Describes the function of and services offered by the Congressional Research Service (CRS) of the Library of Congress, which is charged with meeting the research and information needs of the U.S. Congress. The interaction of research analysts and librarians within the service is discussed. (CLB)

Describes a one-year experiment with collective management--i.e., management in which decision-making rests with the department as a whole--in the Oberlin College Library reference department. The planning process, problems, and advantages and disadvantages of this style of management are discussed. Several questions are raised about the…

Discusses the diverse client base served by the Wayne State University Law Library (Michigan) which includes secondary school students, undergraduates, paralegals, law students, attorneys, faculty, the general public, court reporters, legal secretaries, and librarians. An information service center and research guides developed to serve patron…

Reviews the planning, implementation, and evaluation of the library guides project, a customer service project at the New Canaan Library (Connecticut). Volunteers answered basic, single-component reference questions, allowing library professionals to give greater time and effort to more complex questions. (JMV)

Discussion of the merger of separate library units focuses on examples from Indiana State University Libraries' recent merging of the interlibrary loan unit of the reference department with the circulation department to form a new lending services department. Factors to consider in the merging process are discussed, emphasizing staff needs. (seven…

The Anchorage Library Information Network created the STAR (State of the Art Reference) group to deliver reference training to Alaskan librarians and information providers. Librarians were trained to run workshops that focused on acquiring communications skills through practice, coaching, and reinforcement on the job. Due to budget constraints,…

Summarizes the literature explaining focus group interview techniques and provides ideas on how they can be used for needs assessment and program evaluation in libraries and information centers. Discussion includes focus group session objectives, the level of moderator involvement, various methodologies, data analysis, and reporting in qualitative…

Discussion of Total Quality Management (TQM) highlights its history in business and industry, explains its use in higher education settings, and describes recent quality efforts in library services. Topics addressed include a history of quality; barriers to quality control; examples at Pennsylvania State University; and learning opportunities for…

Discusses the impact of decreases in revenues on the resource-sharing activities of ILLINET Online and the Illinois Library Computer Systems Organization (ILCSO). Strategies for successfully coping with fiscal crises are suggested, including reducing levels of service and initiating user fees for interlibrary loans and faxing photocopied journal…

Analyzes public policy and political issues that affect Indiana's library information services. Reviews the effects of these issues on Indiana's single statewide network created via a massive voluntary restructuring partnership between the Indiana State Library and 10 independent Library Service Authorities. An appendix presents Indiana's plan for…

Advances in information and telecommunications technology has increased academic distance education programs, prompting libraries to enhance access and services to off-campus students. This article summarizes distance education history and library-related technological advances, and also profiles distance education students. Library services…

Discussion of nontraditional entrepreneurial universities and challenges that they pose to library administrators at more traditional universities highlights experiences at the University of Phoenix (Arizona). Topics addressed include adult learning theories; curriculum development; learning resource services; accreditation issues; fair use;…

Describes the Intelligent Reference Information System (IRIS) at the University of Houston libraries which includes a local area network of CD-ROM databases and an expert system to recommend reference sources. Effects of IRIS on public services management, bibliographic instruction, and collection development are discussed; and network licensing,…

This special section includes eight articles that address issues concerning library buildings. Highlights include information technologies; industry standards; design; management issues, including organizational climate; long-range, or strategic, planning, including models and political issues; friends of library groups; technology in reference…

Provides background on the adoption of standards for reference service in public, special, academic, and high school libraries by the Suburban Library System (Illinois) and discusses their implementation and plans for evaluation. Highlights of the standards for written policies, staff, and resources are given; and the problem of noncompliance is…