the ever before. Pov-
erty in America is accelerating, and one
in five children is poor. oLibraries offer
freely available sites for equitable ac-
cess to the network, to the equipment
and software needed to access it, and to
the information resources available
through it.�®

An example of Internet access for
the public is the CC Express project at
the Cumberland County Public Library
in North Carolina. Fourteen designated
computers allow users to connect to

North Carolina Libraries

the Internet from within the main li-
brary and from their six branches. The
Albuquerque Public Library and the
New Mexico Technet have begun an
interesting project they call oConnec-
tions 21.� This collaboration has
placed computers in all school libraries
and some community centers, provid-
ing direct access to the library catalog
and the Internet. Students can search
the catalog, apply for library cards, and
check out books. The materials ordered
are delivered to the school and distrib-
uted by school personnel. New Mexico
Technet and the library carry the entire
cost of the project.

Steve Milner in his book, Civilizing
Cyberspace, says, oLibraries are a natural
starting point. Being a universal service,
libraries are open to everybody regardless
of the level of their information seeking
expertise.�? Recognizing the need for
patrons at public libraries to have easy
access to the information on the
Internet, the Washington State Advisory
Council on Libraries and the Washing-
ton State Library made funds available
for libraries to design a project that
would simplify access to electronic infor-
mation by providing a Web site tailored
specifically for Washington citizens. The
Seattle Public Library, with its strong re-
lationship with Seattle Community Net-
work, was selected to lead the project.
Other active participants were the Univer-
sity of Washington Libraries, Ellensburg
Public Library, and the Spokane County
Library District. Librarians across the state
provide ideas, review web pages, and
develop homepages for their own collec-
tions. Librarian-designed and librarian-
maintained Web pages facilitate and en-
hance the patronsT searching success.

Education and Training

Public library staff are trained to dem-
onstrate and teach patrons the use of
both traditional and electronic library
resources: oA logical evolutionary step
in the public library role is to provide
training for the public in the use of net-
works and networked information re-
sources, as well as point-of-use consul-
tation, guidance, and technical assis-
tance, as well as to develop online
training and interpretative aids.�!°
Buffalo and Erie County Public Library,
part of the Buffalo Free-Net, has offered
Internet training workshops to the
public since 1993. The Montgomery-
Floyd Regional Library, which has a
strong relationship with the Blacksburg
Electronic Village in Virginia, provides
user training through their libraries.
The Flint Public Library supports the
Kellogg Community Networking Initia-

tive in Flint: oThrough Kellogg fund-
ing, they are training librarians and
collaborating with neighborhood orga-
nizations to help prepare information
for online resources.�!! The Commu-
nity Networking and Training Center
has trained many librarians and is be-
ginning to train local volunteers. Their
focus is to help community members
to format, upload, and maintain data.
The Boulder Public Library is working
with the Access Colorado Library and
Information Network to provide class-
room-style public training sessions on
Internet use.

Server hosts

Some public libraries are collaborating
with local networks by physically host-
ing the server, modems, and the neces-
sary hardware for the network. Provid-
ing a facility that has unlimited power
sources, twenty-four hour access, and
phone lines can be one of the most im-
portant pieces of the puzzle. Marian
Mulla of the Tampa-Hillsborough
County Public Library reports, oThe
Suncoast Free-Net is housed and oper-
ated out of the Tampa-Hillsborough
County Public Library. All volunteers are
coordinated out of our office. There are
PPLC librarians on the SCFN executive
committee. All Hillsborough County and
most Pinellas County libraries provide
public access computers at their sites.� 1

The Complete Puzzle

The impact of community networks
upon local communities and libraries is
growing. Librarians and public libraries
are bringing tremendous skills and
knowledge to the table, benefitting
their communities and community
networks. Citizens, schools, govern-
ment, businesses, and organizations
are prepared to use this technology to
their advantage. A successful collabora-
tion with the public library will help to
focus the enterprise and organize the
information so that emerging networks
can fufill their promise and established
networks can continue to prosper.

Guide to Resources

_ http://www.sils.umich.edu./

Commumiyt/libraries.html
This page, a resource from the Com-
munity Networking Initiative, lists
public libraries and the networks
that collaborate. It gives a brief de-
scription and links to both library
and network when available.

http://www.sils.umich.edu/

Community/exampcns.html
These are examples of community
networks in the United States.

Spring 1997 " 1%

http://www.scn.org/ip/comnet/
abshome.htm
This page has the abstracts of 11
chapters from the book New Com-
munity Networks " Wired for Change.

http://www.laplaza.org/cn/local/
cmcallp.html
This page provides the online docu-
ments from the oCommunity
Net working 96� Conference.

http://ralph.gmu.edu/~pbaker/
Paul M.A. Baker from George Mason
University has compiled a very use-
ful oOn-Line Guide to Resources.�

http://www.inch.com/~lff/
Libraries for the Future direct you
to the Civic Library, Innovative
Uses of Technology, and Demon-
stration Projects.

http://state.or.us:8000/connect/con-resr
The Oregon State Library posts a
oLibraries and Community Networks�
page with links to some of the above
addresses plus additional resources.

http://bcn.boulder.co.us/community/

resourcesCommon_Ground.html#ch1
Kenneth Klingenstein,�Common
Ground: Community Networks as
Catalysts,� (May 5, 1995).

http://duke/usask.ca/~scottp/free.html
This is an international list of com-
munity networks presented by
Peter Scott at the University of
Saskatchewan Libraries.

IN

INTEGRATED

http://www.nptn.org:80/about.fn.

starting.fn
This page is maintained by the Na-
tional Telecomputing Network, a
non-profit organization that serves
the parent organization for Free-Net
community computer network sys-
tems. It provides information and
links to developing community net-
works.

http://www.atg.apple.com/research/
proj/alot/alot96.html
Apple computers and the Apple Li
brary of Tomorrow provide links to
and information on many outstand-
ing community network projects.

http://alberti.mit.edu/arch/4.207/
anneb/thesis/toc.html
Anne Beamish, oCommunities On-
Line: Community-based Computer

Networks,� (February 1995).

http://www.scn.org/ip/commnet/
workshop.html
Doug Schuler, oDeveloping and
Sustaining Community Networks.�

References

! National Public Telecomputing Network,
oStarting a Free-Net® Community Computer
System.� Available at FTP site Attp://
www.nptn.org:80/about.fn/starting.fn. (no
longer maintained).

2 E-mail from Phyllis Larison, phyllis@csn.
net, (Jul 28, 1996).

3 Georgia DTElia and Eleanor Jo Rodger,

EBSCO

INFORMATION SERVICES

TLE ET SEE TTI ss

14 " Spring 1997

INFORMATION

oRoles of the Public Library in the Community:
the Results of a Gallup Poll of Community
Opinion Leaders,� Public Libraries (March-April
1995): 94-101.

4 Bette Ann Hubbard, Andrea Sardone,
Robert B. Croneberger, and Dan Iddings,
oNewest Members of the Net Set: PittsburghTs
Carnegie Cashes in on Community Info,� Li-
brary Journal (Mar 1, 1996): 44-46.

5 E-mail from Susan Bogart,
BOGART@JCL.LIB.KS.US, (Jul 24, 1996).

6 National Public Telecomputing Network,
http://www.nptn.org:80/about.fn/starting. fn.
(no longer maintained).

7 Richard Civille, oInternet and the Poor,�
paper presented at the conference Public Ac-
cess to the Internet, JFK School of Govern-
ment, Cambridge, MA, May 27, 1993.

8 Carol C Henderson, oRole of Public Li-
braries in Providing Access to the Internet,�
paper presented at the conference Public Ac-
cess to the Internet, JFK School of Govern-
ment, Cambridge, MA, 27 May 1993.

? Steven E. Milner, Civilizing Cyber-space:
Policy, Power and ithe Information Superhigh-
way. (New York: Addison-Wesley Publishing
Company, 1996).

10 R. Kathleen Molz, oCivic Networks in the
United States�, Bowker Annual Library and
Book Trade Almanac, ed. Catherine Barr, edi-
tion 40. (New Providence, N.J.: R.R. Bowker,
1995).

1 "Libraries and Networks,� Community
Networking: Libraries and CNTs, available at
http://www. sils.umich.edu.community/
libraries.html.

12 E-mail from Marian Mulla, mullam
@csfn.thpl.lib.fl.us, (July 24, 1996).

MANAGEMENT

North Carolina Libraries

Technology and Educational Standards:
Crossroads in the Media Center

by Milton J. Warden

oBecause raising children is, in a sense, the reason the society exists in the first place.
ItTs the most important thing that happens, and itTs the culmination of all the tools
and language and social structure that has evolved.�!

ccording to Information Power,
media specialists are expected
to be on the front line opro-
moting effective use of in-
structional technologies,� and
many fill this role as well as
implementing technologies to
improve administration of the school
library.? Automated circulation reduces
the time spent on routine circulation
chores. Indexes have moved from pa-
per to CD-ROM, and full text that can
be printed directly by the patron is
becoming common. Electronic catalogs
give students and teachers numerous
access points to, and more informa-
tion about, the collection. Media spe-
cialists have promoted laserdisc, cable
television, integrated media systems,
computer networking, and more, all
in the name of increased access to in-
formation.

In staying current with the ever-
changing technology, however, they
often find themselves battling teachers
who oare still reluctant to either use the
technology themselves or to change
their learning environments to encom-
pass these new forms of information
acquisition.� Rapid changes are re-
flected in new educational standards
that embrace the need for students and
teachers not only to be familiar with
technology, but to grasp the effects of
technological changes on everything
we do, especially information gather-
ing, analysis, and presentation. Tech-
nology, once a deterrent to collabora-
tion between teachers and media spe-

North Carolina Libraries

cialists, will help motivate teachers to
include the media specialist as a more
active member of the curriculum team.

Technological Changes in the

Media Center

Working media specialists donTt need
research to convince themselves of
sweeping technological changes over
the last few years. They can offer copi-
ous anecdotal evidence. For example,
technology plans, required in North
Carolina, have become common. In
1993, an Electronic Learning survey in-
dicated that 64% of United States
school districts had a technology plan.*
More directly verifying the impact of
technology on the media center, Miller
and Shontz have published periodic re-
ports showing how media centers have
spent their money, including informa-
tion on the availability of technology.
In the 1988-89 school year, CD-ROM
sources, which are common now, were
found in only 4% of the responding
schools. Twenty-one
percent of respondents
did have automated cir-
culation while another
42% had plans to auto-
mate that aspect of the
media center. Only 6%
of the respondents had
automated catalogs,
while another 29% had
plans for one in the fu-
ture. The most common
technology found by

television (including television trans-
mitted by satellite) which was available
in nearly two-thirds of the schools.*
The follow-up study for the 1993/
94 school year shows major changes in
technology in the media center, not
just by the survey responses but also by
the questions on the survey. Cable tele-
vision was still a popular technology
(59.5%), but CD-ROM books/encyclo-
pedias (77.7%) were now more often
found in the media centers of the 635
respondents. Schools having both an
online catalog and computerized circu-
lation numbered 56.9%. Questions
about videodiscs (laserdiscs), local area
networks, library networks, telecom-
munications, Internet, and e-mail
show how media centers have changed
orientation and focus in just five years.
However, some things never change:
while over 25% of respondents had
Internet and e-mail access, more than
18% did not have a telephone.® In the
past, technology helped the media spe-

Technology, once a deterrent to
collaboration between teachers and
media specialists, will help motivate

teachers to include the media
specialist as a more active member

of the curriculum team.

the survey was cable

Spring 1997 " 19

cialist deliver information to the
school in varying formats, but usually
the information resided within the
school. Newer technologies are taking
us outside the school to a broader
range of information than can be
maintained locally.

The future, while never clear ex-
cept in hindsight, does seem to offer
the continuation of the same techno-
logical trends. If we assume
that computers have driven the
changes in the past ten years,
then we would expect to see
the power of computers con-
tinue to increase as the cost
decreases. MooreTs Law tells us
othe cost of making a semi-con-
ductor drops 50% every 18
months.�� Therefore, we can
afford twice the power we did

member and using technology to solve
problems. One way working teams are
created in the classroom is through co-
operative learning. Using this practice,
student teams are given more responsi-
bility for their learning than in the tra-
ditionally structured classroom. This
new responsibility calls for a broad base
of resource materials, and a strong me-
dia center and media program are essen-

... Some things never change:
while over 25% of respondents
had Internet and e-mail access,
more than 18% did not have

a telephone.

just eighteen months ago. The
same author sees the past ten-
year trend of declining prices and faster
microchips continuing for another ten
years.® If these projections are accu-
rate, and there is no reason to doubt
them, then technology will continue
to be linked inexorably to information
and the role of the media specialist. At
least one analyst believes othe power of
technology is so pervasive in all forms
of information " from news and enter-
tainment to bank statements and junk
mail " that to understand how current
and emerging technologies work has
become, to many educatorsT minds, an
imperative for 21st-century teaching.�?

Changing Standards in

Education

Education is about change. The school
reform movement, in combination
with rapid changes in technology, has
driven standard changes that recognize
the impact of technology on informa-
tion gathering and processing. What
follows is a brief sampling of standards
that relate to the media programTs role
in the school.

It has been several years since the
United States Department of Labor re-
leased a report (sometimes referred to
as the SCANS report) on what skills or
competencies were necessary for stu-
dents to learn in our changing
economy.!° While the report focuses
only on work-related skills, the recom-
mendations are relevant to education
and especially to media programs. One
competency addressed finding and us-
ing information, an activity that
closely parallels the role of the media
center. Two other competencies identi-
fied by the report, also relevant to me-
dia programs, were working as a team

16 " Spring 1997

tial for students to learn to work suc-
cessfully as part of a cooperative learn-
ing team. The media specialist can help
students doing problem solving to learn
how technology can quickly retrieve
data and how multimedia presentations
can be put together. The SCANS Report
standards lead teachers and students
directly to the media center.

One of the more noteworthy sets
of standards dealing with technology
and ultimately the role of the media
specialist in the curriculum comes from
the National Association of Secondary
School Principals (NASSP). Signifi-
cantly, this document was generated by
school principals and teachers to ad-
dress the issue of changing schools in
light of the accelerating demand for re-
form and the pace of change inherent
in our society. This is not another call
for change from outside the school or
within our own profession; it is school
leaders, the principals themselves, with
an agenda for change, who ultimately
recognize the role of the media pro-
gram. At least three of the recommen-
dations deal directly with technology
and the media center role in the
school. They are

oThe content of the curriculum,
where practical, will connect
itself to real-life applications of
knowledge and skills to help
students link their education to
the future.�!1

oSchools will make technology
integral to curriculum, instruc-
tion, and assessment, accommo-
dating different learning styles
and helping teachers to
individualize the learning

process.� 12

oTeachers will be adept at
acting as coaches and as
facilitators of learning to
promote more active involve-
ment of students in their own
learning.� 13

These standards inherently recog-
nize the role of the media center. Infor-
mation skills taught in the media cen-
ter are techniques that can be used in
many settings, including public and
academic libraries and on the Internet.
Teachers seeking real-life applications
will find that they abound in the me-
dia center. Statistics classes can use gen-
eral almanacs, sports almanacs, or cur-
rent periodicals to find data to analyze.
History classes can study election cam-
paigns from news reports and periodi-
cals, while biology classes can read ar-
ticles about current research relevant to
their studies. Those media centers with
Internet access can make more direct
connections to the real world as later
examples will demonstrate.

Different learning styles are recog-
nized by media centers when students
require information in different for-
mats. The media center historically has
promoted media in many forms, from
books to video to electronic media. Just
as cooperative learning requires more
resource-based teaching, teachers serv-
ing as coaches or facilitators need many
resources and an active media center.
All these activities fit the NASSP guide-
lines and engage the media program as
a partner in the learning process.

Individual subject standards re-
cently have gone through a transfor-
mation as the effects of technology and
school reform ripple through various
professional organizations. National
history standards, for example, focus
primarily upon content knowledge.
One author observed, however, that
the standards can be met oonly
through systematic implementation of
a well-designed curriculum; one that
indicates what to teach and how to
obtain the support needed to fulfill
that responsibility.� 14

This support brings to mind the
role the media specialist could play in
history lessons. The author apparently
agrees; he calls for using childrenTs lit-
erature, various forms of media, and
various activities that would involve
the media center, including ohistorical
simulations ..., historical craft and
model-building experiences, in-depth
National History Day projects, and the
experience of constructing an oral his-
tory of some local ~big event.T�!5

North Carolina Libraries

Luring Teachers to the Media

Center with Technology

The media specialist has tried to keep
the media center a modern place for
information retrieval and technologi-
cal applications. Teachers may be hesi-
tant to visit the media center to do in-
dependent research, to bring a class to
do research, or to share lesson plan
ideas that could lead to a visit. Perhaps
the technology we model so well in
running our media centers and have
implemented for information gather-
ing discourages some teachers. The
media specialist who keeps up with
new technology and educational stan-
dards will have a tool to reach teachers.
It wonTt be easy, but each technologi-
cal advance and new standard offer a
lure to bring one more teacher within
reach of the media program.

One way to do this is to convince
teachers that media center technology
can give them and their students oac-
cess to a wide array of information
(e.g., through Internet searches), capa-
bilities for communicating with con-
tent experts and other investigators
(e.g., through electronic networks),
and representations that give tangible
form to concepts that are otherwise
difficult to visualize (e.g., interactive
graphic representations of such vari-
ables as acceleration).�!© While these
descriptions seem somewhat limited as
to what technology can do for us, they
are certainly within the grasp of a well-
equipped media center.

Good examples of connecting the
media coordinator to the teaching
team via technology abound, and the
media specialist seeking ideas would be
wise to check the professional litera-
ture. Searching the literature of the spe-
cific subject field and finding good ex-
amples of using the media center to
integrate technology into the curricu-
lum would be an effective demonstra-
tion for a teacher.

One area of great interest (but also
caution) for media specialists is the
Internet. A national demonstration
project in New Jersey focused on using
the Internet to supplement conven-
tional information available in the
school in the science classroom. As pre-
viously discussed, students are now ex-
pected to work in teams and collabo-
rate with others. The Internet extends
that exercise to students worldwide as
partners in data collection and analy-
sis. The New Jersey project used some-
thing as simple as temperature mea-
surement compared to distance from
the equator as a collaborative project

North Carolina Libraries

for students. Students from each school
sent information identifying their loca-
tion, which was then marked on a map
by all other schools. Temperature data
for a particular time period was ex-
changed.!7

When standards call for real-life
applications of knowledge, the New
Jersey project has an answer. Various
other scientific laboratories also are
putting information from their re-
search on the Internet. For example,
the Plasma Physics Laboratory at
Princeton University is working to cre-
ate energy from controlled fusion and
is putting data on the Internet, letting
students oenter one of the worldTs lead-
ing research facilities and gain access to
the data that is being studied there as
quickly and easily as its own scien-
tists.�18 Similar projects could work at
various school levels, teaming a media
specialist with a science teacher to
teach not only the subject area mate-
rial, but information literacy skills.
(Visit the project Web site at http://
k12science.stevens-tech.edu or http://
njnie.dl.stevens-tech.edu for more in-
formation and specific Internet sites
used in the article.)

With the increasing interest in the
Internet, new users easily can be over-
whelmed by the amount of informa-
tion available. A wonderful way to in-
troduce Internet searching that is
adaptable to any curriculum or grade
level is the Internet Scavenger Hunt. A
series of questions are asked, and after
each question an Internet site address
is given where the answer can be
found.!® Since the Internet offers so
many sites, the questions can be struc-
tured for different subjects or even as
an introduction to the Internet itself.
The media specialist could use this tool
to introduce teachers to the Internet re-
sources or help a teacher structure a
hunt in a particular subject area. This
exercise brings the student into contact
with the newest information technolo-
gies and offers ways for the media spe-
cialist to introduce other information
skills to classrooms.

While changing technology and
new educational standards will give us
new ways to bring students and teach-
ers into the media center, they are not
a panacea. Regardless of what technol-
ogy and standards we work with, there
is a place for the media program in the
curriculum. We support information
literacy whether through books, televi-
sion, or the Internet. The push for stu-
dents to become active learners and
have sources beyond the textbook is
frequently called resource-based learn-

ing and the media center is at the heart
of such a program. If our programs are
to be successful, we must become more
active partners in the curriculum using
whatever tools we have at hand.

References

1 Michael Crichton, The Lost World
(New York: Knopf, 1995), 209-10.

2 American Association of School Li-
brarians and Association for Educa-
tional Communications and Technol-
ogy, Information Power: Guidelines for
School Library Media Programs (Chicago:
American Library Association, 1988),
38.

3 "Integrating Technology in Second-
ary Schools,� Curriculum Report 23
(March 1994): 4.

-Jbide ae

Marilyn L. Miller, and Marilyn L.
Shontz, oExpenditures for Resources in
School Library Media Centers, FY T88-
89,� School Library Journal 35 (June
1989): 39.

© Marilyn L. Miller, and Marilyn L.
Shontz, oThe Race for the School Li-
brary Dollar,� School Library Journal 41
(October 1995): 31.

7 Michael Murphy, oHello, Micro-
chips,� BarronTs Special Anniversary Issue
76 (May 20, 1996): A38.

8 Tbid., A39.

° Therese Mageau and Linda Chion-
Kenney, oFacing the Future,� Electronic
Learning 14 (October 1994): 39.

10 The SecretaryTs Commission on
Achieving Necessary Skills, What Work
Requires of Schools, a SCANS Report for
America 2000, (Washington, D.C.: U.S.
Department of Labor, 1991), xvii.

"l oBreaking Ranks: Changing an
American Institution: Prologue and
Recommendations,� The High School
Magazine 3 (March/April 1996): 6.

12 Tbid., 8.

tgp; 7:

14 John D. Hoge, oAchieving History
Standards in Elementary Schools,�
ERIC Digest (September 1994): 1.

Sr aDiAy 2.

16 Barbara Means, et al. oBeyond the
Classroom: Restructuring Schools with
Technology,� Phi Delta Kapan 77 (Sep-
tember 1995): 69.

17 Edward A. Friedman, et al. oUniver-
sal Access to Science Study via
Internet,� T-H.E. Journal 23 (June 1996):
85.

18 Tbid., 86.

19 oInternet Scavenger Hunt,� North
Carolina Teacher Academy, Integrating
Technology into Classroom Instruction
July 31, 1996): 1.

Spring 1997 " 17

ne eee a ee eae eee Oe ee a a eae eee, Sk ne anne ee as

Nailing Jell-O to the Wall?

