Annual Report 2007-2008
Shadek-Fackenthal Library
Martin Library of the
Sciences
Submitted by
Pamela Snelson
College Librarian
During
the 2007-2008 academic year the Library continued to work with the four actions
identified as key to the achievement of its overall goals. These actions are:
1. Provide greater and easier access to digital content
2. Create library space to better suit userÕs needs and desires
3. Promote
resources and services in a coordinated and comprehensive manner
and
4. Prepare
for and accommodate changes in user behaviors and campus-supported technology.
I am pleased to report that the
Library staff developed and implemented numerous strategies to realize these
actions, in addition to providing excellent services and programs in all areas.
This Annual Report contains highlights of the year in each action area, detailed
accomplishments in department reports and staff activities, and 5-year
statistical data in a separate document.
Provide Greater and Easier Access to Digital Content. F&M began full implementation of Scholars Square, our institutional repository, in the fall of 2007,
with an official kickoff in February 2008. Collections from both the Phillips
Museum and the Visual Resources Library expect to be represented in this venue.
Other digitization projects include our fourth and last phase of the F&M
student newspaper and the full Pennsylvania German Fraktur collection. Our
online library continues to grow. Major additions to our electronic resource
collection this year included the CQ Almanac and CQ Researcher, Oxford Language
Dictionaries Online, Index Islamicus, the Scientific American Archive, and the
IMFÕs International Financial Statistics Online. In addition, close to 75% of our
journal subscriptions are available online. A new E-Journal Portal provides
access to online material in the full-text databases to which we subscribe.
Create Library Space to Better
Suit UserÕs Needs and Desires. Over
175 titles and their back files were re-located from the Whitely Psychology
Building to compact shelving on the ground floor of the Shadek-Fackenthal
Library. This alternative keeps
the material readily available to faculty and students until the ground floor
of the Martin Library is returned to library use. The ÒLast Big ShiftÓ of the
Shadek-Fackenthal collection began in June 2008 – nearly all books in the
circulating collection were moved! Prior to the commencement of the shift almost 800 empty shelves became available through weeding
government documents. However, with our current acquisition rate of 10,000
volumes per year, these shelves will be full within 2 years. Through the
relocation of staff offices and a small conference room, the Library created 2
new group study rooms on first floor of Shadek-Fackenthal Library. The number
of people entering both libraries increased in 2007-2008. The 9% increase in visits
to the Martin Library of the Sciences requires particular monitoring to insure
that there is adequate late night study space available for students.
Promote
Resources and Services in a Coordinated and Comprehensive Manner.
Activities
to support this action are now coordinated by the Deputy Librarian via an
annual Marketing Plan. After researching best practices in academic libraries,
a working group of librarians and staff crafted a plan featuring goals,
objectives, key messages, delivery strategies, evaluation measures, and a
schedule. The specific objectives for this academic year were to: have
personalized contact with every first-year student; host at least two scholarly
talks/events per semester; realize an increase in reference interactions and
web site traffic; and engage in more consistent outreach. These intentional marketing
efforts are planned to make the F&M community aware of Library resources
and services.
Prepare
for and Accommodate Changes in User Behaviors and Campus-supported Technology. A 3-year trend shows the
acceptance of patron-initiated borrowing of material. Starting in 2005-2006 more
books were borrowed through EZ-Borrow than ILL each year. This change has
allowed staff to concentrate on securing more complex materials needed by
faculty and students. The Martin Library of the Sciences gate count increased
by 9% over the previous year.
While one year of data may not indicate a trend, the Library needs to
watch building use carefully in the future. To gain at least an approximate
understanding of first-year studentsÕ pre-collegiate experience with the
research process, two research-related multiple-choice questions were featured
on the 2007 Cooperative Institutional Research ProgramÕs (CIRP) First-Year
Student Survey. In the spring of 2008, as a member of the Liberal Arts Information
Literacy Consortium, the Library supported four information literacy questions
on the National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE) administered to
second-semester first-year students and graduating seniors. In June 2008
library staff participated in a 5-year hardware audit, review of software and
training refresher of the LibraryÕs automated systems. Student public use
computers have been upgraded, and a color printer and scanner are now available.
Librarians remain active in many national organizations including Art Libraries
Society of North America, Association of College & Research Libraries,
NITLE, North American Serials Interest Group, OCLC and Special Librarians
Association.
Continuing
and Future Challenges. The Library is challenged by lack of
collection space, aging buildings and irregular support for new programs. In addition to space pressures in the
circulating collection, archive collections continue to grow at an average rate
of 15 cubic ft. per year. At this
point, the Archives and Special Collections has utilized its current storage
space and has reached capacity in both Shadek-Fackenthal and Martin Library of
the Sciences. Both
buildings contain study tables, carrels, study chairs, soft seating and much
carpeting original to the buildingsÕ dedications – 1983(!) for
Shadek-Fackenthal and 1990 for Martin Library. There is a tremendous need for
restoration and replacement of interior furnishings, and a redesign of internal
space to meet the needs of 21st century students. As both
the student body and the faculty have increased the Library faces a particular challenge in
purchasing book, journals and databases to support ÒtraditionalÓ programs, some
of which have unmet needs, while meeting demands from new faculty and expanded programs.
Plans for
the Future. In 2009 the Library will conduct a third
iteration of the LibQUAL campus survey of library service quality, and begin
planning for an external review.
We look forward to working with campus planners to develop space plans
for the vacated parts of the Martin Library of the Sciences.
DEPARTMENT REPORTS
ACQUISITIONS
Budget. In FY 07/08 year we acquired well over
10,000 paid volumes, exceeding our target level by nearly 250 such
volumes. We also note that the
average cost per paid volume finished beneath the fifty-dollar level.
Acquisition of other mediums beside books has increased dramatically and
continues to provide a challenging, diversified experience for Department staff
as we execute the Collection Development program in providing access as well as
ownership of scholarly materials.
