SLIS Alumnae Become FAME Officers

At the close of the Florida Association for Media in Education (FAME) Conference, Cecelia Solomon was installed as the new President. Solomon, a graduate of USF's School of Library and Information Science, will hold the position for the 2009-10 year, ending at the end of next year's annual conference.

New FAME Officers

Another USF alumna also took up her new role as a FAME officer this year as well. Deborah Rothfeld became the new Secretary, a position that she will hold for the next two years.
~BW

Distance Education and LIS Programs

The November 2009 issue of American Libraries is running an article about distance education in the United States. They turn to Dr. James E. Andrews, director of the School of Library and Information Science at the University of South Florida in Tampa, for some insight to how library and information science programs are working with distance education tools. Professor Andrews states that the faculty -

"generally engage their online students through the use of asynchronous tools in the learning software, such as weekly discussion boards and blogs, and other Web 2.0 tools." He adds, "We also use audio and video in lectures, and many professors design creative projects that involve such activities as online group work, library visits, or others that go beyond merely presenting the content online. The key to the most successful use of these is sound curriculum and instruction design that goes beyond merely the gratuitous use of technology."

The United States Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts that "employment opportunities in the library and information science job sector are projected to experience positive growth in coming years." With the increasing sophistication of online and distance education, it's become easier for students who don't live next to an MLS-degree-granting institution to pursue a master's level education.

To find out more check out the ALA's list of accredited programs to find one near you, or check out the USF School of Library and Information Science website to learn more about our program.
-DD

USF SLIS at FAME

Dr. Ann Riedling and Jessica Voss at the USF SLIS booth

AThe USF booth at the Florida Association for Media Education (FAME) annual conference was done in a football inspired theme, and nearly everyone had something to say about it. FAME came time right after USF defeated FSU in a landslide victory and while some were crushed, others were very proud of their Alma Mater. However, that was just one of the reasons the booth was successful. The new online School Media Cohort generated a lot of interest as well! IMG_4295 (From left to right) GA's Bridgette Woodley and Alechia Dow, Jessica Voss and Dr. Jim Andrews at the USF SLIS booth SLIS students Bridgitte

(From left to right) GA's Bridgette Woodley and Alechia Dow, Jessica Voss and Dr. Jim Andrews at the USF SLIS booth

SLIS students Bridgitte Woodley, Alicia Long, and Alechia Dow had the opportunity to sit at the USF booth and chat with passers-by that were either interested in the cohort, happy about the football victory, graduates of the program, and/or were thinking of getting their MLIS at USF. Dr. Anne Riedling, Department Chair Dr. James Andrews, Communication and Information Officer Jessica Voss and Professor Diane Austin also sat in on the booth fun.

We had neat little gadgets and candy to give away at the booth, but we also had two amazing baskets made by Academic Program Specialist Wendy Steiger that were up for auction. We took in $40 for one, and $80 for another. Thanks Wendy!!

One of the USF SLIS baskets that was auctioned

The Conference itself was successful, and we learned about school media and emerging technology capabilities. FAME is a great place for students and professionals alike to learn, and also to be a part of an exciting venue for networking where you can meet amazing leaders in Media Education!
-A.E.D.

Dr. Stephanie Maatta Publishes Annual Placements & Salaries Survey in Library Journal

In the October 15th issue of Library Journal, Dr. Stephanie Maatta published the annual placements and salaries survey that is conducted every year. The article is titled, "Jobs and pay take a hit" and can be found in the Volume 134 No. 17 print version of Library Journal or online at Placements and salaries survey 2009. This year, they received responses from 46 of the 54 ALA accredited LIS schools and from 2,119 of the appromimately 6,589 total LIS graduates. USF SLIS is one of the programs that participates in this survey every year.

Johns Hopkins award for USF alumna Sharon Epps

Sharon Epps, Head of Access Services at the University of Maryland's Library, is a graduate of USF SLIS and the School of Urban Affairs and Public Policy at the University of Delaware. Her article "African-American women leaders in academic research libraries" won the Johns Hopkins University Press 2009 Award for best article, which appeared in their journal Portal: Libraries and the Academy, in July 2008.

USF SLIS alumna Sharon Epps

Epps is a former staff member at the University of Delaware's Library, where she conducted the research for her article. According to UD Daily, Epps' article "identified the attributes, knowledge, and skills that African-American women need to succeed as leaders" at research institutions.
~AKL

SLIS Alum Andy Huse Keeping Busy

On Tuesday, November 4, SLIS alum Andy Huse is not only scheduled to speak about his new book (see below) at 2:30 PM in USF Tampa Library's Grace Allen Room, but he'll also be speaking at 6 PM in CIS 2020 as part of SLIS student organizations' After Dark Lecture series. Then, on Tuesday, November 10, he'll be speaking at the Siboney Room in Ybor City's Columbia Restaurant (6:30 PM) for Tampa Bay History Center's "Florida Conversations" series, hosted by Dr. Gary Mormino. Andy's busy schedule appears to be a result of the upcoming publication of his new book titled, The Columbia Restaurant: Celebrating a Century of History, Culture, and Cuisine (University Press of Florida, pubdate: 11/12/2009). Andy's new book is available just in time for Christmas shopping.

