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Academic Library Association of Ohio... A Chapter of ACRL
Vol. 20, No. 4, December 2002

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ALAO News

President's Report

Cliff Glaviano, President
Bowling Green State University

Thank you, thank you, thank you …

I'm putting this together about two weeks after ALAO's annual conference. I've noticed that I am sleeping much better now than I was the final week of October. Here's an example ... I came awake about 3 a.m., on Halloween thinking and knowing, "That will never work!" concerning a proposed arrangement of exhibit tables at the conference. Simultaneously, my sinuses started draining, the prelude to a fine cold for the conference and the ten days following. I tossed and turned until 5 a.m., until I figured out an alternate arrangement. At work, I composed an email to Cynthia Krieg at Embassy Suites and faxed her an alternate setup diagram. I also copied both messages to Kelly Shook ... it wasn't my only sleepless night and I wasn't even Program Chair! I'm sure that Kelly, as Program Chair, had more than her share of restless nights while the conference loomed. We were at the point of knowing there was nothing more we could do, but it didn't help.

Then the coolest thing happened. You all showed up in Independence, Ohio! To dream in mid-October that more than 300 folks would register for the conference would have been well beyond my powers of imagination. Thank you all so much for your support of the Conference and your support of ALAO. I hope the programming met your expectations. I hope you all had a good time. Mostly, thank you.

So by now, ALAO's 28th annual conference, "Face-to-Face or Cyberspace: Redefining the Human Touch," is history. Evaluations indicated folks were pleased with the keynote speaker, conference programming, parking, and so on. They were less pleased with some aspects of the lunch/business meeting ... well, we did tax all the Embassy Suites creative abilities to seat more than 300 for lunch, and it pretty much worked ok. Dessert was fine.

The vendors loved talking to you. Joe Janes was caught making notes at one of the ALAO presentations. Doug Morrison of OSU ATI was awarded the 2002 Jay Ladd Award. The rest is a blur ...

Official "Thank you's" to these folks:

  • The 2002 Program Committee survivors (defined as still standing as of 3 p.m. 11/1/02): Barb Anderson, Case Western Reserve; Betsy Blankenship, OSU Marion; Aimée DeChambeau, U. Akron; Nancy Emrick, Owens CC; Deberah England, Wright State; Cliff Glaviano, BGSU; Jacky Johnson, Miami; Doug Morrison, OSU-ATI; Gail Richmond, BGSU; and Chair, Kelly Shook, Kent State.
  • Erica Lilly, Kent State, for the program theme and for setting the direction of the Conference.
  • Kelly Shook, for calling in all her "favors," from Kent State's AV department (equipment and Bob Minno's AV support), IT support (equipment and support by Brian Gardner and Andy Martineau), and KSU printing services for taking Kelly's discount printing coupons.
  • The folks from University of Akron, Bowling Green, Wright State, and Case Western Reserve who scrounged, begged or borrowed laptop PC's and video projectors that allowed some slim hope of the Conference breaking even.
  • Thanks to the ALAO Board members and Program Committee members who introduced their colleagues before their presentations.
  • Thanks to all of you came to the Conference, gritted your teeth and scraped the sauce from the chicken (to file: remember how often the vegetarian option is better), savored the cheesecake, networked with vendors and colleagues, and learned from the programming. You're the best.
  • The supporters and workers in ALAO are its strength and its success. We are an excellent volunteer organization because of the quality of our volunteers and the supervisors who allow these volunteers to devote time and energy to ALAO. Thank you again for your loyalty to ALAO and all the things you do to make ALAO a success. And ... if you haven't sent in that "Get involved in ALAO" form from your Conference packet, do it right now. If you need a "Get involved ..." form, send me e-mail (jglavia@bgnet.bgsu.edu).

There's plenty of stuff to do as we work to improve ALAO's service to its membership. We're trying to get better on the web as far as our newsletter, manual, and membership database. If you haven't yet, do get involved. You will meet some of the finest folks in the world.

