Discusses the importance of professional development for library media specialists and presents suggestions for staying current in the field, including participation in conferences, taking advantage of continuing-education opportunities, reading professional journals, and using Internet resources. (MES)

Reports on a program held at the 1986 American Library Association Conference which offered a model for locating and evaluating existing research on libraries. Six guidelines for evaluating research are provided, and small group sessions which evaluated actual research and talked directly with researchers are described. (EM)

This document describes the processes involved in writing an effective user manual intended to give the reader a working knowledge of a computer program named FUND-RAISER. Written in UCSD PASCAL, FUND-RAISER was developed by the Winter Park Library Association to ease the record keeping and letter writing tasks involved in the association's annual…

Designed as a simple how-to guide, this revised handbook presents guidelines for setting up a church or synagogue library or revitalizing an existing one. The first section, "Begin with a Purpose," advocates preparing a statement of purpose. The second step, "Be Prepared," discusses the importance of the planning process.…

This document contains the results of a 1994 survey on the use of user surveys by ARL (Association of Research Libraries) members. Of the responding libraries, 68% had conducted user surveys in the last 5 years. A number of these libraries (20%) reported conducting surveys at regular intervals ranging from every year to every five years. The…

This book provides an introduction to basic communications concepts, a step-by-step process for developing and implementing a library public relations/communications plan, and descriptions of effective library communications tools and strategies. Detailed examples of the application of solid communications planning in school, public, academic, and…

This guide is designed to assist all libraries, including school, public, academic, and specialized libraries such as prison and institutional libraries, to better serve the needs of people of all ages who are mentally retarded. An overview provides a definition of mental retardation, places services for people with mental retardation in…

This manual for the 1993 Louisiana Summer Reading Program has ideas for libraries to get the summer program started. The theme is trains, and all of the ideas have something to do with this theme. The following topics are covered: (1) evaluation; (2) promotion, publicity, and programs; (3) calendar; (4) decorating the library; (5) storytime…

This paper examines "Information Power: Guidelines for School Library Media" ("Guidelines"), a key document published by the American Association of School Librarians (AASL) and the Association for Educational Communications and Technology (AECT) that proposes changes in school library media development in the United States and…

This publication is designed as a guide for libraries that have elected to undertake a formal study of preservation needs in preparation for planning and implementing programs to meet those needs. The manual is divided into four sections. The first section (Chapters 1-2) provides an overview and orients the reader to the planning process. The next…

This paper discusses the need for developing provincial/state, regional, and district partnerships to provide critical support for library media programs at the building level. It maintains that the experts who provide leadership at each level must be strong advocates for the integration of the library media program into all aspects of the…

This book focuses on guiding librarians at institutions of higher education on being proactive in securing tenure and promotion in their professional employment. The book has nine chapters. Chapter 1 gives advice on what to include in an application for a tenure-track position and what activities representing individual growth and development…

In the fall of 1993, the Association of Research Libraries (ARL) Office of Management Services conducted a survey to determine the status of automation activities within preservation departments in member libraries. The survey was sent to 68 ARL libraries that have established preservation departments under the management of a preservation…

Developed as a basic resource for Georgia school media personnel, this handbook draws together the information most frequently needed by media professionals across the state. The information is drawn from a variety of sources and, in some instances, abridged for ease of use or understanding. Areas covered include: (1) preparation and…

This document reports the preliminary results of a survey conducted in the spring of 1993 to gather information on the status and use of video collections and multimedia in Association of Research Libraries (ARL) libraries. Results from the survey include: 84 percent of the 73 respondents collect videorecordings; the largest collections are on VHS…