Books Average
Period Purchased Spent Cost
7/07 - 6/08 10,445 $
519,960 $
49.78
7/06 – 6/07 10,245 $
513,636 $
50.14
7/05 – 6/06 10,847 $
530,918 $
48.95
7/04 – 6/05 11,124 $
556,533 $
50.03
7/03 –6/04 10,914 $
543,743 $
49.82
The Library was fortunate to have $1,923,942 to underwrite library
materials acquisition, access and preservation within its three primary
materials budgets and a group of Òin addition toÓ endowment budgets. Preliminary closure data indicates that
$1,919,033.60 (or 99.7%) was
spent. A preliminary review of the
budget closing for book indicates that we closed this budget with a cash
balance amount of only $3.73, or six 10,000thÕs (.00061) of one per cent of the
allocation. As always, much thanks
goes to our faculty and Library selectors who insure that our collection
activities mirror the academic objectives of the College. For periodicals, our preliminary
closure in this budget reveals a cash balance of $2,181.10 which represents a infinitesimal nineteen one
hundredthÕs (.0018987)
of one per cent of the FY 07/08 allocation. For preservation, a preliminary
cash balance surplus of $2,723.48 or 2.58 per cent of the FY 07/08 allocation
is seen. Finally, not including Friends of the Library support, the
Library benefited from seven major endowments for library materials acquisition
and access whose total cash draw for FY07/08 was $60,249 - all of which was
spent.
Program. Highlights of
activities to advance the acquisitions program include:
á All four members of the
Department participated in a ÒBasic BackupÓ Program wherein key, nutrient
activities that must continue in the absence of staff were introduced to other
staff members who normally do not hold first line responsibility for their fulfillment.
á It
is noted that fully 73.8 per cent of all current periodical subscriptions are
now accessible online.
á The
management of online resources continues to occupy a growing segment of the
DepartmentÕs time. In this Report
Year 07/08 over 3,500 actions were completed to this end plus increased phone
and email contact with sources.
á The
transfer of the bound periodicals collection previously housed in the Whitely
Psychology Library to the Shadek-Fackenthal LibraryÕs Ground Level compact
shelving was adroitly accomplished well within the time allocated for
same. Overall, over 175
title back files were re-located.
á A
program was put in place whereby cleaning, etc. of certain incoming DVDÕs would
be done to increase their usability upon their arrival at ATS.
á Outsourcing
of bibliographic record downloads for the over 2,000 acquired paid volumes
through our University Approval Plan was successfully conducted by the Catalog
Department with feedback and assistance from the Acquisitions and the Systems
Departments.
á The Department began to
use a corporate credit in instances where traditional payment options were not
feasible.
á All
USGPO Depository status 521 items were shifted and compressed freeing seven
full aisles in the Shadek-Fackenthal LibraryÕs Ground Level compact shelving
that are now available for other use.
á A
new log detailing visual media acquisition accessions on an individual physical
receipt level that provides data on selector, amount, etc. was created.
Overview:
This past year has been one of great progress for the Archives
and Special Collections. Several
major initiatives have been accomplished including the development and
marketing of Scholars Square, the acquisition of several unique rare books and
manuscripts through gift and acquisition, and the digitization of our fourth
and last phase of the F&M student newspaper. Bibliographic instruction grew slightly with 15 classes and
14 research appointments. In
addition, the Franklin & Marshall College Library became an associate
member of PACSCL (the Philadelphia Area Consortium of Special Collections
Libraries), and continued to play a leadership role in guiding the LCDP
(Lancaster County Digitization Project.)
College
Archives. Efforts in the archives this year focused on
preservation, processing, and digitization. Twenty-nine volumes of the College Days (1873-1879) and
F&M Weekly (1891-1915) newspapers were digitized using Olive software,
and made available through the web.
In addition, 120 F&M Vietnam Veteran Oral History tapes were
professionally migrated to CD by Modern Video Productions of Philadelphia.
With regard to
processing, the department added 51.5 cubic feet of new material, while
continuing to integrate archival material from records storage. A major transfer of communications
records was conducted in the fall upon the hiring of a new Vice President for
College Communications.
Electronic records
continue to explode on campus, with the growth of digital photography, and the
electronic archiving of many F&M campus publications and committee minutes.
For the fourth year, senior honors theses were collected in both paper and
electronic form. F&M began full implementation of Scholars Square in the
fall of 2007, with an official ÒlaunchÓ date of February 7, 2008. F&M attended its second annual
NITLE DSpace User Community Meeting and presented on its IR marketing efforts
to date.
Usage remained strong
with the archival collections being heavily utilized for a number of important
projects including campus planning, faculty research, building renovations,
alumni programming, and donor cultivation
Special
Collections. One important new manuscript collection (James
Lapine) was acquired and processed this past year, and six existing collections
were reprocessed to include new donations and/or digitization into Scholars
Square. As always, web based
finding aids and MARC AMC records were created for each new and updated
collection. The Johannes Schwalm
collection received yet another donation of materials from the society and
remains our most active manuscript collection.
Rare
Books. Many fine acquisitions have been added to our
Rare Book collection this past year through gift and purchase. Major gifts and purchases included a bound
volume of Francis Bailey newspaper, the FreemanÕs
Journal (1789-1792), a first edition of Roger Tory PetersonÕs A Field Guide to the Birds, and two
limited edition sets of 19th English literature. Several new publications from
Pennsylvania private presses were also added, as were a number of fine
miniature books.
In terms of
preservation, the second of our two-part phase box program for oversized
special collections materials was completed. A new air-purifier and two humidifiers were also purchased for
the vault and Room 15 storage areas.
Conclusions.
While this past year has been marked by solid progress in all
areas, the successful launch of Scholars Square has been our greatest
achievement. To date, the
repository holds 914 items in seven collections. Thanks to the hard work of Michael Lear and graduate student
interns Andrea Lewis and Michael Keeports, the F&M Honors Theses and PA
German Fraktur collections have been fully digitized. Work remains on digitizing the PA German Broadside collection,
submitting further examples of FPS scholarship, adding Visual Resources
collections, establishing LDAP authentication, and continuing campus-wide
marketing efforts.
Acquisitions,
supplies, and preservation budgets all remain healthy. A slight re-allocation of the
preservation budgets has allowed for increased digital preservation, with a
slight reduction in fine binding.
Statistics indicate strong service to the campus community, with an
increase in service to students, faculty, administrators and alumni.
Statistical
Analysis and Trends.
á
Archive collections continue to grow at an
average rate of 15 cubic ft. per year.
At this point, the Archives and Special Collections has utilized its
current storage space and has reached capacity in both Shadek-Fackenthal and Martin
Library of the Sciences. The archives continues to destroy duplicate or
irrelevant materials in order to free space for incoming archival records. Room 15 has also reached capacity with
archival memorabilia, processed manuscript collections, and the Napoleon rare
book collection. It remains our
last area of temporary storage for unprocessed archival records and manuscript
collections.