Dates to Remember 2003

January 13ALAO Elections -- Nominations Deadline
January 24-27ALA Midwinter, Philadelphia, PA
January 27Ohio Caucus @ ALA Midwinter, Philadelphia, PA
January 31ALAO Continuing Education Grants Application Deadline
February 13ALAO Board Meeting @ Ohionet
February 15ALAO Newsletter Submissions Deadline
March 15ALAO Newsletter Published
April 10-13ACRL 11th National Conference, Charlotte, NC
Learning to Make a Difference
April 24ALAO Board Meeting @ Ohionet
May 15ALAO Newsletter Submissions Deadline
June 15ALAO Newsletter Published
July 31ALAO SSIG Nominations Deadline for:
Ohio Library Outstanding Support Staff Award
Ohio Library Outstanding Supporter of Support Staff Award

Attending the Annual Conference -- Another View

Betsy Blankenship, ALAO PR/Outreach Coordinator
Marion Campus Library, The Ohio State University and Marion Technical College

I have always looked forward to going to the ALAO annual conference each year. It was always exciting to learn what was going on in other Ohio libraries, pick up some great ideas and meet with colleagues. This year I served on the Conference Program Committee and I got to see the conference from a whole new perspective.

First, committee members never really get to "attend" the conference. We are all busy running around with behind the scenes work. The committee actually starts their work a whole year before the conference with brainstorming, planning and much anxiety! Then ever so slowly, the pieces begin to fall in place: theme, keynote speaker, date and location. After that, it's many more committee meetings throughout the year to deal with publicity, proposals, poster sessions, food and meeting details, working with all participants (speakers, presenters, vendors and exhibitors) and getting the word out!

Image: Members of the ALAO Board preparing packets for the ConferenceThe conference begins for the committee the day before the actual event. Everyone is busy preparing packets, finalizing a/v needs, setting up signs and trying to catch a little R&R before the big day. Sometimes the speaker needs to be picked up and delivered or last minute local arrangements need to be made.

The conference day starts early for us, too. Many of our members have pre-assigned duties of registration, PR, being a contact for vendors and exhibitors and just being available for information, directions, etc. for our attendees. As I wandered around taking pictures of various activities, I got to mingle with our members, cheer on our presenters and poster session folks and visit with our vendors. And I got lots of pictures! Our Program Chair, Kelly Shook, was a great leader and encouraged all of us throughout the day. She was a "floater," trying to ensure a stress-less day (sometimes it worked!).

I am amazed at all the preparation that goes into our annual conference and I am sure we had many appreciative members. Our speaker, Joe Janes, was a favorite with our members and one person even commented that "he was the Dave Barry of the library world!" Other attendees I spoke with throughout the day were enthusiastic about particular sessions. I thought the poster sessions were great and well-attended.

While our conference is always intended to serve as a professional development opportunity for members, I gained a whole new education on just how a conference is put together. I have a new appreciation for all of our members who have selflessly volunteered on previous Program Committees. Thanks, ALAO, for always providing new learning opportunities!

ALAO Elections

Marcia Suter, Past President
University of Toledo

This Spring we will elect a Vice-President/President-Elect, a three-year commitment serving one year as Vice President, followed by one year as President, and another year as Past President. We will also elect a Treasurer and three Board Members-at-Large, all of which are two-year terms. Highlights of the duties of these positions to be elected are outlined below:

Vice-President/President-Elect

  1. Votes on issues brought before the Board
  2. Chairs the Standing Program Committee (which plans the Annual Conference and coordinates other programming efforts of the Association)
  3. Acts as President upon authorization of the Executive Board
  4. Performs duties as assigned by the Executive Board

President

  1. Presides at all meetings of the Executive Board
  2. Votes on issues brought before the Board
  3. Appoints all committees
  4. May serve as a non-voting member of all standing committees
  5. Performs other duties required of the office or specifically authorized by the Executive Board

Immediate Past President

  1. Votes on issues brought before the Board
  2. Chairs the Nominating Committee
  3. Chairs the Awards Committee
  4. Chairs the Communication Review Committee
  5. Serves ex-officio on the Human Diversity Committee

Treasurer

  1. Oversees the handling of Chapter financial affairs, financial correspondence, budget creation, and strategic plan creation.
  2. Is responsible for the oversight of the funds of the organization,
  3. Reports the financial status of the organization at each Executive Board meeting and submit a written statement at the time.
  4. Performs such other duties as are required of the office of Treasurer or specifically authorized by the Executive Board.

