Science and Technology Studies Commons^™

Faraway Flix: Connecting To International Students Through Film, Laura Bohuski

DLTS Faculty Publications

WKU has, at any given time, about 20,000 students enrolled in university programs across four campuses. WKU is a campus that is actively engaged in making international connections, so much so that its current vision statement asserts that WKU is “a leading American university with international reach.”1 Western’s drive to establish and maintain international connections has been successful: of the 20,000 students currently attending WKU, 1,300 are international students from 70 seventy different countries.2 With such a diverse student population, many of the departments at Western are actively engaged in developing programs to help connect our extensive international population with …

Talking To Ourselves: Internal Communication Strategies For Reference Services, John Gottfried, Laura Delancey, Amanda Hardin

DLTS Faculty Publications

At many academic libraries, spiral notebooks and three ring binders have given way to blogs and wikis as a means of facilitating communication at the reference desk. Western Kentucky University Libraries opted instead to create a custom internal website to log reference transactions, highlight current issues, and manage scheduling changes. This solution incorporated numerous platforms and technologies, including LibGuides, Facebook, and Google Calendar. It avoided some of the pitfalls described in the literature, such as relying too heavily on user-generated content, and has been successful largely because it is embedded in the reference workspace and contains features that librarians will …

Virtual Conference And Meeting Systems: Resources For Online Connections, John Gottfried, Laura Delancey, Carol L. Watwood, Amanda Hardin

DLTS Faculty Publications

Librarians have always tried to stretch the limits of applicable technologies to create effective connections among researchers and resources. We thrive on the tools and tactics that help us do this, and we are always on the prowl for newer, better alternatives. This is one of the best ways we have of keeping high service standards in the face of shrinking budgets and skeletal staffing. Fortunately, there have never been so many technologies to choose from, and there have never been so many challenges calling out for technological intervention.

Hosting online instruction sessions is, for example, an excellent opportunity for …

Java City: Developing A Successful Cultural Center, Jack G. Montgomery Jr.

DLTS Faculty Publications

Introduction:

Western Kentucky University Library had a large two-level, but largely unused lobby that had once been the library’s entrance but had been closed as a new entrance was created. By 2002, it sat empty and all but devoid of human traffic just outside our Reference area. Also, in 2002, Reference statistics were down, as was Circulation and library usage in general. Dean Binder believed that with the renovation and development of this former lobby, the library would realize an increase in campus visibility and library usage would increase.

Resource Discovery Tools: Supporting Serendipity, Tammera M. Race

DLTS Faculty Publications

Serendipity, the accidental discovery of something useful, plays an important role in discovery and the acquisition of new knowledge. The process and role of serendipity varies across disciplines. As library collections have become increasingly digital faculty lament the loss of serendipity of browsing library stacks. Resource discovery tools may have features that support serendipity as part of information seeking. A comparison of four commercial Web-scale discovery tools, Online Computer Library Center (OCLC) WorldCat® Local1, Serials Solution2® Summon3™, ExLibris4® Primo Central5™, and EBSCO Discovery Services (EDS)6™, links product features to characteristics that support serendipitous discovery. However, having such features is only …

The Role Of Public Libraries And Their Future, Uma Devi Doraiswamy

DLTS Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Where In The World Is Library Technical Services? Finding Ourselves In Fun, Learning, And Food, Connie Foster

DLTS Faculty Publications

Public libraries do it, historical societies are a natural, especially in Boston; media centers incorporate them into special events; the British started it. The “it” or “them” represents a tea party. But why in academic libraries? Why in Library Technical Services?

Random Thoughts About Volume 34, 2008, And Some Insights Into Journal Production, Connie Foster

DLTS Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Institutional Repositories—Strategies For The Present And Future, Connie Foster

DLTS Faculty Publications

Institutional repositories can create exciting possibilities for scholarly communication with access, discovery, and permanency for the intellectual capital of a university. Digital research repositories capture student and faculty research and allow publishing opportunities for electronic journals in an open access environment. Western Kentucky University launched TopSCHOLARtm in May 2007 and is reaping benefits from the decision to contract with an established publishing platform, bepress' Digital Commons.

Institutional Repositories are intended to create an alternative publishing model, enhance scholarly communication, showcase an institution's intellectual output, and preserve and provide access to an institution's digital assets. What are strategies and challenges involved …

Chapter One: Beneath The Spanish Moss: The World Of The Root Doctor, Jack G. Montgomery Jr.

