Library Faculty/Staff Scholarship and Research

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Breaking Down Barriers: Co-Managing and Transforming Public Services
(2018-01-09) Hackman, Timothy; Luckert, Yelena
Since mid-2012, the division of Public Services at the University of Maryland Libraries has been involved in an ongoing experiment in the way the Libraries’ primary services are led and managed. The speakers, representing two of four directors in the division of Public Services, manage the vast majority of the division’s librarians and support staff and some of its most important collections and services, including reference and research assistance, library instruction, access services, learning and research commons, makerspace, and more. The past five years have brought substantial reorganizations of staffing, collections, spaces, and services, to improve Libraries services to our users, and to position the Libraries and its staff for the future. These changes, based on carefully collected data and assessment, include: - Merging reference and circulation service points - Implementing new chat and virtual reference services - Re-defining the role of librarians and staff, and adjusting responsibilities and workloads - Shifting from a collection-centric to service-centric model - Staff development and training These changes have required the speakers to move toward deeper collaboration, even co-managing, units which are typically separate (and, in some libraries, antagonistic toward one another.) Communication has been key to these efforts, as has a willingness to put aside old divisions and ways of doing things and to think about the best way to design and deliver future-oriented library services. This presentation will explore the speaker’s experience with co-managing public services in a large academic library. It will cover some of the successes and failures as a way to highlight best practices and potential pitfalls of collaboration across units to create the next generation of library services.
Bridging libraries: the merger of a school district library and an academic library
(2010-06-27) Münster, Irene; Bailey, Gail C.; Wray, Tanner; Negro, Toni; Biggs, Janet
In January 2008, The Universities at Shady Grove (USG), Montgomery County (Maryland) Public Schools (MCPS), and University of Maryland Libraries signed an agreement to merge the MCPS Professional Library collections, staff and services into USG’s library to provide enhanced library resources and services to both clienteles. Administrators and librarians of the three institutions have learned how to partner and collaborate in this unique environment, while maintaining library services to both the USG (academic) and MCPS (professional educator) communities. The collection merger required retrospective conversion of 15,000 records, conversion from Dewey to Library of Congress classification, and physical integration, without interruption of service. Library cultures (special vs. academic) were dramatically different and adjustments have been made to combine and share knowledge, while providing some distinctive services. Staff adjusted to new responsibilities and to working with different systems and new patrons. Now that the merger is complete, the immediate future is demanding new adjustments from each partner to improve some services already provided and to satisfy users’ expectations, while looking for new ways to enhance the outreach to this diverse clientele. The poster will present challenges faced in merging the two libraries, solutions developed, and impact on services for library users.
Collaborating Across Departments to Communicate Electronic Resource Changes
(2022) Dodd, Alexander; Strain, Katherine
In 2020-2021, the acquisitions unit at LNDL, with the help of the reference and instruction unit, created communication plans for three major electronic resource changes. First, we implemented a plan for communicating subscription changes. After a collection review, library staff needed to communicate changes to internal and external stakeholders. We created a research guide, developed scripts for specific groups, and posted announcements on the library website. Next, we developed a plan to communicate a large number of database trials available to faculty and students. Faced with running an unprecedented 17 trials simultaneously over three months, we wanted to pilot promoting all trials in bulk. We created digital signage, social media posts, and newsletter articles. Lastly, we implemented a marketing plan to promote our new membership in two consortia, CRL and ICPSR. We created scripts to notify academic department chairs, promoted the groups on the library website, and created a research guide. We explored different ways of reaching patrons while keeping user design in mind. We faced challenges, including unsuccessful communication outlets and Zoom/email fatigue. We reviewed trial participation, research guide usage, and feedback from library liaisons to evaluate the impact of the plans.
Continuous Organizational Development—Teamwork, Learning Leadership, and Measurement
(Johns Hopkins University Press, 2005-01) Lowry, Charles B.
