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President’s Note

Our RUSA Strategic Plan, July 2015 – June 2018

Please see the section directly below for information on the RUSA Strategic Plan.

Headline events for RUSA members at ALA Annual in San Francisco!

Planning your schedule for ALA Annual 2015? I find the official conference scheduler to be an invaluable tool, available at http://alaac15.ala.org/scheduler.  For one thing you don’t need to worry about any time changes that might otherwise cause problems if you used your everyday electronic calendar.  You can also easily create your own personal appointments.  On your smart phone you can navigate to the mobile site http://alaac15.ala.org/m and save a shortcut to your home screen. This essentially creates an app.  You then have access to your schedule wherever you go!

If you’ll be in San Francisco on Friday, June 26, 2015 you’ll want to take advantage of these special pre-conferences, with discounts still available to RUSA members.

Also on Friday we’ll be holding our annual RUSA 101 from 3:00 – 4:00 in the afternoon at the Westin St. Francis, Tower Salon A & B.  This is a fantastic opportunity for all conference attendees to learn about RUSA, connect with established members, and enjoy some free refreshments.  See http://alaac15.ala.org/node/29504. Ann Brown and I have been hosting monthly RUSA 101 sessions online since last summer, and I know that we are both looking forward to seeing people in-person for this one!

Saturday, June 27, 2015

  • 1:00pm to 2:30pm
    RUSA Board of Directors Meeting #1
    Hilton San Francisco Union, Continental 2
    Visit this open meeting to learn about the work of our association!
    http://alaac15.ala.org/node/29507
  • 4:00pm to 5:30pm
    RUSA President’s Program featuring speaker danah boyd, – It’s Complicated: Navigating the dynamic landscapes of digital literacy, collapsing contexts, and big data
    danah is a prolific blogger and speaker with big ideas about how librarians can make a difference in the data deluge!
    Moscone Convention Center, 3014-3016 (W)
    http://alaac15.ala.org/node/28619
  • 8:00pm to 10:00pm
    The Andrew Carnegie Medals for Excellence in Fiction and Nonfiction Announcement and Reception
    Hotel Nikko, Nikko Ballroom
    Join us for ALA’s only single-book award for adult fiction and nonfiction, followed by a chance to mingle at the dessert and drinks reception. I’m incredibly excited that we’ll get to meet Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, who is serving as our keynote speaker!  Tickets are $25 for RUSA Members, $35 for others.
    http://alaac15.ala.org/node/28669

Sunday, June 28, 2015

  • 8:00am to 10:00am
    Literary Tastes
    Moscone Convention Center, West Exhibit Hall, 1st Floor
    Hear from some of the year’s best authors and enjoy light refreshments. #literarytastes
    http://alaac15.ala.org/node/28616
  • 10:30am to 11:30am
    21st Annual Reference Research Forum
    Moscone Convention Center, 2014 (W)
    At this popular event you are able learn about notable research projects and meet the people who are changing the way that we think about the future of reference services.
    http://alaac15.ala.org/node/28620

Monday, June 29, 2015

  • 2:00pm to 4:00pm
    RUSA Board of Directors Meeting #2
    Moscone Convention Center, 200-212 (S)
    Visit this open meeting to learn about the work of our association!
    http://alaac15.ala.org/node/29506

Please make sure to use the scheduler to find all of the other great programs and discussions that have been organized by our RUSA sections!

Congratulations and THANK YOU to our elected officers

Serving in a leadership role for our association is a significant commitment of energy and for many of us is volunteer work accomplished on our own free time.  Please thank the following individuals for their dedication!  Their terms officially begin at the conclusion of the ALA Annual Conference 2015 in San Francisco.

RUSA
Vice-President/President-Elect:  Anne Houston
Secretary:  Kate Oberg
Division Councilor:  Sarah J. Hammill
Director-at-Large:  Ed Garcia & Mary Mintz

BRASS
Vice-Chair/Chair-Elect:  Louise Mort Feldmann
Member-at-Large:  Penny Scott

CODES
Vice-Chair/Chair-Elect:  Daniel C. Mack
Member-at-Large:  Emily Hamstra & Matthew J. Wayman

HISTORY
Vice-Chair/Chair-Elect:  Christina Thompson Shutt
Member-at-Large:  Melissa Finley Gonzalez
Secretary:  Jennifer Eileen McElroy

ETS (MARS): EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES SECTION
Vice-Chair/Chair-Elect:  Courtney Greene McDonald
Member-at-Large:  Jason Coleman

RSS
Vice-Chair/Chair-Elect:  Amy Elizabeth Rustic
Member-at-Large:  Ellen Keith

STARS
Vice-Chair/Chair-Elect:  Heidi Nance
Member-at-Large:  Kerry Keegan

As this is my final column as RUSA President, I absolutely must take this opportunity to express my gratitude to all of our fantastic RUSA member volunteers across the association, as well as our dedicated RUSA staff:  Susan Hornung, Leighann Wood, Marianne Braverman, and Andrea Hill.  All of the webinars, courses, programs, discussions, articles, events, and awards only happen because of your great efforts.

It’s been a great privilege to serve you over this past year.

–Joe

Joseph Thompson
RUSA President 2014-2015

Senior Administrator – Public Services
Harford County Public Library
1221-A Brass Mill Road
Belcamp, MD 21017
thompson@hcplonline.org

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RUSA Strategic Plan

In my previous RUSA Update column I reported on the RUSA Board’s facilitated strategic planning session that took place on the Friday of ALA Midwinter in Chicago, which was led by Paul Meyer of Tecker International Consulting. Since that time the Strategic Plan Coordinating Task Force, chaired by Anne Houston, has met regularly by telephone conference and has exchanged roughly 200 emails to continue the work. One of our main tasks over February and March was to incorporate the priorities that had already been identified by our members in the RUSA Review Task Force Report, http://connect.ala.org/node/229140. By the end of March we were able to share a draft of the Strategic Plan with the Board for review and comment, which can be found at http://connect.ala.org/node/237537. Some of the questions that came up during this time related to how we will identify overlaps and move toward a more streamlined structure, how we should maximize the role of our publications as a key member value, and how to emphasize the importance of conference programming and the face-to-face experience. These questions and ideas were then able to be incorporated into the final draft, available at http://connect.ala.org/node/238939. At its regular online meeting on May 15th the RUSA Board approved the RUSA Strategic Plan: July 2015 – June 2018.

As you review the plan available on ALA Connect you will notice that the action Items are the one piece that are still draft as of this writing in late May. Our next steps are to finalize our action items and agree upon who within the organization is responsible for achieving the success of each. This work will take place during RUSA’s Board meetings at ALA Annual in San Francisco.

The document itself is fairly brief and focused, so I’d like to include it here. Please think about the active role that you can play to help take each of these goals and objectives forward! I’ve offered a few comments for explanation.

Core Purpose: (JT: Why we exist; Similar to a Mission)
RUSA is a member community engaged in advancing the practices of connecting people to resources, information services, and collections.