á
Instructional sessions were up 20% over
last year, with a 15% increase in research appointments and overall students
served. Student, faculty, and
alumni visits were up an average of 23%, suggesting that the department is
doing a good job at meeting the needs of our primary constituents.
á
Departmental reference questions were up
13%, with overall web site hits up slightly as well. These short-term trends suggest that more researchers than
ever are finding our collections and services via the web.
CATALOGING
Overview.
This past year the Catalog Department saw an increase in the
number of all materials cataloged: monographs, compact discs, video discs,
electronic databases and journals, and microfilm reels; the exception being
video cassettes. There was an 83% decline in the number of videocassettes
cataloged, as DVDs have become more popular. The increase in bibliographic records can be attributed to
an increase in the cataloging of US government documents and electronic
journals.
In March 2008, the
Library started the program of receiving bibliographic records for books
purchased through the Blackwell Approval Plan. Week 1 we received 25 records of
which 10 (40%) had incomplete cataloging. In comparison the last week of the
fiscal year 52 records were received of which none had incomplete cataloging.
Statistics.
Total new cataloging records increased by 25%. The increase
can be attributed to more hours of student worker cataloging, PZ3 transfer
project that, at times, called for new bibliographic records, US government
documents cataloging, and an increase in Library materials purchased. There was a 24% increase in the number of monographs
added in FY 07/08. More books
purchased and additional gifts added to the LibraryÕs collections contribute to
this increase. The number of DVDs cataloged increased from 346 (FY 06-07) to
563 (FY 07-08).
Cataloging
of Electronic Resources. The total number of electronic resources
cataloged increased from 718 in FY 06-07 to 1313 in FY 07-08. Significant
electronic resources cataloged include Oxford
Language Dictionaries Online, The Encyclopedia of Islam, Washington Information
Directory, World Development Indicators, and the Congressional Quarterly - weekly,
almanac, and the researcher.
Conclusions.
Just as in past years the Department continues to produce a
large output of work. Personnel remained unchanged. Cataloging of newly
purchased materials is current. The part-time Catalog Assistant contributed to
the OCLC database by inputting original records for both compact discs and
DVDs.
The Department was fortunate to have a dynamic student worker who was
instrumental in completing significant library projects such as: transfer of all books from the Whitely
Psychology Library; re-classifying PZ3 volumes (730 items reclassed and 754
items withdrawn); eliminated the outdated DVD/ROM category from Sirsi item
types (all changed to CD-ROM); and changing the status on 195 items allowing
them to circulate (remaining problem from migrating from DRA Classic to
Sirsi). Our quest for accuracy continues
with constant updates to the catalog, so that link truly reflects the LibraryÕs
holdings.
CIRCULATION
The number of people
entering both libraries increased.
However, circulation to all borrowers slightly decreased. During the 2007/2008 fiscal year, the
library had 9,217 registered borrowers, with 2,772 borrowers actively using the
library. This year, 1,778 students
and 141 faculty members were active borrowers. During FY 2006/2007, 1,657 students and 137 faculty were
active borrowers. The number of active borrowers increased by 245. Details are
provided in Table 1.
Items placed on Reserve
decreased by 836 items this year (-52%).
Circulation at the Reserve Desk decreased, but the amount of items that
went unused decreased by 6%. E-Z
Borrow, a patron-initiated interlibrary loan service, experiences continued
success with the F&M Community. This year, the amount lent to other schools
stayed the same, and the requests made by F&M increased by 20%. Our patrons have requested almost 9,000
items since July 2004. Shifting
books began on the third floor.
Shifting will be done to accommodate the overcrowding in the
stacks.
The end-of-semester 24
hours opening started the last four days of classes and exam week. During the last days of the semesters
the average overnight attendance was 274.
Exam Days averaged an overnight attendance of 618. During the 24-hour opening, the Library
is open an additional 136 hours per year.
|
|
2003/04 |
2004/05 |
2005/06 |
2006/07 |
2007/08 |
Change |
|
Gate
Count |
314,617 |
327,692 |
346,889 |
320,433 |
333,454 |
4.1% |
|
Shadek-Fackenthal |
201,934 |
223,496 |
213,025 |
194,152 |
195,693 |
0.8% |
|
Martin Library |
112,683 |
104,196 |
133,864 |
126,281 |
137,761 |
9.1% |
|
Total
Transactions |
82,046 |
85,311 |
76,946 |
73,147 |
66,112 |
-9.6% |
|
Student |
34,073 |
37,871 |
34,502 |
34,086 |
28,514 |
-16.3% |
|
Reserve Desk |
8,535 |
5,682 |
4,400 |
3,594 |
2,668 |
-25.8% |
|
FPS |
16,710 |
17,517 |
18,051 |
17,499 |
17,448 |
-0.3% |
|
Other |
5,185 |
7,278 |
5,927 |
5,644 |
5,545 |
-1.8% |
|
In-house books/jrnls |
16,764 |
16,030 |
13,289 |
11,650 |
11,505 |
-1.2% |
|
In-house microfilms |
779 |
933 |
777 |
674 |
432 |
-35.9% |
|
ATS |
3,809 |
4,853 |
4,406 |
3,842 |
2,710 |
-29.5% |
This was a busy year
with many collection issues being planned, discussed, and implemented. The highlights were: planning and
starting the shift of the entire book collection in Shadek-Fackenthal;
evaluating the newspaper collection; weeding in government documents; another
successful book sale; and receipt of a staggering number of gifts - over 7,000
items.
Space
Planning. Much time was spent this year making plans and
calculations for the Summer Shift (or, The Big Shift IIÓ) of the book
collection in Shadek-Fackenthal.
Because we will need to use some space in the Compact Shelving area for
books from the general collection, Ken Siegert supervised a shift of the
government documents collection during Spring Break. Prior to that shift the Collection Development Librarian weeded
several shelves of publications from the Commerce Department, National Bureau
of Standards, Securities and Exchange Commission, and other agencies. We also decided to withdraw 13 years of
the Congressional Record (single
daily issues), all of which is available online. As a result of this shift, almost 800 empty shelves are now
available for books. Other, more
modest weeding occurred during the year.
The PZ stacks were finished and several librarians weeded outdated books
from their subject liaison areas.