Early in my career, a colleague for whom I have great respect said to me, "The great libraries of the future will be those with great staffs." There was a rhetorical flourish in this statement intended to make a vital point. We could not simply rely on massive collections to provide information for the academy—it was necessary to pay attention to our human resources and, by extension, our organizations. By that time in the mid-1970s, the so-called "golden age of library collecting" was ending, and the "age of access" was beginning. This age of access has left us with diminished power to define our future—without significant support from allies outside our organizations. Libraries must be resilient organizations that have the strength to sustain themselves as partners in the learning and scholarly enterprises.
Disaster Preparedness and Recovery: Response to an Earthquake
(2011-10-19) Wray, Tanner
Drexel University, the University of Maryland, and their Libraries’ Experiences Collaborating with Various Research Programs
(2005) Bhatt, Jay; Ferroni, Joanne; Kackley, Bob; Rose, Dorilona
Last year, researchers and librarians at both Drexel University and the University of Maryland initiated similar collaborative projects in their respective institutions to contribute to the development of life-long learning skills among the select participants. One joint finding was the importance of linking advances in knowledge, not just as hypothetical learnin
El estado de la biblioteca universitaria en los Estados Unidos
(2015-03-13) Herron, Patricia
Outlines the current state of affairs and major trends in academic libraries in the United States.
Ethnographic Research and Participatory Design at the University of Maryland Libraries: Pioneering Partnerships Beyond Library Walls
(2012-06-24) Wray, Tanner; Ippoliti, Cinthya; Williams, M Jane
Problem statement: The central library of the University of Maryland urgently needs a total redesign. The 320,000 square-foot building houses approximately two million volumes and serves a campus of 27,000 undergraduate and 11,000 graduate students, plus 4,000 faculty. McKeldin Library is largely a book warehouse, with a layout that doesn’t support students’ needs for technology-rich, flexible and multipurpose spaces and services. The dissonance between what McKeldin provides and what users need continues to grow, so efforts have mounted in recent years for a total library re-envisioning and re-design. Problem significance: In unstable times a physical re-programming can no longer depend on traditional, professional experts (architects and librarians), for whom precedent is now unreliable. We looked to our user community’s expertise. We extended beyond previous ethnographic studies by collaborating, from start to finish, with anthropology and architecture students, two deans, an architectural firm, and consultant Nancy Fried Foster. The engagement of three classes of students on the project also furthered the role of the libraries as leaders in fulfilling the university’s academic mission. This project directly relates to the ACRL Plan for Excellence, Student Learning, Objective 1, “Build librarian capacity to create new learning environments (physical and virtual) and instructional practices.” The skills and partnerships we developed will be valuable as we modify our practices and environments in McKeldin and the other seven UMD libraries. Project objectives: The objective is to re-program the McKeldin Library building. The Fall 2011 research project was to provide an informational context for a building design process. Three groups (Participatory Design Project Team of library staff, anthropology course students, and architecture seminar course graduate students) gathered information about current library use, academic work practices of students and faculty and activities that patrons need to accomplish within library spaces, and also developed an understanding of the current programming of McKeldin Library. School of Architecture graduate students, under the guidance of the Architecture dean and a practicing architect, will use the information gathered in the Fall to develop a new design during Spring 2012. Methodology: The library team used three anthropological/ethnographic methods to collect information: 1. Participatory design workshops in which students, faculty and library staff drew their ideal library spaces; 2. Structured observations in selected spaces in McKeldin; 3. On-the-spot interviews in outdoor spaces around campus. The anthropology class conducted on-the-spot interviews of undergraduate and graduate students. The architecture students gathered quantitative data about current McKeldin programming and engaged library management on anticipated future trends. Status of research: Fall 2011 research was transmitted to the architecture studio class to complete Spring 2012 design work.
Generative Discussions on Generative AI: Preparing Librarians to Teach about Artificial Intelligence
(2023-11-14) Pierdinock-Weed, Amber; Shaw, Benjamin; Yocco, Daria
AI is the latest issue in higher education that librarians are finding themselves needing to address in the classroom. With the capabilities of AI changing daily, it has been difficult for librarians to keep abreast of the latest developments. Additionally, AI is an overwhelming concept for many librarians to grasp. The Teaching and Learning Services unit at the University of Maryland created instructional resources and a community of support for UMD librarians to teach and learn about AI. These included an LMS module, a structured workshop series, and a collaborative repository to share lesson plans.
