| Mission
and Purpose (excerpted from the NEASC
Re-accreditation Self Study, April, 2000)
The
mission of the J. Eugene Smith Library, in its new 127,000-square-foot
building, is iterated in the J. Eugene Smith
Library Program Profile: The purpose of the J. Eugene Smith Library
is to provide for the informational, instructional, and research needs
of the faculty, staff, and students of the University as well as the
community at large. This support is provided to those groups and individuals
through the continued efforts of a professional and support staff who
select, acquire, organize and maintain the collections and access to
materials (in many formats).
The
J. Eugene Smith Library is the sole library of the university. It houses
247,000 volumes; 2,113 paper and 3,748 electronic serials subscriptions;
25,500 microforms; 2,500 audiovisual materials, plus various special collections
and the University Archives. The library also provides access to an array
of Web and CD-ROM resources, including full-text databases, many of which
are accessible in a time-free and distance-free manner. It has an integrated
online catalog (CONSULS) that provides organization and access to library
materials and supports the functions of staff activities in the Acquisitions,
Cataloging, Circulation, Reserves, and Serials Departments. The library
also maintains a Web page (http://www.ecsu.ctstateu.edu/library), which
describes library services and provides links to many of the electronic
resources, including CONSULS. The library is a Connecticut State and partial
Federal depository and collects selected Canadian documents. Beginning
with spring 2000, the library expanded its hours of service from 84 to
92.5 hours a week. Reference services are available 75 hours a week. The
after- hours Study Room provides 20.5 additional hours of service. Personal
assistance is also offered through other desks, e.g., the Curriculum Center,
and Connecticut Studies/University Archives/Special Collections area.
Electronic reference services are available to all users via the library's
home page. All ECSU students, faculty, and staff are entitled to interlibrary
loan services, which are available within the library or via the library's
home page. The new library building opened on January 12, 1999. It features
a variety of individual and group study spaces, including seating for
914 users. The stacks have space for nearly 520,000 volumes. There are
more than eighty networked public computer workstations, and a user education
classroom. A 3M library security gate protects library materials, and
a networked CCTV system provides security for the building and its occupants.
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Institutional
Support: Financial and Resources
The
university administration has made a very strong commitment to support
the needs of the library. The library's operational budget in fiscal year
2000 will be 150 percent of the 1998 level. The library's collection/access
budget has doubled in the past four years. As the state moves more and
more from a "state-supported" to a "state-assisted" model of finance,
it is mandatory that additional sources of income be identified. Among
others, the following grants have been obtained: two, Culpepper Foundation;
one each from the Wolf Aviation Fund, a Japan Foundation, and Caribbean
Fund; and, annually Canadian Consulate's Library Book Fund. In addition,
the library has been very assertive in soliciting gift collections and
receives gifts from donors on an ongoing basis, some of which are quite
large, such collections as the David Philips (1,350 volumes); Robert G.
Mead (5,000 volumes), and Curran (17,200 volumes). These gifts serve to
augment the core collection or provide research-specialty depth.
For
two decades, until 1995, the staffing level of the library had stayed
the same; sixteen positions. In 1995, the library was approved to add
a professional and a support staff member. Then in 1997, a media engineer
was transferred to the library to support the planning and service of
multimedia. In view of the new building, roughly three times the size
of the old one (127,000 square feet vis-a-vis 45,000), and the fact that
four service points were planned (two in the old building), 14 positions
have been approved to be added, bringing the staffing positions from 16
in 1993 to 33 today. The newly hired professional staff members have quality
credentials and experience, several with a master's degree in library
science and a second subject master's. Support staff hired are all experienced
and have passed the state test. With these new talents, the library is
offering quality and enhanced services.
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Consortia,
Networks, and Resource-Sharing Activities
The
Smith Library has steadily been one of the top "net lender" academic libraries
in Connecticut: this means that every year it lends more items than it
borrows, thus sharing its resources with smaller libraries. For example,
in 1998/99, the library lent out 6,755 items, while borrowing 3,754 items
from others. In addition, the library provides very liberal borrowing
privileges to Connecticut residents; it has issued approximately 1,000
free cards to residents over the age of 18. Through its participation
in various networks, such as the Council of Connecticut Academic Library
Directors (CCALD), CONSULS (the Connecticut State University Library System),
the New England Library Network (NELINET), Eastern Connecticut Libraries,
the Online Computer Library Center (OCLC), the Smith Library actively
participates in the local, regional, state, national, and international
library scenes. Eastern Connecticut Libraries (a nonprofit, multitype
library-service organization serving northeast and southeast Connecticut)
has its headquarters in the library.
