e-Forum Discussions

These three-day moderated electronic discussion forums provide an opportunity for librarians to discuss matters of interest through the ALCTS e-forum discussion list. Registration is necessary to participate, but it's free.

Licensing: Why, When, and How (October 13 - 14, 2009)

If your library is like many others, electronic resources are taking up a bigger portion of the budget and growing every day. Licensing is often an essential component of e-resources workflow but frequently delays timely acquisitions and access. This e-forum will be a chance to discuss the mechanics of licensing e-resources and share your experiences and best practices with others. Come discuss the reasons for licensing, your strategies for making this a more efficient part of your workflow, and the future of licensing in your institution.

Moderated by Selden Lamoureux, Electronic Resources Librarian at North Carolina State University and Kristin Martin, Metadata Librarian at the University of Illinois Chicago.

The Art of Conversation: Improving Communication between Technical Services and Public Services (November 18 - 20, 2009)

How do you communicate with other departments at your institution? Is your day filled with a flurry of emails, or do you hear the crickets chirping? Sarah Simpson, Technical Services Manager at the Tulsa City-County Library, and Keri Cascio, Branch Manager at the St. Louis City-County Library District, will moderate a discussion about sharing information between departments and creating points of contact. The Tulsa City-County Library Tech Services department set up a Help Desk to open their lines of communication. What have you done at your institution?

Moderated by Sarah Simpson and Keri Cascio

Opening Doors to Hidden Collections (December 8 - 9, 2009)

E-Forum runs from 8-4 pm Central Time (9-5 pm Eastern Time) each day.

As discovery tools are overtaking the traditional catalog as the primary face of libraries, much emphasis is being placed on unique materials and hidden collections.

How do you define hidden collections? How would you describe them? How do you provide access to hidden collections? What are the roles, if any, of the traditional Technical Services and/or Collection Development departments in providing access to these hidden collections? Do new workflows or adjustments in staffing have to be made to accommodate the work?

Join the discussion. Help answer these question and pose others. We have the opportunity to reshape what a library is and does. Don't be passive. Become an active voice in creating change. Help us shape the future.

Moderated by JoAnne Deeken and Millie Jackson.

JoAnne Deeken is Head of Technical Services and Digital Access at the University of Tennessee Libraries. She has been a librarian in Technical Services for 25 years and has worked at 5 different university libraries across the country. Most of her publications deal with the organization of technical services. She is an active member of ALCTS, having served on several committees and discussion (now interest) groups.

Millie Jackson is Associate Dean for Collections at The University of Alabama. Previously she was Head of Collections at Florida State University and held several positions in the library at Grand Valley State University in Allendale, MI. She has published and presented on workflow and electronic resources. She is currently the chair of ALCTS CMDS Administration of Collection Development.

To Register

go to ALCTS Discussion List Web site
click on Association for Library Collections and Technical Services under the ALA Division heading
click on the list name, alcts-eforum@ala.org
enter the email address where you'd like to receive the messages
username and password are required to register. Instructions for obtaining a login and password may be found on the list homepage. Participation is free and open to anyone.

To Unsubscribe from the e-Forum List

Go to the list's main page (http://lists.ala.org/sympa/info/alcts-eforum) and select "Unsubscribe" from the list in the left-hand column.

Suggestions?

Ideas for other topics are welcome. Contact Kristin Martin, kmarti@uic.edu, if you would like to moderate a discussion.

Past Discussions

Review past e-Forum discussions. | more