E-NEWS

Welcome to the premier issue of NCLA E-news, the electronic newsletter of the North Carolina Library Association!  We are excited at the prospects for enhanced communication within the association that this new newsletter format provides.   The appearance and continued publication of this electronic newsletter means that we have accomplished one of NCLA’s major objectives, to communicate with members using electronic means.

In addition to the fulfillment of one major objective, the appearance of NCLA E-news, provides an important means for marketing the continuing education programming that is such an important part of the work of NCLA and its sections and roundtables.  In fact, NCLA E-news means a whole new avenue for us to be kept informed in a timely way about NCLA, its members, its projects, and associated library activities throughout the state.

We especially want to thank Pam Burton of East Carolina University who volunteered to edit this newsletter and Carol Freeman, chair of NCLA’s Publications and Marketing Committee, who continues to amaze us with her ability to manage a number of complex projects (including her real job) and to really get things going.  Pam has been working on this newsletter for many weeks and held a workshop in August in order to make certain that this newsletter is successful.

Now, with Carol and Pam’s leadership, we can expect that NCLA E-news will add a new dimension of communication to NCLA.  But all of us must accept responsibility to make this newsletter a vital and important source of information about NCLA and North Carolina librarianship!  It’s all so easy now!  Each of us only need spend a few moments and send Pam our news.  Cause, after all, it’s our newsletter!

Keep the E-news Coming!

Beverley Gass
President, NCLA
 
 

The NCLA Treasurer's Report is now available on the NCLA Home Page.  Please stop by. Comments can be sent to Diane Kester, Treasurer, at kesterd@mail.ecu.edu.
 
 

The 1999 Biennial Conference, "Imagine the Future: Librarians in Charge."  will be held September 21-24 in Winston-Salem.

The new NCLA Administrative Office page is now available at http://www.rcpl.org/~ncla/.
 
 

In special ceremonies at the Midwinter Conference of the American Library Association meeting in Philadelphia, Dr. Gene D. Lanier, Professor in the East Carolina University School of Education's Department of Broadcasting, Librarianship, and Educational Technology, was honored as an intellectual freedom champion and added to the Roll of Honor of the Freedom to Read Foundation and the ALA Office for Intellectual Freedom.  Celebrating the 30th Anniversary of the FTRF and OIF in the Crystal Tea Room, honorees were cited who " have made the First Amendment a living document in our libraries and throughout the nation."  The program cited Dr. Lanier by saying, "In North Carolina, he is considered the expert and 'court of first resort' whenever any intellectual freedom issue arises.  Not only has he made significant contributions to protecting the intellectual freedom of his state's citizens, but also that of his nation's."  He has spoken on the issue to civic and professional organizations in over forty states.  He currently serves on ALA's Committee on Professional Ethics and chairs the Eli M. Oboler Memorial Award Committee which chooses the best First Amendment book published each biennium.  In North Carolina, he has chaired the Intellectual Freedom Committee of the North Carolina Library Association since 1980.  The program also indicated he has received numerous other awards for his efforts to maintain freedom of access to information including the Hugh M. Hefner First Amendment Award in Education, the Mary Peacock Douglas Award, the John Phillips Immroth Memorial Award, the NCLA Intellectual Freedom Award, the SIRS Intellectual Freedom Award, the Robert B. Downs Intellectual Freedom Award from the University of Illinois, the NCLA Distinguished Library Service Award, the UNC-Chapel Hill School of Library Science's Distinguished Alumnus Award, the William C. Lassiter First Amendment Award from the North Carolina Press Association, and the ECU School of Education's Distinguished Professor Award.

The NCLA home pages are under revision  --  input is welcome from members, especially from those whose pages need updating.  Please visit at http://www.rcpl.org/ncla.  Send suggestions and comments to Peter Bileckyj, Chair of the Web Subcommittee of the Publications and Marketing Committee.
 
 

Documents Section

"WEB vs. CDROM: Access to Electronic Information": Documents Section Holds Fall Workshop

The Documents Section of the NCLA presented a workshop "WEB vs. CDROM: Access to Electronic Information" on October 23, 1998, at the McKimmon Center, NCSU, Raleigh, NC.  Presentations included "Federal Guidelines for Electronic Access," and "Web Equivalents of Federal CDs."  There was a panel discussion entitled "Frequently Used CD-ROMs, Their Reference Value, Their Web Counterparts."  There was also a small group discussion about which CD-ROM titles a particular library has found useful and which web sites are being used instead of CDs.  Participants discussed both CDs and web equivalents and the value of each in their libraries.  Issues raised in the discussion were reported back to the larger group.

