All Sessions

Charge: To serve as the ALA representative of rare book, manuscript, and other special collections librarians and curators in all matters involving standards for providing intellectual access to and bibliographic description of those collections; to provide a centralized forum for discussion of issues relating to special collections technical processing, such as description, cataloging, and provision of intellectual access; to propose and/or develop necessary tools to support these activities; to develop ALA positions on, and provide a continuing review of, bibliographic standards for special collections;

Welcome to the Controlled Vocabularies for Use in Rare Book and Special Collections Cataloging, developed and maintained by the Bibliographic Standards Committee of the Rare Books and Manuscripts Section (ACRL/ALA). These thesauri provide standardized vocabulary for retrieving special collections materials by form, genre, or by various physical characteristics that are typically of interest to researchers and special collections librarians, and for relating materials to individuals or corporate bodies.

Welcome to the Controlled Vocabularies for Use in Rare Book and Special Collections Cataloging, developed and maintained by the Bibliographic Standards Committee of the Rare Books and Manuscripts Section (ACRL/ALA). These thesauri provide standardized vocabulary for retrieving special collections materials by form, genre, or by various physical characteristics that are typically of interest to researchers and special collections librarians, and for relating materials to individuals or corporate bodies.

Do you want to know what your colleagues think the future of academic libraries will be and how we will get there? The PELS Committee of the LLAMA LOMS has conducted a brief survey to identify important planning elements and trends to consider when planning services. In this session, participants will be invited to join a lively discussion of current trends regarding the future of academic libraries and actions needed to address them.

Charge: To serve as the ALA representative of rare book, manuscript, and other special collections librarians and curators in all matters involving standards for providing intellectual access to and bibliographic description of those collections; to provide a centralized forum for discussion of issues relating to special collections technical processing.

Charge: To promote exhibitions of library and archival materials that contribute to or disseminate knowledge on any topic. To recognize outstanding printed exhibition catalogs and guides, and electronic exhibitions, produced by United States and Canadian institutions. Although printed exhibition catalogs and guides must be associated with physical exhibitions, electronic exhibitions need not be. Submissions are chosen for awards based on their accuracy and consistency of presentation, clarity, originality, quality of design, and usefulness and relevance to the intended audience.

ResCarta users and potential users are invited to attend the Fourth Annual ResCarta Users Group meeting. ResCarta software is open source software for digital collections. We’ll discuss how ResCarta software has been used by organizations and how you might be able to use it at yours. Developers will share what’s new with ResCarta software and standards and any plans for the future. Come join us to learn how ResCarta can help you create digital collections.

Charge: Responsible for putting on a general program meeting during the ALA Annual Conference.

Purpose: To provide an open forum for the discussion of collection development issues of relevance to rare book and special collections libraries; to encourage the presentation of seminars and the preparation of publications about collection development.

Charge: To identify and analyze RBMS membership, education, and professional development issues, including recruitment of new members, increasing participation of members in section activities, retention of members, and coordinating and promoting educational and professional development opportunities for members at all levels. Among the specific, ongoing programs of the committee are maintaining the Educational Opportunities Directory, coordinating the Buddy Program for new members, and coordinating the preconference orientation session for new members. The Committee has direct relationships with the ACRL Professional Development and Membership committees.

The RBMS Task Force on Metrics and Assessment is charged with examining current practices for gathering and reporting information to demonstrate the value and impact of special collections and archives. The Task Force shall conduct a survey of the literature and establish relationships with groups working on similar issues such as ARL, SAA,.

The Task Force will consider both what activities warrant assessment and how to undertake the assessment of those activities. The Task Force will identify needs for best practices and guidelines that will enable more meaningful assessment of the spectrum of what we provide to our various constituencies. The Task Force will provide a preliminary report by Midwinter 2013 and a final written report prior to Annual 2013.

This panel will discuss the importance of library residencies in recruiting a more diverse workforce; in giving the library a greater leadership role in diversity initiatives; in providing formidable career development opportunities for residents; and in keeping libraries at the forefront of new technologies and innovative services. The panel will include a current resident, a former resident, a residency coordinator and an academic library dean. Presentations will be followed by a Q & A session.