Core Organizational Values:

  • Building relationships among members from all types of libraries
  • Encouraging openness, innovation, and idea sharing
  • Promoting excellence in library services and resources

Vision: (JT: Also known as the Big Hairy Audacious Goal)
RUSA is an influential and authoritative organization, essential to the work of anyone engaged in the practices of connecting people to resources, information services, and collections.

Vivid Description of a Desired Future: (JT: Gives us direction on how we move toward the Vision)
RUSA is known for signature products made available through a variety of innovative formats.
The association’s services are relevant, accessible, and clearly contribute to the success of its members at all stages of their careers. RUSA members benefit professionally through relevant programming featuring the newest trends, technology and services. Participation in the association’s programming is considered essential to professional growth and to advancing libraries to meet new user needs. The strength of RUSA is reflected in its diversity of collaborative, innovative and engaged members who participate in collegial mentoring and networking. RUSA is renowned as a leading advocate group for library resources, information services and collections, and is recognized throughout ALA and beyond for its expertise.

Operating principles:

  • Maximize time of RUSA staff and volunteers by operating as efficiently as possible
  • Manage our financial resources responsibly
  • Cooperate and collaborate with other divisions and groups in ALA
  • Enable virtual participation whenever possible
  • Emphasize the importance of marketing and communication to ensure that members are aware of all opportunities

Goals and Objectives:

GOAL #1: Create an organization with greater flexibility in structure, enabling members to pursue their areas of interest in a variety of ways with minimal barriers to involvement.

  1. Create a proposal to transition RUSA to a new organizational structure based on interest groups with a goal of reducing the complexity of the organization and better serving the members’ needs.
  2. Create a process that allows members to become more easily involved in RUSA
  3. Offer more flexibility in programming so that opportunities are accessible to all librarians regardless of their ability to travel to conference

GOAL #2: Offer services, programs and products that maximize the value of membership, making RUSA a good return on investment for its members and encouraging member engagement, recruitment and retention.

  1. Develop and expand educational resources and experiences that are of high value to many members, including education on cutting edge and advanced topics
  2. Respond to changes in ALA conference structure to ensure excellence in conference programming and delivery
  3. Maximize impact of RUSA publications and communications
  4. Increase opportunities for members to network with colleagues with similar interests
  5. Maximize the exposure and prestige of RUSA through awards
  6. Increase recruitment activities
  7. Boost retention strategies through member engagement

Please take a moment to look back at our current Strategic Plan for 2012 – 2015, available on our RUSA web site at http://www.ala.org/rusa/sites/ala.org.rusa/files/content/about/rusa-strategic-plan.pdf. You will notice that key language in our previous Vision statement has made its way into our new Core Purpose. Our primary reason for being is our act of making connections. Our previous plan also focused a great deal of attention on how we deliver content and communicate and recognized our need to move activities online. We have made definite progress in this area (and some of these efforts continue), but you will notice that a significant focus of our new plan is on maximizing the value of the content itself. By providing high-value content and engaging experiences for our members we clearly support a good return on investment.

I again want to take this opportunity to thank everyone who played a part in the completion of this project, including all of our RUSA members who participated in the RUSA Review survey last summer, the Board members who have been engaged in providing constructive input and feedback, and especially the members of the Task Force – Anne Houston, Chris LeBeau, Erin Rushton, Jennifer Boettcher, Kathleen Kern, and Liane Taylor – for their hours of dedication to ensure that we defined the right priorities for our association. When you see Anne in San Francisco, please thank her for sacrificing at least two spring weekends to make much needed changes to the document!

Joseph Thompson
RUSA President 2014-2015

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RUSA News/Announcements

Join us at 2015 ALA Annual Conference in San Francisco for some exciting events. Below are some highlights to look forward to. The ALA Conference Scheduler is now open to create a personalized schedule where you can view the most up to date information for the best conference experience.

Finalists: Andrew Carnegie Medals for Excellence in Fiction and Nonfiction

The eagerly anticipated announcement and presentation of the Andrew Carnegie Medals for Excellence in Fiction and Nonfiction, ALA’s only single-book awards for adult trade fiction and nonfiction, is followed by a chance to mingle at the dessert and drinks reception. The two books chosen as winners from the shortlist of six will be announced. Both winners attended the 2014 event to receive their medals and offered inspiring, entertaining remarks. Keynote speaker is best-selling author, actor, and NBA MVP all-star, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.

KAJheadshotdcroppedThe awards are Co-Sponsored by Booklist and RUSA. The event is made possible by Ingram Content Group, HarperCollins Publishers, Penguin Random House, Penguin Group, and Simon & Schuster.HarperLogo

 

 

IngramSaturday, June 27. The ceremony will be from 8:00-10:00 PM, Hotel Nikko, Nikko Ballroom
Tickets are available here. RUSA members receive discounted price of $25.Penguin_logo

RUSA Direct
Have you seen the new e-newsletter, direct from the RUSA office? Emailed straight to your inbox every Friday morning and it’s free to all RUSA members. You can view all the issues here and at the RUSA website under the Communications tab.

RUSA’s Annual Signature Programs

  • RUSA 101
    Friday, June 26, 3:00-4:00 PM, Westin St. Francis, Tower Salon A & B

KAddison_TheGoblinEmperorshimABBrown_FlightOfSparrowshimSRojstaczer_MathematiciansShivashimJust_Mercy_StevensonshimAWeaver_MurderAtTheBrightwellshimJoWalton_MyRealChildrenshim

Listen to some of the year’s best authors discuss their work and the craft of writing, while enjoying the company of other book lovers. All Annual Conference registrants are invited to participate in this conference program. Sponsored by Macmillan Publishers, Penguin Group and Random House.

Speakers:

  • Katherine Addison for The Goblin Emperor (Tor Books, 2014), winner of the 2015 Reading List’s Fantasy category.
  • Amy Belding Brown for Flight of the Sparrow (New American Library, 2014), shortlist selection for the 2015 Reading List’s Historical Fiction category.
  • Stuart Rojstaczer for The Mathematician’s Shiva (Penguin, 2014), Honorable Mention for the 2015 Sophie Brody Medal for Jewish Literature.
  • Bryan Stevenson for Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption (Spiegel & Grau, 2014), shortlist selection for the 2015 Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Nonfiction.
  • Ashley Weaver for Murder at the Brightwell (Minotaur Books, 2014), winner of the 2015 Reading List’s Mystery category.
  • Jo Walton for My Real Children (Tor Books, 2014), winner of the 2015 Reading List’s Women’s Fiction category.

Not to Be Missed RUSA Preconferences

  • ILL Data Storm – Practical Assessment
    Friday, June 26, 8:30 AM-4:30 PM, Moscone Convention Center, 2000 West
    Register here (free event).

Conference Programs and Forums

For the complete RUSA Discussion Groups & Forums schedule, click here.


Upcoming Online Learning

As always, you can count on RUSA to offer signature courses like Genealogy and Reference Interview, but RUSA has added new upcoming online courses and webinars, that will interest learners at any level.