Board Member-at-Large (three to be elected, 2-year term)

  1. Serves on the Executive Committee as a representative of the membership-at-large
  2. Votes on issues brought before the Board
  3. Serves on the Professional Development Committee
  4. Completes special assignments made by the President

Any ALAO member is eligible to run for office. Note that the President and President Elect must both be members of ACRL. Terms of office begin during the Board Leadership retreat, which has traditionally been held in June. Please consider running for an office yourself or nominating a willing colleague. This is an opportunity to make a difference, enhance your professional development, and expand your network of colleagues. Feel free to contact me if you are interested. I am sure current Board members will be happy to chat with you about their jobs to help you make your decision.

Please send your nominations via e-mail, phone, fax, or mail by January 13, 2003 to:
Marcia Krautter Suter
The University of Toledo
Carlson Library
Toledo, OH 43606
419.530.2629
marcia.suter@utoledo.edu

Elections will be held in late February or early March. Remember to renew your membership for 2003 so you may vote in the upcoming elections!

2002-2003 ALAO EXECUTIVE BOARD ROSTER

www.alaoweb.org/officers/board.html has complete information

Doug Morrison Receives Jay Ladd Distinguished Service Award

Image courtesy of Betsy Blankenship

Image: Marcia Sutter presenting Doug Morrison with the 2002 Jay Ladd AwardDoug Morrison is the 2002 recipient of the Jay Ladd Distinguished Service Award. He is a reference/serials librarian at the Ohio State ATI campus library. Before moving to ATI he was a library support staff member at the University of Akron Wayne College Library for 9 and 1/2 years.

Doug has been very active in ALAO, serving as co-chair and chair of the ALAO Support Staff Interest Group and co-founder of the Ohio Library Support Staff Institute that held its first highly successful event this past August. He currently serves as a member of the Steering Committee for the OLSSI. He is a member of the 2002 and the 2003 ALAO Annual Conference Planning Committees.

One nominator spoke of Doug as a moving force in the ALAO-SSIG since 1998, serving as chair, creating and maintaining a listserv for the group, and bringing a seemingly inexhaustible supply of energy, ideas, and focus to group activities and meetings. He motivated individuals to step into leadership roles or take on larger responsibilities. He proposed the creation of the support staff presenter grant that assists support staff members with their travel expenses when presenting at the Annual Conference. He spearheaded the development of the Ohio Support Staff Institute that brought together support staff from all types of Ohio libraries for a week of intensive workshops and discussion.

As Doug accepted his award, he said he hadn't realized he had done all the things with which he is credited. "I just wanted to help others and contribute to my profession," he said. Doug's attitude is typical of many ALAO members. He joins a select group of individuals who have distinguished themselves through their work for others in the field of librarianship.

The Distinguished Service Award has been given annually since 1984 to an ALAO member who promotes academic libraries and librarianship not only on his or her own campus, but also within the state. It also recognizes those who provide leadership in the promotion of ALAO through service such as committee membership, executive board office, or interest group chairmanship. The award was renamed in 1998 to honor Jay Ladd, a former Ohio State University librarian who was instrumental in forming ALAO. Jay died in 1997.

ALAO Continuing Education Grants Awarded

Donna Jacobs, Chair, Professional Development Committee
The College of Wooster

ALAO granted two continuing education grants this fall, one to Ann Watson (Denison University) and the other to Gerald Natal (University of Toledo).

