American Library Association Journals
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Shenandoah National Park: The Human Cost of Conservation
No full textLocated in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia 75 miles from Washington D.C., Shenandoah National Park is a popular tourist destination known for its dense wilderness, abundant wildlife, and breathtaking vistas. From a description on the National Park Foundation’s website, it is where the “nation’s most special places are just outside your backdoor.” It offers 500 miles of trails, four campgrounds, and the scenic roadway Skyline Drive, which winds its way 105 miles through the park. What people might not know about this idyllic landscape is that the creation of this protected area involved the condemnation of homes and the eventual eviction of local families and inhabitants
Designing and Marketing a LibGuide for Presidential Papers
No full textWhen I joined the faculty at the Fred J. Taylor Library at the University of Arkansas at Monticello (UAM) in July 2019, I became the coordinator of our institution’s Federal Depository Library Program and Arkansas Documents repositories. As I began inspecting our collections, I discovered that documents were dispersed throughout the library. Though the library has a designated Government Documents Collection cataloged under the SuDoc classification scheme, numerous documents were cataloged under the Library of Congress classification as well. Compounding this issue, documents classified under LC were distributed across various collections. The distribution of government documents across multiple collections is not unique to UAM, and is a common problem among FDLP depositories. Having government documents classified under different schemes and shelved in multiple collections can lead to discrepancies in cataloging, particularly as personnel change over time. Finding multiple split-cataloged series in our collections convinced me that, with rare exception, documents should be consolidated into a revamped Government Documents Collection
Is Open Access Equal Access? PACER User Fees and Public Access to Court Information
No full textOur country has a long history of striving for openness and transparency in government processes. In 1978, the United States Supreme Court held, “It is clear that the courts of this country recognize a general right to insect and copy public records and documents, including judicial records and documents.” Long before America’s high court recognized this common law principle, court records were historically accessible for inspection by lawyers, journalists, land title companies, credit agencies, academics, and members of the general public. These individuals were also permitted to take notes as a part of their right to inspect court documents. Having free access to copies (i.e. reproductions), however, was a completely different matter. Unlike the right of free inspection, the right of free copies did not exist, and copies of court records could be extremely expensive to citizens seeking the information. For example, in 1853, a copy of a court document was ten cents a page, a steep price for the mid-nineteenth century. One could even make an argument that the right to simply inspect court documents was not actually “free” for many, due to the associated travel costs of physically going to the courthouse in an era before mass transportation and the internet
Get to Know . . . Laura Baker
No full textChange, often said, is inevitable, while growth is optional. Originating in Government Documents, Laura Baker, User Experience and Assessment Librarian, has witnessed considerable change in her career and in the library profession. After more than twenty years at Abilene Christian University (ACU) Library, her position has grown to embrace assessment, promote library technology, and support accessibility of government documents through digitization
Chapter 3. Transcripts
No full textChapter 3, “Transcripts,” of Library Technology Reports (vol. 57, no. 3) introduces the concept of transcripts and specifically delves into the reasons that transcripts can be of use even if videos are already captioned, including not only how they expand access but also how they facilitate other ways of using and navigating video content. The chapter also explains other advantages of offering descriptive transcripts for all audio content. It concludes with best practices for transcripts that will improve access to video content
Chapter 1. A Confidence-Building Toolkit
No full textChapter 1 of Library Technology Reports (vol. 57, no. 8), “Using the Toward Gigabit Libraries Toolkit,” covers the history of the toolkit, describes its open licensing, and explains how a group of subject matter experts were pivotal to its success. It also credits leaders and advisory boards for both the Toward Gigabit Libraries and the Gigabit Libraries and Beyond projects
Chapter 3. Mobile outside the Library
No full textChapter 3 of Library Technology Reports (vol. 57, no. 2), “Mobile Technology in Libraries,” covers mobile technology needs when customers are not in the library. The basic library-based activities for customers not in the physical building include checking out materials, reading library news, receiving library-focused notifications, accessing e-books and other e-resources, and asking a question. Various points of mobile access for libraries to support include the library’s website, catalog, and databases and the library’s mobile apps. Customers may also connect with libraries through social media, podcasts, or in other ways. Libraries are seizing other opportunities to use mobile technology in the community (for example, with area schools)
Editor’s Note: The Year that Wasn’t
No full textIn February 2020, I was already planning the summer wall display in our children’s library room—I was planning on having a large pair of glasses with “20/20 Vision!” You know, perfect vision looking ahead to what a great year it would be
What Will Summer Look Like? Summer Learning Loss and COVID-19 Learning Gaps
No full textSummer 2021 will likely look much different than previous summers due to the impact of the now more than one-year-long pandemic.Here we share research about summer learning loss and overlap that with emerging studies illustrating how COVID-19 closures and remote learning have compounded learning loss, all of which disproportionately impacts Black children, indigenous children, children of color, and all children who live in poverty
Membership Committee: We Are ALSC: Profiles from the Field
No full textWhat does ALSC membership mean to our members? It may depend on what aspect of librarianship they’re working in! Here’s a glimpse from three members who’ve taken three different paths