Discussion of library consortia focuses on the collaborative efforts in the Federated States of Micronesia that will enhance library services through staff training and educating while utilizing innovative technology. Highlights include background and socioeconomic overview; a project that addresses automation and Internet connectivity issues; and…

Change Analysis; Discusses after-school homework programs in public libraries that help latchkey children and others who need extra support and encouragement. Considers changes in librarian's attitudes toward homework help; the history and need for community-based after-school programs; scholastic benefits for students; and library staff benefits,…

Defines and discusses innovation in organizations and considers roles that information professionals can play in encouraging and supporting innovation in their organizations. Highlights include understanding future possibilities; contributing to strategy development; distilling information to create added value; developing partnerships; organizing…

Describes the use of the Virtual Reference Desk by the Department of Energy library to provide live reference services via the Internet. Discusses the shift in users from Department of Energy employees only to including the general public, and the resulting need for reference librarians to increase the diversity of their skills. (LRW)

Describes a study at California State University at Chico that analyzed the types of reference questions received by their digital reference service over a two-year period. Suggests a strategy for improving the process of answering broad or complex questions remotely. (Author/LRW)

Examines the interlibrary loan process used by libraries in Singapore and proposes that the existing paper-based manual system be replaced by a Web-based system. Presents an example of such a system that has been successfully designed and implemented at the Nanyang Technological University. (Author/LRW)

Provides a history of Raleigh's public library for African Americans and its founder, Mollie Huston Lee. Highlights include African Americans in North Carolina, public library service for Blacks, library collections, circulation, branches and bookmobiles, and creation of a county-wide library system. (LRW)

Discussion of the impact of the Internet on libraries focuses on librarians as creators and marketers of new online services. Describes two fee-based online services at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and concludes that academic libraries have the ability to create new online services, especially reference services. (Author/LRW)

Describes how a student-based program at the University of Maine at Farmington encouraged students to use the renovated library facilities. Following a needs assessment, Writing Center peer tutors were trained to deliver a library instruction workshop. The key factor in the instructional program was that it was student-led. (AEF)

Discussion of ethical reference practice focuses on guidelines for the individual reference librarian's interactions with clients. Topics include the professional-client relationship; competence; diligence; confidentiality; independence of judgment; honesty and candor; and obligations to third parties, including the democratic society at large.…

Reflects on the application of peer coaching to the reference environment, suggests strategies for implementation, and relates peer coaching to the evaluation of reference effectiveness. Discusses behaviors specific to the reference interview and evaluating how well users are served. (Author/LRW)

Explains activity-based costing (ABC), discusses the benefits of ABC to library managers, and describes the steps involved in implementing ABC in an Australian academic library. Discusses the budgeting process in universities, and considers benefits to the library. (Author/LRW)

Discusses information overload and society's and libraries' responses to technology. Considers eight values that libraries should focus on and how they relate to technology in libraries: democracy, stewardship, service, intellectual freedom, privacy, rationalism, equity of access, and building harmony and balance. (LRW)

Explains statistical significance so reference librarians can better understand users' information needs who ask statistics-related reference questions. Highlights include the t-test; bell curve, or Central Limit Theorem; reference interview theory; and analysis of variance. (LRW)

Describes ways to make library Web sites more accessible to children and teens with disabilities. Highlights include HTML code; the importance of contrast combinations for text and background; problems with using frames; alternatives to graphics; helpful Web sites; and the concept of universal design. (LRW)