Ann Watson, coordinator of library instruction at Denison University, received a grant to fund a portion of the tuition at The Ohio State University's College of Education, where she is pursuing a subject master's in the Social and Cultural Foundations program. Noting that her role in a team-teaching environment with faculty is increasing as information literacy plays an increasingly important role in student learning at Denison, Watson expects this graduate program to "improve my skills in these areas as well as further my development as an Academic librarian."

Gerald Natal, currently a library media technical assistant at the University of Toledo's Carlson Library, has worked in libraries for 13 years. He has been a page, monitor, and library technician. He has worked in many departments, including cataloging, library materials, reference, and circulation. He has also driven a bookmobile, delivered books, repaired books, put up shelving, and acted as a graphic artist for his library. His next logical step is to pursue a master's degree at Kent State University's School of Library and Information Science. Natal will use the ALAO continuing education grant to help defray the cost of a semester's tuition.

ALAO's Professional Development Committee extends congratulations to both recipients.

ALAO awards continuing education grants twice each year. The next application deadline is January 31, 2003. An application form is available at the ALAO web site.

Welcome New Advocates

Susan D. Scott, For the Government Relations Team
Denison University

As ALAO members continue to monitor legislative activities and react when prompted, we are pleased to welcome five to our ALAO Legislative Advocate Network: Renee Geary, from Ohio University, Gail Marredeth, from Cleveland State University, Susan Paul, from Lorain County Community College, Chris Rigda from the University of Akron, and Joe Salem, Jr., from Kent State University.

We still do not have anyone representing Congressional Districts 4, 10, and 14. If you either work or live in one of these districts and would be willing to be an Advocate, please email Susan Scott, scott@denison.edu.


Interest Groups

Collection Management

Rob Withers, CMIG Chair
Miami University

The proliferation of electronic journals and full-text titles available through research databases has challenged and changed the ways in which libraries operate. Join us this May at OCLC as the Collection Management and Technical Services interest groups provide an opportunity to learn from experts and colleagues from a variety of backgrounds.

This workshop will provide opportunities to examine the ways in which Libraries are experimenting with changes in how they provide access to these resources, plan and budget to support subscriptions, and identify procedures and staffing needed to support the selection, acquisition, cataloging, and distribution of these materials.

In addition to presentations about new and existing library services and resources, this session will include a series of round table discussions. Workshop participants will have the opportunity to suggest topics for the round tables prior to the meeting. Opportunities to tour OCLC's facility will follow the workshop.

Interested in learning about upcoming CMIG events? Visit our web site for information on receiving email updates at: http://www.alaoweb.org/comsigs/cmig/more.html

Curriculum Materials

Sara Bushong, CMCIG Chair
Bowling Green State University

Ten people attended the ALAO CMCIG meeting at the annual conference. The meeting was a combination business meeting and presentation. Bruce Samuelson, Director, Marketing & Library Services for kcdlonline provided participants with a presentation describing the vendor's online database and fielding questions. He also provided a packet of materials that included his power point slides and search strategies. The KCDL database includes a large database of educational materials particularly helpful in identifying high quality national curriculum for PreK through adult basic education. Cost ranges in price from $800 to $1,850 - based on student FTE. Libraries interested in previewing kcdlonline may contact Alec Cunningham, Marketing Specialist (1-800-416-4385, ext. 268).

During the business meeting Ann Raney (ann.raney@notes.udayton.edu University of Dayton), reported on the CMCIG's Praxis II Pathfinder. She asked participants to comment on potential fields (created in Microsoft Access) to include in the Praxis database. Ann is looking into hosting the database at the University of Dayton and developing a submittable form from the CMCIG web page that will allow interest group members to directly enter their Praxis holdings. Subsequently, a list of Ohio praxis materials will be compiled and available on the CMCIG web page.

