While open textbooks offer opportunities to enhance inclusion, diversity, equity, and accessibility (IDEA), it is often seen as an afterthought in open textbook publishing processes. By examining existing literature, this paper dispels myths surrounding open textbooks and IDEA, including that openness does not equal inclusion, access or…

As the nature of public library services expands and transforms, continuing education (CE) for both degreed and non-degreed library staff is critical. An ongoing challenge for the LIS community is to identify the key areas in which to increase professional knowledge and skills. The purpose of this study was to identify what working library staff…

In 2016 the National Forum for the Enhancement of Teaching and Learning in Higher Education funded three Irish academic libraries to review, implement and evaluate a new "National Professional Development Framework for All Staff who Teach in Higher Education" over two years. The Framework situates professional development as a process…

In the last decade Australian academic libraries have increasingly aligned their research support services with assessment criteria used in the national research evaluation exercise (Excellence for Research in Australia). The same period has seen growing interest in research impact outside of traditional measures, such as bibliometrics. Social…

Since the late 1970s, the access services librarian or equivalent position has become commonplace in academic libraries, and degreed professionals have been sought for these positions since the beginning. In 2009, David McCaslin, California Institute of Technology, examined the place of access services in American Library Association-accredited…

Diversity has been identified as a priority in library and information services for some time. The limited published research on diversity programs in libraries, though, has focused on academic libraries. This article represents the results of a study of leadership diversity in large, urban public libraries. In the study of members of the Urban…

A survey of a sample of 141 of the 423 academic and public libraries, information centers, and media centers in its operating area was conducted by the Southeastern Pennsylvania Area Continuing Education (SPACE) Council to identify library continuing education priorities for both professional and nonprofessional staff. Questionnaires were sent to…

This survey of library personnel had the following objectives: (1) to determine the best subject areas in which to provide continuing educational opportunities for staff members, (2) to determine the level of subject content for each subject area, (3) to identify an expected participant enrollment for each level of each subject, and (4) to…

This report presents the findings of a survey that sought to relate the status of Texas academic librarians to national standards. Consisting of 70 questions in seven categories--identification of library staff, general (status), appointment, promotion and tenure, professional development, governance, and benefits--the survey was based, in part,…

Reports the results of a survey of 914 library employees in three states (Iowa, Minnesota, Wisconsin) without ALA-accredited MLS degrees. Discusses results in terms of gender, age and education; job experience; and job titles and wages. Concludes the library profession must identify the skills needed for library positions and develop professional…

An institute was conducted to introduce Western state library administrators to methods for planning staff development training. The intent was to strengthen staff development programs and to build a network of individuals interested in staff development in Western libraries. The program introduced a variety of training tools and presented a wide…

Librarians in selected Midwestern academic libraries were surveyed to determine their involvement in continuing education activities and their level of job satisfaction. Findings indicate that participants in credit courses, workshops, and writing for publication were more satisfied than nonparticipants, although convention attendees were less…

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the perceptions of new library media specialists about the usefulness of orientation and professional support programs occurring within the first two years of employment. A 56-item questionnaire with rating scales and open-ended questions was designed to answer five research questions: (1) "What factors,…

Reports the results of a survey that asked academic librarians where they had acquired their professional knowledge and where they would prefer to acquire it. The discussion covers preferences for skills acquisition through library schools, on the job training, and professional continuing education, and the implications of these preferences for…

Employee fringe benefits, characteristics of head librarians, and interlibrary loan activity among Illinois public libraries are described in this compilation of three reports. The first and largest report delineates results of a 1980/81 fringe benefit survey conducted by telephone interview. It is noted that the Chicago Public Library was…