The Advisory Committee to the Associate University Librarian for Services (SAC) serves as a mechanism for communication and consultation between the AUL for Services and Library faculty and staff engaged in the direct provision of Library services, as a venue for the discussion of Library-wide service issues and initiatives, and as a venue for the discussion of initiatives being pursued by SAC Working Groups, e.g., Library Assessment Working Group, and by coordinate working groups and committees across the Library, e.g., Web Content Working Group, User Education Committee.
Two of the major areas for discussion in SAC in 2010-2011 were the result of the conclusion of activities sponsored by SAC the previous year, i.e., the Reference Retreat (Reference Retreat Task Force) and the LibQUAL+ Report (Library Assessment Working Group). The Reference Retreat initiated a series of discussions around the issue of reference services in the Library that were eventually taken up by the Reference New Service Models Team. The Reference Retreat embrace of the “lightning talk” model was later adopted by the Library Faculty Meeting. The Library Assessment Working Group’s recommendations made as a result of the LibQUAL+ survey were discussed by SAC, as well as by other committees who were identified as important actors in the implementation of those decisions.
Services Advisory Committee was also involved throughout the year in the internal search for a Library Assessment Coordinator, a search that was ultimately closed following the failure to identify a candidate for the position. The SAC role in the Library Assessment Coordinator search reflects its role as a nexus for discussions of Library service issues and initiatives being pursued by component and coordinate groups across the Library. The Web Content Working Group, for example, is a component WG of CAPT, but its Chair (Slater) is an ex officio member of SAC, and routinely takes advantage of the front-line perspectives on Library services provided by SAC to inform his work on WCWG. The SAC role in the Library Assessment Coordinator search also reflects its role as a venue for leaders of other services-oriented committees and groups to come together for discussion of shared goals and the potential for collaborative programs.
Finally, Services Advisory engaged in a discussion initiated by the Chair of the best approach for enhancing its coordinating role and its role in helping to provide leadership for Library Services in concert with the AUL and the Office of Services. This discussion began with a proposal for the Chair to re-fashion the membership of the committee into a more consciously coordinated “Services Leadership Council,” and continued throughout the year as the committee considered the long-term value and viability of some of its component groups, e.g., Library Assessment Working Group, Public Engagement Working Group. These issues will be re-engaged in the coming year, especially in light of the recommendations of the Reference NSM Team, the launch of the Government Information Services Advisory Committee, and the alignment of faculty and staff commitment to discrete service programs following the conclusion of the VRP/VSIP programs.