As the importance of information literacy has gained increased recognition, so too have academic library professionals intensified their efforts to champion, activate, and advance these capabilities in others. To date, however, little attention has focused on advancing these essential competencies amongst practitioner advocates. This paper helps…

A ten-week institute was developed to train library students in the western United States for work in state library agencies. Learning activities included lectures, guest speakers, discussions, role-playing, field trips, four weeks of field work, case studies, research, and report writing. The focus was on state library history, special aspects,…

Identifies six areas of children's librarianship that need attention: definition of the role of children's librarians; clarification of the goals and worth of children's services; an improved professional image; determination of the appropriate education to enable librarians to meet changed circumstances; and a better understanding of what…

The first Soviet-American Library Seminar provided general comparisons and contrasts, similarities and dissimilarities, between Soviet and American libraries, and stressed the differences in understanding library terms, the need for long-range planning, demographic changes and their effect on library services, and library automation. An…

This paper outlines the history, functions, administration, and current focus of school library services in Hawaii, which is the only state in the United States with a library staffed by a trained librarian in every public school. Its first school library was established in 1882. Elementary school libraries developed concurrently with secondary…

A new look must be directed at the role of the public library in providing additional preschool experiences for poor children. At the national level, federally funded programs, foundation aid for children's television, and the supportive declarations of national professional organizations point to efforts for bringing services to young children in…

This book, written by graduate students at the Catholic University (District of Columbia) School of Library and Information Science, examines current priorities, policies, and practices of public libraries. Following an introduction, "Reinventing Libraries: Responding to the Forces of Change" (Lisa Crisman), chapters include: (1) "A…

A 1956 Office of Education study showed that 26 million rural residents were without any public library service and that more than 300 rural counties had no public library within their borders. An additional 50 million rural residents had only inadequate service. Congress passed the Library Services Act in 1956 to stimulate the further development…