ACRL News Issue (B) of College & Research Libraries 84 / C &RL News Opening a university wide dialogue about electronic information resources B y C a ro l H ughes L ecturer, School o f L ib ra ry a n d In form ation Studies University o f M ichigan Unilateral planning will not work. A n increasing number o f articles in the pro­fessional literature assert that electronic information resources and the technologi which provide access to them are radically chang­ ing scholarly communication. The changes are having a ripple effect which is impacting other in- formation-related activities on campus. At the Uni­ versity of Michigan, the people most closely in­ volved in planning for the future information needs o f the campus have initiated a process whereby many o f the complex issues related to the increased use of electronic information resources can be brought to the attention o f this diverse academic community. The object is to start a broad-based dialogue which will lead to a practical consensus on directions and strategies for the institution. The implications for academic and research libraries of the increased use of electronic informa­ tion resources are being thoroughly discussed in the professional literature from the librarian’s viewpoint. The multiple new demands which will be made upon already constrained budgets have been noted. The profession has focused on the shift in library services from providing on-site ac­ cess to bibliographic units toward providing infor­ mation from remote sites to remote users. Many ca articles explore the need for an increased emphasis in teaching students lifelong information literacy l sktoolillss . The new demands which will be made upon our cooperative systems are frequently mentioned. There is an active discussion o f the potential for increased interaction and codependency between the library and other academic units because o f the technology needed to provide access to electronic information resources. All o f these issues are being explored in some depth in the literature o f librari- anship.1 As librarians achieve a clearer theoretical vision about the future information needs o f scholars, it behooves them to start planning and investing in the local framework which will enable their own campus to meet its future information needs. Here 1M iriam A. Drake, “Management o f Informa­ tion,” C ollege & R esearch L ib raries 50 (September 1989): 5 2 1 -3 1 ; Dilys E. Morris, “Electronic Infor­ mation and Technology: Impact and Potential for Academic Libraries,” C ollege & R esearch L ib raries 50 (January 1989): 5 6-64; David W. Lewis, “In­ venting the Electronic University,” C ollege & R e­ search L ib raries 49 (July 1988): 291-304. February 1991 / 85 may come the rub. Local faculty and universit administrators may have quite different visions o the future information needs of the campus and different views of the impact which electronic in­ formation will have on the way they will perform research and teaching within their disciplines. Their views may be based on their own educational background in the pre-electronic days, on their experience in disciplines which currently make very little use of electronic information resources, or, conversely, on their experience in disciplines which currently have an extraordinary richness o electronic resources from which to choose. There may even be no vision at all, if academic colleagues have not been discussing these issues among them­ selves. The job of forging a common understanding throughout the entire campus of the issues in­ volved in exploiting the potential of electronic in­ formation resources is positively daunting. It goes far beyond the traditional budget dialogue between a library director and a university administrator. Yet an attempt to forge such an understanding is necessary if one hopes to avoid the political pitfalls inherent in any effort to accomplish significant change in academe. The implementation of a strat­ egy for the complete integration of information technology and electronic resources into tradi­ tional academic structures, such as the library, the computer center, and other campus units, could deeply affect the work lives of a wide range of faculty, students, and staff. The scope of planning necessary for such a transition into the information environment of the 21st century is beyond the political power of administrative fiat to accomplish in most research institutions. How, then, can the complex and interrelated issues involved in plan­ ning for the local use of electronic information resources best be brought to the attention of diverse academic community? How can a broad- based dialogue be started which can lead to a practical consensus on directions to take? Th e com m ittee is b orn These were questions which the University o Michigan School of Information and Library Stud­ ies (SILS) Advisory Committee discussed with Dean Robert Warner during the fall of 1989. Dur­ ing this meeting, Douglas Van Houweling, vice- president for information technology at the univer­ sity, proposed that the school sponsor an invita­ tional symposium on the topic of information tech­ nology and its implementation at UM. The purpose of this meeting would be to stimulate discussion among all the various parties interested in this topic, and to build a multidisciplinary coalition which could develop a strategy for the University’s use of electronic information resources. y f f a f On the recommendation of the advisory com­ mittee, Dean Warner appointed an Information Symposium Planning Committee (ISPC) com­ posed of nine representatives from various schools and colleges, the University Library, and the Infor­ mation Technology Division (ITD). The charge to the ISPC was to design a conference, lasting a day or a day and a half, which could explore the issues involved in developing a strategy for the use of electronic information resources over the next five