Two articles in the Journal of Library Innovation

Here are two recent articles from the Journal of Library Innovation.

“College Book Clubs: Collaborating for Success” by Lisa A. Forrest

Book Club programming not only adds to the value of the college library, but serves as an excellent marketing and outreach tool for librarians as well. This article describes collaboration between the Women’s Studies Program and E. H. Butler Library at Buffalo State College to establish a Women & Gender Book Club and outlines a model which can be extended to a variety of contexts.

“Creative Fundraising Through Campus Collaborations” by Joe C. Clark

Many libraries have traditionally failed to consider unorthodox sources of funding, especially for collection building. Because of resource limitations, librarians are now beginning to work on acquisition projects with non-library entities. This paper examines a number of innovative collaborations on a university campus that yielded substantial collection development monies for a Library Media Department at the University of Maryland.

TechPad space and collaboration

Brian Mathews of Virginia Tech wrote “Student Study Space: the entrepreneurial model (my visit to TechPad)” for The Ubiquitous Librarian a little while back. Within the article, he noted that:

Anyone who spends time in an active learning space can attest to the “learning energy” that is generated– and TechPad definitely had that appeal. I wanted to linger as long as possible.

Some takeaways:

• Openness (can see, be seen, and talk with others)
• Defined spaces (while open, have clearly delineated work/ownership areas)
• Flexible (moveable) environment– could rearrange on the fly
• Collaboration (can work together at desks/tables or jump into a conference room, or head down to the bar)

and more in the post.

Writing group for librarians

Kathy Campbell, Mark Ellis, Leslie Adebonojo, (2011) “Developing a writing group for librarians: the benefits of successful collaboration“, Library Management, Vol. 33 Iss: 1/2, pp.14 – 21 (Subscription required for full text access.)

Purpose – Research productivity is often counted as a major factor in evaluations and promotion. Librarians have had to find a way to pursue research along with performing job duties and professional service. Collaborative research can provide an effective solution for busy librarians who need to show a record of research. Additionally, it can be a cost-effective means for library administrators to promote library faculty output in the face of reduced travel and research budgets. This paper seeks to address these issues.

LYRASIS launches website on open source software

ATLANTA – (January 18, 2012) – LYRASIS is pleased to announce the launch of FOSS4LIB (Free/Open Source Software for Libraries), a website dedicated to providing guidance about open source software for the library community.

With funding from The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, LYRASIS Technology Services is leveraging the expertise of its open source development team and consulting staff to help librarians and technologists navigate through the planning, decision-making and implementation processes associated with open source. “Open source software enables libraries to improve their services in cost-effective ways. Through the FOSS4LIB website, library professionals will be able to more effectively assess and meet the needs of their staff and users through open source,” said Kate Nevins, Executive Director of LYRASIS.

Undergraduates, Open Science, and Collaboration

Joe Kraus was at the ScienceOnline 2012 conference.  One of the relevant sessions concerning collaboration was the “Next Generation of Open Scientists“

Science faculty and librarians can collaborate on many aspects of undergraduate education – two ideas are the focus of this discussion. First: How can we best help undergrads understand and explore the scholarly information landscape? In addition to formal sources like journal articles, informal sources (e.g., blogs) are of increasing importance/relevance, which raises a question: How do we get students to think about what formal and informal really mean? How do we – faculty, librarians and others – work together to teach students to navigate the disciplinary landscape and become productive and critical consumers of – and contributors to – the disciplinary conversation? Second: How do we introduce students to the great big wide world of open science? How do the various players in higher education communicate to the next generation the incredible depth and complexity of what going on out there? How do we raise (inspire? support?) the next generation of Cameron Neylons, Steve Koches and Jean-Claude Bradleys (not to mention the next generation of Dorothea Salos and Christina Pikases)?

We had a great discussion. The Abstract for the session and other sessions can be found here.

SPLAT: Innovative Collaboration in Idaho’s Libraries

Journal of Library Innovation

Memo Cordova, Amy Vecchione

Abstract: “Libraries face shrinking budgets, increased use, and user demand for trendy resources.  This makes it difficult for librarians to find the time to keep current with innovative library trends, such as technological tools and social media developments.  The Special Projects Library Action Team (SPLAT) offers a new model for enhancing library services. SPLAT is a group supported by the Idaho Commission for Libraries (ICFL), the state agency responsible for assisting libraries.  The members of SPLAT are innovation representatives who search and experiment with social media trends and online tools, and share the best ways to integrate them into services at all types of libraries.  SPLAT members have developed SPLAT 101, an online class geared towards teaching library staff new Web technologies.  Members also present about trends at conferences, blog relevant content, and engage in peer-to-peer education–all meant to demystify and exploit emergent technologies.  These efforts have yielded enhanced library services, encouraged changes to policies, and increased positive user experiences.  In this article we summarize how SPLAT works, explain how SPLAT has helped Idaho’s libraries experiment with evolving services, analyze the success of SPLAT as a model for other states, and discuss future steps.”

The Maine Shared Collections Strategy (MSCS) has launched its new website.

“MSCS is a project of the 8 largest libraries in Maine. Project partners include University of Maine, University of Southern Maine, Bangor Public Library, Portland Public Library, Maine State Library, Bates College, Bowdoin College and Colby College.

Maine InfoNet, the state-wide Library network is a non library partner providing technical infrastructure and support. The MSCS team is working to develop a strategy for the long-term management and preservation of legacy print collections in the state of Maine. The website (http://www.maineinfonet.net/mscs/) includes a listing of project partners, summaries of all project-related meetings, presentations given by project participants, and more.

RUSA/STARS Interlibrary Loan Discussion Group program

“If you are attending ALA Midwinter in Dallas our please join us for our RUSA/STARS Interlibrary Loan Discussion Group program, Saturday, January 21, from 10:30-12 in Omni Dallas Hotel-Trinity 3 (Session URL: http://alamw12.scheduler.ala.org/node/616).

ASCLA (library cooperatives) Events at ALA Midwinter

Sunday January 22 4:00 pm – 5:30 pm Consultants Interest Group  Nancy Bolt of Nancy Bolt & Associates will moderate an open hearing on a new draft “Library Consultant Code of Ethics”. Should it be adopted by ALA? Open to all ALA members.Discussion will be followed by a business meeting of the ASCLA Library Consultants Interest Group Leadership Team. DCC – D224

Saturday January 21 4:00 pm – 5:30 pm Digitization Interest Group  Join us for an opportunity to discuss issues of common concern for anyone involved in digitization projects. This discussion group is open to everyone from experienced project managers to those new to digitization initiatives. Each meeting includes guest speakers and opportunities for project updates from discussion group attendees. Final program details for ALA Midwinter 2012 TBA. Visit Connect Community for details at: http://connect.ala.org/node/151439 DCC – D161

Sunday January 22 8:00 am – 10:00 am  Physical Delviery Interest Group  Discussion group on issues related to the physical delivery of library materials. DCC – D167

Sunday January 22 4:00 pm – 5:30 pm Consortia Management Interest Group Discussions focus on management issues pertaining to library systems and consortia.  Previous topics included advocacy, funding, member services, and innovative projects. DCC – D175

Coliibri collaboration software

http://www.coliibri.com

Coliibri is build from 100% community-sourced content, allowing authors to rally around creating unique works in a fun, collaborative atmosphere. Coliibri removes many of the traditional boundaries that limit innovation. You can collaborate on any idea with virtually anyone in the world.

Video for more info: https://www.coliibri.com/projects/coliibri-tutorial-video-v2