Thanks to Marty Gordon, Andy Gulati, Louise Kulp, and Tom Karel for
their efforts.
A separate ÒState of the
SpaceÓ report will be completed in August 2008.
Gift
Collections & Book Sale. The library received a
record-breaking 7,046 items as donations this year. There were 6,125 books received, along with 810 journals and
a smattering of pamphlets, phonograph records, audiocassettes, DVDs and
videos. Retired faculty
contributed greatly to this activity, especially Charlie Holzinger
(Anthropology and Sociology) who moved out of his house of 60+ years. Sol Wank (retired, History)
donated almost 700 journals to us and we were able to find good homes for some
of his titles. The Biology faculty
emptied their offices last summer as they prepared to move into the Barshinger
Life Sciences and Philosophy Building and over 700 books were given to the
library.
The library held its
annual book sale, again co-coordinated by Tom Karel and Christopher Raab. This year the sale was again set up in
the library lobby and along the stairway hall on the Mezzanine. The sale ran from November 26 through
November 30 and was very successful. After the sale a local resident offered to
buy Òall of the leftoversÓ from us and we were able to take advantage of his
interest to pare down the book sale inventory considerably. The Library sent Better
World Books two shipments of recent textbooks and reference works to them for
dispersal (a total of 25 boxes).
Approval
Plans. The University Press approval plan through
BlackwellÕs continued to run smoothly, and in June we decided to add the
Belknap Press (an imprint of Harvard) to our profile. Decisions on the Philosophy subject-based approval plan were
deferred until later in the year, after Glen Ross returns from a sabbatical
leave. Discussions continued with
Renate Sachse about a ÒslipÓ plan for foreign language books but that has yet
to be implemented.
Book
and Non-print Selection. We continue to monitor the impact of new
programs into the curriculum and new courses on the libraryÕs collections. Scott Vine prepared an assessment of
Computer Science resources (what we have and what we might need) and Tom Karel
did the same for Latin American Politics.
Dale Riordan is monitoring the new Bio-Informatics program and will have
recommendations for us in the next fiscal year. Nine grants were awarded to faculty in support of new courses
in Classics (5), Italian, Religious Studies (2), and Russian. Additionally, the College provided
special funding to support new programs in Etruscan Art and Archaeology and in
Islamic Studies. There was some
interesting activity in the Modern Language departments. French & Italian split into two
separate departments; new book allocations were determined for each department.
Also, a new Comparative Literary Studies Program was created and we are
continuing to discuss the budget implications for the library.
Throughout the year
there were discussions at librariansÕ meetings about expanding our online
journal collections with Project Muse and with JStor. A new ÒArts & SciencesÓ package was approved for JStor,
but MuseÕs ÒPremium CollectionÓ was rejected – at least for now. Cancellations of print and microform
newspaper subscriptions were considered and the librarians agreed to cancel the
Washington Post and the Christian Science Monitor on
microfilm. These discussions will
continue. There were also several
discussions about ebooks (NetLibrary and CouttsÕ MyiLibrary) but no decisions
were made.
In
Progress. Work is continuing on revising the collection
policy statements for non-print materials and for newspaper resources.
Also, the Collection
Development Librarian announced plans to meet individually with all librarians
to talk about liaison issues, but only one session occurred this year (with
Renate Sachse). Hopefully these
activities will be completed in the coming year.
INFORMATION LITERACY
First-Year
Students. Twenty-six of 38 First-Year Seminars featured at
least one library research workshop in the fall of 2007. (Seven seminars featured two or
more.) Common workshop format and
content were altered from the previous year to include introductory matter
regarding Òthe library basicsÓ as requested by many first-year students in
2006. The workshops often featured
greater exploration of the physical library, more detailed interpretation of
catalog records, and more extensive explanations of the roles and uses of books
and journals. The seminar students
were surveyed regarding their workshop experiences immediately upon the
workshopÕs conclusion. Similar to last
yearÕs responses, this yearÕs students want to be shown where the library books
pertinent to the class are located,
plus more exposure to journal literature.
Several students also requested complete control of their respective
library classroom computers during workshops to enable following along with
resource exploration, instead of waiting until after librarian demonstration
and explanation. These responses
will inform future workshop format, content, and teaching methods.
To gain at least an
approximate understanding of first-year studentsÕ pre-collegiate experience
with the research process, two research-related multiple-choice questions were
featured on the 2007 Cooperative Institutional Research ProgramÕs (CIRP)
First-Year Student Survey.
Forty-six percent of the respondents had written three-to-five research
papers, 36% indicated six-or-more, 15% wrote two-or-fewer, and 3% had no
research paper writing experience.
Fifty percent had a Ògood amountÓ of research process instruction, 25%
had a Òminimal amount,Ó 17% had a Òlarge amount,Ó and 8% had no such
instruction. Since these questions
did not allow for student explanation regarding the nature or extent of either
experience, it would be risky to conclude much from the answers, save for
confirming the widely varying high-school research experiences of our students.
In the spring of 2008,
as a member of the Liberal Arts Information Literacy Consortium, the library
supported four information literacy questions on the National Survey of Student
Engagement (NSSE) administered to second-semester first-year students and
graduating seniors. The data are
forthcoming.
First-Year
Seminar Faculty Survey. All first-year seminar professors were
surveyed regarding their studentsÕ course performance. A majority of respondents (N=20) were
satisfied with the breadth and depth of sources students consulted and featured
in their bibliographies. However,
from the satisfied professors came several statements of surprise and concern
for the amount of effort (ÒproddingÓ) and detailed direction required to have
students perform satisfactorily.
Several professors also commented on the disappointing lack of
familiarity with journal literature, source evaluation, and ability to
distinguish between primary and secondary sources, and among sources mediated
by the Internet (e.g. peer-reviewed journals, library subscription-based
reference materials, Wikipedia, etc.) among first-year students. When asked if the librarians could more
effectively support first-year student learning and performance, thirteen
professors expressed gratitude for, and confidence in, the library research
workshops. Three professors
continued, placing fault with poor high-school preparation for college, with
one professor commenting students are Òused to doing book reports, not research
papers.Ó An additional survey
comment requested access to Òassignments from other F&M professors that
work.Ó
Upper-level
Students. Upon invitation from the chair of the History
Department, the Information Literacy Librarian crafted a document stating
concerns about and recommendations for improving the 300-level ÒHistory
Workshop: Methods and PracticeÓ library research assignment. The librarian then met with the
department to discuss the document and student research behaviors in general. The discussion concluded with planning
for the librarian to collaborate with members of the department on revising the
assignment.