Collection Management in the Electronic Era

hen I was pursuing gradu-

ate work in history during

the early sixties, a fellow

student good-naturedly dis-

missed my specialty " intel-

lectual history " as equivalent

to onailing Jell-O to the wall.� It was

the first time I had heard the expres-

sion. Now, decades later, I find my sub-

sequent specialty " collection man-

agement " often described in the same

terms, particularly with regard to elec-

tronic resources and digital (formerly
ovirtual�) collections.

It is not difficult to understand
why this should be so. If the library is
traditionally understood to be a physi-
cal location housing an organized col-
lection of selected materials (primarily
on paper), then the advent of decen-
tralized computer-mediated access to
remote electronic databases and online
resources clearly challenges the con-
cept of a managed collection. Chal-
lenges " but does not negate. Collec-
tion management is now more com-
plex, involving more factors, more de-
cisions, and more participants in the
decision-making process. It also entails
reconceptualizing the nature of ocollec-

... the advent of decentralized com-
_puter-mediated access to remote
electronic databases and online re-
sources Clearly challenges the concept

of a managed collection.

18 " Spring 1997

by Robert Galbreath

tion� and some traditional compo-
nents of collection managing, but the
basic functions of selection/
deselection, budget allocation, and
user liaison have not changed funda-
mentally, and the need for collection
management has not lessened. If any-
thing, it is more essential than ever.

Based on a sample of recent admin-
istrative appointments and searches,
collection management activity appears
to be thriving within the University of
North Carolina System. Chapel Hill is
seeking to fill its long-established Uni-
versity Bibliographer and Head of Col-
lection Development position. North
Carolina A&T is searching for a new
Collection Development Librarian.
North Carolina State recently appointed
an Associate Director for Collection
Management, Organization, and Ad-
vancement, while East Carolina Univer-
sity formally established the position of
Collection Development Librarian.
UNC-Charlotte has expressed interest in
creating a collection management post.
Other collection management adminis-
trative positions exist at Appalachian
State and UNC-Greensboro.

The need for continued collection
Management in the
digital library has been
emphasized by many
commentators. At
NCLATs 1994 College
and University Section
meeting on oCollection
Management in an Elec-
tronic Environment,�
keynote speaker Merrily
Taylor of Brown Univer-
sity made it clear that

collection development is needed more
than ever to navigate the surging river
of electronic information.! Ross
Atkinson, whose numerous essays con-
stitute the most sophisticated analysis
of collection management activities in
academic libraries, has written that
othe role of the library in general"and
of collection management in particu-
lar"in a predominantly online envi-
ronment can and should be more cen-
tral and more vital to research and
communication than in the era of tra-
ditional formats.�2

Why is collection management
still needed? If nearly everything is
available electronically, or soon will be,
why talk about collections at all? What
role is there for collection management
in this context? How do collection
Managers manage, and what is it that
they manage? In addressing these ques-
tions, I want to draw primarily on my
own experience at UNCG " and that
of academic libraries more generally "
not because I think it is paradigmatic
(owe did it right�) or remarkable, but
because I think it is illustrative of the
sorts of immediate, practical problems
and questions that librarians are wres-
tling with throughout the state. Other
important but less urgent issues, such
as text mutability, archiving, preserva-
tion, and mediation or filtering of in-
formation, must be held for discussion
at another time.

The Collection

Writing in 1987, James A. Cogswell de-
fined collection management as othe
systematic management of the plan-
ning, composition, funding, evalua-

North Carolina Libraries

tion, and use of library collections over
extended periods of time, in order to
meet specific institutional objectives.�
A decade later, while the principle is
still sound, the practice no longer
seems as neat as the definition implies.
What, to begin with, now constitutes a
library collection?

Traditionally, a library collection
was a locally owned and organized cu-
mulative selection of physical items in-
tended to provide timely access to
needed information. Today the library
collection is no longer a physical phe-
nomenon, an organized array of dis-
crete physical containers in one physi-
cal location. Increasingly it is an intel-
lectual phenomenon or construct, a
mixture of local and remote, paper and
electronic, basic and ad-
vanced resources not lo-
cated in one place, but as-
sembled to assist users in a
particular location, institu-
tion, or community.

Regardless of location
and format, a collection
still exists. It is a collection
because it has been selected
for provision (access) from
a far larger universe of pos-
sibilities. In making quali-
tative selection decisions,
collection managers are saying to their
primary users (those for whom the par-
ticular library has been established)
that these selected resources are most
worth their immediate time and atten-
tion; these are most likely to get them
what they need with (we believe) the
least expenditure of time and effort.
This ongoing process of selecting, or
what Michael Buckland calls oprivileg-
ing some resources over others,�* is
collection management at its most fun-
damental.

Ownership/Access

Some have objected that accessing is
not collecting, that providing electronic
access is not the same as building a col-
lection. This view is correct, it seems to
me, only if by oproviding electronic ac-
cess� one envisions laying down cables
or turning on equipment. Otherwise, it
is misleading to place ownership and
access in an either/or relationship.
Ownership has until recently been the
preferred " because necessary " means
of providing access. Items added to a
collection once were called oacces-
sions.� Now there are numerous ways of
providing access, of which ownership of
physical items is only one and not nec-
essarily the most cost-effective when
rapid, multiple use of very current infor-

North Carolina Libraries

mation is anticipated. Electronic access
is itself a variable: do we choose to own
a CD-ROM, pay licensing fees in order
to network a product, purchase searches
for using a remote access database, or
provide on-demand commercial docu-
ment delivery?

The answer to these questions de-
pends on perceived demand. At UNCG
we have adopted a tiered approach, de-
vised by our Electronic Information
Resources Librarian, in which the access
mode is correlated with expected use.
Remote database access is for resources
which we believe will be used most
heavily, networked CD-ROM access
(with a limited number of slots avail-
able) stands at the second tier for those
products next in demand, and stand-

Regardless of location and format, a
collection still exists. It is a collection
because it has been selected for
provision (access) from a far larger
universe of possibilities.

alone CD-ROMs are employed for the
least frequently used resources. The re-
sources themselves, however, are se-
lected on the basis of quality and sup-
port for local instruction and research,
among other factors. In other words,
their provision is the result of collection
management decisions on what to pro-
vide and what not, within the financial
and technical limitations of our institu-
tional environment. They constitute a
dynamic collection that is constantly
re-evaluated to ensure that it coheres
and functions as well as we can make it
for our users.

The fundamental question is not
ownership or access. The real question
is access or not. Do we provide the re-
source or not? The next question then
becomes: What is the best means of
providing access for our users"paper
or electronic, local or remote, owned,
borrowed, licensed, or shared?

The Selection Process

The selection process in the online en-
vironment is much more complex.
There is more to choose from: more
formats, products, protocols; more pos-
sibility for duplication and overlap;
more people involved; and more fac-
tors to consider, including equipment,
technical compatibility, maintenance,

and number of simultaneous users. Not
all of these are collection management
responsibilities in and of themselves,
but they cannot be ignored, and no de-
cision to add an electronic product can
be considered final until these factors
are weighed.

With the number and complexity
of issues involved in adding electronic
resources, we have found that we need
a combination of talents to make in-
formed decisions: the subject specialist,
the electronic information specialist,
the systems librarian, and input from
reference and serials. In an effort to
bring focus to the process, we estab-
lished an Electronic Resources Subcom-
mittee of the Collection Management
Committee with responsibility for

evaluating new electronic prod-

ucts, reviewing those already in
place (especially at renewal time),
proposing appropriate access
modes, and making recommenda-
tions accordingly. The ERS consists
of the electronic information re-

sources librarian, the systems li-

brarian, a reference librarian, and

on occasion the serials librarian.

The subcommitteeTs existence

symbolizes the all-library signifi-

cance of electronic resources, and

illustrates the complex and multi-
faceted nature of electronic resources
which cannot be encompassed ad-
equately by any one person or depart-
ment. Clearly Wendy Lougee is correct
in saying that the selection process in
the online era is no longer an indi-
vidual matter.°

Two additional points about the
selection process should be mentioned.
The first is that even when a decision
has been made and implemented, it is
not final. (It is not final with regard to
books, either " there are subsequent
oreselection� decisions to be made
about preservation, remote storage,
weeding, repairing, replacing " but
these decisions usually come much
later.) In the electronic world, change
is so rapid that new products, new
technologies, new packages and pric-
ing structures, new upgrades and re-
leases, constantly assail us. What we
decide today may require reconsidera-
tion tomorrow. Additionally, not every-
one who has access to computers will
necessarily have access to our online re-
sources. We have discovered, for ex-
ample, that Macintosh users currently
cannot access our networked CD-
ROMs. The other side of the coin is that
some of these users request us to pur-
chase Macintosh products which we
cannot run on the LibraryTs equipment.

Spring 1997 " 19

I cite these examples not as insuperable
obstacles, but as issues which further
complicate the selection process.

Dematerializing Collection
Management

Once the collection is viewed as a
fundamentally intellectual con-
struct rather than exclusively as an
assembly of physical objects. (even
though that assemblage is itself the re-
sult of intellectual work), our perspec-
tives on a number of issues begin to
change.

1. Collection Evaluation.

Collection strength has less to do
with collection size in the sense of
holdings than ever before. While ac-
crediting agencies seek evidence that
the local collection is adequate to sup-
port programmatic and institutional
objectives, this criterion is not re-
stricted to owned resources. In my ex-
perience, evidence of generally avail-
able remote access databases, shared
resources, and document delivery ser-
vice is regarded as integral to providing
adequate resources. We continue to
prepare reports on library resources and
services in support of academic units
undergoing graduate program review
or accreditation review. This is an im-
portant service which is as instructive
to the academic units undergoing re-
view as to the librarians preparing the
reports. They provide snapshots of
where we are and indications of where
we must go.

2. Collection Development Policies.

While accreditation reports are impor-
tant, written collection development
policies are not. Collection develop-
ment policies can be time-consuming
to prepare, with their levels of collec-
tion activity and specification of lin-
guistic, geographical, and chronological
limits. They do not accommodate inter-
disciplinary research easily, they date
quickly, and they tend to be regarded
after completion as ofixed� or ofinal,�
defining an illusory status quo. The
worlds of instruction, research, and in-
formation are changing far too rapidly
for collection development policies to
be worth the expenditure of staff time.
oWasted words,� Richard Snow has re-
cently called them.® Ultimately, it is the
selection decisions themselves that de-
termine collection development policy,
not the reverse.

What we do find useful are guide-
lines, such as the tiered approach to
electronic access or the urgent need
criterion for paper subscriptions. We

20 " Spring 1997

also need alternatives to formal col-
lection development policies, such as
profiles of departmental research and
teaching, which can be updated
quickly, provide guidance in selection
decisions, and serve equally well, per-
haps better, as communication links
with faculty users.�

3. Materials Budget.

We still call it the materials budget at
UNGG, but it isnTt. It pays for subscrip-
tion databases, FirstSearch searches, ac-
cess to InfoTrac, and now UNC-System
shared databases. It is properly a ore-
sources and access� budget. In our case,
however, it pays only for the subscrip-
tion, access, searches, and licensing; it
does not pay for the equipment. This
separation raises further problems. It is
not possible to fund electronic re-
sources solely through the omaterials�
budget. Equipment and its mainte-
nance are part of the cost of these re-
sources. Equipment and operating bud-
gets are as much affectedt by the pro-
vision of electronic resources as the
materials budge. Other budgetary ques-
tions arise over transaction-based or
on-demand resource services, such as a
database search or an article provided
through commercial document deliv-
ery. Are these ofree,� i.e., subsidized by
the library, or is the cost passed on to
the user? Which fund will be charged
for the subsidy? Which fund will re-
ceive the fee?

... expenditures for electronic
resources are escalating at
least as rapidly as serials
inflation.

Once again, these are not necessar-
ily collection management decisions
per se, but they must be settled, and
they are part of the cost of doing busi-
ness in the world of digital informa-
tion. One aspect of budgeting for elec-
tronic resources is indisputably clear:
expenditures for electronic resources
are escalating at least as rapidly as seri-
als inflation.

4. Serials.

Paper subscriptions increasingly are
being restricted at UNCG to those
which qualify as ourgently needed,�
that is, those that are so heavily used in
the library to support the instruction

and research conducted on the campus
that physical ownership of paper cop-
ies is the most cost-effective means of
providing access. In some cases, owned
paper subscriptions are necessary be-
cause of general interest, local interest,
unavailability through other means, or
inadequate reproduction of illustrative
matter through document delivery. For
those titles that are needed only occa-
sionally, there are other options: inter-
library loan, document delivery, and
full-text electronic versions.

User Liaison
Liaison outreach to users, in this case
the teaching faculty, becomes ever
more central to collection manage-
ment in academic libraries. We must
stay informed about rapidly changing
research interests and patterns of schol-
arly communication in the increas-
ingly computer-dominated world of
contemporary scholarship. What kinds
of resources are needed in or through
the library? What kinds of electronic
resources are used or needed by faculty
in different disciplines? We recently
asked representatives in each academic
department whether the library should
provide electronic journals. Replies
ranged from an emphatic Yes! to a cau-
tious Perhaps (caution shaped, it ap-
pears, by fear of additional costs) to the
negative (not interested; what are
they?; I donTt know of any in my field).
The ability to order books electroni-
cally was strongly endorsed, but a
few were satisfied with the current
manual procedure.
Communication is a two-way
process. Not only do we need to
hear what users want; they need to
hear what we have available al-
ready and what the online re-
sources can do for them and their
students. As the abundance of elec-
tronic resources grows, the need for
guidance through their riches be-
comes self-evident.® Guidance, naviga-
tion, instruction, mapping, privileg-
ing " call it what you will " will be a
vital necessity to users, and collection
management will increasingly be part
of this library-wide public service.

Conclusion

Collection management in the online
era is not an attempt to nail Jell-O to the
wall, although it may occasionally feel
that way when collection managers
struggle to keep their heads above the
rising flood of decisions, factors, consul-
tations, reports, and deadlines. There
are tough decisions to make and diffi-
cult problems to solve, and what works

North Carolina Libraries

well for one library will not be accept-
able to another.? Collection manage-
ment has changed, not in its funda-
mental concerns with selection deci-
sions, budget allocation, and user liai-
son, but in scope and complexity. Com-
plexity in itself need not be negative.
The complexity of electronic resources
has had some positive consequences. By
requiring the involvement of a much
broader range of library staff, the provi-
sion of electronic resources is democra-
tizing collection management and mak-
ing it more collaborative. Other librar-
ians are learning about collection man-
agement, while collection managers be-
come increasingly knowledgeable about
technology and user services. It is a
learning experience for everyone, and it
may well serve to bring more unity to
library practice as lines blur and depart-
mental responsibilities converge. Col-
lection management has become a
much riskier enterprise because the
electronic environment is ever-chang-
ing and uncertain, but uncertainty and
risk-taking provide greater potential for
learning. Besides, if the digital world is
removing walls, why try to nail any-
thing to them anyway?

References
! Merrily E. Taylor, oThe Shape of the

River: Collection Development in an
Age of Change,� Paper, NCLA College
and University Section meeting on
oCollection Management in an Elec-
tronic Environment,� Charlotte, Sep-
tember 30, 1994.

2 Ross Atkinson, oText Mutability
and Collection Administration,� Li-
brary Acquisitions: Practice & Theory 14
(1990): 357. In the long term, he envi-
sions collection management merging
with the other omediation� functions
of reference and cataloging; see his
oAccess, Ownership, and the Future of
Collection Development,� in Collection
Management and Development: Issues in
an Electronic Era, edited by Peggy
Johnson and Bonnie MacEwan (Chi-
cago: American Library Association,
1994), 92-109.

3 James A. Cogswell, oThe Organiza-
tion of Collection Management Func-
tions in Academic Research Libraries,�
Journal of Academic Librarianship 13
(November 1987): 269.

4 Michael Buckland, oWhat Will Col-
lection Developers Do?� Information
Technology and Libraries 14 (September
1995): 155-59.

5 Wendy P. Lougee, oBeyond Access:
New Concepts, New Tensions for Col-
lection Development in a Digital Envi-
ronment,� Collection Building 14, 3

(1995): 24-25.

6 Richard Snow, oWasted Words: The
Written Collection Development
Policy and the Academic Library,� Jour-
nal of Academic Librarianship 22 (May
1996): 191-94.

7 Roger E. Stelk, Paul Metz, and Lane
Rasmussen, oDepartmental Profiles: A
Collection Development Aid,� College
& Research Libraries News 54 (April
11993): 4196-99,

8 Buckland, 158.

° For a thoughtful overview of the
variety of problems facing electronic li-
braries, especially in collection man-
agement, see Cheryl LaGuardia, oVir-
tual Dreams Give Way to Digital Real-
ity,� Library Journal 120 (October 1,
1995): 42-44.

Thank You to NCLA
Contributing Members:

David S. Ferriero,
Duke University

Dr. Benjamin F. Speller, Jr.,
North Carolina Central University

SOLINET

Tom Broadfoot,
BroadfootTs Publishing Company

Broadfoot's has TWO Locations Serving Different Needs

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of Wendell

6624 Robertson Pond Road ~ Wendell, NC 27591
Phone: (800) 444-6963 ~ Fax: (919) 365-6008

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Phone: (800) 537-5243 ~ Fax: (910) 686-4379

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The Colonial & State Records of NC (30 vols.)

North Carolina Regiments (5 vols.)

Roster of Confederate Troops (16 vols.)

Supplement to the Official Records (100 vols.)

Full Color Catalog (free upon request)

Spring 1997 " 21

U.S. Government Publications
in Time of Change

ederal documents librarians
quote to each other at confer-
ences, oMay you live in interest-
ing times.� Everyone in libraries
is experiencing these times, but
no area is nearer the obleeding
edge� than federal government
publications. Government collections
now include every format, from print
and video to remotely accessible data-
bases and Web sites. As bibliographic
records for documents are loaded onto
online catalogs, government publica-
tions convert into electronic formats,
and agency sites appear on the World
Wide Web, library users are exploring
government information as never be-
fore. The combination of new aware-
ness and changing formats has created
challenges for libraries wishing to pro-
vide access to federal information.

Public Awareness

The initial change in public awareness of
federal information began in 1976 when
the Government Printing Office (GPO)
switched to MARC format cataloging.
The move provided standardized MARC
records which could be integrated into
online databases and used to create CD-
ROM indexes for networking. This inte-
grated method of searching for federal
materials has increased demand for and
awareness of otraditional� printed gov-
ernment publications.

The format in which government
publications are and will be distributed
has created the most drastic change in
awareness and access. In the late 1980s
and early 1990s federal depositories be-
gan receiving floppy discs and full-text
CD-ROM products. Frequently these

22 " Spring 1997

by Ann E. Miller

were the first full-text CD-ROMs in the
library collection. The change brought
a certain caché to federal information
that had not previously existed. Librar-
ies began scrambling to find equip-
ment to support access to these prod-
ucts. Almost every product came with
different hardware requirements, dif-
ferent software (or none at all), and in-
structions which could be overwhelm-
ing or nonexistent. It became apparent
that libraries werenTt prepared to run or
support many of the products distrib-
uted. The explosion of remotely acces-
sible federal resources on the Internet
has provided additional challenges to
libraries collecting government publi-
cations. The Web sitesT ease of use and
their graphic and interactive qualities
make this type of government informa-
tion more accessible and appealing to
much of the public.

In August 1995, Congress required
the GPO to examine what measures
would be necessary to move the Federal
Depository Library Program (FDLP)
from a primarily print-based program to
a fully electronic distribution system.!
In June 1996, GPO released its final re-
port, Study to Identify Measures Necessary
for a Successful Transition to a More Elec-
tronic Federal Depository Library Program.
Although this report addresses the Fed-
eral Depository Library Program in par-
ticular, the issues it raises and attempts
to address will affect all libraries inter-
ested in providing access to federal ma-
terials. The report examines legal re-
quirements for agencies to provide ac-
cess to information and where those
requirements are lacking; retention of
and permanent access to electronic in-

formation distributed through FDLP;
the effect of distributed dissemination
on locator services; the need for stan-
dardization in electronic products; and
methods of no-fee access for deposito-
ties to fee-based services. Most of the
issues are not new, but the plan envi-
sions a transition from print to elec-
tronic format by FY 2001. Documents
librarians now ponder with new ur-
gency the collection development, ser-
vice, and cost implications of this type
of access for libraries.

Collection Development

Libraries collecting federal materials
face a four-fold challenge: collecting in
a decentralized distribution system, de-
ciding what type of materials to collect,
collecting publicly accessible materials,
and retaining and archiving.

Historically, the Government
Printing Office has served as the central
printer and distributor of federal infor-
mation. Non-depository libraries wish-
ing to purchase government publica-
tions could identify materials in the
Monthly Catalog of U.S. Government Pub-
lications and purchase publications
through the GPO Sales Program. Scien-
tific and technical titles not offered by
GPO generally were available through
the National Technical Information
Service. In addition, libraries fre-
quently have relied on GPO to provide
them with information regarding title
changes, cessations, and now format
changes.

While ofugitive documents� always
have existed, centralization in GPO has
given libraries some assurance of conti-
nuity and responsibility for distribu-

North Carolina Libraries

tion. The advent of efficient agency
desktop publishing and electronic dis-
tribution has fostered decentralized fed-
eral publishing. A growing number of
publications are escaping the deposi-
tory net. Others, once depository items,
are dropping out of the system. So how
will a library know of a publicationTs
existence? Fugitive materials are lost to
libraries unless identified by a customer
request or serendipitously by a selector.
A good individual example is Competi-
tion Policy in the New High-Tech, Global
Marketplace, a Federal Trade Commis-
sion staff report which, at the time of
writing, existed on the FTC Web server
but had not been distributed to deposi-
tory libraries and wasnTt located in
searches of two versions of the Monthly
Catalog. A WorldCat search did reveal a
commercial reprint. I discovered the
report when using the FTC Web server
for unrelated research.

The GPO transition plan acknowl-
edges that there currently exists no re-
quirement for an agency to notify GPO
of changes in publication or distribu-
tion. Appropriate legislation must be
written and passed to ensure that
agencies notify a central agency coor-
dinating the depository program so
that bibliographic control can be main-
tained, and libraries notified of changes
in distribution.

