March 14, 2006

by Gerald Doyle

Academic Assembly of Librarians
General Assembly Meeting
March 14, 2006

Present:  Carol Brigham, Carla Davis Cunningham, Mark Darby, David Dillard, George Fowler, Susan Golding, Andrea Goldstein, Anne Harlow, Margaret Jerrido, Laura Lane, Carol Lang, Jonathan LeBreton, David Murray, Penelope Myers, Fred Rowland, Brian Schoolar, Kathy Szigeti, Molly Thomas, Sandi Thompson, Al Vara, Barbara Wright

Anne Harlow opened the meeting at 2:15 PM.

  • Approval of minutes:  the minutes of the January 10th meeting were approved.
  • Introduction of Interns:
    • Anne introduced Jaclyn Colletti, the intern in the RIS Department.
    • Brian Schoolar introduced Andrea Baruzzi ,Baruzzi, the intern in the Acquisitions Department.
  • Report/Question & Answer Session – Jonathan LeBreton on behalf of Larry Alford:
    • Jonathan gave Larry’s apologies for not attending.  He is working on a presentation that he will give to the Council of Deans tomorrow.  We will probably see the presentation some time later.
    • Kardon Update:
      • The second floor will be turned over in early June.  The shelving should be in place the week of June 5.  Four to five weeks after that the third floor will be turned over.
      • The move will be done by a contractor.  Approximately 500,000 volumes will be moved during the first half of the summer.  Most of these will come from Paley.  We need to understand that it will be possible to bring things back from storage should the need arise.
      • We also need to begin a website for informing the rest of the Temple community about the storage facility.  Penelope Myers is leading the group to accomplish this.
      • Zahn, Physics, Chemistry, Biology, and the Math Libraries will be closing beginning in early June.  Penelope explained that since the science libraries are closing, that we will be concentrating efforts of the removal of items from the third floor of Paley first in order to absorb materials.  Once the semester is over, the Zahn Library will be closed.
      • Fred Rowland asked how long materials will be unavailable.  Penelope replied that it is unknown how long materials will be unavailable and turnaround time during the move could depend on the moving company.  Jonathan said that a contractor had once estimated that with multiple crews doing the packing, loading, and shelving that monographs could possibly be available within a day.
      • David Dillard asked what materials in Zahn will be going to Paley.  Penelope recommended that he ask Jenifer Baldwin.  She also said that all of the materials with Dewey call numbers will be going to Kardon.
    • The group planning for the Paley former SIC space has met once with the Facilities’ architect.  Jonathan has seen a preliminary sketch which had many desired features missing, so it needs to be redone.  Jonathan needs to order furniture for that space and also for the second and third floors.  Some stacks will be removed from Paley once Kardon is open, and there are funds to make some attractive spaces in Paley.  Penelope stressed the need to find out which sections of Paley will be cleared.  Jonathan has spoken to John Oram about some possibilities.
    • The search for the Reference Librarian/Literature and Communications subject specialist has been successful.  Kristina DeVoe will be starting June 1st.  Jonathan complimented Kathy Szigeti for chairing the search committee.
    • As for other searches, the search committees will soon be formed.  These positions include the Associate University Librarian for Research and Instructional Services, the Instructional Services Manager, Media Services Librarian, and the Finance and Facilities Officer.
    •  Jonathan reported that there have been problems with books checked out on the Self-Checks with lost ID cards.  Since Diamond and the campus ID system can not be linked, we will be moving to using PIN numbers.  Penelope reported that the PIN will be the last 4 digits of the social security number and will be loaded into patron records from the campus system.  Jonathan stressed that we will not have complete SSN numbers and that this step is being taken to protect students and faculty from fraudulent use of their ID cards should those be lost or stolen.
    • Kathy asked about whether there will be temporary workers staffing the desk in the TECH Center.  Jonathan deferred to Jenifer.  There were some applications, but several candidates withdrew.
    • David Dillard asked whether any dissertations would be moved to Kardon.  Penelope said that the dissertations would remain in Paley.
    • Anne asked whether President Adamany’s departure would affect our plans.  Is there sufficient support to keep our funding?  Jonathan felt that Adamany had persuaded the Board of Trustees of the worth of the library and the funding.  The increases we have been given are designed to get us to the median of urban comparative libraries over the course of five years.  Of course, we cannot guarantee what any future president will do.
    • Carol Lang reported that there will be an e-mail message to library staff regarding the launch of the leisure reading collection the first week of April.  The launch will coincide with National Library Week and publicity has been arranged to inform the campus community about the collection.
    • Jonathan reported that the second annual Library Prize competition was nearing completion.  Last year there were 60 applicants, one of whom was a Marshall scholar.  There are only three libraries in the nation awarding such a prize
  • Anne began a discussion of reviving the forums at AAL meetings.  In the past, General Assembly meetings have consisted of the business meeting followed by a forum.  Their purpose is for professional and academic development.  Penelope suggested having them on an ad hoc basis, not necessarily one at each meeting.  She also suggested doing one in the fall on Kardon.  Sandi Thompson mentioned that the spring break meeting had a traveling forum, where the meeting was held at another campus or library.  Other suggestions included keeping the forums informal, bringing faculty members in, and having Brian Schoolar present on new databases.  Brian asked how the forums fit with the Continuing Education Committee’s programs.  Sandi replied that they are not formal like CE programs and are generally for the AAL membership although they could be open to others.
  • Old Business/New Business/Announcements:
    • Margaret Jerrido announced that there is a new intern in Urban Archives.  She is Katie Bray from the University of Wyoming.
    • Carla Davis Cunningham announced that Evelyn Lane will be on maternity leave beginning at the end of the month.  There will be a temporary worker in finishing.
    • The librarians covered by the TAUP Collective Bargaining Agreement held a closed session to discuss the merit process.

The meeting adjourned at 4:05 PM.

Respectfully submitted,
Carol Brigham

This entry was posted in Minutes.