The Information Literacy
Librarian consulted with the professor of a 200-level course regarding how best
to structure assignments and provide library research instruction for a mixed
class-level population. To
determine the studentsÕ previous experience with the research process and
instruction, the librarian surveyed the students prior to their scheduled
workshops. All but one student had
already attended a workshop, and half of the class had attended two or
more. One-third of the students
commented they had learned Òall they needed to knowÓ in their first workshop
(provided for their first-year seminars), and another third expressed desire to
learn more, many students requesting Òhelp with articles.Ó The course assignment and library
workshop were then tailored accordingly.
As a favor to a
colleague, the Information Literacy Librarian attended a dinner for senior
seminar students at the colleagueÕs home.
Upon the mealÕs conclusion, a student requested the professor and
librarian share their respective college research paper experiences. The question was then posed to the
students, with high school being the context. One student shared she had been writing at least one
research paper per academic year since the seventh grade—and proudly
produced the large stack of index cards she used for her seminar paper
notes. This inspired another
student to gasp and proclaim, ÒI have no idea what those are—I learned to
take tests!Ó The remaining studentsÕ
experiences fell between the extremes established by the first two. As noted above, this group of students
also had widely varying high-school research experiences.
Summary.
Ten librarians taught 124 workshops for 108 courses across 22 departments,
teaching a total of 1,947 students, and overall totaling a slight increase over
teaching activities of the previous year.
The number of workshops for first-year seminars also increased slightly,
while the number of research appointments decreased. Five extra-curricular workshops and consultation programs
reached an additional 97 students.
Thirty-four courses were either new or featured at least one new assignment,
thus requiring significant preparation time by the teaching librarian. A new library workshop data reporting
form for librarians allows more immediate and meaningful sharing of pending
assignments, pedagogical methods, interactions with students and professors,
etc. A review of the year shows
research papers continuing to be the most frequently assigned work, followed by
annotated bibliographies and special projects.
INTERLIBARY LOAN (ILL)
Many changes in
Interlibrary Loan (ILL) policies and procedures occurred this year, as the ILL
staff continues to be attentive and responsive to local and global changes in
ILL user behavior and institutional practices. Multiple faculty requests for direct digital delivery of
articles inspired a change in service that garnered many expressions of
gratitude from faculty and students.
A specialized, proprietary method of expedited digital article delivery,
RapidILL, is being implemented this summer. A notable increase in student and faculty requests for
journal material already held by the
library led to changes at two moments in the article request process: the user request form and the libraryÕs
response form. At the global
level, technological and procedural changes made by participating institutions
required several local adjustments to maintain our accuracy and fair treatment
inherent in the cooperative nature of ILL.
ILL staff engaged in
tenacious and successful pursuit of several elusive items for F&M users,
and received many messages of gratitude—one message appearing in the
acknowledgements of an F&M professorÕs publication! One telephone request for assistance
came from a new constituency: an
F&M parent. A father expressed
concern for his sonÕs claim Òthe library has nothing on my topic,Ó and sought
confirmation that in the event the claim was true, ILL could readily acquire
appropriate materials.
F&M continues to be
a net lender of materials, as the numbers featured below indicate. Electronic receipt and delivery
accounted for 38% of all fulfilled ILL transactions (article copies and book
loans), and 58% of article copy traffic.
ILL packaging and shipping of EZ Borrow materials remained steady, as
there was minimal change in the overall use of the service.
Total items BORROWED: 5,285
Format: loans: 1,432; copies: 3,853 (58%
delivered electronically)
Total items LOANED: 7,989
Format: loans: 3,338; copies: 4,651 (58% delivered electronically)
TOTAL TRANSACTIONS: 13,276
2003/04 2004/05 2005/06 2006/07 2007/08
Borrowing: 7,667 7,253 5,788 5,333 5,285
Lending: 9,208 9,294 9,253 8,105 7,991
TOTAL: 16,875 16,547 15,049 13,438 13,276
IDS
(Interlibrary Delivery Service) shipping by ILL for ILL and EZ Borrow:
2004 2005 2006 2007 2008
4,383 4,496 4,466 4,387 *3,756
* 9 months
MARKETING
The Library created and
implemented a Marketing Plan for the first time in 2007-2008. After researching best practices in
academic libraries, a working group of librarians and staff crafted a plan
featuring goals, objectives, key messages, delivery strategies, evaluation
measures, a schedule, and a recommendation for the Òcontinuance and managementÓ
of the plan. The specific objectives for this academic year were to: have
personalized contact with every first-year student; host at least two scholarly
talks/events per semester; realize an increase in reference interactions and
web site traffic; and engage in more consistent outreach. Librarians coordinated activities and
events to meet the objectives, recorded expenditures of financial and human
resources, gauged response and participation levels of the targeted audience(s)
(faculty, students, professional staff, parents, alumni, Lancaster community
members), and assessed the overall outcomes and value of each endeavor. The following activities and events
debuted over the course of the year:
personalized letters to all first-year and January transfer students; a
conversation with FPS regarding student research practices; the ÒF&M
Faculty @ the LibraryÓ lecture series; the distribution of customized
sticky-note pads to students and parents; and the posting of ÒAsk AndyÓ posters
across campus. Continuing
activities and events now contributing to marketing efforts: Ask Andy @ Bonchek House; Librarian
House Calls; Friends of the Library events; Homecoming and Reunion WeekendsÕ
ÒWake Up @ the LibraryÓ; Celebrating Scholarship; the Annual Library Book sale;
and participation in the Beginnings Information Fair. Librarians and professional staff will continue engaging in
intentional marketing activities in 2008-2009 through a new plan under
development by a new working group.
MARTIN LIBRARY OF THE SCIENCES
Summary.
The Science Library continues to focus on collection
maintenance and development, space planning and public service.
Shelf reading,
collection analysis, and recording of periodical use statistics are examples of
collection maintenance and development efforts. Current and select bound psychology periodicals moved to MLS
providing greater access and research support for students and close proximity
to the relocated Psychology Department. Consolidating the current psychology
journals benefited patrons looking for the latest published literature and
streamlined the bindery process that preserves the literature. Over 350 current
periodical titles were shifted and relabeled to accommodate the psychology
journals – a significant space planning feat.