The transition to electronic dis-
semination of some products has forced
libraries to create policies on collecting
various formats. Each library must de-
termine which available format is most
useful to its particular set of users. In
some cases, such as materials available
on the National Trade Data Bank CD-
ROM, it results in duplication of mate-
rials in both print and electronic for-
mats. In others, the choice is made for
the library, such as when materials are
discontinued in print and only avail-
able electronically. In addition, librar-
ians must decide not only what custom-
ers may want and need now, but also
what they might need in the future. A
product may not be available for long,
and an interested library may need to
select or purchase it, regardless of
whether it can currently be supported.
The CD-ROM OTA Legacy from the Of-
fice of Technology Assessment is an ex-
cellent example. It is a five-CD set
which provides full-text, Adobe Acrobat
Portable Document Format (PDF) image
files for all OTA publications from 1972
until the closure of the office in 1995.
These image files require a specific level
of software and hardware for display
and printing, software and hardware a
library may not have yet. The OTA re-

North Carolina Libraries

ports are heavily-used and -referenced
items, and many libraries would be wise
to have them. No longer in print, these
publications are available only elec-
tronically. They are on the Web now,
but will they remain accessible?

How is a library to collect accessible
rather than acquirable electronic infor-
mation? Most access to federal materials
on the Web is not selective, unless the
site charges a subscriber fee, such as for
STAT-USA. How can a library be specific
about what type of site it supports when
users can find it on their own? If a user
finds it, must we support it? No one re-
ally expects a law library to support ac-
cess to large sets of weather data. Public
and general academic libraries, however,
will be faced with the challenge of sup-
porting a wide variety of information on
remote sites. Future collection develop-
ment policies will need to define the col-
lecting level for electronic resources. As
with printed materials, the existence of a
remotely accessible database doesnTt
mean that the library will purchase it. Li-
braries must consider usefulness, price,
and technical requirements.

The retention and continued acces-
sibility of electronic materials is of seri-
ous concern to all, though large re-
search libraries perhaps feel it most.
While the National Archives and
Records Administration (NARA) has the
ultimate responsibility of retaining fed-
eral records, the federal depository pro-
gram through its regional libraries and
large selective depositories has provided
a working backup to NARA for pub-
lished federal materials. Most electronic
products distributed through the Fed-
eral Depository Program are retained
just as paper publications are. Many
electronic publications change from
version to version. With changes in
computer software and hardware, we
are discovering that some new software
is incompatible with the old. For in-
stance, will a product which was issued
to run in MS-DOS version 3.0 run on a
PC which is running Windows 95?
Good question. And how long will a CD
last, anyway?

What happens to remotely acces-
sible electronic information? Deposito-
ries and those using their resources have

How can libraries be sure
that the Web information of
today will be there for the
researcher of tomorrow?

no control over what comes and goes
on federal agency Web sites. How can
libraries be sure that the Web informa-
tion of today will be there for the re-
searcher of tomorrow? So far, most
agencies see the Web as a method of dis-
seminating current information. They
donTt yet recognize the historical value
of retaining that information, or they
assume that paper or distributed elec-
tronic products will support historical
research. The Study to Identify Measures
Necessary for a Successful Transition to a
More Electronic Federal Depository Library
Program proposes that GPO and NARA
provide long-term access to useful infor-
mation.? But who determines long
term, or useful, and just what would be
acceptable access?

As federal depositories have consid-
ered this issue, several aspects of the
problem have become clear. Regional
depositories cannot download and re-
tain all this information; it is too much
for one library, however large, to take
on. A central government site for long-
term access is a possibility, but it will
need to be easily accessible. Many have
experienced the frustration of being
unable to access an electronic service
due to heavy traffic. And what if the
service is down, perhaps during a gov-
ernment closure? Just as one has the
option of going to another library if a
copy of a book is checked out, so mirror
sites should be available for federal in-
formation. But who will create these
sites and where the sites might be are
issues still to be resolved.

Support and Service

Libraries have always supported federal
collections administratively. We check-
in and shelflist, catalog, bind, manage,
and provide reference assistance for the
materials we collect; however, we have
been supporting traditional collections
of print and microfiche. The promise of
additional, if not total, electronic distri-
bution poses new questions for libraries
to answer.

Libraries will need to provide hard-
ware and software to access and use
these new products. GPO has provided
depositories with a recommended
minimum standard for the hardware

for a stand-alone workstation (fig.

1).4 As of Oct 1, 1996, these recom-

mendations are to become require-

ments for depository libraries.5 To
be sure, the workstation configura-
tion is daunting. Remember, this is

a single workstation to support all

federal products. As such, it is a

highend workstation, capable of

coping with almost every software

Spring 1997 " 23

EEE eee ee

requirement which might present it-
self. Even as GPO supplies the stan-
dards, it also notes that:

LPS cannot anticipate or
address every possible deposi-
tory library computer scenario.
Rather, these specifications are
intended to assist depository
staff in making informed
purchases which will best
achieve the goal of providing
public access to Federal Govern-
ment information in a variety
of electronic formats.®

Librarians need to assess what type of
electronic materials they will be collect-
ing, types of remote materials their us-
ers will likely encounter, and configure
workstations to meet those needs. The
outline of minimum requirements is in-
tended to provide depository librarians
with evidence to convince administra-
tors of the need to purchase worksta-
tions that meet future needs as well as
current ones. For non-depository librar-
ies, the GPO guidelines provide a list of
hardware requirements that will be en-
countered when using federal materials
they might purchase.

It is likely that these minimum
specifications will be difficult to meet.
Libraries will not be able to purchase
four or five workstations which con-
form to these guidelines. Electronic
products will need to be distributed
among several workstations, net-
worked, or carefully selected so that the
need for special support is minimal. For
instance, Duke University doesnTt have
a single workstation which meets the
minimum requirements, though our
specialized GIS terminals come close.
Rather, weTve identified what the prod-
ucts we support require and have dis-
tributed the tasks among different ma-
chines. This distribution is possible at
larger institutions with multiple work-
stations. For smaller libraries where one
or two workstations support all federal
materials, it will be necessary to pur-
chase workstations close to or exceed-
ing these requirements.

Software adds another wrinkle. It
seems as though every CD-ROM the
federal government has issued comes
with a different software package. Even
those that run on the same software,
such as GO from the Census Bureau,
require that additional files be loaded
to provide access to the unique data
sets on each disc. In the worst case sce-
nario, the CD arrives with no instruc-
tions on how to install the software or
even what is required to run it. Beyond
the logistical problem of managing

24 " Spring 1997

many software programs, there are se-
rious staffing implications. Often one
staff member will be responsible for
installing and maintaining access to
federal electronic materials. The oop-
portunity for growth� usually falls to
someone with existing responsibilities.

Providing reference service for this
new generation of federal materials will
continually challenge librarians. Not
only must the reference staff know
content and location of materials, but
also how to search, display, and down-
load or print using a variety of software
packages. In addition, new types of in-
formation are being released. Agencies
are taking advantage of the new me-
dium to issue data sets that were not
available before.

Creating a tiered-service policy is
one way many depository libraries are
dealing with this issue. Librarians ini-
tially identify use patterns for electronic
materials and those products which
support the research needs of their cus-
tomers. Those products with heavy use,
or those that are networked, have a very
high service expectation; those for
which no software exists or little use is
expected, have very low levels. Within
the service levels, staff are given guide-
lines for what they are expected to
know. At a high service level, for in-
stance, the staff member is expected to
know the content of the product, be
able to access and search for informa-
tion, retrieve and display it, and finally
download or print the results. The low-
est level of service may be to find the
product in the Monthly Catalog and cir-
culate the item to the user.

Duke has a four-tier service system
which was instituted in Fall 1995. The
highest level is expected for products
loaded onto our CD tower (content
knowledge, search, display, download/
print), the second level for products
loaded on individual machines in the
department (locate, searching, display,
download/print). The third level is for
products that will need to be loaded.
Users are required to allow two working
days for the product to be
installed and will receive
only minimal support. Fi-
nally, we circulate some
CD products for a week. I
should note that circulat-
ing CDs is a controversial
decision and may not be
right for all libraries.

Training of staff and
followup individual prac-
tice are essential. Unfor-
tunately, with the excep-
tion of GPO Access, there

is little formal training available for fed-
eral electronic products. Training ses-
sions do turn up at the Federal Deposi-
tory Library Conference, ALA, and
NCLA Documents Section meetings. Yet
these may not reach all staff. Many de-
positories have turned to internal cross-
training. Cross-training ensures that at
least one individual is knowledgeable
about a product. We have taken advan-
tage of light Friday morning reference
traffic for our training time. Profession-
als and support staff alike have pre-
sented products. Cross-training pro-
vides an impetus for creating handouts
that can be adapted for customers, and
gives staff a chance to ask ostupid� ques-
tions in a safe environment. It is impor-
tant then to allow practice time for ev-
eryone to reinforce their skills.

Our customers face both the loss of
favorite publications and new informa-
tion in new formats. Library users may
be somewhat familiar with the use of a
computer and associated hardware, but
they certainly cannot be expected to
cope with all the software packages and
product options available. Having clear
selection and service policies and goals
will help to focus user instruction. Now,
more than ever, customers need to rely
on the advice and assistance of refer-
ence librarians.

We cannot discuss support for elec-
tronic products without looking at the
price tag for libraries. While Congress
may view the distribution of electronic
information as a cost cutting measure
for the federal government, libraries
will see a number of increases in their
local costs.

Consider the hardware and software
costs. It will not be cheap to purchase
machines that meet the minimum re-
quirements. Libraries also will need to
purchase complementary software to
meet the requirements. Some software
will be an extension of what libraries
already use for administrative support,
but other types, such as database soft-
ware, will need to be acquired to sup-
port specific electronic publications.

While Congress may view the
distribution of electronic
information as a cost cutting

measure for the federal government,

libraries will see a number of
increases in their local costs.

North Carolina Libraries

There almost certainly will be sub-
scription fees for some remote services.
While the Federal Depository Library
Program is willing to broker free access
for depository libraries, other libraries
will need to subscribe to government
services just as they do for commercial
database providers. Unfortunately, it
isnTt certain yet that even depositories
will have free access to remote services,
despite assurances to the contrary.

An immediate and obvious cost is
printing. Some customers will accept
downloaded materials, but most still
prefer to have printouts they can take
home. Electronic materials ripe for
printing range from one-page pam-
phlets to monographs hundreds of pages
long. Libraries must decide whether to
pass the cost along and provide hard-
ware that can process and print large
documents quickly, or whether it is
wiser for the library to print out a mas-
ter copy of a document for retention
and checkout. Policies need to be estab-
lished that both fit the needs of the cus-
tomers and allow libraries to continue
to provide effective service.

Conclusion

By the time this article goes to press the
issues facing libraries collecting federal
materials will have changed. Congres-
sional mandates for electronic dis-
semination and the publicTs increased
awareness of and access to federal infor-
mation in all formats are driving much
of that change. The type and method of
collecting, the need for a state-of-the-
art computing infrastructure, and the
necessity of providing service to a vari-
ety of products are daunting challenges
to libraries; however, I believe that we
have the tools to address those chal-
lenges. The knowledge we all share for
collecting, administering, and serving
our collections will provide us with the
basis for creative policies and decisions
that will ensure our publicTs access to
the wealth of information that govern-
ment publications provide.

Lagniappe

I have had great difficulty in selecting
only ten significant federal publica-
tions. So much valuable federal infor-
mation is available for so many differ-
ent purposes. In the final analysis, I
chose products that will lead research-
ers into the literature; products that
present traditional information in a
new and dynamic way; and those pub-
lications that provide exceptional qual-
ity as a reference source.

Bureau of the Census. Statistical Abstract

North Carolina Libraries

of the United States. Bureau of the Cen-
sus. Department of Commerce. Wash-
ington, D.C., 1878 - . For sale by the
Supt. of Docs., U.S. G.P.O.

Familiar to librarians, the Statistical
Abstract continues to be one of the
most important and heavily used
federal documents. Not only does
it provide comprehensive and
detailed statistics, but it includes
international data and information
gleaned from private sources as
well. Available for purchase in
paper and CD-ROM, selected tables
are available at the U.S. Census
Bureau web site: http://
www.census.gov/stat_abstract/.

Bureau of Labor Statistics. Occupational
Outlook Handbook and the Occupational
Outlook Quarterly. Bureau of Labor Statis-
tics. Department of Labor. Washington,
D.C., 1949 - . For sale by the Supt. of
Docs, US: GPO;

The Handbook and its companion
journal Occupational Outlook
Quarterly provide information on
jobs and job prospects. The Hand-
book provides information on what
a job entails, prospects and salary,
conditions and training needed.
The Quarterly supplements the hand-
book, looking at trends in geo-
graphic movement of jobs, salary
changes, and hot occupations.

Federal Research Division. Area Hand-
book Series. Library of Congress The Di-
vision. Washington, D.C. For sale by the
Supt. of Docs., U.S. G.P.O.

Once produced by the Department
of Defense, now by the Library of
Congress, each book in this series
analyzes the culture, politics,
security, history, and society of the
country in question. Some are
available in full-text on the
National Trade Data Bank, and text
and illustrations for one (as of
writing) may be found at the
Library of Congress web site
(http://Icweb2.loc.gov/frd/country.html).
All are available for sale from GPO.

Government Printing Office. U.S. Gov-
ernment Printing Office Home Page. Gov-
ernment Printing Office. U.S. Congress.
Washington, D.C., 1995 - . http://
www. access.gpo.gov/

The GPO page enables searching
of the Monthly Catalog for recent
publications and locations of
depositories selecting the item. It
also provides access to GPO Access,
and the Pathfinder service which

identifies government Web sites.
In addition, the homepage
provides links to other federal
agency homepages.

Government Printing Office. GPO Ac-
cess. Government Printing Office. U.S.
Congress. Washington, D.C., 1994 - .

This WAIS-searchable database is
available to the public from a
variety of points on the Internet.
Full-text material included on GPO
Access include the Federal Register,
Congressional Record, Bills, GAO
Reports, House and Senate Calen-
dars, the Congressional Directory
and Economic Indicators. Citizens of
North Carolina can access the
service from several gateways,
including UNC-Chapel Hill/Duke/
NCSU online catalogs; NCSUTs web
site (http://www.lib.ncsu.edu/stacks/
gpo/), GPOTs web site (http://
www.access.gpo.gov/), plus other
gateways around the nation.

LaRoe, Edward T., ed. Our Living Re-
sources: A Report to the Nation on the Dis-
tribution, Abundance, and Health of
United States Plants, Animals and Ecosys-
tems. U.S. Department of the Interior,
National Biological Service, 1995.

The monograph Our Living Resources
is a exceptional compilation of
articles on the status of U.S. animal
species, ecosystems, ecoregions and
special environmental issues. Each
article provides an overview of the
topic, challenges for the future, and
a short bibliography. The volume is
beautifully laid out and very
accessible.

Office of Technology Assessment. OTA
Legacy. Office of Technology Assessment.
U.S. Congress. Washington, D.C., 1996.
For sale by the Supt. of Docs., U.S. G.P.O.

Between 1976 and 1995 the Office
of Technology Assessment produced
many valuable reports on science
and technology issues. This five CD-
ROM set contains OTA reports in
PDF format. It is an excellent
example of a product which poses
one of the greatest challenges to
libraries in access, reproduction,
service, and retention. Viewing and
printing of these image files
requires hardware and software that
can read and reproduce Adobe
Acrobat PDF formatted files.

Platt, Suzy, ed. Respectfully quoted : a dic-
tionary of quotations requested from the
Congressional Research Service. Library
of Congress. Washington, D.C., 1989.

Spring 1997 " 25

One of the best reference books for
quotations around. It is organized
by topic with indexes for subject,
author, and keyword.

STAT-USA. National Trade Data Bank and
STAT-USA. STAT-USA. U.S. Dept. of
Commerce. Washington, D.C., 1990 - .

The National Trade Data Bank was
created in 1990 to provide one-
stop-shopping for businesses
interested in international trade
opportunities. NTDB has ex-
panded to two CDs a month
which provide access to full-text
and statistical files. STAT-USA
(http://www.stat-usa.gov/) provides
some of the same material, plus
timely trade opportunities and
detailed economic data; however,
STAT-USA is a subscription service.
Federal depositories may provide
one free access point if they select
the service.

U.S. Superintendent of Documents.
Monthly Catalog of United States
Government Publications. United States
Government Printing Office. Washing-
ton, D.C., 1907 -.

Since 1907, the Monthly Catalog
has provided access to federal
materials printed and processed by
the Government Printing Office. It
now has expanded to include
documents in electronic format at
agency sites. Available for pur-
chase in paper and CD-ROM, also
available for searching on the
World Wide Web at: http://
www.access.gpo.gov/su_docs/dpos/
adpos400.html.

United States. Congress. Official Congres-
sional Directory. U.S. Government Print-
ing Office. Washington, D.C., 1887 - . For
sale by the Supt. of Docs., U.S. G.B.O.

Not only a biennial directory to
members of Congress, this volume
contains a guide to the executive
branch, lobbyists, statistics on
voter turnout, congressional
district maps, and more. An
electronic version of the directory
is available via GPO Access.

References

! U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee,
U.S. Senate, Report to Accompany H.R. 1854
Legislative Branch Appropriations, 1996, 104th
Cong. Ist sess., 1995, S. Rept. 114, 48-49.

2 U.S. Government Printing Office, Study
to identify measures necessary for a successful
transition to a more electronic Federal Depository
Library Program: as required by Legislative
Branch Appropriations Act, 1996, Public Law
104-53: report to the Congress (Washington

26 " Spring 1997

D.C.; GPO, 1996), ii-iv. una.hh.lib.umich.edu:70/00/socsci/poliscilaw/
3 Study to Identify, 21-22. godort/gpo/1996/1 70796/an1707p
*�Recommended Minimum Specifi- 5 Study to Identify, 13.

cations For Public Access Work Stations In 6 "Recommended Minimum Specifica-

Federal Depository Libraries,� Administra- tions.�

tive Notes 17, no. 7 (1995): gopher://

GPO

Recommended Minimum Specifications
May 15, 1996



: Computer . : _ IBM-compatible Pentium chip computer operating at
a. " 100mhz

- Memory ~~... 16 megabytes (Mb) of RAM
_ Hard Disck Drive



_ 1.2 gigabytes (Gb) capacity; 12 ms or less access time;

oe . _ IDE or SCSI interface

- Floppy Disc = =3=" 3.5� high density drive. Consider a 5.25� drive if you
CS have a collection of 5.25� diskettes that have not yet

_ been converted to 3.5�





Three free expansion bus board slots; 1 or more addi-
tional hard drive bay(s) desirable; 2 serial ports and 1
parallel port

_ Super VGA (SVGA) compatible, with at least 70 Mhz
vertical refresh rate at SVGA resolution (800x600) non-
_ interlaced, 0.28 or smaller dot pitch; display card which
_ supports 800x600 resolution at 7-Mhz or faster. 15�

_ monitor minimum, but consider 17�. Consider 21� to
_ display full page images.






__ For stand-alone use, single or multiple platter drive (ISO
_ 9660 standard). 300 K/byte per second transfer rate,
quadruple (4x) speed support. CD-ROM XA support.

_ Ink jet or laser printer which supports PostScript. 2 MB
__ memory. Consider color.

_ Microsoft-compatible mouse or similar pointing device to
_ support programs and Microsoft Windows.



Direct Internet or SLIP/PPP connection

_ 28.8 kbps data transfer rate, meeting V. 32, V. 42, V.42bis
or MNP 5 standards and compatible with Hayes oAT�
~ command set.

_ Microsoft Windows 3.1 or later (requires MS-DOS 3.3 or
higher). Device driver for CD-ROM drive and MS-DOS
_ CD-ROM extensions.

_ Package which supports multiple file transfer protocols;
_ several terminal emulations such as ANSI-BBS, TTY, VT-
_ 100. Data transfer rates up to 28.8 kbps. Supports

_ Hayes oAT� compatible modems; manages telnet

- sessions. Consider ability to oscript� log-on files.







| World Wide Web graphical browser with forms support.
_ ANSI 239.50 compatible, GILS-aware WAIS client.
_ Consider EINet WinWais customized for GPO Access.

PDF file viewer. GIF and JPEG graphics viewers.

dBASE file format compatible or dBASE and ASCII comma
delimited file importing database management software;
useful to have fixed field format (SDF) import ability.





Lotus .WK1 file format compatible software; support for
other formats such as Excel and Quattro Pro.



Software capable of importing major text file formats
(Microsoft Word, WordPerfect, Multimate, etc.) and
ASCII text files.

North Carolina Libraries

Barbarians at the Gate: Civilizing Digital Information
... An annotated bibliography

compiled by Araby Greene

guardians of the human record. The great libraries are public places of substance where history unfolds, and

knowledge and truth may be discovered. The feminist writer, Germaine Greer, called libraries oreservoirs of
strength, grace and wit, reminders of order, calm and continuity, lakes of mental energy, neither warm nor cold,
light nor dark.�! But what of digitized information? How authoritative is it? How do we adapt to, or influence, new
ways of writing, publishing, and disseminating information? What is our reason for being?

Many books and articles that extrapolate the future of libraries in a world now labeled in library literature as
opost-information-revolution.� The best writings temper enthusiasm for a virtual future with common sense, and
help us determine which technologies deserve our expenditure of time to learn and money to install and which are
transitory and unworthy of either.

The selections in this bibliography are a small, personal sample of interesting scholarship and experience
representing these concerns:

e Preserving scholarly publishing in a fluid electronic environment that indiscriminately mixes knowledge with
mere information. Our self-inflicted role as preservationist has become a difficult calling, indeed.

e Providing better access to more expensive information with smaller budgets and fewer staff.

¢ Meeting the demand for equitable service to a multicultural audience and removing barriers to access for
technological have-nots.

e Educating new library school graduates and retraining Ourselves to be leaders and active participants in the
politics of information. Necessity and the shadow of extinction produce a marketplace mentality.

e Maintaining awareness and respect for our collective ability to organize knowledge and deliver it in usable
form to those who need it. We feel compelled to serve our patrons well, but the superbly crafted reference
interview eludes anonymous cyberpatrons.

This list is divided into two sections: The first is about philosophy, theory, and planning; the second,
practical electronic skills.

C lassic architecture, marble rotundas, sculptured lions, and gargoyles reflect the role of libraries as trusted

Philosophy, theory, and planning

Barron, Daniel D. oStaffing Rural Public Libraries: The Need to Invest in Intellectual Capital.� Library Trends 44 (Summer
1995): 77-87. Rural library staff need continuing education that goes beyond occasional workshop training to
education for problem solving and decision making. The vehicle will be distance education blended from
teleconferencing, e-mail, the Web, discussion lists, books, and meetings. Distance education is no longer
synonymous with correspondence school, but a way to create a ocommunity of practice.�

Birdsall, William F. The Myth of the Electronic Library: Librarianship and Social Change in America. Westport, CT: Greenwood,
1994. Explores alternative roles of the library in society. Birdsall accurately identifies the prevalent assumptions of
the omyth� of the electronic library, but offers an alternative vision, the library as a otherapeutic� social
institution. The prose is very dense, but the ideas are worth considering. Substantial bibliography.

