The Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) is committed to bringing together museums and libraries across the country for conversations dedicated to developing a better understanding of the roles of libraries and museums as providers of public service to communities. The Future of Libraries and Museums in the 21st Century Planning…

Since no local library can meet the information needs of the community on its own, librarians and local policymakers must look to other existing agencies and channels for support. In every locale are agencies, organizations, and governmental and social service units that daily gather, compile, and disseminate information as one of their missions.…

Three articles on preservation present a theoretical framework for making preservation selection decisions by Atkinson, comments on Atkinson's concepts and possible mechanisms for identifying collections for top priority in microfilming by Child, and results of a Research Libraries Group study of the costs of preservation microfilming by McClung .…

This packet is designed to guide users through the steps that ultimately lead to the assignment of collection responsibilities for individual member libraries of the North Bay Cooperative Library System, Santa Rosa, California. An initial profile of the member libraries examined the subject distribution of books owned, availability of books owned,…

This study evolved from a survey of all academic libraries in Georgia, designed to identify current online activities in the state's academic libraries, and to predict future directions and trends. The information was gathered to provide a pool of data for comparison, planning, management, and administration of online services, and to serve as a…

Outlines five areas to which standards of professionalism to enhance the public service of microform collections must apply: microform management policy; the microforms librarians; physical environment and equipment; bibliographic control and access (microform collection guides); and promotion of microform use (bibliographic instruction). Five…

The 10 papers included in this volume consider how professional roles and responsibilities have been and are being affected by technological change and what competencies are important in filling these roles. In addition, approaches to training and education to develop competencies--which are defined as knowledge, skills, and/or attitudes--are…

This paper examines the relocation of Athabasca University, an open-access, distance education institution, from Edmonton to Athabasca, Alberta, Canada, and the effect of that move on the library. Factors that helped make the move successful are discussed, including the 5-year institutional planning process; a government grant for the purchase of…

This script was prepared as part of a program presented by the Library Instruction Roundtable (LIRT) to share ways libraries in Mississippi help patrons use library resources. The program evolved from a 1981 needs assessment survey conducted by the Mississippi Library Association (MLA) Education Committee. At that time requests for information and…

Discussion of role of school library media centers (SLMCs) in multitype library networks notes five basic factors that contribute to their exclusion from library networks: psychological, political and legal, funding, communication, and planning. Examples of programs attempting to reduce barriers to school participation in library networks are…

A Public Library Association (PLA) survey compiled information on public libraries in bibliographic networks. Aspects identified and measured were perceptions of participation, reasons for non-participation, reactions to services, and suggestions for increasing participation. Recommendations are made for actions by PLA and the networks to ensure…

Summarizes views presented by three speakers from the Canadian library and information community in a workshop at a joint conference of two professional associations. Topics addressed were the state of research in public, academic, and special libraries; the need for library research; and how to find funding to support research. (CDD)

This paper presents guidelines and tools for action research in the school library which will help the librarian justify expenditures and personnel and evaluate and plan services. It shows how statistics can be turned into meaningful knowledge about what is currently being done in the library, how well it is being done, whether it should be done,…

Not every library has a specific department or area to handle its gifts and exchanges. This function is a vital part of every library program. This presentation is designed to increase awareness of the valuable contribution that the gifts and exchange function makes to the overall library program. Some of the contributions of the gifts and…

In academic libraries, neither technical services, public services, nor administration has escaped the impact of online information systems. Online catalogs, network systems, interlibrary lending, database searches, circulation control, automated technical processes, and an increasing number of non-book materials are part of a technological…