ÒThe
buildingÕs carpet, paint, casual seating and furniture laminate show signs of
significant wear. Ò [Annual Report 06/07] After welcoming over 2,500 more
people than last year and no attention to these issues by the College, the
current environment is inadequate.
The increased gate count
coincides with the opening of the Barshinger Life Sciences & Philosophy
Building and the close proximity of student housing in College Row. The idea of
libraries as study and social spaces remains strong. Contrary to recent trends
in academic libraries MLS reports an increase in reference and research
questions. Reference questions doubled from last year and for the second year
in a row outpaced directional questions. Overall patron contacts increased by
43%.
These
reference figures are particularly interesting because in-house book and
journal use is the lowest in 7 years by a notable margin despite the increased
gate count. The shift towards more online scientific resources and increased
assistance with non-scientific resources accounts for the explosion in
reference questions.
Selected
challenges to be addressed in Ô08/Õ09 are: worn furnishings, increasingly
limited seating, maintaining optimal hours and service with our current level
of staffing, keeping abreast of the growth of electronic resources in the
sciences, continued creativity in space planning while assessing and
accommodating space constraints in campus libraries.
Accomplishments:
Challenges:
á Planning for staffing
shortfalls due to 999-hour limitation for part-time staff and unexpected
medical absence of full time professional staff member during a time of limited
part-time staff availability due to the depletion of carefully allocated and
limited staffing resources, conference attendance and vacations.
á Worn carpet, casual
seating and paint and peeling laminate on tables and carrels. We have resorted to turning tables in
different directions to hide particleboard exposed by torn and missing
laminate.
REFERENCE SERVICES
This year was one of
continued strong departmental activity in Reference Services. After a dramatic increase in user
activity the last three years, the number of reference transactions dropped in
07/08. This general drop indicates a need to rethink or more strongly market
how these services are delivered, while the smaller drop in the use of our
virtual reference services will probably be addressed simply by increasing the
marketing of all reference services.
In general, use of our
electronic resources again grew over last year. The campus continued steady use of our FirstSearch products and
made more use of our Wilson products. Use
of Lexis/Nexis was down slightly, while JStor searches increased again after
major increases the previous three years.
Use of Anthrosource, Business Source Premier and OED Online almost doubled
for each over last year. Other highlights include major increases in the use of
ArtStor, Columbia International Affairs Online, PsycArticles and World
Development Indicators.
Over the course of
07/08, 14 other possible online resources were trialed and formally considered
for addition to our collection. Major additions to our electronic resource
collection this year included the CQ Almanac and CQ Researcher, Oxford Language
Dictionaries Online, Oxford Islamic Studies Online, the Scientific American
Archive, the Biology Image Library, and the IMFÕs International Financial
Statistics Online.
The Reference Services
Assistant continued to contribute strongly to administrative, instructional and
user service efforts. A major reference collection maintenance project was continued,
our internal Reference blog allowing staff to communicate news and tips between
different departments and shifts proved useful, and questions and billing
related to GoPrint, the print management system on campus, were co-managed with
Library Systems staff.
Upcoming departmental
projects include the completion of a reference collection development policy
that covers electronic resources, additional marketing of our reference
services, implementation of the LibQual survey in 2009, and a complete review
of reference standing orders.
SYSTEMS
Library website use
continued to climb, with a moderate 12% increase in homepage hits over the
previous year. Interestingly,
Library homepage hits have increased 76% since measurement began in 2000.
GoPrint continued to save the Library and ITS from the hassles of printer
management and costs of printing waste. An additional GoPrint release station
was installed in the Life Sciences & Philosophy computing lab. Overall
printing reached an all-time high, 1,547,545 pages. This represented a 12% increase over the previous year, and a 102% increase over
the last 2 years. Our integrated library system (SirsiDynix Symphony) was
upgraded to GL3.2 in March, in preparation for a comprehensive 5-Year Review of
system implementation and utilization. Microform printing dropped significantly
by 37%. Our 4 reader-printer units produced 23,993 pages.
VISUAL RESOURCES
Notable
Activities
Services
to User Groups:
Students. Group Bibliographic Instruction and Individual Research
Appointments were provided to students in American Studies, Anthropology, Art,
Mathematics, and Sociology. The
Visual Resources Librarian taught seven B.I. classes for a total of 103
students reached and met with twenty-eight students individually for directed
research instruction. The Visual
Resources Assistant led Visual Resources Collection orientation for students in
ART105 and ART378. The Visual
Resources Librarian provided approximately 200 hours of Reference Desk service
primarily devoted to student assistance.
ARTstor
(subscription digital library) instruction included a workshop for an
Anthropology seminar and a tutorial for a Foundations class preceptor.
Faculty. ARTstor training activities included a refresher workshop
for two Department of Art and Art History faculty and the Visual Resources
Assistant, a tutorial for faculty in Anthropology and International Studies,
and a one-on-one tutorial for an Art and Art History faculty member.
The
Visual Resources Department had representation on the collegeÕs Visual Literacy
Working Group. The Department also
participated in a series of staff- and financial-resources discussions with the
Department of Art and Art History as part of the continuing transition of
Visual Resources from Art and Art History to the library. Collection development activities
included appropriate communication with liaison departments Art and Art History
and Sociology, and well as with Biology and BFB regarding discipline-specific
visual resources.
Campus.
The Acting Curator, Phillips Museum, Art Collections, consulted with
Visual Resources about library research, image cataloging and DSpace collection
building. The Coordinator of
Classroom Technology, ITS, collaborated with Visual Resources to install, test,
and troubleshoot ARTstor software on all classroom computers.
Visual
Resources Collection
Trends.
The most significant Visual Resources Department development during FY
2007-2008 was the adaptation of the DSpace institutional repository for use as
a digital asset management system.
The first two visual resources collections established (F&M Visual
Resources Collection, 94 images, and F&M Pennsylvania Folk Art Collection,
54 images, make college-owned images and their associated metadata available
for education and scholarship.
LDAP binding for authentication purposes, acquired at the end of FY
07/08, will enable the inclusion of purchased (Òlicensed in perpetuityÓ)
digital images already in hand.
Such individually purchased, curriculum-specific visual content allows F&M
to stay current with the common practice of supplementing ARTstor—or
other subscription image libraries—with local image needs.