Cheney, Debora. oTechnology in Document Collections.� Management of Government Information Resources in Libraries, 111-
128. Ed. Diane H. Smith. Englewood, CO: Libraries Unlimited, 1993. Explains why GPOTs headlong rush to
electronic dissemination actually provides less access to more federal information. Should be required reading for
library administrators and public services staff.

Crawford, Walt, and Michael Gorman. Future Libraries: Dreams, Madness & Reality. Chicago: American Library Association,
1995S. According to the authors, progress is achieved through balance, by using appropriate technology
appropriately. New technologies supplant the weak uses of older technologies, but also preserve and sustain their
strong uses. Malicious wit exorcizes the vampires of otechnolust� and skewers the onew Barbarians� of the

information age.

Driscoll, Susan. oThe Role of Publishers in the Digital Age.� Educom Review 30, 3 (May/June 1995). URL: http://
www.educom.edu/educom. review/review. 95/may-jun/driscoll.html. Hopeful essay on the continuing role of publishers in
quality control and editorial guidance. The Educom Web site is an important source of information on current

developments in educational technology.

North Carolina Libraries Spring 1997 " 27

Futas, Elizabeth, ed. Collection Development Policies and Procedures. 3rd ed. Phoenix: Oyrx, 1995. While the influence of the
Internet has just begun to appear in written policies, other issues have been resolved since the second edition of this
book. The author has not abandoned ocollection development� for the trendier ocollection management.� There are
some excellent policy examples here, and the author's survey of academic and public libraries is revealing. Responses
from 384 libraries reveal how they distribute resources with declining budgets and rising prices.

Johnson, Peggy and Bonnie MacEwan. Collection Management and Development: Issues in an Electronic Era. Proceedings of the
Advanced Collection Management and Development Institute March 26-28, 1993. Chicago: American Library Association,
1994. Addresses the problem of making print and electronic information work together to improve document
delivery and to achieve a balanced pace of electronic acquisition. Electronic indexes still opoint to print materials,�
which are not easily transferred to the user. More networked electronic full-text and multimedia resources are
needed, along with technology to readily convert print and electronic information back and forth.

Karp, Rashelle S$. The Academic Library of the 90s: An Annotated Bibliography. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1994. Unlike
most annotated bibliographies, this one summarizes what is new in each source cited. Essential resources gathered
in one well-crafted volume.

Kohl, David. oOhioLINK: A Vision for the 21st Century.� Library Hi Tech 12, 4. (1994): 29-34. A model of statewide
cooperation and high technology brings together over 40 Ohio libraries into a consortium of 8 million titles and 20
million volumes available for user-initiated circulation. OhioLINK, which has benefited from a creative funding
arrangement separate from the State University system, includes the development of access to many non-catalog
databases and full-text document delivery.

Lamolinara, Guy. oMetamorphosis of a National Treasure.� American Libraries 27, 3 (March 1996): 31-33. The Library of
CongressTs National Digital Library Program (NDLP), endorsed by both Al Gore and Newt Gingrich, will digitize five
million items from LCTs otreasure trove of Americana� at a cost of $60 million over five years. This project is an
attempt to put substantive, unique book and media collections previously available to only a few scholars out where
everyone can appreciate and learn from them. Unfortunately, even if wildly successful, itTs a drop in the bucket.
Visit the American Memory Web page at http:/ /www.nps.gov/management.

McNulty, Tom, and Dawn M. Suvino. Access to Information: Materials, Technologies, and Services for Print-Impaired Readers.
Chicago: American Library Association, 1993. To give people with vision impairments access to print materials,
libraries have used braille, computers that synthesize speech, large screen and printer fonts, and audiocassettes. The
growing use of the graphical user interface (GUI) presents new challenges. This slim volume explains and evaluates
the options. Appendices list helpful agencies and associations, product vendors, reference resources, and a
bibliography.

Pitkin, Gary M., ed. The Impact of Emerging Technologies on Reference Service and Bibliographic Instruction. Westport, CT:
Greenwood Press, 1995. Detailed and practical in its recommendations and historically rich with fascinating
background material, this is a book worth reading. Levelheaded and grounded in real library work, it is an
interesting companion for its evil twin, below.

Pitkin, Gary M., ed. The National Electronic Library: A Guide to the Future for Library Managers. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press,
1996. A pleasant book that seems to be bent on making the ovaporware� National Electronic Library a self-fulfilling
prophecy. The chapter on library education endorses a somewhat chilling future of behaviorial studies,
management techniques, and library patrons, including students as clients or customers. The antithesis of
CrawfordTs, Future Libraries: Dreams, Madness & Reality, above.

Riggs, Donald E., and Patricia A. Tarin, eds. Cultural Diversity in Libraries. New York: Neal-Schuman, 1994. Cultural diversity is
one of todayTs compelling issues of library planning and collection development. Serving a diverse community well
is an art, a challenge, and an absolute necessity.

Shiller, Herbert I. Information Inequality: The Deepening Social Crisis in America. New York: Routledge, 1996. Impassioned,
opinionated, and biased, but a real warning about the increasing control of information by media conglomerates
and business interests.

Watson, Robert E. oOn Gatekeepers and Librarians.� Public Libraries 35 (January/February T96): 36-43. Watson inverts the
library curriculum with the suggestion that library schools should first concentrate on ensuring the acquisition of
broad cultural literacy before ever getting into practical ohow-to� courses. This old idea would not seem fresh or
radical if the current generation of college students seemed more driven by intellectual curiosity than job training,
as Robert Bly also asserts in his curmudgeonly bestseller, The Sibling Society.�

Wood, Richard J., and Frank Hoffmann. Library Development Policies: A Reference and WritersT Handbook. Lanham, MD:
Scarecrow, 1996. A library without a development plan is a library at risk. Frustrated users will go elsewhere for
information; worse, they may cut the budgetary and political support that allows the library to build a community-
responsive collection. The authors have collected successful policies from all types of libraries as examples that can
be used to speed up the preliminary steps of policy-writing, and to serve as reminders of essential points.

28 " Spring 1997 North Carolina Libraries

Learning and teaching new electronic skills

Courtois, Martin P. oCool Tools for Web Searching: an Update.� Online 20 (May/June 1996): 29-36. An excellent summary of
trends in Web services and search engines and services. A good companion article to oWeb Searching: Tricks of the
Trade,� below. Both articles illustrate that choosing the right search service and knowing its characteristics are the
key to locating information on the Web.

Graham, Ian S. HTML Sourcebook: A Complete Guide to HTML 3.0. 2nd ed. New York: Wiley, 1996. The absolute best book on
the current state of HTML. Every librarian should know something about how World Wide Web documents are
constructed. Discusses experimental developments in HTML, such as style sheets and JAVA applets. Includes two
informative chapters on the Common Gateway Interface and CGI scripting. Web authors also will want to acquire
the Musiciano book below.

Kovacs, Diane K. The Internet TrainerTs Guide. New York: Van Nostrand Reinhold, 1995. Diane Kovacs has moderated
professional electronic library discussion lists and edited the e-journal Library Research. This book is a guide to
developing accurate but non-technical training presentations for novice to intermediate Internet users. Visit the
Web site of Kovacs Consulting at http://www.kovacs.com for a link to the authorTs training support pages and
more information.

Kuhlthau, Carol Collier, ed. The Virtual School Library: Gateway to the Information Highway. Englewood, CO: Libraries
Unlimited, 1996. A praiseworthy book that explains the concept of the ovirtual library� and how school media
centers can integrate Internet resources into a olibrary without walls.� Presents models of the oInformation
Curriculum� that prepare students to select and interpret information from a flood of resources. Includes examples
of distance education programs and workshops in new technologies.

McClure, Charles, William E. Moen, and Joe Ryan. Libraries and the Internet/NREN. Westport: Mecklermedia, 1994. The
National Research and Education Network is close to home for North Carolina librarians nurtured by the North
Carolina State LibraryTs network-based library services. This book is for managers in all types of libraries. The
chapter oNREN and Library Education,� by Christopher Tomer emphasizes that future librarians must understand
the technical underpinnings of information systems for the purpose of becoming problem-solvers and decision-
makers, not just well-trained users. An adequate curriculum would include basic network navigation courses,
related and rigorous electives in data management, programming, and so on. Practicing librarians need to retrain
continuously in order to keep up with the vision and direction of our profession in North Carolina.

Mellendorf, Scott A., oWorking the Web with a No-frills ~Work Page.T� Online 20, 1 (January/February 1996): 21-24. Answers
the question, oWhere did I leave my Web tools?� This is a useful concept, easily overlooked in the excitement of
building visually stunning Web pages. MellendorfTs work page is eminently practical and can be adapted to the
needs of any library reference desk. It puts the most-often used resources and tools on one screen, allowing us all to
use the oexcellent work of others.� One great Web site to include on such a page is Northwestern University
LibraryTs oLibrary Research on the Internet,� with links to associations, major library studies, reference tools,
online publications, and other goodies. The URL is http://www. library.nwu.edu/library/.

Musciano, Chuck and Bill Kennedy, HTML: The Definitive Guide. 1st. ed. Sebastopol, CA: O'Reilly & Associates, 1996.
Succinct and clearly written, this book will be an indispensable handbook for any Web author. Includes quick
reference guides for HTML tags, special characters, and colors.

Simpson, Carol Mann. Internet for Library Media Specialists. Worthington, OH: Linworth, 1995. This is a very clearly written
guide to basic Internet concepts for newcomers. Simpson includes technical hints that are left out of other guides
by people who have forgotten what it is like to be alone and clueless with a modem manual. Leads the reader
gently through the basics, then to many outstanding Internet resources in education and ideas for using them
effectively. oUses of the Internet in School Libraries� and oUses of the Internet in Specific Content Areas� could be
used as a basis for some very practical, self-directed learning projects for the school librarian. Unfortunately, the
emphasis on gopher resources in this guide highlights the transitory nature of current technology.

Still, Julie, ed. The Internet Library: Case Studies of Internet Management and Use. Westport. CN: Mecklermedia, 1994. Each
chapter presents a real, implemented library project involving practical use of the Internet. Organized into sections
about services, various library settings (from the Bodleian to the one-person library), and training issues, the book
satisfies an often ignored hunger for project details, such as setting up an FTP site or establishing electronic
reserves. Includes teaching strategies and lesson plans for Internet trainers.

Zorn, Peggy, Mary Emanoil, Lucy Marshall, and Mary Panek. oWeb Searching: Tricks of the Trade.� Online 20 (May/June
1996): 15-28. This substantial analysis of Web search engines for the information professional clarifies the subtle
and not-so-subtle differences among search services offered to everyone on the Web. Knowing the strengths and
weaknesses of one search service over another will reduce fumbling at the reference desk.

References
! Germaine Greer, oStill in Melbourne, January 1987� in Daddy, We Hardly Knew You (New York: Knopf, 1990), 70.
? Robert Bly, The Sibling Society (Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley), 1996.

North Carolina Libraries Spring 1997 " 29

POINT

Raymond Chandler on Libraries

aymond Chandler must have
hung out in libraries because
the master of the hard-boiled

detective story captured their essence
in the titles of three of his novels.

The Big Sleep:

Librarians have traditionally pro-
claimed the noble mission of getting
the right information into the right
hands at the right time. For most of
our history this approach has meant
collecting and housing as much
published knowledge as possible, as
well as organizing it through classifi-
cation systems, catalogs, and indexes
so that the public, guided by our
expertise, might find and use it. When
computer technology came along, we
gradually adopted it to help accom-
plish our goal.

That same technology is rapidly
eroding the publicTs reliance on
libraries. We have diligently taught
our patrons the skills to make them
self-sufficient information seekers,
and the timely and customized
information provision we have
championed is now within reach. The
era of end-user information retrieval
has arrived.

We are not pleased about being
squeezed out of our niche as media-
tors. When the federal government
decided a few years ago to disseminate
information through kiosks in post
offices, there was a loud outcry from
the library community at being
bypassed. When information seekers
choose to sit home with their favorite
beverage and surf the Net at 3 A.M.
rather than trudge to a remote
building with insufficient parking and
restricted hours of operation, we feel
somehow betrayed.

Libraries will serve for a time as
warehouses for the poor, but informa-
tion seekers will certainly opt for the
comfort and convenience of access
unfettered by location and time of
day. We reassure ourselves that a
society without libraries is inconceiv-

70 " Spring 1997

by Suzanne Wise

able. The Internet is undisciplined, a
chaotic black hole fraught with junk
as well as jewels. Much of the substan-
tive information there is fee-based,
and the availability of full text to fill
most needs is still light years away.
Sleep on.

The Long Goodbye:

Every day there is better and easier
access to the Net. Digital information
is burgeoning, as illustrated by the
Government Printing OfficeTs plan to
transfer most publications to elec-
tronic format by 1998. The public
already pays for information through
taxes and tuition. In fact, individuals
subsidize services and information in
which they have no personal interest
in order to get the bit they want.
Inevitably they will choose to access
only what is needed and to pay for it
in the same way they do for that
other revolutionary medium, televi-
sion " through interminable com-
mercials, higher-priced consumer
products, subscriptions for special
programming, and voluntary contri-
butions to support noncommercial
offerings.

Will librarians all join the unem-
ployment line? Not necessarily. We
still have the opportunity to offer the
customer a value-added product. This
is not about technology, although the
revolution is certainly driven by it.
The issue we must confront is whether
we have the nerve to put our services
where our platitudes are and give
customers what they want when they
want it. Every one of us knows that a
patron will wait an hour to use an
electronic product when he could
consult the print equivalent and be
finished in fifteen minutes. Direct
delivery of a periodical article beats
slogging down to the library to find
the volume containing it (if it is
subscribed to and if it is on the shelf)
and paying for photocopies (if you
have the right change and if the
copier is working properly and if the

line to use it isnTt too long). Libraries
must shed the old philosophies and
service concepts to embrace a cus-
tomer-oriented mission. As the
multitude of failed businesses em-
phatically illustrates, if consumers
canTt get what they want from one
provider, they will go elsewhere.
Without even a goodbye.

Farewell, My Lovely:

What do our customers really want?
LetTs ask them, and rather than trying
to add a few new frills to traditional
services, letTs totally rethink the
match of their needs and what we
offer. For example: accept credit cards;
deliver resources directly to the
customer through electronic or
mechanized channels of distribution
(it works for the pizza guys); stop the
insanity of massive duplication of
rarely used material and establish
cooperative depositories, which will
gradually evolve from print to digital;
eliminate rigid vertical hierarchies and
make timely decisions; discard labor-
intensive group library instruction
sessions in favor of individual consul-
tation on demand. The revolution in
mail-order, television, and Internet
shopping should convince us to begin
planning for a owe never close�
concept of information service based
on e-mail and telephone, coopera-
tively supported by public, academic,
and corporate affiliates, and divorced
from a physical building.

Do I simplify? Grossly. But in the
next decade the changes in informa-
tion provision will make the move
from horse and buggy to moon shot
seem minuscule. The expectations of
Generation X are high. Our historical
response of pleading insufficient
resources, rather than focusing on
what must change to respond YES,
RIGHT NOW|, is no longer viable.
Unless we wake, a good and worthy
institution will fade into irrelevance.
Farewell, my lovely.

North Carolina Libraries

GOUNFER- POINT

Libraries Do Not Need Resuscitation, Thank You!

k, so what if the millennium
is just around the corner.
There is still no need to bid

farewell to a lovely institution.

Contrary to popular opinion,
libraries are not in trouble. They are
not irrelevant institutions bent on
making life difficult for the average
user. And as far as I know, there is
absolutely no reason to hire Phillip
Marlowe to investigate why otechnol-
ogy is rapidly eroding the publicTs
reliance on libraries.� Because, quite
frankly, itTs not!

I, for one, am tired of the con-
stant predictions of our imminent
demise. Those of you who know me
know that I hate technology and
constantly complain to anyone who
will listen that computers will be the
death of us all. But donTt confuse
these ramblingTs of a middle-aged
librarian with an unwillingness to
adapt and an inability to utilize the
tools of a new age. It just is not so!

Libraries as institutions and
librarians as individuals have adapted
quit nicely to the technological
revolution, and to suggest that basic
changes have not occurred in the very
nature of the services that we deliver
and the assistance we provide is sheer
nonsense.

Today, most librarians are well
versed in the use of electronic re-
sources, and there isnTt a transaction
that takes place in the library that
doesnTt somehow utilize the ofruits�
of technological change. Everything
from the card catalog to the index
shelf has been replaced by the
computer. To suggest that libraries in
North Carolina (or anywhere else )
lack the nerve or the wherewithal to
oput our services where our platitudes
are and give the customer what he
wants when he wants it� is absurd.

North Carolina Libraries

by Harry Tuchmayer, column editor

Most libraries are already open
seven day a week and most evenings
until 9 P.M. In addition, libraries now
provide dial-in access to the collection
and other databases. How much more
accessible do we have to be? ITm sorry
if some insomniac may want a owe
never close� concept of information
services, but how reasonable is it to
expect full library services at 3:00
A.M.?

Fundamental issues are, of
course, at stake. We are faced with
a rapidly changing world where
people obelieve� they need informa-
tion NOW " regardless of its source
or accuracy. We live in a world
where societyTs expectations of
services far exceed any individualTs
ability to provide those services, but
we are unwilling to accept that as
an excuse! Finally, we have created
a world where nothing is constant
except for change; yet we get angry
and impatient with institutions that
donTt change fast enough.

What is remarkable is that, given
all of this change, libraries
continue to thrive. What is
extraordinary is that, given the
spread of individual access to
information, libraries are more
used and more relied upon
than ever before to provide the
public with information they
need, when they need it. Yet
most commendable of all is our
belief that libraries can and
should do more.

The truth of the matter is that not
even the oldest library director has
fallen asleep on the job. Nor has the
most tradition-bound reference
librarian failed to say goodbye to the
printed periodical index. Nor as far as
I know, have bibliophiles yet said
their farewells to the library.

... Information seekers will
certainly opt for the comfort
and convenience of access
unfettered by location and
time of day.

" Suzanne Wise

... given the spread of
individual access to
information, libraries are
more used and more relied
upon than ever before ....

" Harry Tuchmayer

Spring 1997 " 31

SY ca edétion goa

Editor's Note: North Carolina Libraries presents this feature in recognition of the increase in excellent unsolicited manuscripts that merit
publication, but are not necessarily related to each issue's specific theme.

Technology Use in

North Carolina Public Schools:
The School Library Media Specialist Plays a Major Role

by Carol Truett

Editor's Note: The original research study referred to in this article was published in the May 1994 Reference Librarian,
oNew Technologies in Reference Services for School Libraries: How Their Use Has Changed the Teaching of Library and
Research Skills in North Carolina,� by Dr. Truett. That study focused upon school media specialists, the following one
upon classroom teachers, and the update at the end of the article on both media specialists and teachers.

Rationale, Purposes, and Research Design of the Study

A major purpose of this research study is to build upon ear-
lier research findings by including teachers and students, in
addition to librarians, in a comprehensive survey of the use
of new technology in North Carolina schools, and to exam-
ine its effectiveness on student achievement. The researchers
were particularly interested in the role that the school library
media specialist plays in providing technology in the media
center, and in staff development and student instruction in
use of technology. They were also interested in confirming
whether or not teachers saw the technology as changing the
role of the library media specialist in their schools.

Critical questions the researchers felt it important to ask
included the following: 1) Are school districts in North Caro-
lina actually providing the necessary access to technology re-
quired for both teachers and students to become computer
literate? 2) Are sufficient and appropriate professional devel-
opment opportunities provided ? Who is conducting profes-
sional development and is the school media specialist in-
volved? 3) How adequate is the planning and budgeting for
new technologies, especially in terms of allocation and co-
ordination of technology resources? 4) In what ways and to
what extent are computer skills integrated into instruction
across the curriculum and, in particular, related to library in-
formation skills? 5) How are teachers in the content areas
incorporating computer skills, databases, and information
sources such as CD-ROM and laserdiscs into learning expe-
riences? 6) To what extent are teachers and students using
these technologies? How does teacher and student use com-
pare? 7) And, finally what effect is all this technology hav-
ing on student learning? How do teachers and students
evaluate the effectiveness of these expensive and often very
complex new learning tools? Are the new technologies really
worth the enormously high expenditures in money, time,
and training? This report will discuss those questions related
directly to the role of the school library media specialist vis
a vis technology in the schools of North Carolina.

The research was conducted in two parts. Part One con-
sisted of a one-page mail survey sent to 500 randomly se-

372 " Spring 1997

lected North Carolina public schools. The major purpose of
this initial mailing was to identify a sampling of schools
which actually have technology in place, and to ascertain if
those schools have a library media specialist and/or a com-
puter education teacher. Part Two was a follow-up to Part
One. It provided an in-depth, on-site survey of both teach-
ers and students in twenty-four schools randomly selected
from respondents to the initial survey and identified as ohigh
technology� because of the availability of a wide range of
technologies.

Results of Part I:

Identifying High Technology Schools

Two hundred and twenty-one responses were received from
the original mail survey, resulting in a return rate of 44.2%.
Of this group, 215 schools (97.7%) had a library media spe-
cialist, but only 80 (36.2%) had a computer teacher. The li-
brarian was almost universally (98.6%) a full-time employee
in these schools, but only a little over a third (39.7%) of the
schools with a computer teacher received services full-time

from this person.
Schools respond-

ing to the original sur-

vey were categorized

Table 1
Part One Respondents Categorized into
High Versus Low Technology Schools

into high and low Technology Level | Frequency | Percent
technology schools; a Low Tech 152

High Tech 69
school had to have at

Total 221

least five of the tech-
nologies to be considered high tech. Table 1 summarizes the
data regarding high versus low technology schools. Using this
categorization, over two-thirds of the respondents were con-
sidered low technology and less than a third were ohigh tech.�

Only schools considered ohigh technology� during the
initial survey were included in Part Two of the study. From
each of 24 randomly selected schools, one intact group of
students in either English, social studies, science, or any other
traditional oacademic� curriculum course (but not a computer
education class) was surveyed along with a companion or cor-
responding group of 20-25 teachers.