years. Committee members felt that the environ­ ment of electronic resources is so volatile that planning for longer than five years would be ex­ tremely difficult. Yet some actions needed to take place soon so that the campus could begin to position itself for the 21st century. As the ISPC began its deliberations about the design of such a conference, its members discussed the growing disparity among the various schools and colleges in the degree to which faculty had integrated the use of electronic information re­ sources into their teaching and research strategies. Since the University of Michigan is quite decentral­ ized in most respects, an effort to coordinate such an integration across campus would probably not be successful. Yet the University Library and ITD felt that their responsibilities for developing pilot projects and for planning services for the campus as a whole required a consensus on several basic issues so they could build a framework for the future information needs of the campus. The ques­ tion of how to generate informed opinion from a faculty so diverse in their experience and in the requirements of their disciplines was a difficult one. Events which had been designed on other cam­ puses to inform and stimulate discussion were re­ viewed by the committee. There was a lively debate about whether the primary framework for eliciting these recommendations should be theoretical or practical. Should this event be a “talking heads” conference with nationally recognized technology “gurus”? Should it be a “technology fair” with demonstrations of the latest in hardware and soft­ ware for research and teaching? Or should it be a discussion among local opinion leaders as to their persona] visions of the future needs of the campus? The committee debated what might be the best approach for informing the campus and eliciting some sort o f consensus. It decided that its charge, which requested recommendations for action, would be most fully served by focusing on the development of position papers concerning major issues that must be resolved before a campus framework can be built. Because the issues in­ volved are so wide-ranging in their impact across campus, there would also have to be some public forum in which the drafts could be commented upon by the entire university community. A great 8 6 / C &R L N ews deal of education would occur as faculty, students, and administrators worked together with librarians and computer center personnel on the papers. In order to involve many constituencies, the ISPC decided to recommend that three other com m ittees be convened, representing the breadth o f the university community. These three com m ittees would work individually for six months, each drafting a paper expressing what might be the best guiding principle or course of action for a particular assigned topic. These papers would be widely disseminated, discussed in a pub­ lic forum, and then used as the basis for an invited conference that would explore general recommen­ dations for the campus. T h e issues A brainstorm of potential topics for the commit­ tees to work on underlined the broad and interre­ lated nature of the issues involved in the expanding role of electronic information. After some delibera­ tion, the ISPC reduced the list to three issues of immediate concern which were fundamental to any progress being made on other fronts. Each of the subjects represented a nontechnical issue that would be influenced dramatically by the increased use of electronic information resources and that would be of immediate concern to all, whether they currently used electronic resources extensively or not. Change in anyone of these arenas would affect different disciplines at varying rates of speed and with varying outcomes. Therefore, these were top­ ics on which faculty, students, librarians, and administrators would need to collaborate in order to develop an effective campuswide strategy. The topics chosen by the ISPC were: 1. Users’ changing needs; 2. Funding for information resources; and 3. Library collection management and growth. The parameters for each topic that had evolved during the ISPC discussions Were reflected in the charges developed for each committee. Since no discussion of any one of the topics could be re­ flected as succinctly as the format of a committee charge demands, it was decided that the charges would outline the issues, but leave the details of depth and breadth to which the issues would be explored by the committee largely in the hands of that committee. The ISPC recommended that each committee have two ex-officio members, one from the univer­ sity library and one from the ITD , who would provide background information and generally serve as resource people. Committee members would be free to contact other experts as needed. Any workshops or lectures which they wanted to sponsor as part of their work to “generate informed opinion” would be theirs to organize and fund. The ISPC also stipulated that meetings of these com­ mittees would be open to any interested parties who might wish to contribute to the deliberations. When the work of the committees concludes, each of their drafts will be published in campus newspapers. The public forum for discussion of these drafts will be held about two weeks before the symposium, in order to allow adequate time for the comments and reactions generated during the public forum to be compiled and synthesized for the use o f the conferees. Probably the invitees will primarily be administrators who occupy positions o f leadership within the various schools and col­ leges. Librarians will continue to serve as resource people during the symposium. The author has now been appointed within the School of Information and Library Studies as coor­ dinator to facilitate the continued planning and organization of the symposium. The tasks of the coordinator will include working closely with the committees and their resource