In 2010, the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education released, "Sustainability curriculum in higher education: A call to action," encouraging infusion of sustainability topics into universities' teaching and research. Since then, academic programs and research, related to social, economic, and environmental sustainability have enriched university curricula. An exploratory study was conducted to determine the position and engagements of academic libraries and information science schools in their contributions to scholarly sustainability activities and curricular initiatives. This article presents the results of the study which reveals a number of engagements by library professionals in the areas of sustainability, such as increasing open access to research, building sustainability-related collections and research guides, and incorporating sustainability content into information literacy. While academic libraries and information science schools are engaged in a broad spectrum of initiatives that support their institutions' sustainability research and curricular functions, this study indicates that such activities require a more targeted approach.
Course management software (CMS) or courseware products, such as Prometheus, FirstClass, Blackboard, and WebCT, do not include the Library as an essential, curricular component in their design. Consequently, the task falls to librarians to creatively partner with faculty to input library resources into courseware to support students effectively in their research endeavors. Distance learning students, who are off campus, will benefit as they are physically removed from the Library. Distance learners (DLs) can be intimidated by library Web sites and find it difficult and time consuming to navigate. Since the entire course content is in the course management product, the primary source for class information, it makes good sense to include library resources and services in the appropriate areas, such as the syllabus, assignments, projects, etc. Including research resources within courseware enables students to get started on their own in navigating the Library and can provide direct contact information to appropriate library staff for further and deeper resource assistance.
Purpose-The paper's purpose is to share the insights that the staff of the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) Libraries (Wallace Library, RIT Archives, and the Cary Collection) gained into the role of reference librarians in establishing and operating an institutional repository (IR). Design/methodology/approach-The paper conducts a literature review on a range of published (1999-2005) works to research the background of IRs and to incorporate it with the authors' own experiences. Findings-The research findings, involving implementing IRs and specifically the effect on the role of the reference librarian in academic libraries, were found to be not as extensive as expected. Originality/value-This paper is intended for those who are involved in developing and promoting IRs. The outcome of the paper is to stimulate thought and to contribute to the dialog on the topic of how IRs impact reference librarian roles and careers.
Wallace Library's philosophy is to create and provide resources and services that will support all users. Consequently, distance learners and distance faculty have a plethora of online resources available to them, some of which is "pushed out," saving time and effort for the library user. The evolvement of Wallace's online resources is continuous, focused on the student or professor's research need from a geographic distance.KEYWORDS. libraries and education, distance education, distance learning, bibliographic instruction-college and university students, virtual library COMMUNICATION Courseware ProductsFirstClass, a courseware product (online collaborative tool), is used in R.I.T.'s DL program for communicating coursework asynchronously (non-simultaneous) among students and faculty using a bulletin board system, online chats and e-mail. Most students download the client software, but for students behind office firewalls, the Web version is utilized. The Library has a presence in FirstClass, utilizing a typical DL class format, referred to as a conference. The Library conference bulletin board is a series of e-mail messages with succinct subject lines aimed at keyword scanning of the messages. This format supports inclusion of salient parts of the Wallace Library Web that pertain to DLs available in a condensed format for quick information retrieval. The conference is supplementary to the Wallace Web. Most DLs are busy with jobs and or family and the economy of time is ever present. Each message contains brief, topical information and hyperlinks the student directly to the source of information.Students and faculty may invite the DL Librarian to chat online by clicking on the chat function. A list of who is currently online is available by clicking on the Invite button. The chat feature has enabled many students to solve an information problem on the spot. If the Librarian is not in her office when the invitation is extended and displayed on the computer desktop, the student is e-mailed upon return asking what assistance he or she needed.Statistics reveal that e-mail via FirstClass is the most popular mode used to ask the DL Librarian questions about library navigation. Interestingly, phone calls come in a close second in communication preference. Most students call when their questions require in-depth or step-by-step instruction answers. Some DLs have called from as distant as Hong Kong and Japan to forge a personal connection in gathering library information.Other applications of FirstClass that promote using library resources and services are the archiving of questions and answers in folders, a synchronous chat function, and the ability to send instructional PowerPoint presentations as attachments to students regarding researching topics for forthcoming projects and papers. Professors may request online chats including a PowerPoint presentation sent beforehand so students have the opportunity to explore library resources before the chat. A chat invitation for all distance learners is extended the first few we...
PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to give an overview of the initial transformation of one academic library's digital media library into the institutional repository (IR) of its entire academic organization.Design/methodology/approachProvides a description of an academic digital library's evolution into an institutional repository, accompanied by both practical and philosophical analyses.FindingsMaterials supporting an academic institution's scholarship (from colleges and from supporting organizations on campus) can play an important part in the success of an institutional repository. Standards for metadata content, data structures and hierarchies of collections must be followed consistently, and adequate storage for digital media within an institutional repository is necessary to have in advance of anticipated demand for the smooth operation of the IR and continued access to materials. Gray areas between the role of an institutional repository and the role of that organization's archives need to be addressed in the future.Practical implicationsAcademic libraries can be highly successful in producing an institute repository by developing relationships with various organizations on campus in addition to the academic programs. Maintaining standards throughout the IR is crucial to future growth in an organized and consistent manner. Philosophical considerations of the role of the IR should be addressed in the beginning stages of the development of the IR for eliminating confusion and duplication of its contents with other campus organizations.Originality/valueThis paper describes the development of a digital library, created and maintained by an academic library, and its gradual change into a de facto institutional repository. Other libraries in the planning stages or initial steps of creating a campus‐wide digital library or an institutional repository can benefit from the description of possible successes and problems that they could encounter during implementation.
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