When an institutional program review determined the Hillsborough Community College Libraries Web site was out-of-date, lacked resources, and was in desperate need of a makeover, the authors embarked upon a redesign project. The article describes the challenges and considerations that contributed to the authors' decision-making and design…

This study examines the evolving roles and responsibilities of entry-level academic reference positions, as stated in recent job advertisements posted on the American Library Association's JobLIST Web site and other sources. Findings from a content analysis of these advertisements indicate that current entry-level reference positions in academic…

Support for intellectual freedom, a concept codified in the American Library Association's Library Bill of Rights and Code of Ethics, is one of the core tenets of modern librarianship. According to the most recent interpretation of the Library Bill of Rights, academic librarians are encouraged to incorporate the principles of intellectual freedom…

If you're new to running a library or looking for a refresher, this book can serve as your first reference source for school library operation, providing overview information on a wealth of topics, lists of resources for more in-depth information, and coverage of current topics such as Web 2.0, fundraising, digital booktalks, and cybersafety.…

Library blogs exchange information and ideas on everything from the everyday, such as library services, to the profound, such as values held by librarians (high-quality reliable resources, academic freedom, open access, and so on). According to medical librarians who maintain library blogs, a typical month includes two to four contributors writing…

Social networking tools have been getting quite a bit of press in libraryland for the past couple of years. It is considered to be one of the key aspects of a library joining what is referred to as the Library 2.0 movement. In this context, social networking is seen as a library service or library outreach mechanism that utilizes popular social…

This case study describes the process of proposing and implementing a wiki for use in an academic library setting, based on the process used by Iowa State University Library. Using the Iowa State University Library Wiki as a model, this article lays out the decisions necessary at each step of the process of establishing a new wiki. Control of…

In December 2006, the Missouri River Regional Library (MRRL) in Jefferson City, embarked on a journey. They had been watching the Public Library of Charlotte-Mecklenburg County (PLCMC), NC, on its adventure through the wilds of Web 2.0, and they decided to follow the trail it had blazed. What PLCMC had done was pretty revolutionary. The library…

This article provides an introduction to the major information resources in the field of economics. The essay evaluates the major selection tools in the area of business and economics, as well as selected core reference titles. The article also includes suggestions for developing and evaluating economics collections, as well as a listing of online…

This article discusses the web and print resources used in selecting material for a dental sciences collection in an academic library at a public university without a medical library. The process of creating a collection quickly and with limited resources is described, from the initial collection assessment to the decision-making processes…

In the down-sized academic library of the twenty-first century, many librarians with little or no formal collection development training or experience are being entrusted with large departmental budgets, occasionally without the collaboration of a department liaison. How do new librarians, or librarians new to a discipline, deal with this…