 

COURSES:
July
July 13 – August 2, 2015 Introduction to Spatial Literacy and Online Mapping
August
August 10 – September 20, 2015 Learner-Centered Reference and Instruction: Science, Psychology, and Inclusive Pedagogy
WEBINARS:
August
Monday, August 3, 2015:10:30-11:45am Boomerang Library Users: Implementing Effective, Enriching and Educational Library programs for target users to Learn and Return
Tuesday, August 4, 2015:10-11am Spice it Up with Pura Belpre! Using Award Winning Titles and Other Resources to Celebrate the Hispanic Influence in Literature for Youth

 

RUSA Election Results!

RUSA
VICE-PRESIDENT/PRESIDENT-ELECT
– Anne Houston
Director of Teaching, Learning & Research, Smith College Libraries, Northampton, MA
SECRETARY
– Kate Oberg
College & Career Librarian, Arlington Public Library, Arlington, VA
DIRECTOR-AT-LARGE
– Ed Garcia
Library Director, Cranston Public Library, Cranston, Rhode Island
– Mary Mintz
Associate Director for Outreach, American University Library, Washington, DC
DIVISION COUNCILOR
– Sarah J. Hammill
Distance Learning Librarian, Florida International University, Miami, FL

BRASS
VICE-CHAIR/CHAIR-ELECT
– Louise Mort Feldmann
Business Librarian, Colorado State University Libraries, Fort Collins, Colorado
MEMBER-AT-LARGE
– Penny Scott
Reference Librarian/Business Liaison, 2003-Present, University of San Francisco, San Francisco, CA

CODES
VICE-CHAIR/CHAIR-ELECT
– Daniel C. Mack
Associate Dean, Collection Strategies and Services, University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland
MEMBER-AT-LARGE
– Emily Hamstra
Learning Librarian, Kinesiology Librarian, University of Michigan Library, Ann Arbor, Michigan
– Matthew J. Wayman
Head Librarian, 2008-Present, Ciletti Memorial Library, Penn State Schuylkill, Schuylkill Haven, PA

HISTORY
VICE-CHAIR/CHAIR-ELECT
– Christina Thompson Shutt
Public Services Librarian & College Archivist, Hendrix College, Conway, AR
MEMBER-AT-LARGE
– Melissa Finley Gonzalez
Head of Reference, University of West Florida, Pensacola, FL
SECRETARY
– Jennifer Eileen McElroy
Reference Specialist (2013 – present), Minnesota Historical Society, St. Paul, Minnesota.

ETS (MARS): EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES SECTION
VICE-CHAIR/CHAIR-ELECT
– Courtney Greene McDonald
Head, Discovery & Research Services, Indiana University Libraries, Bloomington, IN
MEMBER-AT-LARGE
– Jason Coleman
Undergraduate and Community Services Librarian, Kansas State University Libraries, Manhattan, Kansas

RSS
VICE-CHAIR/CHAIR-ELECT
– Amy Elizabeth Rustic
Associate Librarian/Reference and Instruction Librarian, Penn State University, New Kensington, PA
MEMBER-AT-LARGE
– Ellen Keith
Director of Research and Access/Chief Librarian, Chicago History Museum, Chicago, IL

STARS
VICE-CHAIR/CHAIR-ELECT
– Heidi Nance
Head, Interlibrary Loan and Document Delivery Services and Collection Management Services Strategic Projects Librarian, University of Washington Libraries, Seattle, WA
MEMBER-AT-LARGE
– Kerry Keegan
Customer Service Agent, Atlas Systems, Virginia Beach, Virginia
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RUSA Committee Reports

Just Ask Task Force
Just Ask started in 2012 as a group to develop, among other things, advocacy tools for reference librarian. The charge of the Task Force has changed from its inception, but the one thing that remained was the desire to promote and advocate for reference librarians. After three years, the Just Ask Task Force is being discontinued. Just Ask will be meeting at ALA Annual (details below), but we wanted to highlight a few of the Task Force’s high points.

Just Ask Discussion Group, Midwinter 2013
This discussion group was interesting and informative. During the group, attendees were asked what they wanted from the Just Ask Task Force. A theme of tools to help reference librarians do their jobs, but also manage change and advocate for themselves both inside and outside of their libraries emerged. From that Discussion Group, three things emerged: Two webinars and a pilot marketing campaign. Notes and feedback from the discussion group can be found on ALA Connect.

Webinars

Ask Campaign Pilot
In addition to the webinars, Cathay Keough and Julie Strange put together the Ask Campaign pilot as a way to celebrate the 10-year anniversary of the Maryland AskUsNow!. The pilot featured patrons of the library holding up questions asked by patrons online (via Twitter, chat, etc.) as a way to highlight the kinds of questions reference librarians can ask For more information about their Campaign, please see their post on ALA Connect.

Just Ask will be meeting at Annual on Saturday June 28 from 1:30-3:00 in the Conference Center in room 226(S). We will use this meeting to wrap up and loose ends and to begin planning the final report the co-chairs will submit to RUSA.

On a personal note, we would like to thank current and past members of the Just Ask Task Force, Susan Hornung and the current and past presidents of RUSA (Mary Popp, Kathleen Kern, and Joe Thompson), for their support. We would also like to thank Liz Markel, Andrea Hill, Marianne Braverman, and Leighann Wood for their help and support; they were invaluable. And thank you to everyone who participated in our discussion groups, webinars, or who attended the meetings.

Diana Shonrock
Elizabeth Stephan
Co-chairs, Just Ask Task Force

AFL-CIO/ALA Joint Committee on Library Service to Labor Groups
A name change for the AFL-CIO/ALA Joint Committee on Library Service to Labor Groups was approved by committee members and the RUSA Executive Committee. The committee will now be known as the AFL-CIO/ALA Labor Committee.

Aliqae Geraci
Co-chair, AFL-CIO/ALA Labor Committee

RUSA Membership
Our Virtual RUSA 101’s have been an unqualified success! If you are interested in publicizing your group or would like to be a special guest, just let Ann Brown (agbrown@gwu.edu) know. Or if you are interested in a more focused audience, sign up for a RUSA 201.

But please join us for our in-person RUSA 101: Network, Get Oriented, Get Involved!

Friday, June 26, 3-4pm Westin St. Francis, Tower Salon A & B

If you’re new to RUSA or a longtime member looking for an opportunity to connect with other members and ways to get involved, make sure to put RUSA 101 on your calendar! Sponsored by all RUSA Sections.

Ann Brown, chair
agbrown@gwu.edu

RUSA Publications and Communications Committee
Launch of RUSA Voices – Call for Bloggers!

RUSA Voices (http://blog.rusa.ala.org/), the official blog for RUSA, is an virtual forum for the reference and user services community. It is an opportunity to not only raise awareness of and explore practices, technology, and issues in reference and user services, but also to voice and share a diverse set of perspectives that represents the diverse community of RUSA.

If you have something to say, we want to hear it. We want to know what challenges you have faced so that we might feel like we’re not alone as librarians. We want to hear what works and what doesn’t work. We want to know about people who have made a difference not only for their patrons, but also for the profession. Write and share what you know, what you have experienced. This blog is about YOUR voice! Give breath to your hopes for the future of reference and user services. Blogging is simple, just write. Put your thoughts down in a document. Share your Voice and improve not only your own understanding, but the understanding of the rest of the profession.