ILLiad and Resource Sharing in the University System of Maryland and Affiliated Institutions Consortium of Libraries
(2006-03-16) Wray, Tanner; Vaeth, Carol; Moskal, Robin; Bush, Jamie; Miller, Stephen
The mission of the USMAI (University System of Maryland and Affiliated Institutions) consortium is to support effective access to library resources by providing and promoting a range of resource sharing services which support the objectives and maximize resources of the individual libraries of the member institutions. The consortium has a long-established service through which patrons can request that books be sent from one campus to another via a patron placed hold function, most recently within the Aleph OPAC. Beginning in 2004 the consortium’s Council of Library Directors (CLD) established a Resource Sharing Task Group (RSTG) to “address issues relating to USMAI resource sharing activities, including patron placed holds, direct borrowing, ILL, and delivery systems.” This group was established particularly to ensure the continuity of ILL services as Passport and the ILL Microenhancer were ‘sunsetted.’ As part of its charge the RSTG undertook an analysis of applications available to enhance member ILL services, and also to enhance article delivery between consortium members. At the time of the analysis, the consortium had 6 separate live or planned ILLiad implementations. In 2005 the RSTG recommended to the CLD that ILLiad be implemented consortium wide during the fall of 2005. A panel of USMAI librarians and staff will present our vision for resource sharing, how the combination of ILLiad, Odyssey and Aleph are being used to request materials between our campuses, the various approaches to authentication used across the consortium, and how support is being done for a consortium in which 7 members have separate ILLiad installations and the remainder are supported from a newer central site.
Leading Change in Action: Reorganizing an Academic Library Department Using Kotter’s Eight Stage Change Model
(American Library Association, 2017-02) Hackman, Timothy
This article presents a management case study of a project to reorganize the Resource Sharing and Access Services department in the main library at the University of Maryland in 2015. The case study uses John Kotter’s eight-stage change process, articulated in his 1996 book, Leading Change, as the framework for successfully managing a complex change of this type. The article explains the ways in which Kotter’s model was adapted for the reorganization process, as well as the limitations of the model for the academic library environment in general and the department reorganization in particular. It concludes by presenting suggestions for further research in change management in library settings.
Making Consortial Resource Sharing a Reality: ILLiad and Resource Sharing in the University System of Maryland and Affiliated Institutions Consortium of Libraries (http://usmai.umd.edu/)
(2007-03-15) Wray, Tanner; Bush, Jamie; Moskal, Robin; Vaeth, Carol
The mission of the USMAI (University System of Maryland and Affiliated Institutions) consortium is to support effective access to library resources by providing and promoting a range of resource sharing services which support the objectives and maximize resources of the individual libraries of the member institutions. In 2005 and 2006, the USMAI undertook an initiative to enhance resource sharing by making ILLiad available consortium-wide at all 16 USMAI campuses. Building on eight existing ILLiad implementations within the consortium, the USMAI Resource Sharing Task Group worked in conjunction with the Information Technology Division of the University of Maryland, College Park Libraries to host, license and implement ILLiad for eight additional member sites. A panel of USMAI librarians and staff will present an overview of the project and what was learned from it, including a discussion of our vision for resource sharing, and how the combination of ILLiad, Odyssey and Aleph are being used to enable resource sharing between our campuses. Particular attention will be paid to authentication issues, ILLiad integration with other systems including SFX and openURL, the implementation and training model, and how support is being done for a consortium in which eight members have separate ILLiad installations and the balance are supported from a newer central site.
The More Things Change…
(Johns Hopkins University Press, 2001-10) Lowry, Charles B.