Juvenile library collections should contain interactive materials related to science. Three years ago Oakland Public Library entered into a partnership with Lawrence Hall of Science to create science kits for libraries. Geared toward grades 1-5 and covering a wide range of topics from bird beaks to oil spills, these kits contained: an age-appropriate book, an experiment journal which users kept, detailed instruction sheets outlining the experiment, any needed scientific aids, e.g. a magnifying glass, and a free pass to the museum so that participants could further explore science. Oakland Public Library created and included in the kits a bibliography of other recommended titles that children could check out. An annual science festival was created at each participating library to introduce the kits and spur interest. Evaluation and measurement of this project was accomplished by tracking usage of kits and participation at science festivals. Kit users, festival participants, and library staff were interviewed and asked to fill out written questionnaires. Session participants will bring kits for examination and will set up one or two experiments from the kits which attendees can try. Photos of past science festivals and evaluation data will be available on the posters and in electronic formats.

Come learn why Grinnell College Libraries enjoyed a 60% increase in the number of Library Labs, our customized research appointments, during fall 2011. Research consultations are well established instructional options in many academic libraries and have been offered at Grinnell for nearly 20 years. In this poster session, we will show how we promote, conduct, and assess our one-on-one information literacy sessions on topics such as analysis of the Occupy Movement's protest signs, Aztec blood symbolism, and gender equity indices. We'll also illustrate the positive connection between Library Labs and our classroom instruction as well as plans for expanding this successful one-on-one instruction option beyond the reference desk - to librarians' offices, special collections, and academic support centers across campus - while maintaining its effectiveness.

Charge: Advise the RBMS Executive Committee and RBMS committees on the preparation and monitoring of section, preconference, and other budgets. Identify strategies for obtaining funding for approved section activities from appropriate ACRL and ALA units. Seek and obtain external funding to support approved RBMS activities if ACRL and ALA funding is not available.

The linked data movement is an effort to develop best practices for publishing and connecting structured data on the Web. This panel will examine efforts to create an environment in which all cultural heritage institutions can more easily contribute to the open Web.

Purpose: To serve as an open forum for discussion about topics relating to the curatorial management of manuscripts, archival records, and other primary research materials, usually in non-printed formats, including but not limited to photographic material, artwork, electronic records, and ephemera.

Charge: To investigate the avenues of print and electronic publishing open to the section; to implement and clarify the procedures required by ACRL and ALA for publishing within and outside their auspices; to assist the section and its committees with publishing projects that have been approved by the RBMS Executive Committee. In particular, to oversee the communication activities of the RBMS Newsletter, the RBMS electronic discussion list, and the RBMS Web site, as well as other forms of electronic communication; and to represent the section's viewpoints on publishing to ACRL and ALA.

Charge: In coordination with Conference Program Planning, Preconference Program Planning, and Conference Development Committees to initiate and coordinate educational programs at section conferences and preconferences.

Throughout Pepperdine University's 75th anniversary year, the University Libraries have supported efforts to celebrate and promote the university's heritage. The special collections department has moved beyond the typical borders of the library and reached into all areas of university life, becoming a key player in these initiatives. The department has planned events, contributed to displays, developed new physical and digital collections, and provided materials for publications and media productions. These efforts have fostered partnerships with various departments across campus, greatly increasing the visibility and use of the special collections. In this poster, the presenters will utilize photographs, screenshots, and charts to showcase the various initiatives librarians developed and contributed to the celebration. They will share a short anniversary video that incorporates newly digitized still and moving images from the archives. The presentation will also touch on methods for evaluating the success of anniversary initiatives, such as usage statistics and collection growth. After attending the session, participants will be inspired to identify milestones in their own communities and institutions that will benefit through the use of archival materials and library resources. They will have concrete ideas for leveraging resources, utilizing technology, developing collections, and reaching a wider audience during milestone celebrations.