Library Committee Handbook

Executive Committee

 

March 4, 2009 DRAFT

Recommendations of the International and Area Studies New Service Model Team



The International and Area Studies New Service Model Team recommends the creation of an entity called "International and Area Studies" in the University Library.  The existing units that should be included in this service point should be Africana, Asian, Global Studies, Latin American and Caribbean, Slavic including the Slavic Reference Service, and Modern Languages.  It is further suggested that the services related to the European Union Center should be included in this unit.  The team also came to the conclusion that the English Library and the History Library should not be included in this unit.  

We estimate that the unit would include about 11 faculty members, 14 staff members, and 16 graduate assistants with variable appointments.  (See Appendix 3 for more detail)

The group strongly felt that the new International and Area Studies unit should have one unit head, with each special area of the unit retaining its own subject specialist. (Vote 9 in favor, 1 abstention.)  The group was less certain about the motion that the distinct identity and historical continuities of the constituent parts of the International and Area Studies unit will be explicitly preserved within that unit.  (Vote 5 in favor, 2 against, 3 abstentions.)   

The new unit will provide service to our users, both physically, and virtually.  A web portal providing access to resources and information about each part of the new unit will provide another unifying factor for users and potential users.

The International and Area Studies unit should be located on the second floor in room 200, Slavic Library, and possibly the Advancement Office.  (Vote 7 for 2nd floor, 3 for 3rd floor, 1 abstention).  (See Appendix 1 and 2 for more detail)

We are recommending that another, smaller group including some members of the original team should now take on implementation of this proposal.

 

Appendix 1.  Physical Location of International and Area Studies

Appendix 2.  Space Requirements for International and Area Studies

Appendix 3.  Staffing of Units as Currently Constituted

Appendix 4.  Benefits of New Service Model for International and Area Studies

Appendix 5.  Challenges of New Service Model for International and Area Studies

Appendix 6.  Final Report and Recommendations of the Budget Plus Group

Appendix 7. Team Charge and Membership

Appendix 1.

Physical Location of International and Area Studies

The Team discussed two location options: 1) the current Asian Library combined with the current English Library space on the third floor and 2) the current Slavic and East European Library possibly combined with the Library Advancement Office space and some part of room 200 (Documents/General Reference) on the second floor. The advantages for the use of one space are generally the disadvantages for using the other.

Second Floor Advantages                                Third Floor Disadvantages

Convenient for undergraduates               Harder to find for undergraduates

Service point in a grand space               Service point in an average space

Better visibility                                       Worse visibility

A unified space                                    The corridor breaks up the space

Proximity to Central Reference               Far from Central Reference

Proximity to stacks entrance                   Far from stacks entrance

Proximity to History, Phil., News. Lib.      Far from History, Phil., News. Lib.

Already has conference/classroom         Lack of conference/classroom

Open space easily configured                Walls are preset; space is harder to configure

Space will be ready very soon                English Library might take a longer time to move

Easy access for people with disabilities   Disadvantages people with disabilities

Third Floor Advantages                                   Second Floor Disadvantages

Asian Library is connected to its stacks   Asian Library loses connection to its stacks

Quiet space and more comfortable          Noisy space and less comfortable

English has nice private spaces              Lack of private spaces if excludes Advancement Office

Fewer people to move                            More people to move

The vote was 7 for the second floor, 3 for the third floor and 1 abstention.

The Team also noted that the Asian technical services librarians and staff might have to continue to be located in the current Asian Library space, to facilitate their access to the Asian collections and because there may not be enough space on the second floor to accommodate everyone.

 

 

Appendix 2.

