Leading organizational change can be an enticing and exciting venture for library professionals. However, unforeseen difficulties can challenge even the most enthusiastic leader. This article explores one librarian's experience with organizational change and offers practical strategies for weathering obstacles to the success of new initiatives in…

At the University of Maryland Libraries, Angie Ohler, Director of Collection Services, discusses the history of the management of electronic resources for the past ten years at the Maryland Libraries, including the challenges of in an ever-changing environment and solutions she developed over time. The history she describes are lessons learned…

To gather, contribute, connect, be a creative force, defend, and guide are demanding dispositions that make an excellent school library professional. School librarians use these dispositions like poles of support as they glide down the slopes of student learning and curriculum. They leverage their roles of teacher and librarian like skis giving…

As managers of special collections engage with evolving formats and technologies, it is imperative that these professionals remain well versed in papyrus, paper, and principles that inform archival work. The permanence of this content defines our past, informs our present, and shapes our future. However, a constricting interpretation of archival…

Six years ago Jessica Gilcreast accepted the position as the school librarian in a diverse urban elementary school (80 percent low-income student population). The library had a bare-bones automation system, block scheduling, and no library assistant. None of this, however, was her biggest challenge. Inheriting an institutional, cold,…

In December 2012, the University of Saskatchewan Library's University Archives and Special Collections acquired the complete image collection of Courtney Milne, a professional photographer whose worked encompassed documentary, abstract and fine art photographs. From acquisition to digital curation, the authors identify, outline, and discuss the…

In April 2010, the New York State Board of Regents challenged the library community to rethink the State's vast array of library services to ensure that they are aligned with modern expectations and the expanded functions needed in today's society, operate with improved efficiency, and are prepared for the future as an essential and vibrant part…

This article describes the use of scenarios as a tool to assist a large distance learning library service in its strategic planning. Through a description of the scenario process from beginning to end, the authors detail the steps that the library director and the consultant took initially; their missteps; and the successful conclusion. This study…

As access services emerges as a discrete discipline within the field of librarianship, opportunities for access services librarians to meet and discuss the issues facing today's libraries continue to grow. One annual meeting that has attracted less attention over the years is the Ivies + Access Services Symposium. Held at various member…

This article explores recent developments in national policy for academic libraries. It considers the shift from traditional to managerial academic librarianship; the move to "social space" and multi-use systems; changes in the balance between meeting teaching and research needs and in public funding priorities; the difficulty of making…

Through vision, leadership, and creativity, Salisbury University's Blackwell Library transformed its access services department structurally and philosophically to better position itself to meet, and strive to exceed, today's user needs and expectations. Restructuring and the introduction of new leadership and new ideas provided the foundation for…

Librarians are the ultimate information workers, with little they can count as done at the end of the day. Staying productive and motivated when there are no finished items that you have created at day's end can be difficult. For just this reason, David Allen, author and productivity expert, has proposed an information-worker-centric theory of…

Broadband and bandwidth allocation is an essential technology planning activity that libraries should address on a continual basis. There are five key factors that will impact your network's performance: 1. infrastructure, 2. network load, 3. workstation performance, 4. prioritization of services, and 5. network management. The author thinks it's…

Competition in the virtual reference market got really hot this past summer. Recent developments in virtual reference offerings suggest the market is much more dynamic than most people would have imagined a short time ago. With Google's acquisition of Meebo and its subsequent decision to shut down the chat widget service, many libraries scrambled…

This article features Naturita Community Library (NCL), winner of "LJ"'s 2011 Best Small Library in America Award, sponsored by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. The library is the largest straw bale library in America. It sits on the western slope of the Rockies, across the Uncompahgre Plateau from the county seat in Montrose,…