Submissions are accepted on a rolling basis. Please email editor David Midyette (david.midyette@roseman.edu) for questions or submissions.

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BRASS Notes

John Gottfried, Editor

Message from the BRASS Chair

We’re looking forward to seeing everyone at ALA Annual in San Francisco.
Here are the primary BRASS-sponsored events at Annual:

  • BRASS Preconference: Intellectual Property for Entrepreneurs, 8am-1pm, Friday
  • BRASS Members Reception sponsored by ReferenceUSA, Friday 5:30-7:30pm at         ThirstyBear, 661 Howard St, San Francisco.
  • Public Libraries Forum – Revenue Streams for Libraries. Naming rights, corporate sponsorships, crowd funding, and other non-levy type revenue sources. Saturday 1-2:30pm
  • BRASS Discussion Group – Sunday 8:30-10am
  • Publishers forum – topic is financial literacy and the scheduled presenters are S&P Capital IQ, Mergent, Morningstar, and the San Francisco Federal Reserve. Sunday 1-2:30pm
  • 2015 BRASS Program – Not Elsewhere Classified: Different Approaches to Researching Emerging Industries. S&P Capital IQ sponsored breakfast: Monday, 8:00 – 8:30am. Program: 8:30-10am.
  • BRASS Dinner will be Monday night at 6:30pm. Location details will follow.

These BRASS awards and grants will also be recognized at the RUSA Awards Ceremony and Reception:

  • Peter McKay, Gale Cengage Learning Excellence in Business Librarianship Award
  • Jason Dewland and Cindy Elliott, Emerald Research Grant Award
  • Barbara Alvarez, Morningstar Public Librarian Support Award
  • Grace Liu, Academic Business Librarianship Travel Award
  • Sara Hess, Gale Cengage Learning Student Travel Award

The full BRASS program/event guide will be sent out on BRASS-L.

Todd Hines
BRASS Chair 2014-2015
thines@princeton.edu

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BRASS Committee Reports

Business Reference in Academic Libraries Committee
The Business Reference in Academic Libraries Committee is busy informing its members about the different programs at Annual.

Charles Allan, 2013-2015 Chair

Business Reference in Public Libraries Committee
The ALA Annual Forum panel discussion date and time have been assigned; Saturday June 27, 1-230pm. The program will be a panel discussion about Revenue Streams for Libraries. This would include naming rights, sponsorships, crowd funding, grants and other non-levy type revenue sources. Location MCC 236-238. Roslyn, Sal, and Ed will be in San Francisco. All speakers are in place. Presentation format: 10 minutes per speaker then open to Q&A. We’ll use 2 color-coded survey forms, one standard for RUSA, one more specific for BRASS.

Thanks to Annette Buckley who’s helped us upload recycled articles to the Public Libraries Briefcase that include updated information. The older articles’ content is valuable and it’s important to make them more up to date and easy to use.

See you in San Francisco!

Ed Rossman, 2014-2015 Chair

Business Reference Services Discussion Group
The BRASS Discussion Group hosted two virtual discussions during the spring semester. On February 20, 2015, a virtual discussion was held which centered around faculty liaison work and e-book collections strategies. The recording and chat transcript are available on ALA Connect.

On April 24, 2015, a collections-themed virtual discussion took place. We discussed resources we are renewing or cancelling and if we are subscribing to any new resources. During the meeting, people also shared a little about data acquisitions and managing data collections. The chat transcript is available on ALA Connect.

Thank you to the committee members who have helped coordinate these discussions! The next discussion of the BRASS Discussion Group will be in person at ALA Annual on June 28th with topics to be determined.

Emily Treptow 2014-2016 Chair

Business Reference Sources Committee
The Reference Sources Committee will be presenting the annual Publisher’s Forum at the ALA Annual Conference in San Francisco. The forum will be held on Sunday, June 28th from 1-2:30 pm at the Moscone Convention Center (MCC), Esplanade 303. The forum is entitled: Money Smart—Sources for Promoting Financial Literacy to Your Community, and will feature presenters from Morningstar, Standard and Poor’s, Mergent, and the San Francisco Federal Reserve Bank.

The Reference Sources Committee is also in the process of nominating resources for its next column, which will appear in the winter 2015 issue of Reference and User Services Quarterly.

Ed Hahn, 2014-2015 Chair

Education Committee
The BRASS Education Committee is moving full speed ahead with our projects:

  • After discussing the progress with reviewing the BRASS Business Guides in April, the committee decided to touch base in mid-May after the school year is over. The goal is to have each guide reviewed by two people and coordinate with authors to ensure that all guides are up-to-date and provide correct information.
  • The 2015 preconference planning team (Natasha Arguello, Ashley Faulkner, Susan Schreiner, Christina Sheley, and Desirae Sweet) has been busy advertising the upcoming preconference “Intellectual Property for Entrepreneurs” at ALA Annual (http://alaac15.ala.org/ticketed-events Event Code RUS3). The registration is a little slow, but we expect that the topic and excellent speakers will attract more registrants in the next few weeks.
  • The committee brainstormed a few topics for the next year’s preconference in Orlando and voted for a full-day workshop on business data for librarians which will focus on sources of data, data information literacy, data interview, and more.

We are looking forward to our meeting in San Francisco!

Natasha Arguello, 2012-2015 Chair

Membership Committee
BRASS Friday Reception Sponsored by ReferenceUSA!

Join old and new BRASS Members on June 26 in San Francisco. Enjoy the Business Reference and Services Section’s (RUSA’s BRASS) company around some food and drinks.

Friday, June 26th from 5:30 PM to 7:30 PM

Where: ThirstyBear Brewing Company, 661 Howard Street, San Francisco, CA

RSVP to boettcher@georgetwon.edu or:

http://evite.me/g5UXJZSbtw

Jennifer Boettcher, 2014-2015 Chair

Publications and Communications Committee
Dear BRASS Friends,

It’s that time of year again—we’re requesting information for the 2015 BRASS Schedule of Events at ALA Annual publication. Please enter your program or meeting information by May 15 at:   http://goo.gl/forms/TvgQe0HxGK

If you are not responsible for your program, meeting, or event, please forward to the person on your committee who will fill in the form on your behalf. If you are responsible for more than one program, please fill out the form separately for each event.

I hope to publish the schedule the week of May 25, so your prompt response to this request for information is appreciated. If you have any questions or comments, please let me know.

Thanks,

Chad Boeninger, 2014-2015 Chair

Vendor Relations Committee
We are pleased to welcome Global Financial Data (GFD) as the new sponsor of the Academic Business Librarianship Travel Award. The award offers $1250 to an individual new to the field of academic business librarianship to support attendance at ALA Annual. Please help get the word out.

The Committee is also working vendor sponsorship for the break between the two Discussion Groups on Sunday at Annual Conference. Details to follow once everything is confirmed.