Andy Gulati Instruction:
ENG 462, International Students, TDF 105, MUS 107, TDF 171, Career Services,
TDF 172, TDF 168, IST 200 (2 sessions), Alpha Phi, Bonchek House (4 sessions),
ART 245. Professional
meetings and workshops: SIRSI
SuperConference. College committees and workshops: Advisor
for Anime and CRA (Catastrophic Relief Alliance) Clubs, CRA disaster relief
efforts in Mississippi – January 2008 and New Orleans – May 2008.
Thomas A. Karel
Instruction: BOS 200, BOS 361, BOS 480, FND 140, GOV
100, GOV 130, GOV 223, GOV 250, GOV 326, GOV 372, GOV 425, GOV 471, SOC 100;
plus 47 research appointments with students and faculty. Professional
meetings and workshops: ACLCP Fall Meeting; ACLCP Collection Development
Retreat; Charleston Conference for Collection Development, Drexel Scholarly
Communication Symposium; Federal Depository Library Conference; Pennsylvania
Documents Meeting; PALCI Spring Meeting; 4 Library Science faculty lectures at
Drexel University. College committees
and workshops: Local Economy Center Board; moderated student presentations
at the CollegeÕs Research Fair, Spring 2008; Professional Staff lunches,
International Center lunches. Lectures
and publications: Presented a
talk at the ACLCP Collection Development SIG Summer Retreat, York College of PA.
Reviewed the following books in Library
Journal: Jesus Freaks: A True Story
of Murder and Madness on the Evangelical Edge, by Don Lattin; The Conscience of a Liberal, by Paul
Krugman; The Soiling of Old Glory: The
Story of a Photograph that Shocked America, by Louis P. Masur; and, The Sixties Unplugged: A
Kaleidoscopic History of a Disorderly Decade, by Gerard J. DeGroot. Reviewed the following book in American Reference Books Annual, Volume
39 (ARBA 2008): Encyclopedia of American
Urban History, edited by David Goldfield. Continued to serve on the
Editorial Board of The Behavioral and
Social Sciences Librarian.
Other: taught graduate courses at the College of
Information Studies and Technology, Drexel University: INFO 665 (online), INFO
680 (twice – live and
online).
Louise Kulp Instruction:
AMS170, ART103, ART126, ART231, ART233, ART377, ART/ANT379, FND110, MAT170; 28
research appointments. Professional
meetings and workshops:
ARLIS/NA Professional Development Committee, ACLCP Program Committee,
NITLE Workshop, Higher Ed Hero Audio Conference, Professional Development Leave
of Absence Developing an
interdisciplinary teaching collection of artistsÕ books at Shadek-Fackenthal
Library, LexisNexis training, SirsiDynix training. College committees and workshops: Visual Literacy Working Group, Professional Development
Workshop, Public Safety Presentation, IET eLearning Laboratory lunch and learn.
Lectures and publications: NITLE DSpace User Community Meeting
Poster Session.
Christopher Raab Instruction: Fall 2007: AMS 173, AMS
489, AMS/HIS 153, AMS/HIS 175, AMS/HIS 339, HIS 316, HIS 373; Spring 2008: AMS
280, AMS 350, ANT 102, ART 233, FND 162, HIS 276, HIS 360, HIS 420; 14 Research
Appointments. Professional meetings and
workshops: Advanced Seminar in Archives and Special
Collections, RBS; ACRL/LAMA Joint Spring Virtual Institute;
NITLE DSpace User Community Meeting.
College
committees and workshops: Member, Lancaster County
Digitization Project; Invited Member, NITLE DSpace User Community Meeting
Planning Committee; Invited Member, Mid-Atlantic Digital Library Conference
(MADLC) Planning Committee Lectures
and publications: Web Presentation with Stacy Nowicki,
Kalamazoo College, "Creating an IR: Planning and Policies" - NITLE
DSpace Virtual User Community Meeting; Web Presentation "Recognizing
Opportunities for Library Leadership (R.O.L.L.)" - ACRL/LAMA Joint Spring
Virtual Institute; Presentation "Marketing Your Campus IR" - NITLE
DSpace User Community Meeting; "Collaborative Solutions to Digitization
for College Library Special Collections" College & Undergraduate Libraries, 14, no.4 (2008).
Dale
Riordan Instruction:
AST110a, AST386, BIO220, CHM111, CHM222, CHM342, ENV117,
ENV172, ENV374, NTW134 NTW141, PHY171, PHY336. Professional meetings
and workshops: Member, SLA
Science-Technology Division Board as Chair of Professional Development
Committee and Chair of Membership Committee; Conferences attended: Special Libraries Association
Conference, Oberlin Group Science Librarians Meeting, ANCHASL Meeting;
Webinars: Web of Science, Special Libraries Association. College committees and workshops: "Coaching &
Managing", CLAS program: ÒHow Students Learn ScienceÓ; Professional
Development Forums, 5-year Review SIRSI Training.
Renate Sachse Instruction:
CLS/ART140B, CLS422; 3 research appointments. Professional meetings and workshops: Sirsi/Dynix Superconference, Lancaster
County Library Association (Secretary), PALINET Annual Meeting, Fair Use Audio
Conference, RCL (Bowker) session, PALINET Symposium, SirsiDynix Workshop. College committees and workshops: Human
Resources Workshop, Professional Development Forums.
Pamela Snelson Instruction:
ANT 125 Professional meetings and
workshops: ACRL Past-President, OCLC Members Council delegate.
Attended EDUCAUSE Annual Conference, ALA Midwinter and Annual Conferences,
Oberlin Library DirectorsÕ meeting, PALCI Fall meeting, CLIR Sponsors meeting,
NITLE Summit, National Library Legislative Days, University of Maryland Center
for Intellectual Property online symposium, Libraries in the Digital Age
conference, and NITLE DSpace Users Conference College committees and workshops: Curriculum Subcommittee,
Professional Staff Luncheons. Lectures
and publications: ÒOpen Source Digital RepositoriesÓ at NITLE Summit; ÒFrom
Instant Messaging to Outreach: the Development, Use and Effects of Virtual
Reference in the College Library EnvironmentÓ with Scott Vine
at Libraries in the Digital Age conference.