Space Requirements for International and Area Studies

 

  1. Reference Desk:  One service point for the entire unit; referrals will be made to subject experts as needed (tiered model).
  2. Reference Collections: Small core reference collections from each unit will be located in the new public area and the rest of the reference collections will be transferred to the retrospective reference area in the stacks.
  3. Consultation space for small groups: Librarians and staff need spaces where they can meet with users in small groups (3-4) to provided targeted instruction sessions.
  4. Instructional classroom: Location where library staff and faculty can meet with a larger group of students  (about 25 people).
  5. Space for international visitors: There are many international visiting scholars on campus and we would like to create a space in the public reference area where we could provide information about the campus and community and also maintain a list of current visiting scholars.
  6. Seating for users should be comfortable and sufficient.
  7. Instructional Computer Lab: Specialized lab that would allow for translation, multi-media work, and access to foreign databases and websites.  This lab should be able to accommodate up to 25 users and could be reserved by faculty and teaching assistants on campus.
  8. Public workstations with special software: The new unit will need up to 10 public workstations located in the public reference area for walk-in users and for one-on-one instruction. CD-ROM stations are needed for some Africana materials.
  9. Scanners and Printers are needed for print and microform materials in both in public service area and in the office area.
  10. Exhibits: Exhibits cases would be placed in the hallways surrounding the new unit to allow for displays.
  11. Meeting rooms: If the offices in the new unit are not enclosed, then faculty and staff will need access to small private rooms for consultations and private discussions.  We are assuming that 2-3 consultations rooms will be needed.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Appendix 3.

Staffing of Units as Currently Constituted

Below is a listing of faculty and staff related to each department as best as we can determine at this point.

Africana 
1 full time librarian
1 staff member
1 graduate student (TitleVI)

Asian 
5 full time librarians (one vacancy listed for Korean Studies)
5 full time staff ( two are split between circulation and other duties; the other three are primarily cataloging but perform other duties as well)
8 graduate students listed

Latin American and Caribbean 
1/2 time librarian
1 staff member (primarily acquistions and LABO, but also does cataloging)

Slavic and East European 
part time acting head
2 full time librarians
1 full time staff (office manager for SRS)
1 full time staff (split between SRS reference and cataloging)
2 academic professionals (visiting research assistants)
Note: There are several other members of this unit, both faculty and staff, but our understanding is that they will be moving to either cataloging or acquisitions.)
3 graduate assistants  (Title VIII)

Global Studies
1/2 time librarian
1 graduate assistant (Title VI funded, assigned to work on specific project w/SRS)

European Union Studies
duties assumed by 1/2 time librarian as part of political science
1 graduate assistant (Title VI funded, spends most of time working in EUC with occasional projects for library)

Modern Languages  
Acting head
1 full-time librarian (Kolb-Proust Archive half time)
2 - 1/2 time librarians
1 full-time staff
2 graduate assistants

 

Appendix 4.

Benefits of New Service Model for International and Area Studies

 

  1. One service point
  2. Better physical access to students
  3. Better access to reference collections for patrons
  4. Latin American and Caribbean Library will now be near its reference materials
  5. Close to Central Reference, Main Stacks, History, Philosophy and Newspaper Library and libraries on first floor
  6. After hours, librarians in Central Reference and patrons will have access to reference collection
  7. Librarians with subject expertise in international studies
  8. Uniqueness of collections and services, such as Slavic Reference
  9. Variety of reference options: face-to-face, through email, by phone, via Chat and IM
  10. Vibrant online presence that bring together the current homepages of the Area Studies and Modern Languages Library
  11. Physical proximity of librarians and staff involved in Area and International librarianship
  12. Instructional Space/ Conference Room/ meeting room
  13. Will provide a place for international students and faculty to meet
  14. Will bring together librarians with expertise in European studies
  15. Better communication between librarians engaged in international studies
  16. Will foster great exchange of ideas
  17. Streamlined functions, such as periodical check-in (I assume we will be retaining our periodicals), ordering
  18. More efficient use of staff and possibly fewer staff needed
  19. Staff will have greater opportunities for expanding their skills and interests
  20. Possibly longer opening hours

 

 

 

Appendix 5.