Do you need to read another column about change in academic libraries? Can one be written that is not a hackneyed cliché-ridden rehash? You are forewarned that the answer to both questions is a resounding "maybe!" I want to establish a premise that reverses an old aphorism, arguing that "the more things change, the less they are the same" for our libraries. When I began studies at the School of Information and Library Science in Chapel Hill nearly three decades ago, the kind of library organization I prepared to work in was fundamentally different from the one I find myself in today. This is because the external environment has stimulated change, not because we have actively sought it--the change has been largely reactive. The primary forces of change are easy to recognize and they are not of our making--shifts in pedagogy and research; the transformational impact of networked information technology; a revolution in scholarly information and in the intellectual property regime; and the ever-present restraint of budget, both inputs and outputs.
Participatory Design in Redesigning an Academic Library: Asking Students about Their Favorite Study Spaces
(2012-10-29) Barnachea, Lutgarda; Grijalva, Stacey; Williams, M. Jane; Wray, Tanner; Ippoliti, Cinthya; Luckert, Yelena; Tchangalova, Nedelina
In 2011 a library-led project team gathered user-based information for a total redesign of McKeldin Library, the central library serving the University of Maryland, College Park. In addition, graduate classes in anthropology and architecture provided other elements of user input. All of the above were provided to an Architecture Studio course to create actual designs for a reprogrammed library. This poster focues on data from one of the three sets of library-led activities. In on-the-spot interviews in four outdoor spaces on campus, 33 undergraudate students were asked open-ended questions about where they do their academic work (projects, research papers, studying for exams) and why. This poster presents the results of those interviews.
Participatory Design in Redesigning an Academic Library: Capturing Users’ Work through an Artistic Lens
(2012-10-29) Wray, Tanner; Ippoliti, Cinthya; Luckert, Yelena; Tchangalova, Nedelina; Barnachea, Lutgarda; Williams, M Jane
In 2011 a library-led project team gathered user-based information for a total redesign of McKeldin Library, the central library serving the University of Maryland, College Park. In addition, graduate classes in anthropology and architecture provided other elements of user input. All of the above were provided to an Architecture Studio course to create actual designs for a reprogrammed library. This poster focuses on data from one of the three sets of activities. In participatory design workshops library staff (21 participants), campus faculty (20), undergraduate (20) and graduate (17) students drew their ideal library workspaces. This poster presents drawings, gathered data and conclusions about stakeholders’ ideal study, research and work spaces in the library.
Participatory Design in Redesigning an Academic Library: Capturing Users’ Work through Structured Observations
(2012-10-29) Tchangalova, Nedelina; Barnachea, Lutgarda; Williams, M. Jane
This poster session focuses on one of the three sets of participatory design activities undertaken in the fall 2011 by a library-led project team to build an informational basis for a total redesign of McKeldin Library, the central library serving the University of Maryland, College Park. Graduate classes in anthropology and architecture also provided part of the information basis, all of which are now with an Architecture Studio to provide actual designs for a reprogrammed library. This poster session will present the data, findings and findings’ significance for the structured observation activity, to get a picture of how McKeldin Library is being used now.
Preprint version of Instructor Use of Educational Streaming Video Resources
(2018) Horbal, Andrew
Although Farrelly and Hutchinson (2014) have shown that a substantial majority of academic libraries now provide streaming video, the literature contains few studies which focus on how such resources are used. This article presents the results of a qualitative research study investigating instructor use of one category of streaming video resources, educational videos, which are important because they are sold a higher price than most individuals can afford, and thus are typically only available to instructors through the library. The researcher conducted in-depth interviews with 18 instructors who use educational streaming video resources and analyzed the data to provide insight into factors that academic libraries should consider when deciding which resources to invest in, which acquisition models to pursue, and what marketing strategies to employ to ensure maximum usage.
What's the Opposite of a Pyrrhic Victory? Lessons Learned from an Open Access Defeat
(Association of College and Research Libraries, 2009-10) Hackman, Tim
A recent failed attempt to pass a resolution in support of open access at the University of Maryland (UM), while disappointing to the librarians involved and to many observers, nevertheless provides some important lessons for working with teaching faculty to address the scholarly communication crisis. This article provides a brief history of the efforts in support of open access at UM, analyzes what went wrong with the failed resolution, and offers some suggestions for working with faculty to educate them on the importance of open access to their research.

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