DLTS Faculty Publications

The spiritual practice of the Shaman is most likely the oldest spiritual tradition on Earth. Shamanism is a way in which humanity has sought a psychic connection to the world of healing, life and death, as well as a sense of social and individual balance. It is a complex psychological grammar that allows the Shaman to function in both the conventional and an alternative "spirit" view of reality. Shamanisn has been a part of American culture since the colonial settlement and continues today despite technology and modern scientific rationalism. This chapter is a brief social history of the African-American shamanic …

Practicing Librarianship Around The World, Deana Groves

DLTS Faculty Publications

More and more librarians are sharing their knowledge with colleagues around the world. This paper examines several examples of the type of international work conducted by librarians and also explores the various opportunities available worldwide. A general list of suggested travel tips is also included.

Editorial: Serials Review, A Changing World, You And I, Connie Foster

DLTS Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Editorial: The Serials Information Chain, Connie Foster

DLTS Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Lessons Learned As Author And Editor, Connie Foster

DLTS Faculty Publications

Writing and editing are dynamic, creative processes. At some point both author and editor must release the finished product and submit to the production process (more copy editing, proofing and queries). To offer the best manuscript possible, some tips are presented.

The Role Of Organizational Culture In Effective Team Development, Jack G. Montgomery Jr.

DLTS Faculty Publications

The concepts surrounding team management and organizational culture may seen unrelated when initially considering the implementation of some form of team management however in fact both concepts are intimately connected. The success of any team management effort may depend on the successful identification, understanding and management of that wide variety of social and procedural elements collectively known as the organizational culture. This paper examines the role of organizational culture and how it impacts a manager or administrator introducing and implementing team management concepts to their workplace. The author will examine the definition of organizational culture, the various types of cultures …

A Look At 20 Academic Libraries Technical Services Web Pages, Deana Groves

DLTS Faculty Publications

The 21st century technical services librarian has access to a plethora of electronic and online work tools from which to choose to complete daily tasks. An assessment of the Western Kentucky University Libraries 19 benchmark institutions shows a great disparity of online work tools made available through university libraries technical services departmental web sites. Four areas (technical services, cataloging, serials, and acquisitions) are discussed. Outcomes indicate that 1) few of these institutions list online work tools and 2) of those that do, there is very little overlap. This paper investigates this phenomenon of inconsistent technical services online work tools.

In Memoriam: Frank F. Clasquin (1915-2002), Connie Foster

DLTS Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

In Memoriam: Alfred Jaeger (1923-2003), Connie Foster

DLTS Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Reflections About The Faxon Company: Beyond Vision, The Reality Of Shatterproof Windows And The Demise Of The Faxon Company, Connie Foster

DLTS Faculty Publications

Connie Foster, editor of Serials Review, opens this issue with reflections about the Faxon Company. She is joined by several contributors who had close ties with the subscription agency, either as former employees or clients. In an effort to document some of the milestones of the Faxon Company and results of an upheaval in the business community with the bankruptcy of divine/RoweCom/Faxon Library Services, the contributors also willingly share some experiences with and insights about a former serials subscription agency giant with services that spanned three centuries.

The Net Result: Enthusiasm For Exploring The Internet, Connie Foster, Cynthia Etkin, Sandra L. Staebell, Mary Margaret (Peggy) Wright

DLTS Faculty Publications

What began as a vision and committee charge from the dean of libraries at Western Kentucky University (WKU) ended as a successful faculty retreat focusing on the Internet. For the third year all University Libraries faculty from public and technical services, special collections, and the Kentucky Museum set aside one day before the beginning of the fall semester to retreat from their normal library responsibilities and environment to explore, in-depth, a single topic, and in 1993 the retreat focused on the Internet.

Current Periodicals: Subject Access The Mac Way, Connie Foster

DLTS Faculty Publications

At Western Kentucky University, the Library uses a Macintosh to filter and edit information on current serials to produce a periodicals guide for faculty and students. This tool has proven useful in collections development, reference and serials control within the Library. It has also provided the Library with a means to communicate to the academic community the extent of serials holdings in specific disciplines. Additionally, the Library has used the information within the guide to generate other lists of serials holdings for its patrons.