Argues that any trend that moves librarians away from libraries and into academic classroom settings is accomplished at the expense of students and ultimately weakens, rather than strengthens, the role librarians can play in higher education. Suggests that librarians' areas of expertise lie in information skills rather than specific disciplines.…

Describes the usability study that was designed at Hampshire College (Massachusetts) to see whether students were successfully using the library's Web site, particularly for reference services. Emphasizes the need for retesting and discusses results of the usability testing, including an increase in Web site hits and database searches. (LRW)

Identifies difficult patron issues in academic libraries from the librarians' perspectives and offers solutions to try and prevent them from becoming problems. Topics include labeling academic library users; eliminating sources of conflict between faculty and library staff; and conflicts between students and library staff. (Author/LRW)

Describes business techniques for mass marketing, where information technologies are used to target discrete individuals or groups and promote customer interaction. Considers the applicability of business concepts to academic library service, including uniquely identifying patrons, issues of privacy, focusing on the most valuable library services,…

Discusses changes in library instruction programs to focus on information literacy and describes the process at Emerson College that was designed to help librarians who teach library instruction. Explains goals and activities that culminated in a retreat for teaching librarians that addressed faculty relationships, successes and failures in…

Reports results from the Association of Research Libraries (ARL) E-Metrics study to investigate issues associated with the usage statistics provided by database vendors. Considers standardization of key usage statistics and reporting format and validation of reported statistics; and offers recommendations for libraries and calls for continuous…

Discusses the need for academic and public libraries to confront the challenges and inevitability of change to retain their relevancy in the information age. Visioning, strategic planning, TQM (total quality management), and Preferred Futuring are considered. (Author/LRW)

Proposes a discipline-based approach to teaching information literacy and argues that the responsibility should be shared throughout the academic institution, rather than limited to the library. Discusses content versus process as the focus of teaching and presents an outline of the complementary responsibilities of librarians and classroom…

Describes the University of the West Indies, focusing on the St. Augustine (Trinidad) campus and the library's involvement with maintaining, preserving, and disseminating postgraduate student theses. Explains quality control efforts and considers implications for the types of scholarship performed by academic librarians. (LRW)

Presents a user-based approach to exploring the possibility of adding user-oriented class associations to hierarchical library classification schemes. Classes not grouped in the same subject hierarchies yet relevant to users' knowledge are obtained by analyzing a log book of a university library's circulation records, using collaborative filtering…

Explains portals as tools that gather a variety of electronic information resources, including local library resources, into a single Web page. Highlights include cross-database searching; integration with university portals and course management software; the ARL (Association of Research Libraries) Scholars Portal Initiative; and selected vendors…

Describes a survey conducted at Pennsylvania State University, Behrend College that investigated students' experience with and reactions to a new electronic reserve system (ERS). Results document active use, a preference for ERS over traditional reserves, and enthusiasm with enhanced access, especially for off-campus students. (Author/LRW)

Discusses affirmative action strategies in academic libraries that have attempted to improve the percentage of minorities in librarianship. The importance of stressing the value of greater cultural diversity within the academic library is discussed, and specific tools that can be used to increase the number of minorities are described. (39…

Describes the development and operation of an electronic serial, "The Public-Access Computer Systems Review." Its evolution from the Public-Access Computer Systems Forum--a computer conference on BITNET run by the University of Houston libraries--is explained, and two sidebars describe other conferences and electronic serials available…

Examines the environmental context that is shaping academic libraries and computing centers and their interdependence. The strengths of a partnership of these two information service organizations are discussed, and potential areas of tension between them are considered. Resulting changes in the nature of information work are suggested. (16…