North Carolina Libraries

Results of Part Two:

High Technoloy Presence, Low Integration and Use
The responses from the second part of the technology survey

consisted of a total of 852 usable sur-
veys, including 494 student and 358
teacher respondents. Two hundred
ninety were from elementary schools,
326 from middle level schools, and
234 from secondary schools; 472 were
from urban schools and 373 from ru-
ral schools. There was an average or
mean number of 35.5 respondents per
school. Faculty respondents included
309 (93.4%) who were classroom
teachers, 16 (4.8%) media specialists,
and 6 (1.8%) who were computer
teachers.

Table 2 indicates which technol-
Ogy was reported to be in the schools
by teachers and students, respectively.
The presence of computers, VCRs,
and CD-ROM was almost universal
in these schools, and videodisc tech-
nology was quite common. Given
this prevalence, it is surprising that
two-thirds of the teachers reported
never or infrequently using CD-
ROM, and over four -fifths of them
said they never or infrequently used
videodisc technology. Students also
reported a very low use of these tech-
nologies. Fifty-eight percent of stu-
dents never or infrequently used
CD-ROM and almost 85 percent of
them reported likewise for use of
videodisc technology.

Table 3 shows the reported use of technology with certain
types of classes or student groups. Fully two-thirds (66.0%) said





Fehr and student reports

Table 2
Types of technology present in high tech schools

Teacher Student
Frequency* Frequency**
and Percent "_and Percent



Have computers 33591(98.3) 481 (98.0)
Have VCR 339 (98.3) 476 (97.1)
Have CD-ROM 324 (92.8) 449 (93.0)
Have videodisc 282 (86.0) 379 (79.8)
Have modem 206 (59.7) 322 (65.6)
Have satellite/ 122 (35.4) 197 (40.1)
distance learning

Have hypercard 118 (34.2) 181 (36.9)

*345 faculty respondents reported 1,124 total responses
**49] students reported 1,657 total responses

Classes in which technology is used

Table 3

% of % of

Technology is used in: | Frequency | Responses* | Cases
All classes 210 r 20.1 66.0
Computer technology 146 14.0 45.9
Library media classes 144 13.8 45.3
Academic classes eez, TO? 3S) 74
Remediation classes 110 TOS 34.6
Average classes 104 10.0 S207.
Accelerated classes 90 8.6 28,3
Identified students 75 ae. 23.6
Fine arts classes 39 Bods {i285}
PE classes 14 | [3 4.4

*318 respondents provided 1,044 total responses

ie

Missing: 42

it was used in all classes. Usage varied slightly among intellec-
tual content classes and was lowest in physical activity classes.

Twenty indicators, drawn from
the research literature, were used to
ascertain how teachers incorporated
technology into instruction. Table 4
lists the indicators in rank order be-
ginning with the most frequently
cited. Teachers were encouraged to
mark as many indicators as were ap-
propriate for their instructional situ-
ation and an average of almost eight
responses per person were given. In
general, teacher responses regarding
CD-ROM integration tended to be
geared toward rather traditional re-
search uses.

Table 5 summarizes responses to
how teachers integrated videodisc

technology into their instruction.

The most frequent use, cited by al-

most three-fourths (74.8%) of re-

spondents, was to add visual and
aural components to presentations.

The average number of methods

for incorporating videodisc tech-

nology into instruction reflects its
lesser use in general by teachers. Of
the 18 possible methods, respon-
dents used an average of less than

six methods, which is less than a

third of the possible uses.

Table 6 summarizes the num-
ber of minutes per day of technol-
ogy use reported by teachers and

Table 4 Table 5
How teachers incorporate CD ROM technology into instruction How teachers incorporate videodisc technology into instruction
% of % # of % of % # of
Frequency Responses* Cases Frequency Responses* Cases
Look up facts 209 10.9 85.0 Add visual and aural components APS} 247; 74.8
Teach research skills ASV 8.2 63.8 to presentations
For personal curiosity or interest 146 7.6 Cy) 3) Meet a variety of learning styles 91 10.3 60.3
Encourage students to explore 146 7.6 59.3 Pique student interests 81 Del 53.6
library media resources Integrate instruction 76 8.6 50.3
Meet a variety of learning styles 125 6.5 50.8 Provide learning flexibilitv to learning 69 7.8 45.7
Help students produce research documents 120 2 48.8 in the classroom
Pique student interests 113 Se) 45.9 Meet the needs of the citizens of the 63 Te 41.7
Integrate instruction 100 52 40.7 21st century
Develop lifelong learning skills 93 4.8 37.8 Use in the form of interactive instruction 61 6.9 40.4
Incorporate into group projects 88 4.6 35.8 Stimulate critical thinking & reasoning 52 5) 34.4
Provide learning flexibility 86 4.5 35.0 Incorporate into group projects 42 4.7 27.8
Meet the needs of the citizens of the 85 4.4 34.6 Teach research skills 41 4.6 272.
21st century Encourage students to explore library 40 AS) 26.5
Add visual and aural components 85 4.4 34.6 media resources
to presentations Incorporate into individualized lessons 39 4.4 25.8
Incorporate into individualized lessons 81 4.2 32.9 || Authentically develop thinking skills 39 4.4 25.8
Stimulate critical thinking & reasoning - 81 4.2 32.9 such as analyzing, interpreting, and
Use in the form of interactive instruction 65 3.4 26.4 synthesizing
Authentically develop thinking skills such 64 35 26.0 Use in activity centers 33 32 18.5
as analyzing, interpreting, and synthesizing Help students produce research documents 21 2.4 13.9
Use in activity centers 50 2.6 20.3 Make hypertext presentations iS lie, 9:9
Construct test items WH 2) 6.9 Construct test items 8 9 53
Redefine homework to include� video work� 12 6 4.9 Redefine homework to include ovideo work� 8 Y Se)

*151 respondents provided 887 responses. **Missing 209
Mean = 5.9 average methods per respondent

*246 respondents reported 1,923 total responses
Mean = 7.8 average methods per respondent

North Carolina Libraries Spring 1997 " 33

OL ee ee ee Oe ee = eo

shows that two-thirds of them
used technology 30 or less min-
utes a day in instruction. Al-
most 20 percent reported using
it from one-half to an hour a
day. Given the high use of
technology in todayTs work and
leisure world, education ap-
pears to once again fall behind
expectations. Teachers do not
appear to be modeling in their
classroom the technology skills

Table 6

Minutes Frequency %

0 Sa 18.2
1-10 31 10.7
15-20 35 221]
21-30 69 24.9
31-60 56 1933
61-120 24 8.3
2+ hrs. 19 6.3
Total 286

Missing 74

Minutes Per Day of Technology Use by Teachers

"| and instruction on how to operate programs.
Several areas especially appeared to be slighted,
including training on videodisc use and CD-

Cumulative % ROM database searching. This is unfortunate

18.2 since database searching is an excellent tool for
a teaching general search strategies, including
65.9 Boolean theory, which carries over to online
85.2 searching. These findings in regard to video-
93.5 disc and CD-ROM training are consistent with
98.8 the reported low use of these technologies by

teachers despite their prevalence in the
schools, and raises the question of whether

and concepts students need to
have to be successful in the world of the 21st century.

School Library Media Specialists Are Major

Technology Instructors for Teachers and Students
Numerous questions addressed the issue of staff development,
who was delivering it, and the extent and quality of the in-
struction provided. Table 7 summarizes teacher responses to
the survey question, oWho taught you to use CD-ROM and
videodisc technology?� It is apparent that library media spe-
Cialists are the major providers of this technology training in
their schools. About half of

lack of training in use of these two technolo-
gies contributes to their low use. Since they are both actually
relatively easy to use, why is this training not taking place?

Unfortunately, although library media specialists play a
major role in teaching technology to both teachers and stu-
dents, team teaching with the library media specialist was re-
ported to occur in only a fifth of staff development experi-
ences. It appears that very limited effort has been given to
teaching teachers how to integrate technology into class-
room instruction.

Amount of staff development also can be considered an

_ indicator of staff development quality. Table 10

both teachers and students | Table 7 summarizes this data. Almost two-thirds of all

said their librarian taught | Who taught teachers CD-ROM and videodisc responding teachers received no more than one

them (tables 7 and 8). But _ | technology dayTs technology training, and half received far

many are obviously floun- | | Frequency* Percent less than this. Only a little over one-third of re-

dering around on their own, _| Librarian 156 53.4 spondents received as much as 2 to 3 days of

as 41.1% of teachers and | S¢lftaught se fd technology training. Keep in mind that this data
Teacher (another) US STE. : ~ - :

28.9% of students report Olitside constieant? 67 229 reflects what is happening in high technology

they are ae oe workshop instructor schools.

ers, not surprisingly, picke iali ; . + as

apitheteaieiia oe re pela nied Specialist = ot Role of the School Media Specialist and

dents; however, only about a __| Library/classroom aide 14 4.8 Technology:

fourth of teachers taught | District personnel 33 9.6 High Expectations Are Held By Teachers

other teachers. Other train- | *297 respondents reported 541 total responses Over half the teachers responding stated that the

ers included outside consult- | Missing: 68 school library media specialist is a key figure in

Ses!

ants, technology specialists, =

district personnel, library class- | Table 8

room assistants, and students. | Who taught students CD-ROM
Table 9 indicates the na- | technology

7] ~ training teachers to use both CD-ROM and video-
disc technology. Tables 11 and 12 indicate the role
or videodisc | that teachers reported the media specialist plays in
helping teachers use CD-ROM and laserdisc tech-

ture of the staff development Frequency Percent Missing nology in instruction, and how the concept of the
delivered. The most popular _ | Librarian 229 50.3 39 library media specialist has changed as a result of
methods of staff development _ | Teacher dice ad a technology. We concluded that teachers held high

appeared to be on-site demon-__|S¢�,�!f-taught 22 aS
Another student 42 oe

strations, h =| i
, hands-on experience, htekchets asst. 25 SS

* | expectations for their school library media special-

38 ist in terms of technology, and looked to the latter

to play a leadership role in both implementation

Table 9 | and training. Their expectations appeared lower,
aoe development methods however, in regard to technology curriculum integration and
eae ee css ta team teaching with the librarian.

- - Most teachers apparently felt the concept of the library
ae ae ae si Spe i media specialist had changed as a result of technology; only
How to operate programs 187 1 40 69.0 12% said it had not changed. The major ways in which the
Play time with the technology 151 113 55.7 teachers felt the concept of the SMLS had changed were: guide
Periodic training and updating 138 OA SIERO Ie for faculty in technol-
Equipment akg ape GS suas: Length of staff development a satel ae
How to integrate technology 104 7.8 38.4 Gcatcns a Saki? dent learning, super-

materials into the curriculum sltialas i =k visor oof technology
How to search CD-ROM databases 79 5.9 29.2 No in-service 46 17.8 17.8 stations, and techni-
Crash course in interactive video 65 4.9 24.0 1-2 hours 50 19.4 37.2 cal advisor of special
How to team teach with the library 57 4.3 21.0 | | 1/2 days 32 12.4 496 | capes projects. This
media specialist | day 33 12.8 62.4 is consistent ith th
Designing interactive mats. 20 RS 7.4 2-3 days 97 37.6 100.0 Peg rae ng i
through "repurposing" Total 258 4 findings in Table of
[ Missing: 89 5 Missing: 102 There was an in creas-

34 " Spring 1997

" ing awareness of the

North Carolina Libraries

[ In summary, the following conclusions may be drawn

iectags from the findings of this research:
Role played by school media specialist in helping teachers use li 8 : 2 vee ~ :
CD-ROM and laserdisc technology in instruction 1. School ibrary media specialists are playing a leadership
% of % of role both in providing technology and in training teach-
Library media specialist: Frequency | Responses* | Cases ers and students. This may be related to the fact that the
Shove indiniduak beara ae position of school library media specialist is much more
technology in the library 236 23.6 86.8 common in schools than that of computer or technology
Provides technology in library teacher. Almost 98% have a librarian, but only a little over
for teacher use and checkout 218 21.8 80.1 a third have computer teachers.
Provides technology in library 2. Teachers almost universally agreed that technology has
for student use 208 20.8 76.5 changed the role of their school library media specialist.
Provides teacher in service 140 14.0 51.5 Only 12 percent felt there had been no such change.
Models curriculum use 104 10.4 38.2 3. While we may identify schools where a lot of technology
Team teaches their use with is available, its presence in no way ensures that it will be
Subject/grade level teachers ra ike aS used either by teachers or students. Use of CD-ROM and
*272 respondents provided 1,000 total responses videodisc technologies was reported to be extremely low
| Missing: 88 for both groups. Judging by the amount of time they re-
port using technology each day, teachersT use of technol-
| Table 12 é pee
z Rac gy even in high tech schools is extremely low.
How concept of library media specialist has changed as a result of cs 7 sph F ;
4. Not surprisingly, technology integration into instruction
technology ~ : ; 2
% of % of is relatively low. Less than half of the possible CD-ROM in-
Frequency Responses* Cases tegration methods are used by most teachers, and less than
Guide for faculty in technology use 210 27.9 73.9 a third of the possible methods for videodisc integration
Guide for student learning 152 20.2 585 generally were used. However, both teachers and students
Supervisor of technology stations 144 19.1 50.7 cited library information skills as a major vehicle for teach-
Technical advisor of special student 129 lo 45.4 ing technology.
projects : 5. Teacher integration of both CD-ROM and videodisc tech-
Guide for rig understanding 57 7.6 20.1 nologies into instruction tended toward traditional uses of
LABS SEMI OSY. technology, such as looking up facts and teaching research
Concept of SLMS has not changed 34 4.5 12.0 : bir sin asi
aed et skills. Developing authentic skills, such as analyzing, inter-
Active in remediation or makeup 26 3.9, A) a a Z jj ian ess
learning preting, and synthesizing; stimulating critical thinking and
*284 respondents provided 752 total responses reasoning; learner interactivity; or encouraging students to
Missing: 76 ae make their own hypertext presentations (i.e., the encour-
agement of active student learning), ap-
importance of librarians guiding teachers in the use of tech- pears much less common for both tech-
nology. Apparently teachers felt the new technologies had a nologies.

definite place in the school me-
dia center, and that the special-
ist should teach, promote, and
assist in its use. It seems evident

6. Student awareness of technologies in
their schools was generally higher than
that of teachers, except for videodiscs.

% of % of | 7: Despite their overwhelming presence

Table 13
Subjects in which teachers reported using CD-ROM
in rank order





that school library media spe- Frequency Responses* Cases in schools, both CD-ROM and videodisc
cialists have incorporated tech- | Social Studies 105 Diez: 47.7 technology have been virtually ignored
nology into their collections | Science 105 IL 3 | in terms of instructional integration
and centers and sold their con- | English 76 57, BAS and in-service training. Thus, it is not
stituencies on the appropriate- _| Library Skills 48 9.9 21.8 enough for a school merely to have
ness of this role. Computer Education 43 8.9 19.5 tech-nology available in the building.
Table 13 bears out the con- | Other of $e 168 Teachers also must be trained how to in-
clusion that school libraries are aaa 2 ie ra } Be corporate it into instruction.
playing a major role in technol- Biicintce 12 25 55 | 8. Currently, technology staff develop-



ogy implementation and inte-
gration, as library skills are the
fourth ranked subject in which
teachers use CD-ROM technol-
ogy, exceeded only by social Table 14
studies, science, and English. It ranked | Use of CD-ROM in content areas
ahead of computer education. " student responses

In terms of subject area uses of CD-
ROM reported by students (Table 14), li-

ment is inadequate in terms of both
methods being employed and the quan-
tity of time provided.

Physical Education 9 19 4.1

*220 respondents provided 484 total responses
Missing: 140

Table 15
Use of videodisc in content areas
" student responses

Frequency Percent Missing

Frequency Percent Missing
278 61.1 39

Social Studies









brary skills ranked ahead of all subject ar- | science 256 55.9 36 Social Studies 185 55.6 161
eas except social studies and science. | Library Skills 225 49.1 36 Science 182 54.5 160
This same usage pattern appears in re- | All other subjects 209 45.7 37 Library Skills 160 36.6 161
ge p pp ry
gard to videodisc use, as indicated by the | English 153 33.4 36 English 78 23:4 161
student responses summarized in Table | Math 98 21.4 37 Math 61 IGi2i-F7159
15. Thus, technology appears to be well oS Arts A As F = oe Arts 7 ip : -
5 ~ x : . usiness . usiness
ary in- : 2

pense eaten reacting Oey | Physical Education 51 th 38 Physical Education 28 8.4 160
North Carolina Libraries Spring 1997 " 39

Eee eee

Recommendations Based on the Study Conclusions

1. Schools must provide more and better in-service for their
teachers for technology to become an integral part of the
teaching and learning environment. Methods of integrat-
ing the technologies should be a special focus of such train-
ing. CD-ROM and videodisc should be particular targets of
curriculum integration in staff development because of
their overwhelming presence in schools, their relative ease
of use, and their current lack of use by teachers and stu-
dents.

2. Because of their key leadership role in actually providing
technology and training others in its use, school library
media specialists should be given priority for in-service
training outside the school and/or district. The fact that
both school library media specialists themselves, as re-
ported in the earlier study by Truett, and teachers report
that the role of the school media specialist is changing as
a result of technology adds further strength to the argu-
ment that these individuals need additional in-service
training in technology use.

3. Administrators and other instructional leaders should ex-
plore a variety of means for ensuring technology use in
their schools. The presence of technology does not mean
it is being used, and integration into all curriculum areas
needs to be a major focus of staff development and all
teacher training in the future.

Technology Study Update 96

In 1996, a shorter, slightly modified version of the North
Carolina technology survey was given to several groups of
new respondents. These included attendees at a North Caro-
lina Association of School Librarians conference; graduate stu-
dents at Appalachian State University, including practicing
teachers, who in many cases were also MasterTs in Library Sci-
ence graduate students; and teachers who worked in the
schools where these MLS degree students were employed as
school media specialists. There were 49 respondents to the
second study and the purposes of this update were twofold:
1) to determine if significant changes had occurred in the in-
tervening period, and 2) to lend validity or credibility to the
earlier study findings.

School library media specialists comprised 53.8% of this
new group, while 41.7% were teachers. The original study
contained only 4.8% media specialists, and less than 2% were
computer teachers; the remainder were teachers. An even
greater majority of the respondents (70.8%) were from rural
schools while 29.2% were from city or suburban schools. A
little over half (55.1%) worked in elementary schools, 16.3%
in middle, and 26.5% in secondary. One respondent worked
in a PreK-12 school. The average or mean student enrollment
of their schools was 600, with a median of 526 students.

As Table 1 shows availability of technology improved dur-
ing the time that elapsed between the two surveys. The avail-
ability of modems increased dramatically. While hypercard

=
Table 1
Technology Available " Update Survey
# of % of Previous

Technology Respondents "_ Respondents Survey
Computers 49 100.0 98.3
CD-ROM 48 98.0 92.8
Videodiscs 40 81.6 86.0
VCRs 49 100.0 98.3
Hypercard software 2D, 44.9 34.2
Modems 40 81.6 59.7
Distance learning satellites 15 30.6 35.4

76 " Spring 1997

software availability increased 10%, it still was not available
to the majority of respondents.

Actual technology use was an important question asked
in both surveys. Table 2 summarizes responses to the number
of minutes the second group reported using technology in a
typical day. With a

mean or average num- | Jable2
ber of 92 per day, anda SM elles of Reported Technology Use
median of 60 minutes of 3 ~ :
use, this group was com- Minutes #Reporting % Cum. %
: : 0 1 Zot 2a
prised of much higher 10 1 24 bade
technology users than 15-20 3 6.4 10.7
the original study. Over 21-30 9 19.1 29.8
70% of the current sur- 31-60 14 29.7 59.5
vey group reported us- | 61-120 9 19.1 78.6
ing technology over half | 2+ hrs. 10 213 99:9

an hour a day, while
only 33.4% of the origi-
nal group, who were mainly teachers, reported using technol-
ogy this frequently. The second group reported that almost
one-fifth of them used technology one to two hours a day and
over another fifth used it more than two hours daily. This is
in contrast to the earlier survey results where only a total of
14.6% reported more than an hourTs technology use per day.

Higher use of CD-ROM was also reported by the update
group. In fact, their use was almost the reverse of the first
group, two-thirds of whom had reported that they never or in-
frequently used CD-ROM, while over two-thirds of the pre-
dominately media specialist update group used CDs weekly or
more frequently. Videodisc use for both groups was infre-
quent; only 7.3% of the earlier group used videodiscs fre-
quently (defined as weekly or more often) while only 12.8%
of the update group used videodisc frequently. Thus, even
though videodisc might appear to be considered more of a
teaching tool than a library resource, it is still used somewhat
more by media specialists, although its lack of frequent use is
still high considering its prevalence in schools.

Mean = 92 mins. Median = 60 mins. |

Table 3
Role Played by SchoolTs Media Specialist in Helping Teachers Use
CD-ROM and Laserdisc Technology as Part of Instruction

Current Study Previous Study

Role Percent/Rank Percent/Rank
Show individuals how to use 81.6 1 86.8 1
technology in the library
Provide technology in library 71.4 2 80.1 2
for teacher use and checkout
Provide technology in 69.4 3 76.5 3
library for student use
Provide in-service 55:1 4 Bf i =
Model curriculum use 44.9 3) 38.2 a
Team-teach their use with 36.7 6 34.6 6

subject/grade level teachers

zu

Table 4
How the Concept of Library Media Specialist Has Changed as a
Result of Technology

Current Study Previous Study

How Changed Percent/Rank Percent/Rank

Guide for faculty in technology use 673081 73.92
Guide for student learning Soihae 2 SBS 2
Supervisor of technology stations 49.0. ..3 SO ches 3
Technical advisor of special student projects 42.9 4 454 4
Guide for community understanding 22, 4S PAD erat!
in the use of technology

It hasnTt changed T2236 2202.6:
Active in remediation or makeup learning 12.2 6 SET ae

a ish sesh nent

North Carolina Libraries

Integration of technology was another important ques-
tion in the original study. The incorporation of two particu-
lar technologies, CD-ROM and videodisc, was specifically ex-
amined in the update survey. In the earlier survey, only five
out of a total of 20 possible methods for CD-ROM integration
were reported to be used by half or more of respondents. The
update group reported much higher CD-ROM incorporation
into their teaching, with nine of the possible methods being
used by over half of the group. In order of usage ranking, but
including only those used by half or more of respondents, the
latter group incorporated CD-ROM into instruction in the
following percentages: 1) To look up facts (81.6%); 2) To pique
student interests (77.6%); 3) To teach research skills (75.5%);
4) To meet a variety of learning styles (69.4%); 5) To encour-
age students to explore library media resources (67.3%); 6) To
integrate instruction (61.2%); 8) To meet the needs of 21st
century citizens (55.1%); and, 9) To help students produce re-
search documents (53.1%). This higher integration for CD-
ROM is borne out by mean or average number of integration
methods used as well: for the more current group, the mean
was 9.3 while for the earlier group it was only 7.8 methods,
although this still was less than half of the 20 possible meth-
ods used by both groups on the average.