people from the university library and the ITD to ensure that an adequate context and appropriate background in­ formation are easily available as the committees undertake their work. C onclu sion The expanding use of electronic information resources in both the academic and administrative arenas of higher education is just beginning. Li­ brarians and computer center personnel have been among the first to comprehend the potential for sweeping change inherent in this new technology. However, the ability of librarians and computer personnel to play a leadership role in local campus planning for these resources has been hampered by many factors. Among these is the clear realization that many issues which need to be addressed are outside the boundaries of what either group can unilaterally change. The difficulty is compounded by the increasing fragmentation among the aca­ demic audiences to which librarians and computer center personnel must speak in trying to generate a consensus for local action. The strategy proposed by the Information Sym­ posium Planning Committee is to structure the necessary dialogue in such a way as to encourage the widest possible participation by members of the academic community in planning how to use elec­ tronic information resources. Certainly, a lot of heat will be generated by these discussions. Many suggestions will probably be made which serve only the smallest of populations on campus. But the benefits of group discussion include allowing all points o f view to be heard and evaluated in a larger context. Librarians and computer center personnel did not singlehandedly create the current information February 1991 / 87 structure within the university, and the history o most campus politics indicates that they will not be allowed to reorganize it unilaterally. Decisions on how to build the campus information infrastruc­ ture of the future must be arrived at collaboratively. The model devised by the University of Michigan’ ISPC is one attempt to develop a collegial dialogue about the electronic future of a complex, diverse campus. Authors note: This article was prepared on behalf of the University o f Michigan Information f s Symposium Planning Committee: Carolyn Frost, Chair, School of Information and Library Studies; Carol Hughes, Vice-Chair, School of Information and Library Studies; Kim Cameron, School of Business Administration; Colin Day, University of Michigan Press; John Jonides, College of Litera­ ture, Science and the Arts; Leslie Olsen, College of Engineering; Walter Panko, Office of Health Sci­ ences Information Technology and Networking; Carla Stoffle, University Library; and Katherine Willis, Information Technology Division. ■ ■ Ten Library/Book Fellow positions open Applications are being accepted through April 15, 1991, for the 1991-92 Library/Book Fellows Program. The joint program of the American Li­ brary Association and the United States Informa­ tion Agency (USIA) will place approximately ten U.S. citizens overseas beginning September. While 17 positions are listed, funding will permit approxi­ mately ten placements. Stipends for Library/Book Fellows are $28,000 per year. Travel expenses (fellow and one depend­ ent) to and from host country will be reimbursed, and health and life insurance coverage are pro­ vided. Some hosts will assist with housing. Eligibil­ ity requirements: U.S. citizenship; command of the language of the host country is desired; education and experience in library or information science, publishing or other fields directly related to the interests and needs of specific projects, with de­ monstrated competency as required. If selected for interview, a certification from a physician attesting physical and emotional soundness to conduct fel­ lowship will be required. Persons who have lived abroad for a ten-year period immediately preced­ ing application are not eligible. A description of positions available and require­ ments follows. To apply, send resume with a cover letter briefly stating desired position, foreign-lan- guage skills, subject expertise and maximum place­ ment service length. (No application forms are available.) Contact: Robert P. Doyle, Director, Library/Book Fellows Program, American Library Association, 50 E. Huron St., Chicago, IL 60611; (800) 545-2433, x3200. 1991-92 Library/Book Fellow positions avail­ able: American Republics Lima, Peru: Colegio d e Bibliotecologos del Peru. Fluency in Spanish is required. Eight months, February 1992 through September 1992: Devel­ opment and teaching seminars on library methods and techniques, focusing primarily on outreach and library automation; and guidance in drafting a long-term strategy for improving library training and services in Peru. L a Paz, Bolivia: Banco del Libro. Fluency in Spanish is required. Four months: In-service train­ ing for the host institution’s staff in library admini­ stration, reference, reading promotion, and techni­ cal services. Bogota, Colombia: Judicial School o f the Min­ istry o f Justice. Fluency in Spanish is required. Six months, February through August 1992: Promote the creation of an automated judicial documenta­ tion center; train staff in selection, promotion, organization, and management of materials; serve as a consultant on library automation. Santiago, Chile: National Archives. Fluency in Spanish is required. One year, September 1991 through August 1992: Develop an automated sys­ tem for control and access to all government pub­ lications; train librarians and archivists in the preparation of documents to be sent to the Ar­ chives; consult on current cataloging procedures. Africa— Sub-Saharan Eldoret, Kenya: Moi University. One year or six months: Develop curriculum and teach courses in the area of information technology; serve as adviser to the newly established Department of Information and Media Technology’s develop­ ment. Addis Ababa, Ethiopia: Addis Ababa Univer­ sity. One academic year, mid-September 1991 through June 1992: Teach two courses in informa­ tion technology; train and assist the university’s library staff in introducing automation of library functions and services. Lome, Togo: University o f Benin. French is required. Six months: Conduct workshops in the areas of cataloging, reference, and public relations; act as consultant in the areas of planning, budget­ ing, and automation. Near East Asia Jerusalem, Israel: Graduate School o f Library and Archive Studies, Hebrew University. Passive understanding of Hebrew would be useful, but not WeVe done it again! The five most recent years of scientific journal literature...in a single set of volumes. Now you can search handling more than one set five recent, significant of volumes at a time. years of scientific journal We’re Making Your Search literature.