Challenges of New Service Model for International and Area Studies

 

Viewing challenges as opportunities to improve services, we identify the following areas as ones that the new service model needs to confront:

 

1. The biggest challenge is not only to bring the units physically together, but also to integrate services within the new unit in order to do more for users than each individual current unit can offer. We need to work collaboratively within and without the units.

 

2. With the merger of the different units and the combined reference service, we have subject specialists to cover Area Studies as well as Global Studies; however, their expertise will mostly be confined to a specific geographic and subject and language area. How to provide cross-training to acquire basic international reference competencies and eventually to bring the reference service to a higher level as demonstrated by the Slavic Reference Service will be crucial to the success of the new service model.


3. We might face some challenges in finding space for all the things we want for the new services and in keeping  the good things we already have in terms of physical configuration of the new service model. For example, some Area Studies libraries display their current periodicals to bring the latest serial publications to the attention of faculty and graduate students, as many publications acquired by Area Studies subject specialists are not available online.


4. The new service model should be able not only to maintain the collections budget for non-English materials that the various Area Studies subject specialists manage in order to preserve the autonomy of each collection, but also to have funds for the acquisition of English language materials in their area. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Appendix 6.

Final Report and Recommendations of the Budget Plus Group - April 21, 2008

16. Create a "Languages and Linguistics Library" to be located in 225 Library

The English Library and the Modern Languages and Linguistics Library provide complementary collections and expertise in areas related to the study of world languages, literatures, and linguistics. Likewise complementary are certain collections and services of the Latin American & Caribbean Library , which, like Modern Languages & Linguistics, collects materials published in languages such as Spanish and Portuguese. The Budget Group Plus recommends combining the complementary collection and service programs of the English Library, the Modern Languages & Linguistics Library, and the Latin American & Caribbean Library to create a "Languages and Linguistics Library" that will provide a robust service point focused on resources related to the study of languages, literatures, and cultures, and that will build on pre-existing collaborations between the faculty currently housed in the English, Modern Languages & Linguistics, and Latin American & Caribbean libraries.

17. Create an "Area and International Studies Library" to be located in 321/325 Library

The Area Studies represent a historic area of strength, both in collections and public service, for the University Library, and the Library's area studies faculty and staff provide complementary services to campus units and across campus units. Access to many of those collections and services, however, is limited by the demands involved in operating multiple area studies units within the Main Library facility. Recognizing both the strengths and the limitations of the current model, the Budget Group Plus recommends establishing an "Area and International Studies Library" that will provide a robust service point focused on resources related to the study of defined regions of the world and allow for more effective integration of resources collected in vernacular languages into broader service programs. The Budget Group Plus recommends establishing this unit in the co-located space of 321 Library (to house the collections and services currently housed in the Slavic & East European Library and Africana Library Unit , as well as complementary collections and programs of the current Latin American & Caribbean Library ) and 325 Library (to remain the Asian Library ). Finally, pursuant to Proposal No. 10, the Budget Group Plus recommends that technical service operations in the area studies units consolidate with complementary Central Technical Services operations.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Appendix 7.

 

Team Charge and Membership (December 2008)

 

The International and Area Studies Team will:

1.    Identify how and where to most effectively provide Library services to all disciplines and communities that use Library collections with an international/area studies focus, including those engaged in the study of languages, literatures and cultures.  The group should take into consideration the recommendations in the Final Report of the Budget Plus Group, the goals identified in the Library International Strategy (2003) , the recommendations of the forthcoming report from the Technical Services Coordination and Consolidation Team, and other ideas such as the proposal to establish an International Reference Service (IRS).  

 

Membership of International and Area Studies New Service Model Team

The group had wide ranging discussions from many perspectives and an intensive series of meetings between December 2008 and March 2009.  We particularly appreciated expert input from William Brustein, Ruth Watkins, Ann Mester, and Matthew Tomaszewski.

The membership of the team was: