Library and Information Science Commons^™

Virtual Reference Service In Southeastern Academic Libraries: A Study Of Availability, David L. Dehart, Ann Viles

The Southeastern Librarian

Academic libraries are experiencing a gradual decline in the number of reference transactions. In a recent compilation of statistics for members of the Association of Research Libraries, for example, the median numbers of reference transactions reported fell from 134,944 in 1998 to 66,300 in 2005, an average drop of 4.6% per year (Kyrillidou and Young 2006). Traditional reference transactions still greatly outnumber virtual transactions in most libraries, but there is some speculation that virtual reference will overtake traditional reference in the near future. In an attempt to establish a baseline for the availability of virtual reference services in Southeastern academic …

The Southeastern Librarian V. 55, No. 1 (Spring 2007) Complete Issue

The Southeastern Librarian

Complete issue of The Southeastern Librarian, volume 55, No. 1 (Spring 2007).

From The Editor, Perry Bratcher

The Southeastern Librarian

Column from Perry Bratcher, editor of The Southeastern Librarian.

Translating The Libraries: A Multilingual Information Page For International Students, Jennifer Mcclure, Mangala Krishnamurthy

The Southeastern Librarian

University libraries have long recognized the special needs of international students on campus, but have struggled to find the best ways to bridge the cultural and linguistic barriers and thereby demystify the library experience. The University of Alabama’s online Information Page for International Students (http://www.lib.ua.edu/international/), which was first mounted on the Libraries’ website in 2004, was an attempt to meet this need; however, only when the page was translated into Spanish and Chinese, two of the campus’s most prominent languages, did the advantages of library information in students’ native languages become fully apparent.

Interlibrary Loan Of Media Materials— The Tennessee Tech Volpe Library Experience: A Model For Change, Patricia B. Mcgee

The Southeastern Librarian

The sending of media materials via interlibrary loan is a practice in the library world that is fraught with controversy. On the one hand, the American Library Association’s Guidelines for the Interlibrary Loan of Audiovisual Formats makes a clear case for sharing audiovisual material in all formats. The reality, on the other hand, is more in line with the statement posted by the University of Oregon Libraries on their Interlibrary Loan webpage. In some instances libraries have adopted halfway reciprocal measures. They will loan only to those institutions that will also lend to them, or who are members of a …

Solinet Product News

The Southeastern Librarian

News from SOLINET. Highlights include: Amigos, PALINET, and SOLINET sign agreement to offer ScholarlyStats to membership; SOLINET offering new CQ Press resources; SOLINET awards $365,000 to 19 academic libraries in the Gulf Coast region; SOLINET, bLogistics to help members manage discards; public libraries discuss strategies to rebuild library facilities damaged and destroyed by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.

The Southeastern Librarian V. 54, No. 4 (Winter 2006/2007) Complete Issue

The Southeastern Librarian

Complete issue of The Southeastern Librarian, volume 54, no. 4 (Winter 2006/2007).

Message From The President, Faith Line

The Southeastern Librarian

Column by SELA President, Faith Line.

Sela Activities

The Southeastern Librarian

Recent activities from the Southeastern Library Association. Highlights include: The new 2006 – 2008 Southeastern Library Association Officers; SELA Membership and Mentoring Committee current projects; winners chosen for the 60th annual John Cotton Dana Awards; announcement of the 2008 National Diversity in Libraries Conference; the winners of the 22nd Annual Mary Ellen LoPresti Awards for Excellence in Art Publishing Competition for publications produced in 2005.

Ebsco Product News

The Southeastern Librarian

New products from EBSCO. Highlights include: EBSCO partners with Elsevier to offer individual e-journals through the E-Select E-Journals system; EBSCo offers the Springer Online Archives Collection; enhances functions of EBSCO A-to-Z; EBSCO announces release of updated SUSHI server; EBSCO now provides dimensional navigation through MetaPress 2.0; EBSCO now includes Live Search Academic as OpenURL enabled for LinkSource link resolver.

Ebsco Personnel News

The Southeastern Librarian

EBSCO announces promotion of two publisher relations executives.

State News

The Southeastern Librarian

Recent developments from SELA member institutions.

People News

The Southeastern Librarian

Recent professional developments from SELA members.

From The President, Judith Gibbons

The Southeastern Librarian

Column by SELA President, Judith Gibbons.

Membership Drive Success: Ala/Alabama's Support Staff Pilot Initiative, Kerry A. Ransel, Jack D. Fitzpatrick, John Chrastka

The Southeastern Librarian

Many professional associations are grappling with membership challenges. Recently, the American Medical Association (AMA) adopted a strategy they termed the “member-centered” approach (Romano, 2004). One feature of this approach designed to boost membership is teaming with state and specialty societies. The American Medical Association believes that “future cooperation and collaboration with state associations is vital to any membership turnaround” (Romano, 2004, p. 11). This partnership makes good business sense.

The American Library Association considers a cooperative venture with state associations as an important avenue to increase membership as well. Taking to heart the COPE recommendations and incorporating the idea of …

From The Editor, Perry Bratcher

The Southeastern Librarian

Column by Perry Bratcher, editor of The Southeastern Librarian.

The Southeastern Librarian V. 54, No. 3 (Fall 2006) Complete Issue

The Southeastern Librarian

Complete issue of The Southeastern Librarian, volume 54, no. 3 (Fall 2006).

I Have Shoes Older Than You: Generational Diversity In The Library, Jason Martin

The Southeastern Librarian

Generational Conflict is not a new phenomenon. Wherever and whenever different generations interacted, generational conflict existed. The Puritans of New England found each new generation to be less pious and devoted to the concept of the “City on a Hill” than its predecessors. The Flappers of the Jazz Age were considered morally lax and without direction. And the gap that existed between the Flower Children of the 1960’s and their parents was as large as the Grand Canyon. Even the great Socrates met his untimely end inciting the Grecian youth to rebel against their elders. However, today’s generations face some …

Metadata Basics: A Literature Survey And Subject Analysis, Nicole Mitchell

The Southeastern Librarian

Librarians today are wrestling with an everchanging digital environment. In some way oranother, we must all adapt to new technologies, skills, and ways of thinking. What comes to mind when you hear the word “metadata?” Is itintimidating? Do metadatists and catalogers explain the term adequately? While this articleby no means captures all there is about metadata, it is intended to provide librarians with a basic understanding of what is involved in metadatawork.

New Voices: Interactive Cd-Roms For Library Instruction And Discovering A Research Agenda, Jodi Poe, John-Bauer Graham

The Southeastern Librarian

This paper describes the development of an instruction/orientation platform that teaches students, specifically the distance education students, at our university how to access, navigate, and understand the services and resources available to them via the university library. However, there is another purpose to this paper that the authors believe to be just as valuable to other “new voices” in our profession. To that end, this paper examines how two new librarians attempted to better serve their patrons. But it also looks at how, through the instruction project’s development, two new academic librarians discovered that one lone project could benefit the …

Teaching Information Literacy At Delta State University, Michael Mounce

The Southeastern Librarian

LIB 101: Fundamentals of Information Literacy is a one credit hour course which has been designed at Delta State University to provide DSU students with information literacy skills needed for conducting research. Information literacy skills taught in this course include skills such as performing effective searches and evaluating resources. This course is a general education requirement elective. Although it is an elective course, it is highly recommended by DSU reference librarians to students, since information literacy skills are necessary for research.

In the Fall of 2004, the LIB 101 course began to be taught at DSU. During the fall 2004 …

The Southeastern Librarian V. 54, No. 2 (Summer 2006) Complete Issue

The Southeastern Librarian

Complete issue of The Southeastern Librarian, volume 54, no. 2 (Summer 2006).

Message From The President, Judith Gibbons

The Southeastern Librarian

Column by SELA President, Judith Gibbons.

Sela Activities

The Southeastern Librarian

Recent activities from the Southeastern Library Association. Highlights include: recipients of the 2006 Frances Coleman/Thomson Gale Conference Grants, Ginny Frankenthaler Scholarship, and Outstanding Southeastern Author Awards, and the moving of the SELA Archives from Emory University to Valdosta State.

Ala News

The Southeastern Librarian

Recent activities from the American Library Association. Highlights include: National Library Week Grants; the ALA Resolution on the Taxpayer Bill of Rights; the Law For Librarians Program; and public libraries in Louisiana and Mississippi to receive major grants to support rebuilding efforts.

Hbcu (Historically Black Colleges And Universities) Library Alliance Launches Redesigned Website

The Southeastern Librarian

The HBCU Library Alliance announced the launch of its redesigned website, found at http://www.hbculibraries.org.

Joint Conference Of Librarians Of Color (Jclc)

The Southeastern Librarian

Announcing the Joint Conference of Librarians of Color to be held October 11-15, 2006 in Dallas, TX. Conference features over 100 Programs for libraries serving diverse communities, including 'Hot Topics' on Recruitment and Retention, Staff Development, Advocacy, Service Delivery, Gender and Identity, Legacy Recognition, and Literature.

Solinet Product News

The Southeastern Librarian

News from SOLINET. Highlights include the release of Emerald Management Xtra College database; the election of the 2006/2007 board of directors, officers, and OCLC members council delegation; and ASERL's adoption of Docutek VRLplus for virtual reference services.

Solinet Personnel News

The Southeastern Librarian

Personnel news from SOLINET.

Ebsco Product News

The Southeastern Librarian

New products from EBSCO. Highlights include addition of new titles to EBSCOhost Electronic Journals Service Enhanced; the addition of a medical subject classification scheme to EBSCO A-to-Z; EBSCO's completion of EDI serials claims testing for ALEPH 500 ILS; and EBSCO and OCLC's web deployment of automated delivery of e-holdings data in ONIX Serial Online Holdings format.