- Email: [email protected]
“Oh, The Change is Going to do Me Good … ”
Pergamon
Library Acquisitions: Practice & Theory, Vol. 22, No. 1, pp. 29–30, 1998 Copyright © 1998 Elsevier Science Ltd Printed in the USA. All rights reserved 0364-6408/98 $19.00 1 .00
PII S0364-6408(97)00147-6
1997 FEATHER RIVER INSTITUTE
“OH, THE CHANGE IS GOING TO DO ME GOOD . . . ” RICHARD BRUMLEY Head, Acquisitions Oregon State University Libraries Corvallis, OR 97331-4501 Internet: [email protected]
Taking their lead from Elton John, quoted above from his song “Honky Cat,” participants of the 1997 Feather River Institute explored the notion of change, not only in some specific areas of acquisitions and collection development, but also in the fundamental aspects of library education. Feather River is noted for providing many opportunities for lively discussion and for a beautiful and bucolic setting. Program planners successfully designed this year’s conference for even more interactive presentations and participant discussion. The program was organized into four moderated sessions, each taking a look at a separate aspect of our work. The weather committee did yeoman duty, providing, in contrast to last year’s inclemency, bright sun and blue skies to enhance the Feather River ambience. Bill Fisher, now one of only five veterans to have attended all seven Feather River Institutes, holds the added distinction of being the only person to have given a presentation each year. Bill moderated the first session, “Library Schools and Library Education: Change Agents for the Profession,” and led off the program with yet another thought provoking presentation. In his paper, “Terminator 2: Library Education; the Issue that Wouldn’t Die,” Fisher forced us to take a hard look at our library school curricula and showed some examples of how they can be improved. Ann O’Neill joined Fisher from the ranks of the professoriate. In “What’s for Dinner? Continuing Education After the M.L.S.,” Ann compared library education to a meal. She viewed the M.L.S. as an hors d’oeuvre and suggested that continuing education is the entree. In this analogy, technical services librarians are going very hungry indeed. Fortunately, Ann provided some examples of how to improve our professional nutrition. Larry Ostler and Terry Dahlin concluded the first session with a critical look at a library education that lacks an adequate body of underlying theory and that is slow to adapt to change. It is time, they reported, for revision of library school curricula. The second session, “Acquisitions Packages and Licensing Agreements: Changing the Way We Do Business,” was moderated by Scott Wicks. Nancy Persons (“Collection Development in an Era of Full-Text and Package Deals”) explored the complexities of electronic resources and demonstrated how they test the limits of organizational structures and budget tracking mechanisms. In “Licensing Information: Where Can We Go From Here?,” Steve Bosch, Kittie Henderson, and Brian Schottlaender explored the frontier of licensing agreements, that uncertain and troublesome 29
30
R. BRUMLEY
new land. Bosch noted that while the licensing of information has become a time-consuming and expensive endeavor for publishers, vendors, and librarians, the process is evolving haphazardly. He outlined some possibilities for improvement. Henderson, speaking from the perspective of one who deals with publishers, all of whom remain profit-minded, imbedded indelibly in our brains two words: revenue stream. Schottlaender outlined the issues of concerns to librarians and then reported on the status of the development of a set of principles for licensing agreements. Mike Markwith moderated the third session, “Changing Roles, Changing Services: Partnerships in the New Information Age.” Taking a page from Regis Philbin and Kathie Lee Gifford, Adrian Alexander and Trisha Davis dramatized in a light-hearted but meaningful way how the nature of electronic resources has changed the way libraries and subscription agents conduct their relationship. Their one act play is not included among the published papers. Setting aside for a moment the bedevilment of electronic resources, and using a mouth-watering analogy, Sandy Barstow and Barbara Woodford reiterated that there are basic yet profound elements that go into establishing sound relationships between library and subscription agent. Their paper is entitled “Developing a Relationship with Your New Subscription Agent/Understanding Your New Client: 1001 Thai Burritos on the Road to Great Two-Way Communication.” Anne McKee and Kit Kennedy (“Dynamic Partnerships in the Library Marketplace”) offered a unique presentation that relied upon the cooperation of all Institute attendees and engendered plenty of fun as well as much thoughtful discussion on the definition of, conditions essential for, and stumbling blocks impeding successful library-vendor relationships. Their presentation is not included among the published papers. Host Ron Ray moderated the fourth and final session, “Got Any Spare Change?” Albert Joy led off the session by presenting a paper co-authored with Rick Lugg, “The Books Are Shelf-Ready, Are You?” Albert reported on the outsourcing program of the University of Vermont and Yankee Book Peddler. He related the reasons for doing it, how responsibilities change—for both library and vendor—and reminded the audience not to expect perfection. Ron Ray, also doing double duty as presenter as well as moderator, encouraged acquisitions and cataloging managers to be ever diligent in ridding their departments of those time-honored but obsolete practices and procedures, the vampires who suck the blood out of technical services. Ron’s presentation, “The Undead in Library Technical Services: Activities and Attitudes That Have Exhausted Their Life, But Which Refuse to Die,” is not included in the published papers. In “Defining Priorities and Energizing Technical Services: The University of Oregon Self-Study,” Nancy Slight-Gibney demonstrated how to take Ray’s advice and proved that it does not require eons or elaborate machinations to revitalize technical services. Positive results can be gained with quick, intense, and focused effort. Elizabeth Cooley and Chip Nilges concluded the program with “Integrating Solutions: Examining the Collection Management Process Using OCLC’s Electronic Collections Online as a Model.” They traced the history of electronic journals from the first generation (early 1990s) to the second generation (the present) and encouraged us to prepare for the third generation, arriving, they postulate, in 1998.