Sara Bushong (sbushon@bgnet.bgsu.edu) is collecting feedback concerning the current fields contained in the ALAO Ohio CMC directory (cmc.library.uakron.edu/cmc/index.html). Please forward comments to Sara as soon as possible.

Comments received so far include:

  • identify if the center is in the library or the education department
  • budget information should be closer to the top of the form
  • determine if the form can be updated without having to retype informationv
  • current form asks for 1998-1999 budget year information
  • should respondents include holdings only physically in the library, or in both the library and education department, if applicable
  • some of the wording seems bulky, i.e. report of an existing center
  • some way is needed to identify when the individual institution's report has been updated

The CMCIG 2003 spring workshop was discussed. The following topics are of interest to members:

  • creating a CMC web page
  • report on the national CMC guidelines
  • librarians from Michigan to talk about reaching undergraduate education majors and interacting with faculty (Kristine Condic and Adelaide Phelps)
  • updating the Ohio Curriculum Materials Center directory

Please feel free to contact Sara Bushong sbushon@bgnet.bgsu.edu with additional workshop ideas, potential date or locations.

Instruction

Lisa Santucci and Judy Perella, IIG Co-Chairs Miami University and Ashland University

The Instruction Interest Group held a business meeting and roundtable discussion at the ALAO Annual Conference on November 1, 2002. Business items included review of the IIG's purpose and goals and selection of the next co-chair of the interest group.

The purpose and goals had not been reviewed since the group's name change from Bibliographic Instruction Interest Group to Instruction Interest Group. It was decided to keep these as written, but to change the language "library user education" to "library instruction." The new text will be sent to the Webmasters for the IIG page.

Chris Sheetz from Lorain County Community College will assume co-chair duties in June, 2003, at the completion of Lisa Santucci's term.

The roundtable discussion provided ideas for the upcoming spring workshop. A keynote speaker with break-out sessions was the format of choice. The following topics are under further exploration:

  • Problem-based learning and instruction
  • First Year instruction
  • Chat Reference and instruction
  • K12 and what's needed in instruction

Suggestions are welcome from anyone who was unable to attend the conference session. Please contact Lisa (santucle@lib.muohio.edu) or Judy (jperella@ashland.edu).

Support Staff

Kelly Shook, SSIG Chair & 2002 Program Committee Chair
Kent State University

I am happy to report that the three sessions geared toward Support Staff at ALAO's 28th Annual Conference, were well attended and positively received by attendees. The sessions included: "Why Do We Do What We Do: Getting Involved Beyond and Above Your Job Description," presented by Doug Morrison, Ohio State University-ATI, Joy Ramos, University of Akron, and Mary Ayres, Southern State Community College; "The Ohio Support Staff Institute (OSSI)," presented by John Burke; and "Supporting Support Staff: Providing the Human Touch to Our Co-Workers," presented by Gaynelle Predmore, Bowling Green State University, and Kelly Shook and Anita Martin, Kent State University.

The SSIG conducted its annual business meeting at the conference and names were submitted for Secretary/Chair Elect for 2003/2005. If you are interested, or know of someone who would be interested in serving as a Secretary/Chair Elect of SSIG, please send their name and contact information to: kshook@lms.kent.edu.

This year's SSIG Program Planning Committee is hard at work planning the SSIG Spring Workshop for Support Staff. A motivation workshop theme is being developed, which will encompass the roles of support staff and also the change in the roles that they fulfill. We hope to have a motivational keynote speaker in the morning followed by afternoon breakout sessions focusing on helping staff perform their jobs better.

The committee continues to investigate the possibility of having the SSIG spring workshop offered in the northern, central, or southern parts of Ohio so that support staff members at all academic, private, and public institutions throughout the state would have an opportunity to attend.

The ALAO SSIG is sponsoring the Ohio Library Outstanding Support Staff Award. The winner of this award will be a person who shows excellence in job performance and has the ability to work with staff and patrons. The person must be willing to grow in a support staff position by attending or presenting at workshops and conferences, taking classes, or being published. The person must also be active in a library association(s).

The ALAO SSIG is also sponsoring the Ohio Library Outstanding Supporter of Support Staff Award. The winner of this award will be a person who demonstrates his/her appreciation of support staff and has encouraged support staff to grow in their positions. (Examples: providing attendance to workshops, conferences, and classes; encouraging activity in library associations and interest groups.)

Nominate yourself or someone else for one or both of these awards by submitting an essay of no more than 500 words that gives solid examples of how you or a co-worker perform outstanding support staff activities. All nominees must be employed in the state of Ohio. Provide both the nominee's and nominator's names, contact information (phone number, address and e-mail address), their institution(s), length of service, and title. Persons who choose to self-nominate must provide one reference.

Send an application to:
ALAO SSIG
C/O Judy Orahood
L.A. Beeghly Library
Ohio Wesleyan University
43 Rowland Avenue
Delaware, Ohio 43015

Application deadline is July 31, 2003. Winning nominations will automatically be submitted to COLT and ALA for their spring competitions.

Anyone who is interested in becoming a part of the SSIG or the SSIG Program Planning Committee, please contact me at kshook@lms.kent.edu.

Technical Services

Cynthia Whitacre and Kevin Furniss, TSIG Co-Chairs
OCLC and Denison University

Greetings everyone! Cynthia Whitacre and I had a great time at the ALAO conference in Independence, and it was a pleasure to see so many of you there.

TSIG sponsored two sessions at the conference. The first, entitled "OCLC's WorldCat & Quality Control in the 21st century," featured Brenda Block and Robert Bremer from OCLC, who provided an overview of how proactive quality control is currently being done in the WorldCat database. In the second session, "Cataloging Electronic Resources: What Copy Catalogers Need to Know," Rob Freeborn from Penn State University discussed the changes in cataloging electronic resources that have come about in the new version of Chapter 9 of the Anglo-American Cataloging Rules. His presentation was based on a PowerPoint presentation developed by the Cataloging Policy Committee of the Online Audiovisual Catalogers.

It can be found at: ublib.buffalo.edu/libraries/units/cts/olac/capc/ch9.ppt

TSIG also had a business meeting during the conference that 13 people attended. In the course of the meeting's discussion, the following decisions were made:

  • We agreed to adopt the TSLibrarians list as the ALAO TSIG list, rather than initiating a new list. This is run by ALAO member Margaret Maurer at Kent State.
    To subscribe, send mail to LISTSERV@LISTSERV.KENT.EDU with the command: SUBSCRIBE TSLIBRARIANS
  • Karen Plummer has volunteered to serve as a webmaster for TSIG. We'll be exploring enhanced content and design in the TSIG web space on the ALAO site with Karen over the next few months. Check out our page at http://www.alaoweb.org/comsigs/tsig/index.html.
  • Discussion topics among the attendees included communication issues, need for OCLC Connexion training, time management issues, authorities processing, authority control & database maintenance for small libraries, how to use reports generated by Innovative Interfaces (or other systems), and how to maximize use of the Innovative Millennium modules. These thoughts will be incorporated in planning for future programs.

Casting your mind ahead to Spring 2003, TSIG and CMIG are co-sponsoring a spring workshop on access and management issues of serials, to be held May 15th, 2003 at OCLC. Further information on this workshop is available in the CMIG section of this newsletter, and updates will be forthcoming on the TSIG and the CMIG web spaces.

We want to hear from YOU! We encourage all of you to submit to us your thoughts and ideas on topics and speakers for future workshops, information for our web space, mentoring programs, or anything else you feel would make TSIG a better and more helpful resource for you. You can contact us directly, or, even better, share your thoughts on the TSLibrarians list.

We hope to see you and hear from you soon.


Feature Stories

ACRL 11 - April 10-13, 2003

Registration for the 11th National ACRL conference is now open. Charlotte, N.C. is the location and Learning to Make a Difference is the theme. Join your colleagues as Ohio librarians lead and participate in panels, offer contributed papers, and give a pre-conference workshop.

The conference theme and program sessions will emphasize active participation and learning so you can return to your institution re-energized and with an enhanced sense of purpose!

For complete information: www.ala.org/acrl/charlotte/

Educational Media Reviews Online -- Call for Reviewers

Karen A. Plummer, Newsletter Production Editor
The University of Akron

If you enjoy watching videos and DVDs, or fiddling around with CD-ROMs, you might enjoy contributing some reviews to the Educational Media Reviews Online (EMRO) database [http://libweb.lib.buffalo.edu/emro/about.html]! This database of reviews began in 1997 as the AV Review Database, part of the peer-reviewed publication, MC Journal: The Journal of Academic Media Librarianship. While the scholarly article portion of MC Journal ceased publication in January 2002, the AV Database continued on in it's current, renamed form.

The primary audience for EMRO's reviews are academic librarians, although faculty, instructors, and students would also find this database useful. The reviews are generally more in-depth than those in Library Journal, providing critical evaluation of the program content including scope, accuracy, style, organization, strengths and weaknesses, technical quality, type of library collections the item would enhance, educational uses of the item, and sometimes comparative evaluation with similar items. There are no length requirements, although concise evaluations are recommended. The reviewer also provides a recommendation for the item reviewed: Not Recommended, Recommended, Highly Recommended.

Need a testimonial? I've been a reviewer for EMRO for about a year and have to admit I love writing reviews for the database! As a videotape reviewer, I specified the topics that fit my educational background and experience. Once the tapes arrive, I read any background information sent along with the tape from the publisher, view the tape, and proceed to write the review. EMRO's guidelines [http://libweb.lib.buffalo.edu/emro/rev.html] are detailed but uncomplicated. When I've finished my review, I simply email a copy of the review in Word format to the editor. Once the review is edited and placed in the database, the editor sends me an email with the URL and asks me for a final check of the text. It's a simple process!

If you're interested in volunteering as a reviewer for EMRO, please contact the Editor, Lori Widzinski, via e-mail at widz@buffalo.edu

Invitation to the OHIO Caucus at Midwinter

Cliff Glaviano, President
Bowling Green State University

Carolyn Brodie, the ALA Councilor from Ohio, invites folks who will be in Philadelphia for Midwinter to stop by the Ohio Caucus meeting to be held 5 p.m., Monday, January 27, 2003. Please check your Midwinter program under Ohio Caucus for location of the meeting and to confirm the time.

TEACH Act: Major Copyright Bill Affecting Distance Education Becomes Law

Cindy Kristof for the Government Relations Team
Kent State University

On November 2nd, 2002, the "Technology, Education and Copyright Harmonization Act" (the TEACH Act), part of the larger Justice Reauthorization legislation (H.R. 2215), was signed into law by President Bush. The TEACH Act redefines the terms and conditions on which accredited, nonprofit educational institutions throughout the U.S. may use copyright protected materials in distance education-including on websites and by other digital means-without permission from the copyright owner and without payment of royalties.

TEACH establishes new opportunities for educators to use copyrighted works without permission and without payment of royalties, but those opportunities are subject to new limits and conditions. Previous law did include such a statutory exception for the benefit of distance education, but it was enacted in 1976 and has failed to meet modern needs. That statute (Section 110(2) of the Copyright Act) generally encompassed closed-circuit television transmissions, and it could not foster robust and innovative and digital educational programs that might reach students at home, at work, or at any other location. The TEACH Act repeals that statute and replaces it with a more complex, but more beneficial, revision of Section 110(2) and related provisions.

Among the benefits of the TEACH Act for distance education are an expansion of the scope of materials that may be used in distance education; the ability to deliver content to students outside the classroom; the opportunity to retain archival copies of course materials on servers; and the authority to convert some works from analog to digital formats. On the other hand, the TEACH Act conditions those benefits on compliance with numerous restrictions and limitations. Among them are the need to adopt and disseminate copyright policies and information resources; implementation of technological restrictions on access and copying; adherence to limits on the quantity of certain works that may be digitized and included in distance education; and use of copyrighted materials in the context of "mediated instructional activities" akin in some respects to the conduct of a traditional course.

