MINUTES OF THE LIBRARY ADVISORY BOARD

December 3, 2008

 

Dr. Karla Kennedy-Hagan, Chair, convened the meeting at 4:02 p.m., in Booth Library Conference Room 4440.

 

Present:Rick Anderson, Monty Bennett, Barbara Carlsward, Marie Fero, Terri Fredrick, Joe Gisondi, Matt Hagaman, Karla Kennedy-Hagan, Dean Allen Lanham, Thomas McDonald, Sham�ah Md-Yunus, Tina Veale, and Heather K. Webb.

 

I.Welcome and Comments

Karla Kennedy-Hagan called the meeting to order.A motion was made and seconded to approve the minutes from the November 12, 2008 meeting as corrected; the motion carried.

II. Communications

Communications were received from Christopher Hanlon regarding his inability to attend and from Robert Peterson that he would be delayed.

 

III. Old Business

Dr. Lanham reviewed the findings of the 2008 Patron Satisfaction Survey, explaining how the survey was taken and what the graphs showed in terms of approval of the Library�s services.Attached to the survey results was a listing of narrative comments made by undergraduate, graduate and some faculty who took the survey.Dr. Lanham explained how these comments are not always specific and generally focus on one concern, such as library hours.Booth Library takes this survey very seriously and is pleased with the results.Comments were made by several Board members and Dean Lanham explained the problems with hiring a third shift to accommodate the extended hours the students often request.Dr. Lanham stated that the Library would rather increase the collection or services rather than use monies to pay for additional hours of service.Survey students asked for a color copier and the Library now has one.

 

IV. New Business

Dean Lanham explained in detail the Booth Library Book and Materials Budget FY09 handout which is divided by college and department.The budget is divided this way to make sure that materials are purchased in all fields.He explained some of the mysteries of ordering library materials and the use of the contingency fund found within Booth Library Interdisciplinary Accounts.He further explained that the highest cost items are the electronic resources.The Collection Development Committee meets regularly to decide how best to expend all of the funds available.

 

Dean�s Report

 

Welcome

Dr. Lanham introduced guest speaker, Bradley Tolppanen, Head of Circulation Services at Booth Library.  In addition to managing the largest area of the library, including personnel, he is also the Bibliographer for History, Sociology and Anthropology.  Tolppanen made a presentation featuring the Circulation Services at Booth Library.  He spoke on several aspects of the department including:  Interlibrary Loan; the Periodicals and Circulation desks; billing for overdue/lost items; print reserves and electronic resources; bindery; stacks management; and, union storage and retrieval service.  He demonstrated how the Voyager automated system was used by Circulation.  He commented on the decline in usage of microfilm as that medium is now being replaced by online databases.  In answer to a question from the Board, Bradley informed that binding was done offsite by the HF Group in Indiana.  The library has a $60,000 annual bindery budget and the cost is fairly inexpensive compared to replacing heavily used materials.  The binding service is available for faculty materials as well.  Mr. Tolppanen also mentioned that we send more materials to other libraries through Interlibrary Loan than we receive and Booth Library is a governing member of CARLI (Consortium of Academic and Research Libraries in Illinois).  

 

Personnel

Library staffing currently has one faculty and three staff positions open; however, the library may have been successful in filling one of the staff positions today.

 

Planning Issues

         Dean Lanham once again asked the Board if they knew of any small student groups that would like to participate in �Booth After Hours� this Spring.The Library is considering a program for transfer students or an African-American group.

 

         �Spring Read 2009� is the new title for the Booth Library reading program, formerly known as �One Book, One University.�The book, �Three Cups of Tea: One Man�s Mission to Promote Peace . . . One School at a Time� by Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin, is the one chosen for this program.The 40 copies of the book have now arrived and will be available to the public this week.Other title options for this program might be: �Read this @ Booth Library� or �Push Me to Read.�Due to time constraints, the Board did not have time to discuss these options so for spring 2009, the Library will use the �Spring Read 2009.�

 

         The traveling exhibit, Wrapped in Pride: Ghanaian Kente and African American Identity� made possible through NEH on the Road, should be arriving in January 2009 and the exhibit should be on display with programs offered by the end of January through February 2009 to coincide with African American Heritage Month.The exhibit will arrive in 11 crates, weighing a total of six tons!

V. Adjournment

The meeting was adjourned at 5:08 p.m.

 

 

Respectfully submitted by:

Christine Derrickson, Recording Secretary