Chris LeBeau, 2013-2015 Chair

BRASS Gale Cengage Learning Excellence in Business Librarianship award
We are pleased to announce that Peter Z. McKay of the University of Florida is this year’s recipient of the BRASS Gale Cengage Learning Excellence in Business Librarianship award.

Peter’s multiple nominators noted his expertise in business librarianship and praised the Business Library 2.0 site (http://businesslibrary.uflib.ufl.edu) that he developed to help UF students achieve maximum success with their projects and which receives over 175,000 visits a year from the students, faculty and staff at UF, as well as national and international audiences.

Other nominators stated that Peter’s “tireless efforts have helped demystify the research process for thousands of our business-writing students over the years” and that “Mr. McKay is an invaluable resource to our business students and faculty.”

For his innovative development of online business collection development and instructional resources and his many contributions to the field of business librarianship, the committee is thrilled to honor Peter Z. McKay with this year’s Excellence in Business Librarianship award.

Celia Ross, 2014-2015 Chair

Gale Cengage Learning Student Travel Award Committee
Sara F. Hess, who will receive her Master of Science in Information, Library and Information Science degree at the University of Michigan School of Information in May 2015, is the 2015 award recipient. Sara was selected because she has articulated and demonstrated a clear passion for business librarianship and a commitment to going above and beyond to meet the business information needs of the communities she is already serving.

Michael Oppenheim, 2014-2015 Chair

Morningstar Public Librarian Support Award Committee
Barbara Alvarez, Business Liaison Librarian, Barrington Area Library (IL) was selected for her extensive range of activities in support of the local business community, including one-on-one appointments to assist business professionals and entrepreneurs, podcasts, a business blog, and a SlideShare account with business database tutorials.

Karen Chapman, 2014-2015 Chair

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CODES

Barry Trott, Editor

CODES Highlights for RUSA Update
CODES chair Deborah Abston reports that the CODES Board will be meeting prior to ALA Annual to review policies and procedures, including updating procedures for awards committees. Committee appointments for CODES Committees are nearly complete.

CODES AT ALA ANNUAL
CODES committees will be presenting two programs at annual:
Reading into the Future: Tips and Tools for Staying on Top of the Book World (Saturday, June 27, 2015 – 10:30 am to 11:30 am, Moscone Convention Center 2016) It’s a big book world, and someone’s gotta read it. Keeping up with the burgeoning world of publishing and popular culture can appear daunting, but it can be done! Be the first to know (instead of the last to hear) about reading trends and hot new titles.Join a panel of experts who will share practical techniques and invaluable resources to help you keep up with the current literary scene. Learn strategies to maximize your reading time, stay ahead of your patrons, and position yourself as a crucial literary resource in your library community.

Whacking the Weeds in the Library: Deaccessioning Print and Digital Materials in the 21st Century and Beyond (Saturday, June 27, 2015 – 1:00 pm to 2:30 pm, Moscone Convention Center 2012) This program will include a public, academic, and community college librarian to discuss strategies for weeding/deaccessioning materials in their libraries and how to do so in ways that make providing user services more effective.

CODES will have representatives at RUSA 101, Friday, June 26, 3:00 pm – 4:00 pm to talk with potential new members about the work of the section.

The CODES Reference Publishing Advisory Committee Discussion Forum will take place at ALA Annual on Saturday, June 27, 2015 – 3:00 pm to 4:00 pm at the Hilton San Francisco Union in the Taylor Room.

CODES is also co-sponsoring a program with the American Association of School Librarians (AASL) on university presses as an often-undiscovered gold mine of resources for school and public libraries. Sunday, June 28, 2015 – 1:00 pm to 2:30 pm.

CODES also is cosponsoring with ALCTS Collection Management Section the Collection Management in Public Libraries Interest Group on Monday, June 29, 2015 – 1:00 pm to 2:30 pm.

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History

Laura Hibbler, Editor

The History Section is pleased to announce its incoming officers:
David Murray, The College of New Jersey, Chair
Christina Thompson-Shutt, Hendrix College, Vice-Chair, chair elect
Jenny Presnell, Miami University [Ohio],Past Chair
Jenny McElroy, Minnesota Historical Society, Secretary
Melissa Gonzalez, University of West Florida, Member at Large

Melissa joins two other Members at Large, Nancy Bunker, Whitworth University, and Chella Vaidyanathan, Johns Hopkins University.

History Section Events at ALA Annual
We invite everyone to check out the History Section at ALA Annual in San Francisco. Come and checkout what are committees are doing at the all committee meeting, Saturday June 27th (Moscone Convention Center room 200-220(S)) at 8:30AM. Visit different committees and discover what the section is about. For a list of the committees and activities see: http://www.ala.org/rusa/sections/history/committees.
You can also join us for the executive committee meeting, Monday, June 29th, at 8:30am at the Marriott Marquis San Francisco Club Room.

The RUSA Genealogy Preconference will take place on Friday, June 26.
Register online: http://bit.ly/1KxFOtQ
Free lunch will be provided! More details will be posted soon.

Join us for a panel discussion focused on Asian American records and local history at
ALA Annual:
“Connecting Communities: Documenting and Sharing Asian American Heritage,”
Saturday, June 27, 1:00pm-2:30pm at Moscone Convention Center 2004 (W).

The program is co-sponsored by the Asian Pacific American Librarians Association (APALA). Speakers include Florante Ibanez, Manager of Library Computer Services at William M. Rains Library-Loyola Law School; Michelle Caswell, Assistant Professor of Archival Studies at University of California-Los Angeles; and Shelley Fisher Fishkin, Joseph S. Atha Professor in Humanities at Stanford University. Jenna Makowski, Asian-American Products Editor at Alexander Street Press, will moderate the discussion.
More information: http://alaac15.ala.org/node/28612

The History Section also planned a field trip to the US Immigration station on Angel Island. Participants will learn about Asian immigration to the United States from 1910-1940.

The History Section will be getting together for a dinner at ALA. Keep watch for details about the dinner and other social events on the Section website, the history-l listserv, Facebook, and Twitter.

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ETS (MARS): Update from the Emerging Technologies Section

Chanitra Bishop, Editor

 

ETS: Emerging Technologies Section is dedicated to the intersection of technology and library services. There is a place for everyone in ETS and we hope that you will join us at ALA in San Francisco. We have several exciting programs planned for ALA!