The American Library Association (ALA) is launching an initiative to provide guidance and to help interested persons so that they may better understand the new law and implement its requirements. Please watch for developments at this dedicated website: http://www.ala.org/washoff/teach.html. ALA welcomes your comments and observations at any time about this project. For more information, contact Carrie Russell, Copyright Specialist at ALA's Office for Information Technology Policy, crussell@alawash.org or (800) 941-8478.

(Adapted from November 12, 2002 email announcement from Shannon Cary, American Library Association, scary@ala.org)

Update on UCITA

UCITA has been quiet but certainly not asleep in the past months. NCCUSL (National Conference of Commissioners of Uniform State Laws) members have been hard at work and in August approved 38 amendments to UCITA. A close look at those amendments makes it clear that librarians must be alert to any move to reawaken UCITA legislation in Ohio. Despite the amendments, UCITA is still overly complex, hard to understand and in need of total revision.

What's still wrong with UCITA?

  • UCITA still validates terms in "shrink-wrap" and "click-on" contracts that would prohibit libraries from making a fair use of electronic materials, including the copying and archiving of digital products
  • UCITA still does not require vendors to reveal the terms of the license prior to purchase
  • UCITA still does not require software publishers to reveal known defects
  • Although UCITA now prohibits "electronic self-help" in certain situations, it still allows an "automatic restraint" provision that permits licensors to remotely shut down an organization's critical software
  • UCITA still allows vendors to change the terms of the contract after a purchaser agrees to the terms
  • UCITA still undermines federal copyright law by allowing vendors to prohibit reverse engineering for the purpose of detecting security holes
  • UCITA is still fundamentally biased to favor the needs of software publishers to the detriment of businesses, consumers and libraries
  • UCITA is still overly complex, hard to understand and in need of total revision
From: Alawon, Vol. 11 #85, Oct. 25, 2002

For more information, visit these UCITA websites:
www.ala.org/washoff/ucita.html http://www.affect.ucita.com/


People and Library News

Bowling Green State University

It's official: Bowling Green State University's libraries have a new name. Formerly known as Libraries and Learning Resources, the unit will now be known as University Libraries. This was announced by executive Vice President Linda Dobb in October of 2002. The University Libraries include the William T. Jerome Library, Ogg Science Library, Center for Archival Collections, Historical Collections of the Great Lakes, Curriculum Resource Center, Music Library and Sound Recordings Archives, Government Documents, Popular Culture Library, and the Northwest Ohio Regional Book Depository.

University Libraries Reindeer Rolled in the Holiday Parade
There was a new entry in this year's Bowling Green Holiday Parade: "The Jerome Rollers." University Libraries staff members decorated book carts to look like reindeer and were weaving and circling to popular holiday tunes, including "Grandma Got Run Over By a Reindeer." The idea began this past summer, when staff members were seeking a fun community project for the University Libraries. At least one member from every library department contributed to the project by decorating the book carts, donating or sorting the gift items, selecting the music, or volunteering to march in the parade. The University Libraries eight-reindeer team (named after the William T. Jerome Library) rolled in the Bowling Green Holiday Parade on Saturday, November 23. On, Dasher!

Bowling Green State University, Jerome Library

Issues in Cultural Diversity 2002-2003 Program Series: "Millennium Demographics: Being Other/Being Immigrant" continues in 2003:

  • January 22, 2003 Dr. Martin L. King Jr. Tribute Program: Immigration Myths & Civil Rights Issues
  • March 19, 2003 Immigration: Different Cultures & Experiences

All programs held at Jerome Library. Sponsored by the University Libraries' Multicultural Affairs Committee, Jerome Library, BGSU, Mary G. Wrighten, Chair.


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