Videodisc integration by the mainly media specialist up-
date group was, interestingly, lower than it was for the earlier
group despite their reported higher use on a previous survey
question. The librarians only used 3 of the 18 possible video-
disc integration methods with any frequency, defined as over
40% or more of the time. These top three methods were: 1)
To add visual and aural components to presentations (45.8%);
2) To meet a variety of learning styles (43.8%); and 3) To in-
tegrate instruction (41.7%). Their mean or average number of
methods used was 3.9, with a median of 3. This is in contrast
to a mean of 5.9 methods used to integrate videodisc by the
earlier group, with 7 methods used by two-fifths or more of
respondents. These results would tend to confirm the hypoth-
esis that in general, despite low use overall, videodiscs are used
more by teachers than media specialists.

Tables 3 and 4 compare both groupsT responses to two sig-
nificant questions asked on each survey; namely, what role does
the school media specialist play in helping teachers use CD-
ROM and laserdisc technology as a part of instruction, and how
has the concept of library media specialist changed as a result
of technology. The amazing, indeed startling, thing about these
comparisons is how similar the results were for the majority of
items. Indeed, rankings were virtually identical. Note, in particu-
lar, in Table 4 that both groups disagreed with the statement
that the library media specialist role had not changed, thus
implying that both study groups felt (88% of each) that the role of
the school librarian had changed as a result of technology. The
second group felt their in-service role to be somewhat more
important than the teacher group, with showing individuals
how to use technology, and providing technology in the library
for teacher and student use, all ranking high by two-thirds to
over three-fourths of the respondents.

Differences in percentage responses for the SLMS concept
changes appear even less noticeable when the figures are
shown side by side. It is interesting to note that the more cur-
rent group, with its higher proportion of librarians, felt guid-
ing faculty in technology use was somewhat less important.
It is also somewhat discouraging that both groups ranked
modeling curriculum use and team teaching technology use
so low.

In terms of staff development, the current group reported
less methods used on the average (3.2 versus around 5 meth-
ods) with a median of only 3 out of a possible 11 methods

North Carolina Libraries

used. Only two methods were reported by at least half of
respondents: 1) Hands-on experience (59.2%) and 2) How
to operate programs (55.1%) in contrast to 5 reported by the
other group.

The second group also reported an increase in shorter
technology sessions: half-hour sessions increased by 11.1%,
half-day sessions by 10%, and one day sessions by 4.5%. On
the other hand, two to three day sessions, a preferred time
frame for more effective in-service, decreased by 17.2%. How-
ever, those reporting no inservice in technology decreased by
11.7%. Once again, librarians were the highest group overall
cited as delivering staff development"over two-thirds
(69.4%) reported this was who taught them to use CD-ROM
and videodisc technology. This was 15% higher than the
53.4% reported by the earlier group. More of the current group
also cited they were self-taught"53.1% versus only 41.1% be-
fore. An increased percentage of technology specialists
(30.6%) and district personnel (22.4%) taught this group than
the earlier one. Once again, survey respondents appeared to
be unaware of the percentage of their school budget which
was spent on technology staff development despite the state
mandate to set 20-30% of each technology budget aside for
this purpose. Eighty-seven and a half percent said they did not
know this figure; only four respondents said they knew (or at
least they gave a percentage), while two reported zero percent.

Finally, it is interesting to compare the two groupsT re-
ports on student use of CD-ROM and videodisc technology.
The initial group claimed that over half (56.4%) of students
used these technologies infrequently or never. Slightly over a
third (37.5%) of the second group felt this was still true; how-
ever, this group reported frequent use by students (weekly or
more often) of these technologies almost twice as often as the
earlier group (42.8% versus only 24.2%).

Summary of Update Findings

In conclusion, while a number of technologies would appear
to have become more prevalent in North Carolina schools
since the 1992 survey (e.g., modems, hypercard software), this
has not necessarily resulted in greater use of these technolo-
gies if we look at both reported use and integration. While we
see CD-ROM integration somewhat higher, media specialists
are not integrating videodisc technology as much as teachers
in general appear to be. Certainly this group of respondents
appears to have a high reported use of technology overall,
greater than 1 1/2 hours per day, but this perhaps reflects their
changing role in regard to technology, not necessarily use or
integration of the two technologies specifically studied.

Results of the earlier, more comprehensive, study largely
appear to be confirmed by the results of the update in regard
to both the roles and concept of the school library media spe-
cialist vis a vis technology. In fact, in terms of ranking these
roles and concepts, the two studies produced virtually iden-
tical results. Overwhelmingly, one could say, teachers and li-
brarians see technology dramatically changing the role of the
school librarian.

Short technology sessions appear to be on the increase,
as does technology in-service overall. Both faculty use, includ-
ing that for media specialists, and reported student use of
technology appear to have increased noticeably. And, once
again, school library media specialists are the major group de-
livering technology in-service. Thus, in conclusion, while
there are certain notable differences in the results of the sur-
veys of the two groups " many of them quite positive in na-
ture " the second study both validated and, in large part, cor-
roborated the results of the original study.

Spring 1997 " 37

LLL ee

From the address and phone number of lost friends to the
current restaurant scene in a faraway city, telephone direc-
tories have been used by librarians and patrons to answer
many reference questions. Now the power of these directo-
ries is available over the Internet. In addition to traditional
telephone directories, specialized directories that give in-
formation on liens, bankruptcies, judgements, lost family
members, adopted persons, and skipped/lost/missing per-
sons are accessible via the Internet.

It is fascinating to see the amount of information that
can be found about an individual on the Internet. Personal
privacy, it appears, is becoming a thing of the past if you
have a telephone, e-mail account, or live in a semi-perma-
nent place.

Probably the most familiar directory listing is located
at Yahoo! in their People Search section. (http://www.
yahoo.com/search/people) Here you can search their directo-
ties by name, address, city, e-mail or home address. Lycos
has a similiar search service called PeopleFind. (http://
www.lycos.com/pplfndr.html) I have found that Yahoo! is of-
ten the faster place to go, but on occasions have found
people listed in Lycos, that I could not find in Yahoo!.

Another neat directory site is WhoWhere?. (http:/www.
whowhere.com) WhoWhere? has additional search tables: e-
mail name, phone number, address, Internet phone num-
ber, personal home page, company name, U.S. govern-
ment agency name, toll-free number (800 & 888), yellow
page ad, and Securities and Exchange Commission EDGAR
listing. A community advanced search feature enables the
searcher to specify a city, school, and interest profile.

Bigfoot (www.bigfoot.com) is another directory listing
that offers a variety of additional services. The user regis-
ters by e-mail address to access (naturally) Bigfoot FOR
LIFE: a listing in their directory, a Bigfoot privacy list to
stop unsolicited junk e-mail (alas, did not work for me).
The Bigfoot directory promises to follow you wherever you
go (for life) and will deliver e-mail to you no matter how
often you change your e-mail address or service provider.
Bigfoot was created in 1995 to provide value-added services
to users of Internet e-mail accounts.

Another service like Bigfoot is Four 11, (http://www.
fourl 1.com) which allows you to register using personal
parameters that are searchable by other users. Among the
parameters you can specify are high school, college, frater-
nity, and military unit.

Another directory service is Switchboard, (http://
www.switchboard.com) which has become the official direc-
tory of America OnLine and has received its AOL Members
Choice monniker. Switchboard offers two search op-
tions: Find People and Find Business. Like the other ser-
vices, you must register your listing. Switchboard does have

78 " Spring 1997

by Ralph Lee Scott

an interesting sidebar called oSwitchboard Stories.� Here
you can find stories about people trying to find girls they
dated in 1977, lost business associates, relatives, etc., and
includes this month the story of a woman in Charlotte,
N.C. who located her long lost half brother through a list-
ing in Switchboard. This might be an interesting site to
watch to find new uses for directory listings.

A Yellow Pages type of directory can be found at
BigBook, (thatTs obook� not ofoot�) (http://www. bigbook.com).
Here you can search yellow page telephone and Internet
directories by category (restaurants, florists, taxis, roofers,
etc.) and specify a location by city and state. BigBook also
provides ocomplete� commercial Internet Web home pages
starting at $50 a month nationwide. On the day I checked
their listing, new commercial accounts included: Park Av-
enue Motors, New Wave Rafting Co., Blue Chalk Cafe, Ri-
chard S. Durando DDS, Walnut Creek Cutlery & Shavers,
Stanford Bookstores, Duplication Plus, Business Environ-
ment Cleaners, and Kathryn Dickson Fontaine, Esq. (law-
yer listing?).

Some directory sites specialize in multiple directories.
For example 555-1212.com (http://www.555-1212.com) is a
site that provides white, yellow, and blue (government)
pages that are searchable for the United States, Canada,
and oall countries,� which searches both. 555-1212.com
also has a Canadian and United States Fax Directory and a
Toll-Free Directory (800 & 888 numbers). 555-1212.com
has an interesting bar that I did not check out called o.com
yourself - click here,� which sounded rather inviting.

In addition to the listing, a number of these Internet
directories have clickable map directions to the location of
the address. These maps can be very detailed down to the
individual streets, and are an excellent source of directions
for patrons wanting to visit the address in person. Some
sites also have links to reviews of restaurants, etc.

Some specialized directories provide searching/infor-
mation services that go beyond the basic listing. For ex-
ample KnowX (http://www.knowx.com) has a free listing by
name and state of bankruptcies, liens, judgements, and
UCCs (Uniform Commercial Code rulings), so if you
skipped town in 1987 without paying for your banjo or
Owe money on your student telephone account, you will
turn up here. This service has many uses, such as landlords
checking the credit history of tenants, people wanting
background information on individuals they are dating,
nosey neightbors, etc. Detailed reports are available (for a
fee of course) from KnowX and can be ordered online.

Directory services are being added to the Internet on an
almost daily basis. Additional directory sites that you might
want to search are Database America (http:/www.database
america.com) and Infospace (http://www. infospace.com).

North Carolina Libraries

____ NORTH CAROLINA

Dorothy Hodder, Compiler

nter the closeknit, claustrophobic world of Beryl Rosinsky, the protagonist of Ellyn
BacheTs third novel. The time is the early 1960s and the setting is our nationTs capitol,
Washington, D.C., and Chapel Hill. The Rosinsky family are secular Jews for whom
belief in the possibilities of man is as important, if not more so, as belief in God.
Beryl, a high school senior anxiously making applications for college, and her
older sister, Natalie, are inmates in what they consider a crazy house. Their father,
Leonard, was a prominent architect until the McCarthy hearings reduced him to
managing a dry-cleaning establishment operated by deaf attendants in a neighborhood near
Gallaudet College. Leah, their radical socialist mother, mortifies her daughters by traveling
around the country organizing civil rights and feminist causes
and getting her picture in The Washington Post; she has little time
left over for family. Grandmother Miriam, a Russian immigrant,

Ellyn Bache. keeps house for the family in between caring for her sister Gussie,
The ActivistTs Dau ghter. Mie has suffered from recurring crazy spells ever since losing her
tue love to a pogrom.
Duluth, MN: Spinsters Ink, 1997. 264 pp. Natalie escapes by marrying " to her familyTs amazement
$10.95 paper. ISBN: 1-883523-18-4. and with the assistance of a rabbi even " a nice young religious
Distributed by InBook/LPC, 1436 W. Randolph St., Jewish man named Barry, and moving to New York. BerylTs
Chicago, IL 60607, 1-800-243-0138. chance comes when Bubby Tsippi, Miriam and GussieTs mother,

North Carolina Libraries

comes for her annual summer visit. The Rosinsky household is far

from orthodox, but they make a pretense of keeping kosher

whenever Bubby Tsippi visits. Beryl, however, absentmindedly

serves her great-grandmother cottage cheese on a dish intended
for serving meat. When Bubby dies shortly thereafter, Beryl is naturally distraught. Her
depression drags on until Miriam and Gussie, in LeahTs absence, determine that Beryl needs to
do what they did to escape unhappiness in Russia " emigrate to a foreign country. She has
been accepted to attend the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, which might as well
be a foreign country, but is thankfully only a six-hour ride by Trailways Bus from Washington.
Although Beryl has realized that she did not kill Bubby Tsippi, she is all too happy to shock
and punish her mother by attending a school in an area of the country unaffected by the racial
and social progress to which Leah has dedicated her life.

What follows is undoubtedly a most credible example of autobiographical fiction. We are
privy to the coming of age of Beryl Rosinsky (read, Ellyn Bache) during the fall semester of
1963 when she begins her studies at Chapel Hill. She has two Christian roommates who are
actually cousins: Ashley, a devout Southern Baptist, who becomes pregnant, converts to
Catholicism, and marries a South American diplomatTs son (in that order); and Susan, a
Whiskeypalian, who eventually confesses to Beryl that though she goes through the motions
of dating, sheTs not sure she likes boys. She has a tortuous on-and-off-again romance with
David, a victim of childhood polio with his own problems to sort out. As she confronts double
standards for men and women, blacks and whites, Beryl becomes, albeit unwittingly, an
activist herself.

Ellyn Bache makes her home in Wilmington, North Carolina. She has written two other
novels, Safe Passage (Crown Books, 1988) made into a 1995 film starring Susan Sarandon and
Sam Shepard, and Festival in Fire Season (August House Books, 1992), and a collection of short
stories, The Value of Kindness (Helicon Nine Editions, 1993), for which she received a Willa
Cather Fiction Prize. All four works should be in public and academic libraries throughout her
adopted state.

" Plummer Alston Jones, Jr.
Catawba College

Spring 1997 " 39

eparting from her highly popular Kay Scarpetta series, Edgar- and Creasey-winning author

Patricia CornwellTs newest novel, HornetTs Nest, takes aim at cops and crime in Charlotte.

Cornwell, a native of Montreat and a graduate of Davidson College, is no stranger to the

Queen City, having worked several years as a crime reporter for The Charlotte Observer.

Hornet's Nest effectively capitalizes on the authorTs familiarity with the inner workings of

a big-city police department. Two of the central characters are Cornwell stereotypes: pretty,
pistol-packing chiefs of police who are competent and strong-willed. They variously interact
with a talented, upstart newspaper reporter who is a part-time volunteer cop. The three protago-
nists take the reader on a stupefying exploration of everyday law enforcement in a thriving
Southern metropolis.

There is plenty of local color here. The reader will recognize names and places,
including not only descriptions of sleepy North Mecklenburg communities but
also the provincial obsessions with barbecue, basketball, and stock car racing.

The typical Cornwell novel is a tightly constructed drama that focuses on the

Patricia D. Cornwell. commission of a single crime and the ensuing dissection of forensic evidence
, that eventually reveals the identity of its perpetrator. In HornetTs Nest, she
HornetTs N est. departs from this formula and offers a less methodical and somewhat cumber-
New York: G.P. PutnamTs Sons, 1997. some narrative that lacks the focus and cohesiveness of her earlier fiction. The
377 pp. $25.95. ISBN 0-399-14228-2. style is halting and episodic, vaguely reminiscent of the plethora of oreal life�

cop shows that clog the cable television channels. This approach certainly will
ensure the novelTs mass marketability, but will do little to advance the authorTs
credibility as a serious literary talent.

Still, there is plenty to interest the general reader. CornwellTs writing is lively and fastpaced,
and an almost Dickensian array of quirky minor characters moves the narrative along. Though
shocking at times, the novelTs depictions of violent crime are no more graphic than any standard
evening news account. Ironically, it is the bookTs sheer mediocrity " laced with just the right
amount of violence and melodrama " that will keep it circulating for months.

" Gayle McManigle Fishel
Davidson College

anctioned by the master of college basketball himself, The DeanTs List: A Celebration of Tar
Heel Basketball and Dean Smith, is an illustrated feast of Carolina basketball history.
Celebrating my 30th anniversary as a diehard Carolina fan, I enjoyed every page of this
obvious tribute to the record-breaking master and his record-breaking teams.

Author Art Chansky is the publisher of the annual magazine, Carolina Court, as well
as two books, March to the Top, a summary of the 1982 NCAA championship, and Return to the
Top, the story of the 1993 title champions. In the acknowledgements he says, oFor me, writing a
book about the last 35 years of Carolina basketball under Coach Dean Smith was
not as difficult as one might imagine. You see, I have lived this story since
arriving in Chapel Hill as a student in the 1960s.� His Carolina blue loyalty is

Art Chansky. apparent throughout the book, but not dishonest. He reveals SmithTs human

The Dean's List: side, reporting comments such as, oITm not taking the blame for this loss,� after
é the disappointing 1971 ACC championship game with South Carolina. On the
A Celebrati on of whole, Chansky portrays Smith as a fiercely competitive coach with a propensity

to protect his players, which is summed up well in the foreword by NBA super-
Tar Heel Basketball and star and former Tar Heel Michael Jordan. New information also is brought to
Dean Smith. light. Charlie Scott, UNCTs first black player, almost boycotted the East Regional
final because he believed his name was intentionally omitted from five all-ACC
New York: Warner Books, 1996. ballots because of his race.
160 pp. $25.00. ISBN 0-446-52007-1, For longtime Carolina fans, the best material is the coverage of seasons past.

Fond memories are renewed in the first final four team of 1967, the 17 Atlantic

Coast Conference titles, the 12 ACC tournament titles, the Olympic gold medal,
and the unforgettable NCAA victories in 1982 over Georgetown and in 1993 over Michigan.
Fans also will enjoy reminiscing about former teams and players, 38 of whom have joined the
ranks of the National Basketball Association.

After devouring this feast of Tar Heel basketball history, I passed it on to my Dukie hus-
band, who flipped through the book in about ten seconds, handed it back and said, oOh yeah,
what's for dinner.� Recommended for all Tar Heel libraries with at least one Carolina fan.

" Beverly Tetterton
New Hanover County Public Library

40 " Spring 1997 North Carolina Libraries

ob Garner has provided his reader with a movable feast on the subject of barbecue. The
author is well-known to public television audiences for barbecue reports on North Carolina
Now. His book is a treasury of folklore, political and social, about North CarolinaTs meal of
choice for the past three hundred years.

Garner traces the history of barbecue from the Caribbean to the Indians and settlers
of Tidewater Virginia, but says oEastern North Carolina barbecue is the original American barbe-
cue.� Some aficionados of southern foods suggest that western (Lexington-style) barbecue is the
superior style, since it contains all three Southern primary food groups: sugar, salt, and grease,
while the eastern style has only salt and grease. Whether itTs eastern whole hog without ketchup
or western shoulders smothered in sugar and ketchup, itTs simply wonderful food.

Garner observes that in the tobacco towns of Rocky Mount, Wilson, and Goldsboro, the
tradition of barbecue as a celebration of the tobacco harvest is still
enjoyed. Today it is no longer cooked and eaten under the shed or
shelter of the tobacco barn, but is prepared and served in state in-

Bob Garner. spected restaurants. The cooking is still generally a male art form, but

° 4 the eating is now enjoyed by ladies as well.
North Carolina Barbecue: Barbecue is like religion, family, and politics; itTs learned best and

Flavored by Time. deepest when one is young. A true connoisseur of the oother white
meat� (the politically correct name for pig) finds the best barbecue to
Winston-Salem: John F. Blair, 1996. 160 pp. be that from oneTs hometown, or at least nearby. Before the family farm
$19.95. ISBN 0-89587-152-1. disappeared in this state, every farmer who raised hogs had his own

family recipe and tradition of barbecue.
Garner is correct when he writes that Tar Heel barbecue is unique
because meat is the centerpiece, not smoke and sauces. It must be noted
that the rich sweet taste of our pig meat is impossible to produce on a
factory farm. The very best hog meat cannot be grown as a corporate product.

For those who are already partial to barbecue, Garner's book is like an old friend. Those who
have not yet established a preference will enjoy trying out the recipes for barbeque and traditional
side dishes in this book, and searching out the restaurants Garner describes. North Carolina
barbecue lovers will appreciate his conclusion that here in North Carolina, omore than anywhere
else, barbecue is food that bespeaks good times.� Appropriate for public libraries.

" Lee Johnston
University of North Carolina at Wilmington

n a Men-are-from-Mars-Women-are-from-Venus kind of world, Fred Chappell has written a novel
about women that will leave women readers feeling known and deeply appreciated. Farewell, ITm
Bound to Leave You is the third in a planned quartet of novels tracing three generations of an
Appalachian family, following I Am One of You Forever and Brighten the Corner Where You Are. While
the first two focused on the antics of young Jess Kirkland and his father Joe Robert, this volume
recounts the stories of the women in their extended family and community.
The framework for the novel is the deathbed of JessTs grandmother, Annie Barbara Sorrells.
Her daughter, Cora, keeps watch by her bedside, while Joe Robert and Jess wait in the parlor. The
opening and closing chapters are stream of consciousness, mostly unspoken dialogues between
mother and daughter, taking leave of each other as death draws near.
The intervening chapters are narrated by Jess, recalling the stories his
mother and grandmother have told him about each other and various

Fred Chappell. aunts and cousins, with the obvious purpose of raising him to cherish
and look beneath the surfaces of the women in his life.
Farewel l, Where Chappell has mainly portrayed his women characters as
ITm Bound to Leave You. strait-laced upholders of morals and manners in earlier stories about
male mischief, here he rounds out their personalities, giving them
New York: Picador USA, 1996. 228 pp. $21.00. their own brand of humor, their own dreams and ambitions, their own
ISBN 0-312-14600-0. flaws, and their own awe-inspiring, almost mythic insight and skill in

managing unruly, unsuspecting men. One of the best stories is the one
Annie Barbara told Jess about how she coached Cora as to how to
capture Joe Robert's attention with a red silk petticoat and a shotgun "
Joe Robert told it in Brighten the Corner Where You Are, but he didnTt
know all the details. Cora told Jess about Ginger Summerell, the
Feistiest Woman, who fought off all attacks on her virtue until she was
ready to pick her mate, and then won him by defeating him in a duel.

