Collections Advisory Council Meeting
Agenda
June 8, 2006
1:30 - 3:00
122 Main Library

Minutes this month to be taken by:  ?

Topics to be discussed: I write to support Jennifer Kuehn’s suggestion that the issues related to the Ebsco project are so very important that we need to meet for discussion at the earliest possible date, and to support Eleanor Block’s suggestion that we focus on the larger, over arching issues and their implications rather than argue the relative merits of individual databases. As Eleanor pointed out we will do better to discuss our common goals regarding access to information in a major teaching and research institution. With that in mind I nominate the following questions as agenda items to be addressed:
  1. How, as a faculty in a teaching and research institution, do we handle a crisis? Do we accept dictates such as "there will be no discussion" or "there will be no debate," which is what we were told in our last group meeting when an announcement was made regarding the solution to our space crisis? (note to Bracken: I am 110% behind your idea but I was denied the opportunity to speak.) When critical issues that significantly impact our ability to support teaching and research are presented to us, how do we move forward in any meaningful or honest manner without discussion and debate? The Ebsco project is an excellent example of an issue about which we are being paid to think and to act in the best interest of our constituents. As some current politicians are saying, let’s not waste a perfectly good crisis: let’s learn something about who we are and how we act.

  2. What does "internal use only" mean, and what are the implications of that? I understand the Ebsco task force document and the attached cover letter from Tom Sanville as documents are not to be shared outside of OhioLINK. I agree to that. However, I certainly intend to share a summary of the content and the implications of the content with the faculty in the College of the Arts. I would be abandoning my professional responsibilities to the University if I did not do so. Surely I am not expected to let COTA faculty leave town for the summer and return in autumn to find that they and their students no longer have access to Art Abstracts, the sole electronic index for journals in their many fields? As University faculty members what is our institutional responsibility to other faculty colleagues who depend on us to support their teaching and research?

  3. What are CDO and LRN funds for? I don't think this question has been answered and I hope we can discuss it in our meeting. Rather than getting personal I hope we can focus on the "my" vs. "our" philosophy that I mentioned in my first email message on this topic. In her message Jennifer said she didn't think Bracken meant each of us individually when he emphasized "you." English is problematic in that the same word is used for both the singular and the plural of the second person. Given the current fiscal climate I suggest we discuss and clarify whether "my" or "our" is our M.O.

  4. How can we prevent a breakdown in confidence in OSUL administration and OL? How can a collection manager and/or reference librarian continue to believe in and act in accordance with what we are told by OSUL administration or OL regarding access to electronic information? Previously I mentioned due to the strong urging of OSUL administration, and firm promises from both OSUL and OL that the Wilson indexes would always be provided by OL, I canceled the paper subscription to Art Index (Art Index is the paper product and Art Abstracts is the electron version.) 2006. . .poof! Promises thrown out the window. I don't want to make this about one index: the point is that it could be index X today, index Y tomorrow, and index Z next week. How do we maintain confidence that we are making the best and most informed decisions for the University community, and how can the University community maintain confidence our decisions?

  5. What specific expertise does the "small task for of CIRM members" bring to the table? This group is making recommendations of enormous import for research and teaching communities throughout the entire state. The following direct quotes from the task force report cause me to doubt the validity of their recommendations:

  6. As participatory faculty members of a major academic institution, what do we expect from those in leadership positions? I have always thought that leaders don't push, they pull. And good leaders don't pull; they engender enthusiasm for a shared vision. What do we expect, or can we expect anything?
I will have left OSU before the Ebsco matter impacts our faculty and students. This does not cancel the professional responsibility and obligation I have to my reference and collection manager colleagues and to the OSU teaching and research community. For that reason I will do exactly as Jennifer Kuehn suggests and compare title by title the Ebsco offerings to the Wilson offerings and compare that data to OSU holdings. Yes, this will be time consuming, but I encourage all reference librarians and collection managers who are concerned about the Ebsco product to do the same in their areas. At best this will calm our anxiety about the adequacy of the new product, and at worst we will be able to present concrete data instead of emotional outcries. In any case I hope our group discussion will focus on the larger, more over arching issues that determine how we behave as a faculty.

That said, I do propose a few more nitty gritty, practical issues for your consideration:

  1. Why is the collection manager’s subject expertise deemed good enough to decide which journals we will cancel but not good enough to decide which journals we will access through electronic indexes?

  2. Why do we subscribe to journals for which we have no indexing? OL has deemed 3,282 titles to be "too obscure to be of value." If this is correct why don't we make all OSUL continuations on that list of 3,282 the first to be canceled?

  3. Why are the Humanities and the Social Sciences taking the hit? Is it coincidence that the faculties in these areas have less influence with university/college administrators than faculties in the sciences? As Eleanor put it, whose ox is getting gored? Are we being pitted against each other, and if so, why? As responsible citizens of the larger University community I believe we should talk about this.

    I look forward to having a fully participatory discussion with my colleagues about these and any other issues.

    Thank you for the time you devoted to reading this.