Friday, June 26
RUSA 101
Want to get involved or learn more about RUSA and all of its sections?
Come learn more about RUSA at RUSA 101

Westin St. Francis (WEST)
WEST – Tower Salon A&B
3:00 – 4:00 pm

Saturday, June 27
ETS Planning Committee
Hilton San Francisco Union (HIL)
Union Square 09
8:30 – 10:00 am

ETS Executive Committee Meeting I
Hilton San Francisco Union (HIL)
Presidio Room
10:30 – 11:30 am

Library Guides in the Era of Discovery Layers (ETS Chair’s Program)
Discussion of library guides in light of both discovery layers and enhanced platforms such as LibGuides v2.
Moscone Convention Center (MCC)
3008 (W)
1:00 – 2:30 pm

Lessons Learned: Libraries, Course Management Systems and Future Directions
Management of Electronic Resources and Services (MERS) Discussion Forum

This discussion will encapsulate key findings, trends and future directions of the role of libraries in Course Management Systems (CMS). The discussion will include lessons and take-aways       regarding the implementation of a robust presence for libraries in the CMS. The discussion will highlight developments in library systems compatibility with CMS, such as Moodle, Blackboard, Canvas Instructure, and others. Focus will be on the future of these services for librarians and best practices.
Westin St. Francis (WEST)
Elizabethan A
3:00 – 4:00 pm

Sunday, June 28
ETS All Committee Meeting
Visitors interested in ETS are welcome to join us and learn more about ETS and how to get involved.
Moscone Convention Center (MCC)
250-262 (S)
1:00 – 2:00pm

Hot Topics: Drones and Robots for Reference?
Moscone Convention Center (MCC)
3000 (W)
3:00-4:00pm

Now You’re Talking: Tools to Utilize for Virtual Services
Virtual Reference Discussion Group
Moscone Convention Center (MCC)
120 (N)
4:30 – 5:30 pm

Monday, June 29
ETS Executive Committee Meeting II
Moscone Convention Center (MCC)
220 (S)
8:30 – 10:00 am

Joint ETS/RSS Executive Committee Meeting
Moscone Convention Center (MCC)
234 (S)
10:30 – 11:30 am

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RSS Review

Amy Rustic, Editor

RSS logo

Message from the Chair

ALA Annual in San Francisco is right around the corner and RSS is sponsoring several programs and discussion groups on topics from the updated guidelines for health and medical reference, reference education, discovery systems in light of the New Framework for Information Literacy, and much more. All of the programs and discussion forums sponsored by RSS are put together by the committees. Conference programming is often just a part of the work of the committees. Join us on Saturday, June 27 from 8:30-10am at the Parc 55 San Francisco Hotel for the RSS Open House and All-Committee meeting. This event allows attendees to learn about the work of the committees and to talk to its members. At the Open House there is also the opportunity to express interest in joining a committee. Also at Annual, RSS and MARS: Emerging Technologies in Reference section will be hosting a joint happy hour where people can learn about the sections and network with other library professionals. Details will be available in the coming weeks.

This year’s RUSA President’s Program is on “It’s Complicated: Navigating the Dynamic Landscapes of Digital Literacy, Collapsing Contexts, and Big Data” presented by danah boyd on Saturday, June 27 from 4-5:30pm.

Again, these are just a small selection of the programming sponsored by RSS and RUSA. Stay tuned to the Conference Scheduler and the RSS-L listserv to learn more. I look forward to seeing many of you in San Francisco!

Qiana Johnson
q-johnson@northwestern.edu
RSS Chair, 2014-2015

 

RSS Honor Roll

When you hear Honor Roll, do you have flashbacks to high school? Maybe you have happy memories of the honor roll or maybe you think “could’ve, would’ve, should’ve…”

Regardless of your experience in high school, you may be eligible for the RSS Honor Roll.

The RSS has an Honor Roll that gives recognition to active RSS members who have served the section in three different capacities since its inception.

If you have been a member of three or more committees or discussion groups since RSS was established in 2004 and have not previously been added to the honor roll, please send your name and a list of the three ways you have served RSS to Sarah Hammill at hammills@fiu.edu

Not only will you become a member of this esteemed group, you will also be recognized at ALA Annual in San Francisco!

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RSS Committee Reports

Communication and Teaching at the Point of Need Committee
Please join us in San Francisco for a discussion forum on Challenges and Opportunities for Reference and Instruction at the Point of Need. The results of a survey conducted by the committee earlier this year will be briefly discussed followed by a short presentation and breakout sessions on related topics.

When and Where:
Sunday, June 28th, 3-4 pm, HIL – Franciscan A/B
Colleen Seale, Chair 2014-2015

Discovery Services Committee (Formerly Catalog Use Committee)
We will be holding an RSS Discovery Services Discussion Forum June 28th, 3:00-4:00 PM in the Convention Center, MCC-133 (N). This year’s theme is titled “Examining Discovery Platforms within the New Framework of Information Literacy.” We have three speakers selected to start the discussion and look forward to an informative discussion.

Anne Larrivee, Chair 2014-2015

Education and Professional Development for Reference
The committee has been focusing on developing programming for three upcoming conferences:

At ALA Annual 2015, we will host a discussion forum titled “What Should be the Future of Reference Education for Libraries?”​ That session will be held on Saturday, June 27 from 1pm-2:30pm in the Hilton San Francisco at Union Square in the Continental 3 room. Committee member Laura McClanathan has recruited Michelle Simmons to be our kick-off speaker. Michelle comes highly recommended as an outstanding reference instructor at San Jose State University’s MLIS program. Add the session to your conference planner: http://alaac15.ala.org/node/29464.

For ALA Midwinter 2016, we are partnering with MARS’ Professional Development Committee and MARS’ User-Experience Design Committee to host a 3 hour workshop on strategies and principles for user testing. These three groups have worked together to recruit several user-experience design experts to develop the content of the session. Our committee will provide logistical support. We have submitted a draft proposal to RSS’ Executive Committee and to MARS’ Executive Committee.

For ALA Annual 2016, we are partnering with ALISE’s Curriculum Special Interest Group to host a panel presentation at ALA 2016 on the topic of aligning library school’s reference curriculum with the needs of libraries and patrons. We have submitted a draft proposal to RSS’ Executive Committee.

Between now and ALA Annual 2015 we plan to write a brief article summarizing what we have learned from phase 1 of our State of Reference Education Project.

​If you are interested in learning more about our projects or are interested in joining us in our efforts, please drop by our business meeting at ALA Annual 2015, which will be part of RSS’ All Committee Meeting on Saturday, June 27 from 8:30am-10am. That meeting will take place in the Market Street room at the Parc 55 hotel. Add the meeting to your conference planner: http://alaac15.ala.org/node/29470

Jason Coleman, Chair 2014-2015

Evaluation of Reference and User Services
The committee led a discussion session at Midwinter titled “Reference Services in Transition: Changing Models and Assessing Success,” based on a survey distributed in January 2014. The results from the survey were distributed as a handout and were used as a jump starter for the discussion. ERUS will be looking at using the results for further analysis.

Jason Kruse, Chair 2014-2015

Health and Medical Reference Committee
The Health and Medical Reference Committee will offer a Discussion Forum entitled “Get to Know the New RUSA Guidelines for Health and Medical Reference Services: on Sunday, June 28th, from 3-4 pm in Parc 55 San Francisco—Mason, at ALA Annual 2015. At this forum we will introduce the new Health and Medical Reference Guidelines, slated to replace the Guidelines for Medical, Legal, and Business Responses (2001). While the new Guidelines will unlikely be available online at that time, the RUSA Board expects to approve the new Guidelines during its meeting at ALA, and post them online soon after. We look forward to presenting the new Guidelines, and opening a discussion on the opportunities and challenges that arise during health reference interactions.

HMRC continues to work on content to add to the Health and Medical Reference Committee’s Website. The Committee aims to add top-level resources that all ALA members who provide health or medical reference services to patrons will find useful. The focus will be on large-scale information sources and best practices, and is seen as an extension of the Health and Medical Reference Guidelines. Since our last report, member Ann Glusker has presented the Committee with a draft website of health and medical reference sources that features 2 sites each for a variety of categories such as consumer health, scholarly research, online tutorials and more. The Committee is discussing this draft via email, will make any necessary changes, and hopes to upload the content to the Health and Medical Reference Committee’s web space on the ALA site by fall 2015.

The Health and Medical Reference Committee will also meet during the RSS All-Committee Meeting and Open House on Saturday, June 27th from 8:30-10 am in Parc 55—Market Street at ALA Annual in San Francisco. This is a great chance to stop by, meet members of the HMRC, and find out more about us. Please join us!

Laura Louise Haines, Chair 2014-2015

Library Service to an Aging Population
Library Services to an Aging Population nears completion of a draft of the guidelines Best Practices for Library Services with Midlife and Older Adults to submit to the Standards and Guidelines committee for their review at ALA Annual. Library Services to an Aging Population will meet twice at Annual: at the RSS Open House on Saturday, June 27 from 8:30-10am (Parc 55 Hotel), and for a working meeting on Saturday, June 27 from 1-2:30pm (Marriott Marquis).

Angela Fortin, Chair 2014-2015

Library Services to the Spanish-Speaking
The Library Services to the Spanish Speaking Committee will be meeting during the RSS All-Committee Meeting at Annual. Please join members of the committee to discuss goals for the coming year.

Crystal Lentz, Chair 2014-2015

Management of Reference
On March 10 and 11, the Management of Reference Committee held their Spring E-Forum. The theme was Reference as Outreach.

Overall discussion stats:
Day 1 was a total of 8 threads and 70 messages with 12 people contributing (4 moderators and 8 others)

Day 2 was a total of 4 threads and 48 messages with 12 people contributing (3 moderators and 9 others)

The total number of unique librarians was the 4 moderators and 12 others (or 16 unique people)

Day 1 main discussion threads:
Desk placement

Most institutions in the thread had some type of merged desk structure

Most were also using some type of statistics tracking to mark both quantitative data (such as number of transactions) but also satisfaction and qualitative feedback

Chat reference

Institutions reported varying degrees of success with chat, especially when staffed internally with limited hours.

There simply was not enough traffic to justify having the service

Other still see it as an important extension of reference services and have encouraged faculty and students to utilize this service or have joined a consortium that allows for 24/7 support albeit from librarians at other institutions

The spectrum between teaching how to find the answer and giving the answer during the desk/reference interaction

Some institutions are making efforts in working with faculty to design better assignments and make things like scavenger hunts more research based

Others try to spend as much time as possible with research questions and turn them into teachable moments

Day 2 main discussion threads:
Gaining faculty buy-in

Explaining the benefits of library services during meetings

Joining them on Linkedin or other similar social media venues

Simply trying again-many faculty were not aware of existing library services so going to departmental meetings or inviting departmental chairs to one might be helpful

Marketing research assistance as much as instructional collaboration and encouraging students to come in after a class can be just as valuable and knowing when students might be better served by an appointment as opposed to a one-time session. Some are using the idea of Research Coaches as a way to market this

Scalability is always an issue especially for smaller institutions, there seems to be no good solution for how to do it all and still be effective other than to make a case for hiring additional staff

Use of an on-call system

For those institutions who had the model where staff were on the desk, librarians had an on-call system where they had “office hours” when they could be reached. They would have similarly scheduled shifts as when on the desk but devote more time to in-depth research assistance

Others brought librarians back to the desk because they found it more effective

Others still offer on-call during certain times of the semester but there is the question of how to balance being available with having enough time off the desk to pursue the other activities

Staffing with non-librarians (full or part time staff and students) and when/how the request is passed to a reference librarian

Most institutions with merged desks had them staffed by non-librarians with librarians concentrating on outreach work to departments and instruction in addition to consultations

Training is a key issue especially for staff and students knowing when to make referrals

Cinthya Ippoliti, Chair 2014-2015

Marketing and Public Relations for Reference Services
The Marketing & Public Relations for Reference Services committee will be meeting virtually instead of an in-person meeting for ALA Annual 2015. Since the last Review, the committee has continued to work with the presenters for our ALA Annual 2014 session, “The Soft Sell: Sales Skills for Librarians,” to create a proposal for possible future webinars.

Elizabeth DeCoster, Chair 2014-2015

Research and Statistics Committee
The Research & Statistics Committee has chosen the presenters for the Annual Reference Research Forum, which will take place during the Annual on Sunday, June 28th from 10:30-11:30 am in the Moscone Conference Center, room 2014 (W). There were a number of strong proposals and the committee employed a blind review process to select proposals that would provide a variety of research foci. Here are the presenters and their topics:

“Information Behavior of Foreign-Born Students at Brooklyn College,” City University of New York, Frans Albarillo

This presentation reports the results of a survey of immigrant and international students at Brooklyn College, a large public liberal arts college with a diverse campus that serves many foreign-born and first-generation immigrant students. The survey gathers data on students in these communities to investigate common patterns and explore how these students experience the academic library with a focus on language and culture. This exploratory study was funded by a grant from the PSC CUNY and further developed at the 2014 inaugural Institute of Research Design in Librarianship.

“Understanding the Research Needs of Mid-level Undergraduate Students,” Reed College, Marianne Colgrove and Annie Downey

How do sophomores and juniors learn to do independent research and what services, resources and curriculum strategies would help? As part of a larger Mellon-funded initiative, the Reed College Library and IT departments collaborated on a needs assessment in order to understand the gap between faculty and student perspectives on the research process. Using both focus group discussions and a student survey, the needs assessment showed that faculty characterize research as a complex, multi-faceted process and emphasize the importance of a researchable question that drives the process. Many students aren’t sure what faculty expect and often invest so much energy in gathering resources that they run out of time to conduct analysis and integrate their assignment into a unified whole. This study also exemplifies how IT and the library can collaborate to conduct a low-cost self-study that informs the development of new research curriculum and services.

“Library as Endangered Species in the Information Ecosystem, Borough of Manhattan Community College,” Jean Amaral

When students and faculty need information, where do they go? A year-long ethnographic study at an urban community college suggests it may be anywhere but the library. Amaral will present the results of this study, which call for engaging in a creative reassessment of library services in community colleges.

Ava M. Iuliano Brillat, Chair 2014-2015

Virtual Reference Tutorial Subcommittee
The Virtual Reference (VR) Tutorial Subcommittee held its most recent meeting (virtually) on Tuesday, April 7. The discussion was about ways of keeping up with the literature on virtual reference in order to keep the Virtual Reference Companion current and helpful.

The Subcommittee continues to work toward changing its name to the Virtual Reference Companion Subcommittee. Though the approval process for this name change is not difficult, actually making the change in all the places where the name appears (e.g. the RUSA committee appointment database; ALA Connect) will be painstaking.