1999 Documents Section Workshops

Plans are coming together for two NCLA Documents Section Programs: the Spring Documents workshop and the section program at the Biennial Conference in the fall of 1999.

We have been given a prime-time slot during the Biennial Conference: Wednesday, 22 September, 3:30 – 4:45 p.m.  We hope to bring in a large audience for the topic “Government Statistics on the Web.”  We will have at least three speakers highlighting useful federal, state and international sites for statistics in such areas as demographics, business, health and education, and agriculture.  The Conference will be held in Winston-Salem, 22 September – 24 September 1999.

The spring workshop will be held May 21, 1999, at McKimmon Center in Raleigh.   It will be dedicated to technical literature, with presentations on Patents, the new DOE Information Bridge, and NASA information on the Web.  We hope to also bring in experts to talk about the NTIS web site, and maybe even NRC and DTIC information.  More details soon!

-- Mary Horton, Wake Forest University, Vice-Chair/Chair-Elect, Documents Section

Library Administration and Management Section &  Resources and Technical Services Section

"Moving Ahead while Honoring the Past":  RTSS and LAMS Hold Fall Workshop

The Resources and Technical Services Section and the Library Administration and Management Section co-sponsored an all day fall workshop held September 24, 1998 at the Friday Center, Chapel Hill.  "Moving Ahead while Honoring the Past:  Assessing our Operations" attracted over seventy librarians from public, special, school, and academic libraries throughout the state interested in assessing the operations of their libraries.

The morning was devoted to three speakers, each of whom explored one facet of assessment.  Ellen Altman, feature editor of Public Libraries, asked, "Can You Tell Success If You Don't Assess?"  During her presentation, Dr. Altman emphasized the importance of assessing library operations.  She told the audience that assessment should not be merely bean counting; instead, librarians should keep the larger picture of library services in mind when assessing operations.  Robert Burgin, Professor at the School of Library and Information Sciences, NCCU, presented "Tool Time:  An Assessment Toolkit."  He described the best tools available for librarians to use when assessing the operations of their libraries.  Lea Wells, Assistant to the Director of North Carolina State University and the Library of the Faculty Center for Teaching and Learning, considered the human side of assessment in "Chin Up:  Assessments Never End!"  She offered workshop participants insights into the employer/employee relationship when assessments are underway in a library.  All three speakers prepared extensive bibliographies on assessment that were distributed to participants in their workshop packets.

Three breakout sessions, facilitated by volunteers, were held during the afternoon.  During each session participants could take part in discussion with colleagues on one of the three topics presented by the speakers that morning; each speaker was in attendance for the breakout sessions about his or her topic.   At the close of the workshop, participants, ranging from department heads to library directors, left the Friday Center with a better grasp of the art and science of assessing library operations.

--Margaret Foote, East Carolina University, Resources and Technical Services Section
 
 

Publications & Marketing Committee

The Publications and Marketing Committee is producing this electronic newsletter.  Peter Bileckyj is chairing the Web Subcommittee, which will keep the NCLA web site updated in a timely manner. Our committee invites interested persons to contact Carol Freeman at cfreeman@riscy.forsyth.tec.nc.us for more information.  The committee also welcomes any and all volunteers for these two projects.
 
 

NCLive

North Carolina Library Association

North Carolina State Library

Southeastern Library Association

American Library Association
 

=================================================================================================

DESCRIPTION: NCLA E-News is a publication of the North Carolina Library Association, published six times a year.

Please submit news, conference or workshop information, and other items of interest to the Editor or Assistant Editors below.

EDITOR:
Pam Burton
Head, Systems Department
East Carolina University
burtonp@mail.ecu.edu

ASSISTANT EDITORS:
Margaret Foote
Head, Cataloging Department
East Carolina University
footem@mail.ecu.edu

Marilyn Schuster
Local Documents/Special Collections
University of North Carolina Charlotte
mbschust@email.uncc.edu