Lisa Stillwell Instruction: AMS 100, AMS 170, AMS
350, AMS 374, ANT 100, ANT 125, ANT 269, ECO 103, ENG 105a, ENG 105b, ENG 105c,
ENG 107, ENG 167, ENG 177, ENG 202, ENG 464, HIS 171, HIS 360, RST 212, SOC
302, WGS 173, WGS 275, WGS 375; 12 research appointments. Professional
meetings and workshops: Co-Chair
ACRL 14th National Conference Virtual Conference Committee; ACRL
Spectrum Scholar Mentor; ACLCP Governing Board meeting; ALA Midwinter
Conference; ÒThe Future of PALCIÓ meeting; ÒFair Use in Higher EducationÓ
seminar; ACLCP Spring Meeting; ÒFuture of Literacy in Higher EducationÓ
seminar; Central PA Resource Sharing; NITLE Information Literacy Assessment
workshop; ALA Annual Conference. College committees and workshops: Conducted orientation session
"Sexual Assault Awareness and PreventionÓ; Vice-President F & M
chapter of the AAUP; F&M Votes Co-Chair; The Vagina Monologues Steering Committee member; Clemente Course
Writing Tutor; Professional Staff Development luncheons; Committee on Sexual
Misconduct.
Scott Vine Instruction: FND 182, PSY 230 (4), PSY 301, PSY 305,
Clemente Course Philosophy section, multiple CTY classes, International student
tours. Professional meetings and workshops: Director
at Large, ACRL-DVC; Member, ACRL CLS Leadership Committee; Chair/Member, ACRL 2nd
Life Task Force; Member, ACRL Virtual Conference 2009 Organizing Committee; ACRL-DVC Fall and
Spring Programs, ALA Midwinter, and the 2008 Libraries in the Digital Age
conference. College committees
and workshops: Vice Chair, ChildrenÕs Center Parents
Board; Professional staff lunches. Lectures and publications: Panel moderator for ACRL-DVC Fall Program; Co-presented talk titled ÔFrom
Instant Messaging to Outreach: the Development, Use and Effects of Virtual
Reference in the College Library EnvironmentÕ at the LIDA conference.
STAFF ACTIVITIES
Jennifer M. Buch Instruction: CLS/ART 140
(assistant). College committees and workshops:
Staff Advisory Committee (Secretary and Web editor), Library
Marketing Group, training sessions for reference databases, interlibrary loan
and SIRSI, Fair Use audio conference and Professional
Staff lunches. Professional meetings and workshops: ACLCP Spring meeting.
Sabine Buckius Professional
meetings and workshops: ACLCP
Spring Meeting, 5-year Review SIRSI training.
Denise Chmielewski College committees and workshops: Library Book Sale Planning Committee, Sirsi Special Interest
Group (SirSIG), Librarian House Calls, Friends of the Library
Events, Professional Staff Development Sessions, State
of the College meeting, Campus Disaster and Emergency
Preparedness events, ITS information and
training session on new campus web mail interface ÒZimbraÓ, Media Services new eLearning Lab tour and
orientation, Wellness Committee events.
Professional meetings and
workshops: SirsiDynix
SuperConference 2008, ACLCP Library Network Committee,
ACLCP Spring Meeting, training session of the new LEXIS-NEXIS interface,
Rapid ILLwebinar,Ó Fair UseÓ audio conference.
William Coventry Professional meetings and workshops: Electronic database workshop.
Linda Danner College committees and workshops: Professional Staff
Development lunches, Campus Disaster and Emergency Preparedness
workshop, Wellness Committee events, training
session on new campus web mail interface ÒZimbraÓ, Student
Employment Supervisor Workshop, Lunch and Learn sessions, Book sale planning
committee, Wellness Committee.
Mike Horn College
committees and workshops: Relay
for Life (co-chair), Dipnic Committee, Wellness Committee, Student Employment
Supervisor Workshop, Crisis Planning Workshop, Professional Development
luncheons. Professional meetings and workshops: SirsiDynix Workshop, Fall Friends of the Library
lecture.
Carol Kornhauser College committees and workshops: Professional Staff Development
luncheons, a Student Employment Information workshop, and two non-exempt staff
meetings. Professional meetings and workshops: Friends of the Library lecture, a Lunch & Learn session, ÒF&M Faculty at the LibraryÓ
lectures.
Michael R. Lear
Instruction: Fall 2007: AMS 173, ART
233, HIS 373; Spring 2008: AMS 280, HIS 360. Professional
meetings and workshops: ACLCP
Fall 2007 Meeting.
Charles D. Leayman College committees and workshops: Richard
Kneedler Distinguished Service Award Committee, Student Employment Workshop,
Professional Development Forums, 5-year Review SIRSI Training, Boncheck
Lecture, Emergency Preparedness Presentation. Professional meetings
and workshops: ALA Midwinter
Exhibits, ACLCP Spring Meeting, ACLCP Support Staff Spring Meeting, ACRL/DVC
Spring Meeting, Fair Use Teleconference.
Sharon McIlhenney College committees and workshops: Professional Development luncheons, New
Employee orientation, Forum on Presidential Politics, Human ResourcesÕ
Long-Term Care Insurance Information Session. Professional meetings
and workshops: SirsiDynix
Workshop, ACLCP Spring Meeting.
Pat Miller Professional
meetings and workshops: SirsiDynix
Workshop.
Nikki Rearich College
committees and workshops: Fringe
Benefits Committee, LibraryÕs SirsiG Committee, Professional Development
luncheons, Computing workshop, Wellness seminars. Professional meetings and workshops: SirsiDynix Workshop, Computing
Department workshop.
Dianne Roda Professional
meetings and workshops: Central
PA Resource Sharing Group.
Mary Shelly College committees and workshops: Student Employment Workshop,
Professional Staff luncheons.
Ken Siegert College committees and workshops: Professional Staff Development luncheons, and a Student
Employment Supervisor Workshop. Professional Spring meetings and
workshops: Friends of the
Library lecture.
Rick Thompson College committees and workshops: Student employment
workshop, Human ResourcesÕ Long-Term Care Insurance Information Session,
LibraryÕs SirsiG Committee. Professional meetings and workshops: SirsiDynix Workshop, Spring Friends of
the Library lecture.
Susan Walker College committees and workshops: Library staff meetings, Public Safety
Presentation. Professional meetings and workshops: ARTstor workshop.
Susan Wood.
College Committees and workshops: professional staff development luncheons, a Student
Employment Information workshop, and two non-exempt staff meetings. Professional
meetings and workshops:
Attended a SIRSI Webinar, Fair
Use in Higher Education teleconference, and the Spring Friends of the Library
lecture.