Co-Chairs Christine Tobias and Laura Friesen shared information about the VRC at the annual meeting of the consortial VR group “Research Help Now” in Ann Arbor, Michigan on April 17, 2015. In addition to the presentation about the Virtual Reference Companion, this was an opportunity to solicit tips and best practices for the VRC from librarians who are very involved in providing virtual reference services, and to potentially find new members for the Subcommittee.

The Subcommittee continues to ask for input from all librarians who provide virtual reference to submit tips and best practices to be incorporated into that section of the Virtual Reference Companion. RSS members may submit suggestions for this content by leaving a comment on ALA Connect ( http://connect.ala.org/node/225501 ) or by sending an email to Christine Tobias ( tobiasc@msu.edu ) or Laura Friesen (lflynn@umflint.edu ).

In addition to being accessible from http://www.ala.org/rusa/vrc , the Hot Links section of the RSS Virtual Reference Committee page, and the Professional Tools section of the RUSA Resources page, the VRC is now linked in the Web Resources section of the ALA Library Fact Sheet 19: Virtual Reference: A Selected Annotated Bibliography .

Laura Friesen, Chair 2014-2015
Christine Tobias, Chair 2014-2015

Young Adult Reference Services Committee
The YARS co-chairs had a conference call with YALSA’s with Beth Yoke and Carrie Kausch to discuss our initiative to publish the In-House Homework Help Best Practices. They provided suggestions for how to how to re-arrange and improve the document to better align with the Future of Library Services for and with Teens. After the committee reworks the document, it will be sent through the RUSA S&G process.

The committee selected three well-qualified librarian panelists for our Annual Program, “The Core: A Year (Or More!) In, How Does This Affect Librarians?” which will provide information and discussion points on how to improve resources and service for the common core curriculum.

Allyson Evans Malik, Chair 2013-2015

RSS Review is the newsletter of the Reference Services Section of Reference and User Services Association (RUSA) of the American Library Association. Please send suggestions for future issues to Amy Rustic (aer123@psu.edu), editor.

 

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STARS

Kerry Keegan, Editor

 

Message from the Chair

Dear STARS Members and Friends,

STARS has some great programming planned for ALA Annual in San Francisco! In addition to our staple Discussion Groups, we are sponsoring a program titled Acquisitions, Collection Development, Electronic Resources, and ILL, Oh My!: Connecting Users to What They Want! (Sunday, June 28, 1-2pm, MCC 2002 (W)). This lightning round session will cover topics like how patron ILL requests influence collection development; how demand driven acquisitions affects interlibrary loan; adapting ILL operations to the current environment, and more.

STARS is also offering a pre-conference, ILL Data Storm – Practical Assessment (Friday, June 26, 9am,-1pm). Our programs on data use in ILL are always popular, so the Research and Assessment Committee has put together an amazing panel of speakers to provide further insight on this important topic. The panel will speak to how they collect and use data, whether to improve services, influence collection decisions or justify their existence. At the end of the program, attendees will walk away with ideas about how to assess their ILL data for improvements in their department. Be sure to register!

I sincerely hope you’ll be able to join us for these exciting learning and networking opportunities! If you aren’t able to be in San Francisco, watch the STARS Facebook page for updates from the conference.

It’s hard to believe how quickly my year as STARS Chair has passed. Since this is my last RUSA Update column, I want to take this opportunity to thank all the amazing STARS who have helped me move our section forward. I think we’ve accomplished great things this year and look forward to continuing our work as I transition to my role of Past Chair. Thank you so much!!

Tina Baich
STARS Chair 2014-2015

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STARS Committee Reports

Codes, Guidelines, and Technical Standards Committee
The Codes, Guidelines, and Technical Standards Committee has completed work on the initial revised drafts for the Interlibrary Loan Code for the United States and the Explanatory Supplement and submitted them to Tina Baich for distribution to the STARS Executive Committee. We plan on submitting them to the RUSA Standards and Guidelines Committee by late May 2015, and we project that approved drafts will be ready for general comment by the ILL community in late summer/early fall. Members of our group are providing updates on the revision process at various conferences we each attend. This past quarter, our committee also completed a review and revision of the ShareILL Codes and Guidelines web page.

Brian Miller, Chair

ILL Committee
The ILL Committee will be meeting in San Francisco and is sponsoring a program. This program will be held on Sunday, June 28 from 1-2PM in MCC – 2002 and is titled “Acquisitions, Collection Development, Electronic Resources, and ILL, Oh My!: Connecting Users to What They Want!” It will be a great presentation, so make sure to attend!

Both Co-Chairs will be rotating off the Committee this year, so a new Chair will need to be elected.

Carol Kochan, Co-Chair

STARS Education and Training Committee
In January, the Education and Training committee hosted the 8th annual “Everything You Always Wanted to Know about ILL” workshop at the University of Chicago, during ALA Midwinter 2015. The workshop featured presentations on Borrowing, Lending, Copyright, and Assessment & Statistics by Megan Gaffney, Karen Janke, Cindy Kristof, and Collette Mak, respectively.

Lars Leon’s Emerging Leaders proposal, which would have supported the migration of ShareILL.org to a new platform, made it to the final proposal pool, but was not selected. The Education and Training committee is currently working with Linda Frederiksen on selecting a new host for ShareILL.org.

Kristen Palmiere, Chair

STARS Rethinking Resource Sharing Policies Committee
The Rethinking Resource Sharing Policies Committee has continued to work on creating Version 2 of the ALA RUSA STARS Rethinking Resource Sharing STAR Checklist. Version 2 has been approved by the RUSA Stars Executive Board and the Rethinking Resource Sharing Initiative Steering Committee. We expect to have it available on the Rethinking Resource Sharing Initiative website for libraries to use by June 2015. We will meet at ALA Annual Conference to plan promotion and training events.

Sue Kaler, Chair

STARS Research and Assessment Committee
The Research and Assessment Committee is working on plans for the ALA pre-conference and is in the last stages of organization. Since Mid-Winter, they have finalized assessments for all STARS sponsored sessions through Annual 2014. We are currently working on assessments for Mid-Winter 2015. Finally, Krista Higham has been elected co-chair for next year.

Bethany Sewell & David Ketchum, Co-Chairs

STARS Legislation and Licensing Committee
The Committee has met via conference call and finished drafting a survey that will be sent to STARS Members on May 18, 2015. The very brief survey will help us to determine the future directions of the committee, including whether we should continue or disband, and we hope that all STARS members will participate. We will collect responses through June 6 and plan to have a report prepared before the ALA Annual meeting.

Sherri Michaels, Chair

Atlas Systems Mentoring Award Committee
The Sharing and Transforming Access to Resources Section (STARS) of ALA has selected the winner of the 2015 Atlas Systems Mentoring Award, Karen Thomas, access services librarian at Krauskopf Library, Delaware Valley College, as this year’s recipient as she has demonstrated a passion and need for professional development, networking, education and service to her local community. Sponsored by Atlas Systems, Inc., the award offers $1,250 to a library practitioner new to the field of ILL and resource sharing to fund travel expenses to the ALA Annual Conference in San Francisco.

Amy Paulus, Chair