At the Columbia, Andy will also be signing copies of his new tome.

Let's all join in congratulating Andy. And remember, wherever Andy is, there's likely to be some really good food nearby!

Impressions about USBBY Conference from Dr. Smith

USBBY 8th Regional Conference
October 2-4, 2009
St. Charles (Chicago), Illinois

The moment this conferee saw Conference President John Mason at the O'Hare Airport there came a sense that all would go well at USBBY - and indeed it did.

The International Board on Books for Young People (IBBY) organization with world wide regional chapters focuses on bringing to the attention of all, the wealth of books for children and young people all around the world. There is further emphasis on the need to find ways to get books to those young people living and struggling in many of the depressed countries around the world. It was almost disturbingly interesting to note how FEW children's books from other countries are available ??? published or easily acquired from publishing houses in the United States. This is particularly so about books that are published in the language of that particular country. Yet one looks in awe at the illustrations ??? the unique perspectives many illustrators use, the subtle sense of humor, the challenge to the reader to as one illustrator advised, "learn to look at a picture out of the corner of your eye, not always straight ahead." That made this conference attendee, return to a book that had been once read, and re-read as if for the first time, this particular wordless story.

Arriving at the conference during the period when things were being set up, provided the opportunity to meet many of those who would later address the USBBY members. During one "conversation" session participants were able to see examples of handmade cloth books. They came from workshops held in areas where poverty was rampant and educational materials almost totally beyond reach. Those who participated in the workshops were able to add to their meager supply of educational materials, books that with care, were almost indestructible. During the Discussion Sessions, one got a deep insight into what each person brought to the conference, based on the contents of the books chosen for the discussion. The themes ranged from treatment of women in some area, an author's perspective on the Israeli/Palestinian conflict, early history of slavery in Brazil, to name just a few. The protagonist in each title was a young person or several young people whose actions were viewed as a sign of HOPE for a future world. USBBY was a small conference that lent itself to almost constant conversation with attendees from all over, the beginning of, or at times the renewal of acquaintances, with time for more than just a quick, "Hello, I'll see you later." Perhaps there was not the landscape beauty of other conference sites, Calloway Gardens, Georgia, or Tucson, Arizona, but the time for meaningful exchanges with colleagues from so many different places held a beauty all its own. Fresno, California, here I come (I hope).

Henrietta M. Smith /MT / DA

Read.gov from LOC

Visit the new multimedia website offering resources from throughout the Library of Congress designed to encourage the reading of books and to interest users in learning about the authors and illustrators who create them.

The Center for the Book in the Library of Congress is offering this site, at www.Read.gov, as part of its mission to promote books, reading, literacy and libraries.

The Center for the Book in the Library of Congress invites people of all ages to discover the fascinating people, places and events that await you whenever you read.
Read.gov -KdlPMc

Spectrum Scholar Alicia Long receives a Spectrum Travel Stipend Scholarship

Current USF SLIS student and Spectrum Scholar Alicia Long has been selected as one of the recipients of the Spectrum Travel Stipend Scholarship to attend AASL National Conference in Charlotte, NC, Nov. 5-8, 2009. The Scholarship also includes a Mentorship for the duration of conference and recognition at a conference function.

Alicia Long

USF SLIS Reception at FAME a success

On Thursday, October 1st from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. the USF SLIS Department held a reception at the Florida Association for Media in Education Annual Conference that was held at the Marriott Orlando World Center Resort. SLIS faculty, students, and alumni gathered at the reception to have snacks and conversation.

Dr. Cora Dunkley with students

Dr. Linda Alexander with students

Interim Director Dr. Andrews attended the reception to talk with alumni. Also, Larry Dennis, FSU's Dean of the College of Information, stopped by to chat with USF SLIS faculty, students, and alumni.

Dr. Andrews and Dr. Dennis from FSU

Challenge Grant Program

Current USF SLIS student and Spectrum Scholar Alicia Long has been selected as one of the recipients of the Spectrum Travel Stipend Scholarship to attend AASL National Conference in Charlotte, NC, Nov. 5-8, 2009. The Scholarship also includes a Mentorship for the duration of conference and recognition at a conference function.