North Carolina Libraries Spring 1997 " 41
in ae ae la aS Oe ane SU aa igs Lg i anemia Oe

Aunt Sherlie Howes is called the Figuring Woman, because she can figure out mysteries in her
neighborsT lives simply by asking the questions that they have neglected to ask themselves.

At the end of one story Jess asks his mother how she knows so much about what another
woman was thinking and saying to herself. Cora replies, oShe told me a lot and then I put myself
in her place so I could tell her story to you. ThatTs what storytellers do.� Chappell has put himself
in each characterTs place, finding dreams of beauty in unassuming farmwomen, revealing the
tragedies that lead to madness, investing the plainest with the dignity of individuality. The end
result is not so much a novel as a collection of stories demonstrating that every person has a story
worth telling, and that the women of a family carry on much of the important work of noticing
and remembering and retelling those stories.

Chappell is a noted poet as well as a novelist, and fills his novels with prose poetry,
dreams, surreal interludes, Biblical language, tall tales, earthy humor, and farce. Readers who can
keep their balance will be rewarded with a rich and loving portrait of life in the North Carolina
mountains, not so very long ago.

The author teaches at the University of North Carolina in Greensboro, and is the recipi-
ent of numerous literary awards. All North Carolina libraries should collect his work.

" Dorothy Hodder
New Hanover County Public Library

nyone seeking genealogical, historical, or biographical sources in North Carolina will

find this large book to be a treasure store. Italso Iwill ead readers, writers, and research-

ers to unexpected sources on almost endless subjects. Intended primarily as a guide to

those seeking their family history, it describes in detail many different sources for state

and local records; for example, what to anticipate in the different census returns, how
to search for abandoned cemeteries, where to look for military records, what might be found in
certain archives and libraries, the meaning of many obscure and obsolete terms, how to try to
read old handwriting, the duties of many local officials, sources of maps and photographs, how
to make and keep notes, and even how to publish your findings.

Yet this is not strictly a how-to-do-it book. It is a genuine source book that will be useful for
reference librarians in responding to a large variety of questions; lawyers undoubtedly will also
find it informative; and students of all ages might expect to pick up hints for term papers and
theses. Information pertaining to colonial and state history, the function of government and the

duty of many officeholders, the jurisdiction of different courts,
settlement patterns, mapping and land records, the settlement of
estates, pensions, and criminals is here. Maps and diagrams illustrate

Helen F. M. Leary, ed. and explain many of the points made.
° 3 The first edition of this title, published in 1980, has been cited as
North Caroli na Research : a model and has become the envy of researchers in other states. ~the

Genealogy and Local History. current second edition is revised and updated. It has a new format and

a great deal of very useful new material, including up-to-date informa-

Raleigh: North Carolina Genealogical Society, tion on finding aids and recently acquired resources at the state
1996. 2nd ed. 626 pp. $45.00 (plus $3.00 archives and elsewhere. A totally revised chapter on research tech-

shipping & handling). ISBN 0-936370-10-6. niques will serve both the new genealogist and those with experience.

A new chapter on personal computers will delight those who already

are sold on this speedy and convenient way of keeping track of

research materials, and it will surely convert those reluctant to try it.
The old chapter on newspaper resources has been updated with information on new guides and
indexes and notes the continuing microfilming program in which North Carolina leads the
nation. Many chapters have bibliographies of sources for related information or examples of the
kind of work being disucssed. An analytical table of contents and a detailed index open the
contents for quick use.

Among other features of this work sure to attract attention is a map showing the concentra-
tion of ethnic groups in North Carolina, a much more complete and accurate one than that
published in 1908 in the first volume of Samuel A. AsheTs History of North Carolina. Another
handy map shows the judicial and military districts in 1790. A time-saving list for quick refer-
ence is one indicating which counties have lost records by fire. There also are a great many
illustrations" photographs or photocopies, drawings, and diagrams " to ease the researchersT
way into finding and using materials.

" William S. Powell
eer ee aby University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

42 " Spring 1997 North Carolina Libraries

ax Childers has written a novel of disconnection, reconnection, and understanding
in a style that is droll and underplayed, and yet which moves its story inexorably
toward wisdom.
Walter Loomis has all but forgotten his father, Edgar, whom he last saw at the
age of 11 when his parents divorced. Moving through childhood like a sleepwalker,
Walter drifts into the opleasant, calcified life� of academia, never achieving tenure,
always moving on to the next third-string college. A lawyerTs letter changes his life: Edgar
Loomis has died, leaving Walter half interest in his farm and land down in Helmsville, North
Carolina, and liquid assets in excess of $800,000. Goodbye, English department.
Arriving in Helmsville, Walter takes possession of The Old Home
Place, giddily buying new appliances and furniture and heaving out the
rusty and mildewed relics. He meets Obie, the thoughtful and down-to-
Max Childers. earth foreman who looks after the dozen horses the farm boards. And he
° meets the owner of the other half interest: Ricky Loomis, EdgarTs son
The Cong ree) ation of the Dead. from his second marriage to Beatrice. The eae. meeting a half-
Charleston, SC: Wyrick & Company, 1996, brother Walter never knew he had is not assuaged by Ricky himself:
282 pp. $21.95 ISBN 0-941711-32-3. oe ; heaet eae
exuberant, puppy-like, self-centered, clueless.

Despite the distractions of new relationships, Walter is nevertheless
constantly aware of the undertow of Edgar, his unknown father. Who
was he? How is Walter connected, truly, with him? In the aftermath of a
calamity Walter later refers to simply as oThe Event,� he seizes the opportunity to understand
his father and realizes that oI am connected, like it or not.� But The Old Home Place has one
more lesson to teach EdgarTs first son.

Along the way toward understanding, Max Childers offers such social satire as the
stunning intolerance of the truly ignorant: college students whose only frame of reference is
themselves and their own ego-driven ideas. Similarly, RickyTs self-pitying rationalizations after
oThe Event� prompt Walter to dub him the completely modern man, expecting forgiveness
and understanding if he only talks enough about how it wasnTt his fault, really. Taking actual
responsibility for oneTs actions, Walter reasons, involves more than simply adopting a TV talk
show confessional mode.

The Congregation of the Dead tackles serious subjects and is thoughtful, beautifully written,
and laugh-out-loud funny. Libraries " both public and academic " definitely should pur-
chase this novel.

" Kristine Mahood
Rowan Public Library

nown in the Wilmington area as oDr. Plant,� Henry Rehder has produced a gem of a

gardenerTs guide. Henry Rehder is uniquely qualified to write about gardening in

coastal Carolina. In addition to managing a family retail flower shop (which first

opened its doors in 1872 and is the oldest in North Carolina), he owns a horticultural

management organization, serves as adviser for his familyTs nationally known garden,
and hosts radio and television garden shows in the Wilmington area.

Rehder has selected 94 plants that epitomize the quintessential southern garden. From
abelias through crepe myrtles to spider lilies, the descriptions call forth wonderful childhood
memories of sight and smell. Introductory chapters cover basic topics like choosing plants,

selecting a site for them, planting techniques, and combatting
weeds, pests, and diseases. The discussion of fertilizers is outstanding
" in a brief and simple manner Rehder explains how to read a
Henry Rehder, Jr. fertilizer label and summarizes which types are appropriate for
; ; ° specific plant needs.
Growing q Beautiful Garden: 2 ee of the book is the plant guide. Rehder makes plant
A Landscape Guide for the selection and cultivation childTs play with his clear and practical
° gardening tips. Each variety is clearly described " size, bloom and
Coastal Carolinas. foliage, growing requirements, pests, good and bad points, pruning,

Photography by Freda H. Wilkins. best garden placement. The most wonderful thing about this book is
that every plant description includes an annual calendar with
Wilmington: Banks Channel Books, 1997. 240 month-by-month cultivation guidance. The text is accompanied by a
pp. $34.95. ISBN 0-9635967-9-9. full-color photograph (sometimes two, showing the entire plant and

a closeup of the leaf or bloom). Only a sample of the illustrations
were available to the reviewer, but, if they are typical, the results are
outstanding.

Rehder admits a bias towards shrubs and small ornamental trees,

North Carolina Libraries Spring 1997 " 43

i ee aD

and these plants comprise the greater portion of the plant selections. However, he includes a
few full-size trees, such as the live oak and tulip poplar, as well as sections on perennials and

# lawn grasses. The grass descriptions are especially valuable, as he describes
the pros and cons of growing a number of warm season varieties. The volume
concludes with an excellent index listing both common and botanical
names, and cultivars. The only weakness in the book is the lack of a pro-
nouncing guide to the botanical names. How do you wrap your tongue
around Cupressocyparis leylandii?

Growing a Beautiful Garden fills a void in the gardening literature. There
are many fine titles on southern gardening, such as A Southern Garden by
Elizabeth Lawrence (UNC Press, 1991), Successful Southern Gardening: A
Practical Guide for Year-Round Beauty by Sandra F. Ladendorf (UNC Press,
1989), Carolina Landscape Plants by R. Gordon Halfacre (Sparks Press, 1979),
and Gardening in the Carolinas by Arnold and Connie Krochmal (Doubleday,
1975). There are also many excellent guides to coastal gardening, including
booklets published by garden clubs and state agricultural extension services;
however, this is the first full-length work to focus on the tidewater region of
the Carolinas.

While the book is intended for coastal residents who enjoy a long
growing season, it will be very helpful to gardeners throughout the state.
Most of the plants included can be grown in the Piedmont and foothills, and
a quite a number will thrive in the mountains. Growing a Beautiful Garden is
an ideal guide for neophytes, a good quick reference volume for experienced
gardeners, and a fine complement to the excellent bimonthly gardening
magazine Carolina Gardener (Carolina Gardener, Inc., Greensboro). If you live
in the Carolinas, aspire to a truly southern garden, and can purchase only one gardening
book this year, this is the one. All public and academic libraries should buy it.

" Suzanne Wise
Appalachian State University

wing & Beautiful lard.

A Landscape Guide for the Coastal Carolinas

OTHER PUBLICATIONS OF INTEREST ...

Absent-minded sleuth Peaches Dann is back to untangling the murderous messes her hapless
relatives stumble into up around Asheville. Whose Death is it, Anyway? is the fourth install-
ment of Elizabeth Daniels SquiresTs series, and Peaches delves into the ancient art of
handreading as well as her store of memory tricks to locate a cousinTs missing daughter. Earlier
titles in the series are Who Killed WhatTs-Her-Name?, Remember the Alibi, and Memory Can Be
Murder. (1997; Berkley Prime Crime, 200 Madison Ave, New York, NY 10016; 249 pPp.; paper,
$5.99; ISBN 0425-15627-3.)

Life Wthout Water is Nancy PeacockTs first novel, the story of a young woman whose life
was tragically affected by her brotherTs death in Vietnam, as told by her daughter. A vivid
portrait of hippie life in and around Chapel Hill in the sixties and seventies. (1996; Longstreet
Press, 2140 Newmarket Parkway, Suite 122, Marietta, GA 30067; 182 pp.; $16.95; ISBN
156352-337-X.)

Becoming Rosemary is a young adult novel by Frances M. Wood, a librarian with the
Durham County Public Library. Twelve-year-old RosemaryTs story is set in a farming village in
North Carolina in 1790. Her routine of chores and rambling in the woods in search of herbs
for her mother is brightened by her friendship with a new family in the community. As she
becomes aware of some of her neighborsT superstitious fear of.witchcraft, however, she must
decide whether to pursue for herself the healing powers that her mother and sister share.
(1997; Delacorte Press, 1540 Broadway, New York, NY 10036; 247 pp.; $14.95; ISBN 0-385-
32248-8.)

Blood Tells is a first thriller by Ray Saunders, author of the Fenwick Travers series of
historical novels. Set on the Outer Banks, it features brutal murders and dismemberments,
homosexual slavery and rape. Neither the setting nor the characters leap to life off the page.
(1996; Lyford Books, Presidio Press, 505B San Marin Drive, Suite 300, Novato, CA 94945-1340;
distributed by National Book Network, 4720 Boston Way, Lanham, MD 20706; 365 pp.;
$21.95; ISBN 0-89141-588-2.)

Close to Home: Revelations and Reminiscences by North Carolina Authors is a collec-
tion of short essays about living in the Tar Heel state, by a selection of its better-known
authors. These include the likes of Lee Smith writing about Chapel Hill, Fred Chappell on
gardens, and Jerry Bledsoe on slaw. It was compiled by Lee Harrison Child, former editor of
NC Home magazine, where about half of the pieces originally appeared. (1996; John F. Blair,
Publisher, 1406 Plaza Drive, Winston-Salem, NC 27103; 178 pp.; $19.95; ISBN 0-89587-154-8.)

44 " Spring 1997 North Carolina Libraries

Two Revolutionary War standards are back in print. Hugh RankinTs North Carolina
in the American Revolution, first published in 1959 and out of print since 1986, is
available. (1996; Historical Publications Section, Division of Archives and History, 109
East Jones Street, Raleigh, NC 27601-2807; 74 pp.; paper, $6.00 plus $3.00 postage; ISBN
0-86526-091-S.) Chain of Error and the Mecklenburg Declarations of Independence: A
New Study of Manuscripts: Their Use, Abuse, and Neglect by V.V. MCcNitt, originally
published in 1960, also has been reprinted. (1996; Mecklenburg Historical Association,
PO Box 35032, Charlotte, NC 28235; 145 pp.; $25.00; no ISBN.)

Civil War collections will want to take notice of Divided Allegiances: Bertie
County During the Civil War, by Gerald W. Thomas (1996; Historical Publica-
tions Section, Division of Archives and History, 109 East Jones Street, Raleigh,
NC 27601-2807; 206 pp.; paper, $ 11.00 plus $3.00 postage; ISBN 0-86526-268-
3) and Across the Dark River: The Odyssey of the 56th N. C. Infantry in the
American Civil War, a blend of history and fiction by Clyde H. Ray. (1997;
Parkway Publishers, Inc., Box 3678, Boone, NC 28607; 247 pp.; paper, $18.95
plus $3.00 shipping and 6% sales tax; ISBN 1-887905-04-9.) Also back in print is
North Carolina During Reconstruction by Richard L. Zuber, originally pub-
lished in 1969, reprinted in 1975, and out of print since 1987. (1996; Historical
Publications Section, Division of Archives and History, 109 East Jones Street,
Raleigh, NC 27601-2807; 67 pp.; paper, $6.00 plus $3.00 postage; ISBN 0-86526-
089-3.)

Dr. Patrick M. Valentine, Director of the Wilson Public Library, has written a
very thorough history of The Episcopalians of Wilson County: A History of St.
Timothy's and St. MarkTs Churches in Wilson, North Carolina 1856-1995. It is
illustrated with over 90 black and white photographs, and is extensively
indexed. (1996; Gateway Press; order from St. TimothyTs Episcopal Church, PO
Box 1527, Wilson, NC 27894-1527; 472 pp.; $30.00 plus $4.00 shipping; no
ISBN.)

Charlotte and UNC Charlotte: Growing Up Together is a new history by
Ken Sanford, published as part of UNC CharlotteTs celebration of its fiftieth
anniversary. (1996; University of North Carolina at Charlotte, 9201 University
City Blvd., Charlotte, NC 28223; 356 pp.; $24.95; ISBN 0-945344-02-3.)

Frank Tursi has followed up on his Winston-Salem: A History, with The Winston-
Salem Journal: Magnolia Trees and Pulitzer Prizes, marking the newspaperTs hundredth
anniversary. (1996; John F. Blair, Publisher, 1406 Plaza Drive, Winston-Salem, NC 27103;
231 pp.; $28.95; ISBN 0-89587-156-4.)

Where ghost stories are in demand, see Haunted Asheville by Joshua P. Warren, a
self-published collection of eight local tales, illustrated with black and white photo-
graphs. (1996; Shadowbox Enterprises, PO Box 16801, Asheville, NC 28816; 173 pp.;
paper, $14.95; ISBN 0-9649370-2-6.)

Echoes of Topsail: Stories of the IslandTs Past is a very creditable local history by
David Stallman. Since it went to press just before Hurricane Fran wiped out the island in
the summer of 1996, hope for an early second edition. (1996; Rutledge Books, Inc., Box
315, 8 FJ Clarke Circle, Bethel, CT 06801-0315; 276 pp.; $22.95; ISBN 1-887750-33-9.)

The final word is on Mayberry: The Definitive Andy Griffith Show Reference, by
Dale Robinson and David Fernandes, includes cast and production biographies and a
guide to collectibles. (1996; McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers, Box 611, Jefferson,
NC 28640; 328 pp.; $45.00 plus $3.00 shipping; ISBN 0-7864-0136-2.)



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The Search for North Carolina Audiobooks:
A Directory of Sources

by Melody Moxley

Audiobooks are becoming increasingly popular with the
public, and libraries that provide them have proof that
more people are listening, and people are listening to more
... and more. As with any materials that are popular, it can
be difficult for libraries to keep pace with demand.

Establishing and maintaining a collection with a good
mix of fiction genres and nonfiction subjects are fairly
easy given adequate funding. Library vendors and
audiobook distributors offer recently published mass-
market titles (mostly abridged) which publishers produce
for the retail consumer market.

A growing number of unabridged audiobook publish-
ers offer a wide selection of titles. At the same time,
increased competition among publishers has resulted in
unabridged audio productions of high-demand titles being
available much closer to book publication date than
before. Now libraries can make either (or both) the
abridged and unabridged audio versions of a popular title
available to library customers, in addition to the print
version.

Now titles often are available from more than one
source in unabridged format, giving the selector a choice
of narrators. Suppliers also are providing leasing programs,
as well as a variety of standing order plans for both
abridged and unabridged titles.

Assistance in identifying well-produced audiobooks is
readily available in a variety of periodical review sources,
including AudioFile, Booklist, Kliatt, and Library Journal.
AudioFile is unique in that it is devoted solely to reviews of
articles and information about audiobooks. AudioFile also
publishes, annually, the Audiobook Reference Guide: Informa-
tion and Services Guide to Audiobook Publishers, Distributors,
and Support Resources, a source of extensive information
about the world of audiobooks. PublisherTs Weekly has a
periodic review column and publishes an oaudio
bestseller� list.

Fine. But what about audiobooks by North Carolina
authors? Or about North Carolina? Here the answer is not
nearly as straightforward.

As far as this writer can determine, no supplier
currently focuses on identifying and supplying a wide
variety of North Carolina fiction and nonfiction
audiobooks. Audiobook publishers select titles to produce

46 " Spring 1997

based on a variety of factors, including rights availability
and anticipated interest from buyers and renters " as, of
course, do print publishers. Materials by North Carolina
authors and about the state are available, but the selector
must search review sources and publishersT catalogs for the
desired titles. Additional sources of information include
Books in Print Plus (on CD-ROM), which includes mass
market titles, and Words on Cassette, which lists both mass
market and unabridged titles. Both are published by R. R.
Bowker.

Selectors who want to establish a North Carolina
audiobook collection will find BroadfootTs of Wendell a
good place to start. BroadfootTs maintains a small selection
of North Carolina audio, with an emphasis on storytelling.
These audiobooks provide a unique opportunity to hear
gifted storytellers relate stories that capture the folklore
and history of our state.

Building a broader collection of all types of books on
audio is not an easy task. The information given below is
intended to assist the audiobook selector in locating
sources that can be consulted to determine if specific
authors or subjects are available on audio and to provide a
list of some audiobooks that may be of interest to selectors
wishing to create a North Carolina opresence� in their
audiobook collections. This list is neither exhaustive nor
all-inclusive, but serves as a starting point. It is readily
apparent that popular titles (as opposed to serious literary
works) dominate; this is but a fact of life of all publishing,
including the audio market.

Omissions and oversights are acknowledged, but not
deliberate. Anyone fnding an author or area not included
is to be congratulated on skillful detective work. Do not let
the difficulty of this quest become a roadblock; diligence
and an alert eye for those names close to our hearts as
followers of all things North Carolina can make the task
an uplifting, perhaps even enjoyable, quest.

In the directory which follows, North Carolina
authors and titles are classified as fiction, nonfiction, or
storytellers, with the producer and/or distributor given in
parentheses. A selected list of producers and distributors,
and review sources previously mentioned, all with tele-
phone numbers, follows the list of North Carolina-related
authors and titles.

North Carolina Libraries

Fiction:
Chappell, Fred (Recorded Books)
Edgerton, Clyde (Recorded Books)
Gibbons, Kay (Simon and Schuster)
Gurganus, Allan (Random House)
Karon, Jan (Recorded Books; Penguin)
Maron, Margaret (Recorded Books)
Pearson, T. R. (Recorded Books)
Price, Reynolds (Simon and Schuster)
Tyler, Ann (Books on Tape, Chivers, Recorded Books,

Random House)

Nonfiction:

Brinkley, David. Everyone is Entitled to My Opinion (Random
House)

By the Way: Welcome Home to North Carolina (Broadfoot)

Graham, Ruth Bell. Legacy ofa Pack Rat (Christians Listening)

Howard, Fred. Wilbur and Orville: A Biography of the Wright
Brothers. (Books on Tape; Recorded Books)

Kuralt, Charles. Charles KuraltTs America; Life on the Road
(both available from Simon and Schuster)

Martin, Wiliam. Prophet with Honor: The Billy Graham
Story (Dove)

McGinnis, Joe. Fatal Vision (Simon and Schuster)

Ride with Me, North Carolina (Ride with Me)

Valvano, Jim. They Gave Me a Life Contract, Then They
Declared Me Dead (Simon and Schuster)

Storytellers:

Davis, Donald. JackTs First Job and other Jack Tales; The
Southern Bells (both available from Broadfoot); plus
several other titles available from August House

Hider, Sam. The Rabbit and the Bear & Why the HogTs Tail is
Flat (Broadfoot)

Holt, David. Mostly Ghostly Stories (High Windy Audio)

Littlejohn, Kathi Smith. Cherokee Legends 2 (Broadfoot)

Roberts, Nancy. Six North Carolina Ghost Stories (Broadfoot)

Ross, Gayle. How Rabbit Tricked Otter and other Cherokee
Animal Stories (Harper Audio)

Smith, Kathi. Cherokee Legends 1 (Broadfoot)

Torrence, Jackie. Country Characters (Earwig Music);
Legends from the Black Tradition (Broadfoot);

My GrandmotherTs Treasure (August House; Broadfoot);
Potpourri of Tales (Rounder Records)

Publishers and Distributors:
Audio Book Contractors: 202-363-3429
August House: 1-800-284-8784
Books on Tape: 1-800-541-5525
Brilliance Corporation/Nova: 1-800-222-3225
BroadfootTs of Wendell: 1-800-444-6963
Chivers Audio Books: 1 -800-621-0182
Christians Listening: 1-800-522-2979
Earwig Music Company: 312-262-0278
Harper Audio: 1 -800-242-7737
High Windy Audio: 1-800-637-8679
Penguin Audiobooks: 1-800-546-0275
Random House Audiobooks: 1-800-733-3000
Recorded Books: 1-800-840-7433
Ride with Me: 1-800-752-3195

Review Sources:
AudioFile: 1-800-506-1212
Booklist: 1-800-545-2433
Kliatt: 617-237-7577
Library Journal: 212-645-0067
PublisherTs Weekly: 212-645-0067

North Carolina Libraries

ee

ABOUT THE AUTHORS ...