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Systematic
Evaluation and Improvement
The
library staff utilizes a variety of methods to evaluate and plan for improvements.
Each year (since 1996), full-time staff goes on an two-day retreat in
which they examine and review the goals and objectives set during the
previous year and devise new ones with means and ways to achieve them.
In addition, the library collects use statistics very systematically to
evaluate its services. For example, new periodical titles are added if
high volume of interlibrary loan requests has shown their desirability.
Also, before subscribing to databases, free trials are done to gauge user-friendliness
of the search engine and potential interest of users. Last but not least,
the professional staff takes a very personal approach in evaluating services.
Library liaisons are in close touch with their counterparts in the departments,
and they interact with the faculty to get feedback about library services,
collections, and database access.
Appraisal
As
the university moves more and more toward a model of community service
and distance- learning offerings, the library needs to move toward serving
a wider audience. With the OnlineCSU courses, as well as Eastern's continuing
education initiative, the library has to serve those distance and "invisible"
users much better. Community service resulted in the library's setting
aside computers with auto logons and also having to staff the reference
desk with two librarians on weekends. Requirements for outreach services
resulted in the library's hiring an outreach librarian in 1999 who is
charged to do site visits and programming. In negotiating database licenses,
the librarians consider not only cost but also remote access factors.
Another major challenge is the librarians' resolve to continue as a "
teaching library." Extra efforts have to be put into incorporating electronic
resources such as the Internet into user-education, including research
skills and evaluation of online resources. The User Education Program
has to ensure that a close working relationship is maintained with classroom
faculty; has to do more in providing information to users regarding copyright
and intellectual property rights, including electronic formats; and has
to develop more tutorials online.
The
library collections are adequate for the research needs of students at
the university and meet the professional standards for college libraries.
Subject- specialist teams, consisting of a librarian liaison and a teaching
faculty builder from each department systematically develop the library
collections. The liaison/builder teams collaborate in the purchasing of
new materials and in the overall development of the collections. During
the past three years, the monographic stacks collections have increased
by 11.82% (3.11% in 1995/96; 5.18% in 1996/97; and 3.52% in 1997/98).
Periodical subscriptions have also increased by 19.95% during that same
time period (7.08% in 1995/96; 3.46% in 1996/97; 9.41% in 1997/98). In
addition, the library has a complete and current subscription to ERIC
RIE to support the education programs. The current array of electronic
databases is constantly appraised and revised by librarians in coordination
with recent initiatives of the CSU consortium. There is general consensus
among librarians, faculty, and users that the library should offer a larger
variety of electronic resources. Since the opening of the new building,
use of the library has seen dramatic increases, e.g., 121,044 turnstile
counts in 1998, and 242,586 in 1999; 41,765 checkouts in 1998, and 44,081
in 1999). The majority of electronic resources are available on campus
on a time-free basis, and off-campus users can access Web- based resources
via the CSU proxy server. This past year, the library has implemented
the new OCLC dedicated TCP/IP communications, enabling library staff to
do their jobs on efficient, high-speed, networked workstations. The library
puts out a variety of publications, such as the library Web, ECSU Library
Newsletter, Guide to Library Services, and various pathfinders to assist
patrons in the use of the facilities, services, and resources. The library
environment for the collections, equipment, and users is outstanding in
the new building. In addition to 912 seats, there are a community/conference
room, seminar and group study rooms, user education room, an after-hours
study room, individual research study rooms, the Electronic News Corner,
and the Special Services Room for the physically challenged. There are
more than eighty high-speed computers for student use: these "scholar's
workstations" provide access to library databases and Internet resources,
as well as word processing and spreadsheet software, e-mail, and access
to the campus NT network. The building has a fiber-optic and level 5+
wired infrastructure, flexible enough to accommodate future technological
developments and expansion. A satellite dish (with both analog and digital
receivers) and cable are available for teleconferencing and other uses..
The library is committed to preserving the collections. The furnishings
are new and the building is fully air conditioned. Current periodicals
are customarily bound or replaced by microforms. There are excellent repair
facilities in the Technical Services Department, and worn or damaged materials
are routinely sent there for processing. Special Collections and University
Archives are climate controlled.