National Institutes of Health

Dr. Jim Andrews is the Co-Investigator on a grant from the National Institutes of Health as part of the "Challenge Grant" program. The grant's Principal Investigator is Dr. Rachel Richesson from USF Health's Pediatric and Epidemiology Center and now an affiliate faculty member of SLIS. She is also the co-editor with Dr. Andrews on the forthcoming text, Clinical Research Informatics (Springer). The grant is titled, "Library of Standardized Patient Registry Questions for Rare Diseases" and will develop standardized questions for patient registries across many different rare diseases, which can be used for developing new registries and revising existing ones. The library questions will use consistent structure and language and the underlying data elements (i.e., questions + answers + definitions) will be encoded using data standards that will facilitate reliable and consistent data collection and enhance opportunities for question re-use and data sharing. In this project, a combination of domain experts in rare diseases research and technical experts will be used to develop a coded library of standardized questions relevant to various rare diseases, with plans for implementation into the broader rare diseases research community.

Patient registries are an important first step in estimating the impact and understanding the etiology of rare diseases - requisites for the development of new diagnostics and therapeutics. The inability to access existing standardized registry questions results in lengthy and resource-intensive registry development efforts and limits opportunities for data sharing. A standardized library of data elements will speed the development and deployment of patient registries and allow registries to share and receive data from other registries or data sources. In addition, a library of standardized registry questions will enable cross-indication and cross-disease analyses, facilitate collaboration, and generate more meaningful results for rare disease patients, physicians, and researchers.

-JP

SLIS Grad Jenna Freedman Will Speak At The NY Art Book Fair

The NY Book Fair will take place on Oct. 2-4, 2009

Jenna Freedman, a SLIS alumna, will be speaking about zines in libraries at The NY Art Book Fair. She is scheduled to speak on Saturday, Oct. 3 at 2pm. The fair will be held at the P.S. 1. Contemporary Arts Center, Long Island City, Queens, and will showcase a diverse selection of noteworthy contemporary art publications.

Jenna Freeman

A Bio From Jenna Freeman's Blog:

Jenna Freedman is a zine librarian and librarian zinester. She is the Coordinator of Reference Services at Barnard College in NYC and a member of Radical Reference, a collective of library workers that meets the research needs of activists and independent journalists. She has published articles on zine librarianship and presented around the United States and in France on that topic as well as on other themes of library activism. She is the 2007 winner of the Elizabeth Futas Catalyst for Change Award, a 2003 Library Journal Mover & Shaker, and edits a zine reviews column for LJ.
-DR

News from the front-NEFLIN Bookmobile Interest Group

NEFLIN, the library consortium for northeastern Florida, has an ongoing group that meets two to three times a year to discuss bookmobiles. The meeting on September 29th took place at the Bradford County Public Library in Starke, FL. Attendees included: one bookmobile worker from the New River Library Cooperative, six bookmobile workers from the Alachua County Public Library System and one USF SLIS graduate assistant. The New River librarian who oversees the service joined the meeting in the last hour to glean accomplishments and help set up the next session.

Attendees of the meeting. Who forgot the refreshments?

Continuing dire news for library patrons included the absence at this meeting of library bookmobile workers from Jacksonville and Clay County. These counties have discontinued their bookmobile service as cost-cutting stratagems. This is sorry news, indeed, as it is likely to have the greatest impact on those with the fewest alternatives for access. Bookmobile service outputs that might not be readily apparent include:

Yes, it was originally a horse van

It might be surprising to learn the Alachua group reports each vehicle serving more patrons per year than many of their branch buildings. County commissioners might be slower to axe the service in the face of hard data clearly supporting this observation in other regions as well.
Web site: http://www.aclib.us/locations/bookmobiles

Alachua's bookmobile schedule and map of stops

The camaraderie and esprit de corps of this group points to people who find great enjoyment and gratification in their work. Most of them have been driving and staffing the bookmobile for decades. They report an exceptional personal connection with their patrons that exemplifies the ideal of community. It can also be a source of rich anecdotal insight.

One worker pointed to the library card issued from the bookmobile. This system offers a card with a picture of the bookmobile on one side. The background for this picture is blue with wispy white suggesting clouds. The worker reported a young patron asking how the bookmobile got onto the card? When she was told it was a picture, the young patron continued, "But how did you get it up there?"

The personal connection goes as far as invitations to family events including weddings and funerals. The same worker from the previous anecdote reported attending a viewing at a funeral home for a patron. She attended with her long time bookmobile partner. During the gathering, a child approached them and respectfully whispered, "Is the bookmobile out in the parking lot?"

These workers clearly employ cost-saving strategies for providing materials and giveaways to patrons. For example, they gather free coloring books from Publix and the U.S. Post Office to give away to patrons who might enjoy them. So it's particularly troubling to imagine many of these expensive vehicles sitting idle around Florida while greater and greater numbers of library patrons are forced to go without service in their communities because of it.

AB