Robert Galbreath
Education: B.A., University of Michigan; M.S., Harvard
University; Ph.D., University of Michigan;
M.L.I.S., University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee
Position: Assistant Director for Collection Development,
Jackson Library, UNC-G

Araby Greene
Education: B.A., M.A., UCLA; M.S.L.S., UNC-CH
Position: Associate Systems & Bibliographic Access
Librarian, Ramsey Library, UNC-A

Joe Hewitt
Education: B.A., M.S.L.S., UNC-CH; Ph.D., University of
Colorado at Boulder
Position: Director, Academic Affairs Library, UNC-CH

Martha Kreszock
Education: B.A., Emory and Henry College; M.A.,
Appalachian State University; Ed.D., University
of Tennessee at Knoxville
Position: Assistant Professor and Reference and
Instruction Librarian, Appalachian State University

Ann Miller
Education: B.A., Goshen College; A.M.L.S., University of
Michigan
Position: U.S. Government Documents Librarian,
Perkins Library, Duke University

Melody Moxley
Education: B.A., Lenoir-Rhyne College; M.S.L.S.,
University of Tennessee-Knoxville
Position: Administrative Services Manager,
Rowan Public Library

Jennifer Pratt
Education: B.A., University of Florida; M.L.S., University of
South Florida
Position: Public Services Librarian, Haywood County
Public Library

Carol Truett
Education: B.A., M.L.S., Ph.D., University of Texas-Austin
Position: Professor of Library Science and Program
Coordinator, Department of Leadership and
Educational Studies, Appalachian State
University

Milt Warden
Education: B.S., Michigan State University; M.U.P.,
University of Michigan; Ed.S., Appalachian
State University
Position: Media Specialist, T.C. Roberson High School

Suzanne Wise
Education: B.A. University of South Carolina; M.S.L.S.,
University of Kentucky; M.A., Appalachian
State University
Position: Professor and Collection Development
Coordinator, University Libraries, Appalachian
State University

Spring 1997 " 47

CANDIDATES
1997-1999

North Carolina Library Association

Candidates for Vice-President/President Elect ...

John E. Via

Aissistant Director for Systems, Z. Smith Reynolds
Library, Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem

Education: B.A., University of
Virginia; M.S. in L.S., UNC-CH

Professional Activities: ALA
(ACRL, ALCTS, LAMA, LITA,
RUSA, Library History Round
Table); NCLA (CULS, LAMS,
RASS, RTSS, T&T), Govern-
mental Relations Committee,
Chair; Piedmont Libraries
Acquisitions Information
Network (PLAIN), Co-Chair;

Mid-Atlantic Customers of

Dynix, Inc., Chair; Forsyth County Library Associa-
tion, Past-President; Southeastern Library Associa-
tion; Bibliographical Society of America; North
Carolina Center for Independent Higher Education,
Inc., Library Purchasing Committee, Past-Chair

Candidates for Secretary ...

Jeanne W. Fox
Director, H. Leslie Perry Memo-
rial Library, Henderson

Education: B.A., UNC-W; M.S. in
L.S., UNC-CH

Professional Activities: ALA
(PLA, PLSS National Conference
Committee), NCLA (Literacy
Committee); NCPLDA

Candidates for Treasurer ...

Catherine L. Wilkinson

Coordinator, Access/Information
Organization, Belk Library,
Appalachian State University

Education: B.S., Tulane

University; M.L.S., Louisiana State
University; Ed.S., Appalachian

State University

Professional Activities: NCLA
(LAMA; RTSS, Past-Chair;); ALA
(Life Member; LITA; LAMA); SELA;
Beta Phi Mu; Phi Delta Kappa;

Plummer AlstonoAl� Jones, Jr.

Director of Library Services and Professor,
Catawba College; Visiting Lecturer, Depart-
ment of Library and Information Studies,
University of North Carolina at Greensboro

Education: B.Mus., East Carolina Univer-
sity; M.S., Drexel University; Certificate,
Educational Leadership Program, Center
for Creative Leadership; Ph.D., UNC-CH

Professional Activities: NCLA: Executive |

Board; College and University Section, Past

Chair; North Carolina Libraries Editorial Board and Column Editor;
NCLA Biennial Conferences: 1993 Conference Committee, Program
Chair; 1997 Program Committee; ACRL: Chapters Council; ALA: Li-
brary History Round Table (LHRT), Dain Dissertation Committee, Ad
Hoc Committee on the Preservation of Library Records; North Caro-
lina Center for Independent Higher Education (NCCIHE): Library
DirectorsT Group; Charlotte Area Educational Consortium (CAEC):

Patchwork, newsletter of the ASU Chapter of PDK, Editor

48 " Spring 1997

Library DirectorsT Group

Awards, Honors: ALA LHRTTs (First) Phyllis Dain Library History
Dissertation Award; Beta Phi Mu; Phi Kappa Phi; Pi Kappa Lambda

Liz Jackson
Media Coordinator, West Lake Elementary
Year Round School, Apex

Education: B.A., Florida; M.L.I.S., UNC-G
(Dec. 1997)

Professional Activities: ALA; NCLA; Delta
Kappa Gamma; 1995 Recipient NCAECT
Scholarship; 1996 Recipient NCLA Memo-
rial Scholarship; Follett Technical Support Team, Wake County

Diane D. Kester

Associate Professor, Dept. of Library Studies
& Educational Technology School of
Education, East Carolina University

Education: B.A./B.S., Texas WomanTs University;
M.A.Ed./M.L.S./Ed.S., ECU; Ph.D., UNC-CH

Professional Activities: ALA; AASL (NCATE oe

folio review committee); ASCLA; LITA; AECT; :

DSMS; DOT; NCLA; TNT (representative to

the NCL Board and Webmaster); NCASL; NCAECT board member

and newsletter editor; ASCD; Phi Delta Kappa; ISTE; AACE; Friends of
Wayne County Public Library; Quiz Bowl judge

North Carolina Libraries

Candidates for ALA Councilor ...

Jackie Beach

Director, Craven-Pamlico-Carteret
Regional Library, New Bern

Education: B.A., Wake Forest
University; M.L.S, East Carolina
University

Professional Activities: ALA (SMLS,
Secretary; PLA, Rural Services Com-
mittee; LAMA; NMRT); NCLA (Execu-
tive Board, Director); SELA; NC Pub-
lic Library Directors Association (Past
President; Vice-Chair, Legislative
Committee).

Candidates for Director ...

Karen Gavigan
Media Specialist, Westchester Academy, High Point

Education: B.A., UNC-CH; M.LS.,
U. of Tennessee-Knoxville

Professional Activities: ALA,
AASL, NCLA, NCASL (Mem-
bership Chair, Past Legislative
Chair), N. C. Association For
Educational Communications
and Technology, N. C.
Reading Association, Delta
Kappa Gamma, Beta Phi Mu

Ross A. Holt

Shirley B. McLaughlin
Director of Learning Resources, Asheville Buncombe
Technical Community College

Education: Ed.S., M.A.Ed., Appalachian
State University; B.S. Ed., Western Caro-
lina University

Professional Activities: ALA; NCLA, di-
rector 1983-85; NC Community Col-
lege Learning Resources Association;
Western North Carolina Library Associa-
tion; Mountain College Library Net-
work; Associate Professor, Graduate
School of Educational Media, Appala-
chian State University.

Carol Truett

Program Coordinator and Professor of Library Science, Appalachian
State University, Dept. of Leadership and Educational Studies

Education: B.S.Ed.; M.L.S., Ph.D., The University of Texas at Austin.

Professional Activities: Pacific Association for ~

Communication and Technology (Hawaii),
Past-President; Nebraska Educational Media
Association, VicePresident/President-Elect; Ha-
waii Association of School, 2nd Vice President/
Membership Chair; Co-Chair Research Com-
mittee, AASL/ALA; NCATE Folio Reviewer,
AASL/ALA; Scholarship Committee, NCLA;
Research Committee, NCLA; NCASL, Legisla-
tive Committee; Mystery Genre Committee,
Young Adult Library Services Committee, ALA; = = a
Education Committee, Young Adult Library Services Committee, ALA.

Head of Reference, Randolph County
Public Library, Asheboro

Education:
MLIS, UNCG; B.A., Davidson College

Professional Activities:

NCLA (PLS, LAMS; Director, Public Li-
brary Section; North Carolina Libraries
Editorial Board; chair, NCLA Constitu-
tion, Codes and Handbook Revision
Committee; member, PLS Governmen-

| om Vanessa Work Ramseur

Hickory Grove Public Library Branch
Manager, PLCMC Charlotte

Education: M.B.A., Queens College;
M.L.S., North Carolina Central Univer-
sity; B.A., Barber-Scotia College

Professional Activities: ALA, (Public Li-
brary Association, BCALA, Conference
Planning Committee, BCALA Literary
Award Jury), SELA, NCLA, (Public Library

tal Affairs Committee). 1996 Snowbird
Leadership Institute; ALA (MPLSS, PPPLS)

Section, Secretary, Past President,
REMCO, 1996NCLA Leadership Institute).

NOMINEES NEEDED FOR TECHNICAL SERVICES AWARDS

The Executive Board of the Resources and Technical Services Section is seeking nominations for two awards. The winners
will receive plaques and $200 cash awards during the awards presentation at the NCLA Biennial Conference.

The Student Award is open to students actively enrolled in library education in North Carolina as of July 1, 1997.
Recent graduates who are North Carolina librarians are also eligible. Nominees must show a strong potential for contrib-
uting to technical services with an intent to pursue this area of library work as a career. Self-nomination is permissible.

The Significant Contribution Award is open to North Carolina librarians who have made important contributions to
technical services, either in their institutions or more widely. At least part of the nomineeTs current work must involve
some aspect of technical services. Applicants must be nominated by a current member of NCLA.

The nomination deadline for both awards is June 30, 1997. To submit nominations, contact:
Janet L. Flowers, Chair/NCLA RTSS Executive Board, CB 3902, Acquisitions, Davis Library, University of North
Carolina at Chapel Hill Chapel Hill, NC 27514-8890 janet_flowers@unc.edu

North Carolina Libraries

i a ee

Spring 1997 " 49

NorTH Caro.uina Liprary ASSOCIATION
Minutes of the Executive Board

January 17, 1997, King Public Library

Members and Guests Present: Dave Fergusson, Steve Sumerford, Peter Keber, Pauletta B. Bracy, Beth Hutchison,
Teresa McManus, Beverley Gass, Carol Freeman, Martha Davis, Frances Bradburn, Karen Perry, Sue Ann Cody, Kathryn Crowe,

Barbara Levergood, Betty Meehan-Black, Nancy Fogarty,

Renee Pridgen, Susan Smith, Ross Holt, Robert Burgin, Marsha Wells,

John Via, Janet Freeman, Sheila Core, Lou Bryant, Susan Adams, Elizabeth Laney, Ginny Gilbert, Ann Miller

President Fergusson called the meeting to
order at 10:00 am. He asked for a motion
that the minutes from the November 1,1996
meeting be approved. Robert Burgin made
the motion, which was seconded by Teresa
McManus. The motion passed unanimously.

PresidentTs Report

President Fergusson reported that the grants
committee has been fully formed. He also
informed the board that ALA has requested
funds for Communication Decency Act
appeal. He reported that there was a
complaint about dates of the conference
coinciding with Yom Kippur, which begins
on Friday evening. President Fergusson
asked Beverley Gass to consider ending the
conference earlier on Friday in order to
avoid conflict.

TreasurerTs Report

Marsha Wells reviewed the financial report
format produced by our new accounting
software. While the report shows about
$2,600 in the checking account, some
checks were written after the report, but we
actually have shortage of about $3,000.

Beverley Gass asked when we would have
the final report for the year. Marsha said that
it would be done at the end of the 1st
quarter. Karen Perry asked if we could have a
format that would show a detailed breakout
of the actual budget and expenses. Marsha
said that the software would not do that, but
that she would be able to prepare a report
monthly. There were questions about
whether or not everyone wanted to have
copies of every sectionTs report. Teresa
McManus said that the financial procedures
that were adopted (F24 in the NCLA
Handbook) mandate such reports. Beverly
suggested that this report should also be sent
to officers.

Nancy Fogarty would like to see the
operating expenditures of the Association
separated from the sectionsT expenditures.
Beverley suggested that we ask the Finance
Committee to clarify this at the next
meeting.

20 " Spring 1997

Administrative AssistantTs Report

Marsha Wells reported that current
membership is 1,867 while 502 members
have not renewed. She had recently mailed
1,692 renewal notices.

SECTIONS AND ROUNDTABLES
ChildrenTs Services Section
The board of CSS has held four meetings
this biennium. Preliminary plans were
made for the upcoming conference. They
will sponsor two sessions and will seek
cosponsorship with other sections and
round tables. The Bylaws representative,
Marikay Brown, had to step down from her
post. Jenny Barrett has agreed to fill the
position. The NCASL/CSS North Carolina
Book Award booklets are being distributed.

College and University Section

Kathryn Crowe reported that the board met
on December 9, 1996 and discussed plans for
the biennial conference. The section plans to
do a program on the North Carolina Alive
project. The BI Interest Group plans to have
an open discussion meeting. The Academic
Curriculum Librarians will hold a discussion
on accreditation criteria with representatives
from NCATE and the Department of Public
Instruction.

Community and Junior College Libraries
Section

Sheila Core reported that the Executive
Committee of the section met on Novem-
ber 22, 1996 and discussed the proposed
merger with the College and University
Section. It was decided to survey both
present and potential members of CJCS to
see how they felt about the proposal. Due
to the lack of program grant funds, the
section decided not to attempt to present a
program at the Learning Resources
Conference, but plans are being made for
the NCLA biennial conference.

Documents

Barbara Levergood reported the board met
on December 9,1996. The section feels that
the treasurer needs a more detailed report of

the section. Barbara also reported that a
survey is being done of NC depositories
electronic public access capabilities. She
reported that the sectionTs board felt that
charging non-members $25 more than
members for section workshops was too
great a difference and would result in lower
attendance. The section has plans to develop
a Documents Section Home Page. The
written report from the Documents Section
indicated that the section had sent a letter to
the NCLA Financial Vitality Committee
responding to the issues raised by that
committee. Members of the Documents
Section feel that the NCLA should not begin
holding annual conferences. They also feel
that North Carolina Libraries seldom includes
articles of importance to the Documents
Section, and that the Association should
consider a number of options for dealing
with the costs of North Carolina Libraries. The
section feels that the sections should not
share more of their money with the
Association, because the section is basically
self-supporting.

Library Administration and
Management Section

Robert Burgin reported that the board met
on November 21, 1996. They held a fall
workshop November 21-22 at Midpines
attended by 41 people. Topics for workshop
sessions included team building and
becoming a better coach. The section is
considering a pre-conference entitled
oStaffing Issues for the Year 2000.�

North Carolina Association of School
Librarians

Karen Perry reported that the board hasnTt
met since last NCLA Board meeting. She
noted that there had been much discussion
of the issues related to NCASL and NCLA.

NC Public Library Trustees Association
There was no report.

Public Library Section

Ross Holt reported that the Trustees
Handbook has been mailed to all trustees.
The section met recently and discussed

North Carolina Libraries

plans for the conference.

Reference and Adult Services Section

Sue Ann Cody reported that about 100
people attended the RASS program oProvid-
ing or Policing: Internet Access Dilemmas in
Libraries.� She also reported that the RASS
board decided to try to offer two programs
at the upcoming biennial conference.

Resources and Technical Services Section
Ginny Gilbert reported that the section is
planning a program and three table talks for
the biennial conference. One table talk will
focus on increasing user input into
developing and managing collections;
another one the Web in technical services
and a third on Passport for Windows.

New Members Round Table

Carol Freeman reported that the round table
met on November 22, 1996. The proposed
bylaws passed. The new version of Article III
of the NMRT Bylaws now reads: oIndividu-
als joining the North Carolina Library
Association for the first time will receive
free membership in the New Members
Round Table for each of the first two years
of paid membership in the Association. In
addition, individual membership shall be
open to any other member for the North
Carolina Library Association who has been
an Association member for more than two
years and ten or fewer years, and who states
a preference for this Round Table at the
time of payment of Association dues.�

NC Library Paraprofessional Association
Renee Pridgen reported that the round table
is in the final stages of designing a promo-
tional poster for NCLPA. They would like to
recommend Margo Jarvis as the NCL
Editorial Board representative. They also
offered opinions on two of the recommen-
dations of the Financial Vitality committee.
They thought that while changing the By-
laws to make chair of the Membership
Committee an appointed position, the
person could remain in the position too
long and become stagnant, but if the vice
chair rotated to the chair, it would assure
enthusiasm. As for adding a non-codified
policy, an alternative to the recommenda-
tion is to return to a biennial budget system
and any grant money given to a section/
round table that is not spent in the
biennium reverts back to NCLA. NCLPA
feels the current financial proposals would
hurt smaller sections and round tables
because workshop participant fees would
have to be set higher. NCLPA is supportive
of all other recommendations.

Round Table for Ethnic Minority Concerns
REMCO is planning a spring workshop called
oCultural Diversity in Our Lives,� which will
be lead by Willie Mclver.

Round Table on Special Collections
Plans are proceeding for the biennial conference

Round Table on the Status of Women
Betty Meehan-Black reported that the
roundtable was making plans for upcoming
workshops.

North Carolina Libraries

Technology and Trends
Susan Smith reported that the round table is
making plans for the conference.

COMMITTEE REPORTS
AIDS Materials Awareness
Dave said that Helen Tugwell said that she
could not longer serve as chair. It was
suggested that perhaps the original charge
had been met and the group should be
dissolved. Frances said that school libraries
were not getting materials they need. Dave
suggested that perhaps the committee
should be an NCASL one rather than an
NCLA one.

Constitution Codes and Handbook

The committee met December 13, 1996.
They modified wording of a proposed
amendment to the bylaws that would grant
sections and roundtables more voting
representation on the Executive Board if they
reached certain membership thresholds.

Ross presented the new version of the
amendments to the Bylaws (Article IV,
Section 5):

5. Sections and Round Tables whose paid
membership on the last day of the
preceding biennium exceeds 350 members
shall name one additional representative
to serve as a voting member of the NCLA
Executive Board. For every 200 members
above the initial 350, the section or round
table shall name one additional represen-
tative to serve as a voting member of the
NCLA Executive Board.

The board discussed the phrase oon the
last day of the preceding biennium� and
agreed that there was a need for specificity,
adding that the determination of additional
membership should be calculated oon
March 31.� Robert Burgin moved that we
approve the amendment to the constitu-
tion, with the following change: oSections
and Round Tables whose paid membership
on March 31 prior to the Biennial Conference
exceeds 350 members ....� It was seconded by
Sue Ann Cody. The motion passed.

Ross Hold also presented the language
that the committee proposes to address the
boardTs request regarding a statement about
religious holidays. oThe NCLA shall
schedule biennial conferences at times that
do not conflict with religious holidays.�
Kathryn Crowe moved that we adopt it and
Sue Ann Cody seconded. Motion carried.

Ross reported that the committee had
modified the Handbook by replacing the
membership form with the new form
devised by the Membership Committee
(E:I); replacing the old budget with the new
budget adopted by the Executive Board
(F:1): and changing the requirement that
the organization maintain a biennial reserve
fund to an annual reserve as per board
action (Non-codified policies, Section
2.2.5.H:4). The committee also added the
NCLA Web site address to the publications
page (F:23).

Finance Committee
Teresa McManus thanked the board for its
input.

Financial Vitality Committee

The committee met on January 8, 1997 and
reviewed the status of the committeeTs
recommendations from its September 19,
1996 meeting. Robert Burgin reviewed the
responses he had received from members of
the Executive Board to his request for
feedback on the issues being addressed by
the committee. Responses indicated that
there was much disagreement about
holding an annual rather than a biennial
conference. There was widespread support
for North Carolina Libraries. About half of
the respondents favored sharing of section
funds with the Association as a whole.
Based on these findings, the committee
made the following recommendations to
the Executive Board:

Recommendation #1: Change Non-
Codified Policy 2.1.3 to specify that
registration fees for all conferences,
workshops, seminars, symposia, and other
events sponsored or co-sponsored by the
Association and its committees, sections,
and round tables shall be reduced by at least
the second lowest rate of regular NCLA
membership (currently $25) or 50 percent
of the registration fee for the event.

Robert Burgin made motion that we
adopt this recommendation. Beverley Gass
seconded. The motion carried.

Recommendation #2: Add a Non-
Codified Policy to specify that in the budget
cycle following each conference, the
Finance Committee shall make a recom-
mendation for the allocation of the
Conference net funds, to include a confer-
ence start-up reserve. Robert made a motion
that we adopt. Renee Pridgen seconded.
John asked how quickly we could get report
from conference. Robert said in the future
the administrative assistant would keep the
books of the conference and thus the
reports would be more timely. The motion
carried.

Recommendation #3: Change the By-
Laws to make the Chair of the Membership
Committee an appointed position (1:26) and
remove those duties from the duties of the
directors-at-large (1:19). According to the
Constitution, Codes, and Handbook
Revisions Comrnittee, this would require a
bylaws amendment to change the job
description of the directors-at-large in
Article II, section 5(1:11) Robert made a
motion that we adopt the recommendation.
Kathryn Crowe seconded. There was
discussion about what directors would do if
they did not have responsibility for
membership. President Fergusson said that
this was a valid point, but not relevant to
the Financial Vitality Committee. Since this
one is a bylaws change, it will be voted on
by the membership.

Recommendation #4: Add a Non-
Codified Policy to specify that each section,
round table, and committee contribute $5
to the Association for each individual attending
one of its conferences, workshops, seminars,
or other events. An exception would be
made for NCASL, which would contribute $5
to the Association only for each individual

Spring 1997 " 51

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