Library Acquisitions: Practice & Theory, Vol. 22, No. 1, pp. 29–30, 1998 Copyright © 1998 Elsevier Science Ltd Printed in the USA. All rights reserved 0364-6408/98 $19.00 1 .00
PII S0364-6408(97)00147-6
1997 FEATHER RIVER INSTITUTE
“OH, THE CHANGE IS GOING TO DO ME GOOD . . . ” RICHARD BRUMLEY Head, Acquisitions Oregon State University Libraries Corvallis, OR 97331-4501 Internet: [email protected]
Taking their lead from Elton John, quoted above from his song “Honky Cat,” participants of the 1997 Feather River Institute explored the notion of change, not only in some specific areas of acquisitions and collection development, but also in the fundamental aspects of library education. Feather River is noted for providing many opportunities for lively discussion and for a beautiful and bucolic setting. Program planners successfully designed this year’s conference for even more interactive presentations and participant discussion. The program was organized into four moderated sessions, each taking a look at a separate aspect of our work. The weather committee did yeoman duty, providing, in contrast to last year’s inclemency, bright sun and blue skies to enhance the Feather River ambience. Bill Fisher, now one of only five veterans to have attended all seven Feather River Institutes, holds the added distinction of being the only person to have given a presentation each year. Bill moderated the first session, “Library Schools and Library Education: Change Agents for the Profession,” and led off the program with yet another thought provoking presentation. In his paper, “Terminator 2: Library Education; the Issue that Wouldn’t Die,” Fisher forced us to take a hard look at our library school curricula and showed some examples of how they can be improved. Ann O’Neill joined Fisher from the ranks of the professoriate. In “What’s for Dinner? Continuing Education After the M.L.S.,” Ann compared library education to a meal. She viewed the M.L.S. as an hors d’oeuvre and suggested that continuing education is the entree. In this analogy, technical services librarians are going very hungry indeed. Fortunately, Ann provided some examples of how to improve our professional nutrition. Larry Ostler and Terry Dahlin concluded the first session with a critical look at a library education that lacks an adequate body of underlying theory and that is slow to adapt to change. It is time, they reported, for revision of library school curricula. The second session, “Acquisitions Packages and Licensing Agreements: Changing the Way We Do Business,” was moderated by Scott Wicks. Nancy Persons (“Collection Development in an Era of Full-Text and Package Deals”) explored the complexities of electronic resources and demonstrated how they test the limits of organizational structures and budget tracking mechanisms. In “Licensing Information: Where Can We Go From Here?,” Steve Bosch, Kittie Henderson, and Brian Schottlaender explored the frontier of licensing agreements, that uncertain and troublesome 29
30
R. BRUMLEY
new land. Bosch noted that while the licensing of information has become a time-consuming and expensive endeavor for publishers, vendors, and librarians, the process is evolving haphazardly. He outlined some possibilities for improvement. Henderson, speaking from the perspective of one who deals with publishers, all of whom remain profit-minded, imbedded indelibly in our brains two words: revenue stream. Schottlaender outlined the issues of concerns to librarians and then reported on the status of the development of a set of principles for licensing agreements. Mike Markwith moderated the third session, “Changing Roles, Changing Services: Partnerships in the New Information Age.” Taking a page from Regis Philbin and Kathie Lee Gifford, Adrian Alexander and Trisha Davis dramatized in a light-hearted but meaningful way how the nature of electronic resources has changed the way libraries and subscription agents conduct their relationship. Their one act play is not included among the published papers. Setting aside for a moment the bedevilment of electronic resources, and using a mouth-watering analogy, Sandy Barstow and Barbara Woodford reiterated that there are basic yet profound elements that go into establishing sound relationships between library and subscription agent. Their paper is entitled “Developing a Relationship with Your New Subscription Agent/Understanding Your New Client: 1001 Thai Burritos on the Road to Great Two-Way Communication.” Anne McKee and Kit Kennedy (“Dynamic Partnerships in the Library Marketplace”) offered a unique presentation that relied upon the cooperation of all Institute attendees and engendered plenty of fun as well as much thoughtful discussion on the definition of, conditions essential for, and stumbling blocks impeding successful library-vendor relationships. Their presentation is not included among the published papers. Host Ron Ray moderated the fourth and final session, “Got Any Spare Change?” Albert Joy led off the session by presenting a paper co-authored with Rick Lugg, “The Books Are Shelf-Ready, Are You?” Albert reported on the outsourcing program of the University of Vermont and Yankee Book Peddler. He related the reasons for doing it, how responsibilities change—for both library and vendor—and reminded the audience not to expect perfection. Ron Ray, also doing double duty as presenter as well as moderator, encouraged acquisitions and cataloging managers to be ever diligent in ridding their departments of those time-honored but obsolete practices and procedures, the vampires who suck the blood out of technical services. Ron’s presentation, “The Undead in Library Technical Services: Activities and Attitudes That Have Exhausted Their Life, But Which Refuse to Die,” is not included in the published papers. In “Defining Priorities and Energizing Technical Services: The University of Oregon Self-Study,” Nancy Slight-Gibney demonstrated how to take Ray’s advice and proved that it does not require eons or elaborate machinations to revitalize technical services. Positive results can be gained with quick, intense, and focused effort. Elizabeth Cooley and Chip Nilges concluded the program with “Integrating Solutions: Examining the Collection Management Process Using OCLC’s Electronic Collections Online as a Model.” They traced the history of electronic journals from the first generation (early 1990s) to the second generation (the present) and encouraged us to prepare for the third generation, arriving, they postulate, in 1998.