-
Institutional
Support: Financial and Resources
The
university administration's support of the library is very strong in both
collection/access funding and staff positions. There has been a steady
infusion of funding for the collection, as well as electronic resources
expansion. The library has had success in obtaining a few grants, gifts,
and endowments, but it must involve more of its professional staff in
writing grant proposals; conducting use and user surveys in order to examine
its paper, microform, and electronic journals expenditures; and seeking
additional revenue sources.
Now
that the building has been opened for service for more than a year and
new technologies are brought up and online, staff members need to undergo
more training. The increase in physical size, the addition of new staff
members, and the variety of new technologies have posed great changes
for staff to adjust to. Learning to work with new policies and procedures,
new talents, and greater service demands from users has proven to be great
challenges for some staff members.
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Consortia,
Networks, Resources Sharing
Eastern
and the Smith Library are well served by all the consortia, networks,
and resource-sharing activities. There are databases that the library
could not possibly afford on its own, e.g., EBSCOHOST full-text, Britannica
Online, FirstSearch databases, and so on. Cost sharing in training is
another big benefit. Group training sessions offered by Eastern Connecticut
Libraries, the New England Library Network, and others afford staff the
opportunity to view the "best practices" of other libraries.
-
Systematic
Evaluation and Improvement
The
annual two-day retreats have worked very well, although so far much
time and energy have been focused on achieving a smooth transition from
the old to the new building. Future retreats need to be devoted primarily
to service-program examination and brainstorming for new approaches.
More user surveys need to be designed and conducted. Use and other statistics
need to be better kept and monitored, including electronic and print
use.
Projection
The
library will continue to make use of new information technologies as they
become available and to impart certain research and information-seeking
skills so that our graduates will be "information literate." Leadership
in content development and outcome driven user education modules will
be cultivated and valued for in-person and online delivery.
The
library will continue its participation in the CONSULS consortium, and
in its resource- sharing efforts. It will endeavor to enhance its access
to electronic resources through local and consortia efforts. This will
be particularly evident in the library's periodical subscriptions; many
are currently available both online and in print, challenging the management
of materials budget to achieve a good mix to meet our users' needs. Journal
use studies, an important tool to help in decision making, have to be
planned and conducted. The library will continue to explore and implement
technology-based systems to provide enhanced services for users, especially
users enrolled in distance- learning courses. Pilot studies for electronic
reserves, document delivery, and the wireless are the initiatives currently
on trial. Reference librarians are finding that they spend more time troubleshooting
technology-related questions than teaching information-retrieval skills.
The library took an innovative approach in training student assistants
to help with these questions. Library staff need to be continuously learning
new IT methods and brainstorming for new approaches. The library will
continue its efforts to develop the core book collection. Collection development
activities will focus on the last stage of the Books-for- College-Libraries
project, in which the librarians will attempt to identify and purchase
core academic materials not added to the collections during the fiscally
deficient decades of the 1970s and 1980s.
-
Institutional
Support: Financial and Resources
It
is anticipated that the library will expand its fund-raising activities
and write more grant proposals seeking extramural support. Also, it should
put into practice the Friends of the J. Eugene Smith Library proposal
that was submitted and approved by the university administration in 1998.
The establishment of such a group would not only engender good will but
assist the library in fund-raising and cultural activities.
As
stated in the "Evaluation" section above, coping with the much larger
library organization and higher user-service demands will be the major
task for the library's existing and new staff. Team building is anticipated
to be top priority. And because the library relies heavily on student
assistants, new approaches to the training of cohorts each year will be
explored.
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Consortia,
Networks, Resource Sharing
It
is very important that the library fully participate in the activities
it is engaged in while forging new partnerships with the likes of the
University of Connecticut Libraries. Because Eastern Connecticut Libraries,
Inc. (ECL) moved into the new building in June 1999, the staff of the
library needs to work closely with ECL to capitalize on the strengths
of both organizations to better serve their constituencies.
-
Systematic
Evaluation and Improvement
Annual
two-day retreats have been strongly supported by the university administration
because it believes, as does the library staff, that involvement of the
entire staff is critical to achieving a very user-driven organization.
Minutes of the two latest retreats and the program profile are all posted
on the library's Web page (http://nutmeg.easternct.edu/library), where
faculty, staff, students, and the entire university community can learn
of the library's efforts and direction. Library staff will work with the
Office of Institutional Planning and Research to consider possible revision
of the library component of the annual Survey of Services.
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