‚.in a fraction of the Comprehensive time it took you before. With the new Science What’s more, every time you Citation Index® 1985-1989 Cumulation. consult the SCI 1985-1989 Cumulation — as We’re Saving You Time opposed to multiple annuals — your chances The SCI ®1985-1989 Cumulation provides of retrieving a particular article, or a larger complete, multidisciplinary coverage of the inter­ number of articles, are greatly increased. 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One academic year, October 1991 through July 1992: Teaching and training projects at several locations on the topics of school libraries, reading promotion, story telling, and integrating the library with the school curricula. Emphasis will be on the elementary school level. C a lc u tta , In d ia : In d ia n In s titu te o f Management. Eight months: Assist in implement­ ing automation of the library’s technical services operation, including serials, acquisitions, catalog­ ing, bibliographic control, etc.; assist with the de­ velopment and implementation of an in-country networking system. Cairo, Egypt: National L ibrary o f Egypt. Ara­ bic would be useful, but not required. Six to nine months: Survey the collection and assist in drawing up an honest and realistic plan and budget for preservation and conservation program. Europe Reykjavik, Iceland: University o f Iceland. One semester, 13-15 weeks: Present courses on library services for children and young adults; introduce American children’s literature; work with publish­ ers to improve knowledge of the wealth of litera­ ture in the U.S. with the purpose of increasing the variety and improving the selection of children’s books to be translated. Belgrade, Yugoslavia: Belgrade Public Library. Knowledge of Serbo-Croatian would be helpful, but not essential. Four to eight months: Consult on a library automation project; train staff in the use of new technologies; assist in planning of curriculum Wellcome records on OCLC The collections of the Wellcome Institute for the History o f Medicine, located in London, England, will be converted to machine-read­ able form by the OCLC Retrospective Conver­ sion Division over the next year. The Institute has the largest and most comprehensive Euro­ pean collection of the history of medicine, containing more than 400,000 printed books dating from the 15th to the 20th centuries. Included will be 66,500 titles in the Institute’s Early Printed Books Collection, which contains more than 600 incunabula and also includes early printed medical books in English and books of the continental scientific renaissance in a variety of Roman alphabet languages. Subjects in the collection range from anatomy to herbal remedies. Eileen Yandolino of OCLC estimates that approximately 39% of the collec­ tion will be added as new records to the OCLC Online Union Catalog. and resources at the school o f library science; and assist in developing American Studies collections at the library and the future National Library. B u ch a re s t, B om ania: C en tral University Library. Romanian or French is desired, but not required. Ten months: Teach courses in library automation, computerization, and cataloging; as­ sist in reorganization and modernization of the cataloging department. Warsaw, Poland: National Library o f Poland. Polish is desirable, but not required. One year, September 1991 through August 1992: Provide in- house staff training in the fundamentals of library automation; assess current and future uses of auto­ mated applications and make recommendations for their implementation. Moscow, USSR: All-Union Library o f Foreign Literature. Russian required. Three months: Pres­ ent seminars on the use of American reference resources; evaluate American studies collections and advise on how to improve collections and reference services. Berlin, Germany: Humboldt University. Ger­ man required. Six months: Teach courses in the following areas: management and administration of libraries and information centers; use o f micro­ computers in libraries; technology for information storage and retrieval, and electronic communica­ tion of information. North America Ottawa, Canada: Dalhousie University. Six months: Evaluate American Studies and U.S. Government Document collections; make recom­ mendations for further acquisitions and distribu­ tion; present lectures and workshops on U.S. data base systems; provide guidance for bibliographies in American Studies and U.S. government docu­ ments for curriculum development. ■ ■ Emory manuscript guide available A newly compiled Manuscript Sources f o r C ivil W ar H istory: A D escrip tiv e L ist o f Holdings in the Special Collections D epartment is now available from the Special Collections Department, Robert W. Woodruff Library, Emory University. The free guide contains entries for 243 collections with significant hold­ ings relating to the Civil War. It is 49 pages long and includes a name index. Each entry in the guide includes collection name, span dates, physical extent, finding aids available, and a brief description of the scope and content of the collection.