A Technical Services Newsletter for Nebraska Libraries

Volume 4 number 3, Spring 2002 ISSN 1085-3448

Call for New

Newsletter Editor

I will be leaving the position of Editor of Technically Speaking with this issue. Thanks to all the contributors, who helped get the newsletter going again, and let’s keep it running! Please consider helping out the Technical Services Roundtable (TSRT) by volunteering to become the new Editor.

Contact Sue Ann Gardner at (402) 472-3545

or sgardner2@unl.edu

or Devra Dragos (402) 471-4355

or ddragos@nlc.state.ne.us

"Now for good lucke, cast an old shooe after me"

-- John Heywood

Table of Contents

Hiring Technical Services Library Staff: An Overview

Head of Technical Services & Catalog Librarian

University of Nebraska Schmid Law Library

If you are reading this article you most likely have been involved in the hiring process and are curious to learn more about it. If you have been a supervisor responsible for hiring technical services library staff for more than 5 years, you probably have made at least one regrettable hiring decision. Most hiring mistakes are preventable if you follow the requirements and guidelines of local, state and federal law and if you have done careful planning and documentation. Even though hiring mistakes are inevitable the longer you’re in management, they will be reduced dramatically with experience.

This short article will cover some of the basics in the hiring process and include some information that you may not be aware of and that may prove helpful to you in your next hire. At the end will be a very short selected bibliography.

GENERAL

Technical services jobs demand highly skilled employees who must learn quickly and be able to retain knowledge of technical applications and protocols. They must be proficient spellers, able to work well alone, yet are expected to communicate effectively with a wide range of other library personnel. Support staff positions are slowly taking on increasingly administrative-related duties. These are found particularly in areas of training volunteers, student assistants, or part-time staff, and planning and overseeing special projects, as well as training other library staff on new OPAC features or other system upgrades which might affect circulation, interlibrary loan, government documents, document delivery. Technical services support staff also may be expected to be effective participants in library-wide committee work. In today’s technical services departments it is rare to hire library staff and put them in just one area of expertise where they are more or less "in isolation", keying in or editing data at one computer all day.

A good opportunity occurs prior to posting the open position. This is the time to re-think the duties and responsibilities for possible changes. Think about what you really want from the position. This may be the time to restructure some other positions in technical services as well. Involve the rest of the tech services staff if any major workflow assignment changes are planned. You don’t want existing staff to become antagonistic to you or the new employee when they are hired.

Include words in the job description which leave open possibilities where future duties and responsibilities may change. Avoid brevity in the job description. Remember, the job description is much more than just a temporary recruitment attraction device. It should be viewed as a foundation document from which other administrative needs can be met. Include some technical services jargon which can help in determining candidates’ work experience during questioning time in the interviews. For technical services staff positions jargon terminology such as "OCLC" or "ISBN" or "authority control" or "bibliographic records" is very helpful to find out what a candidate really did when they put on their resume something like "experience cataloging books for a branch library." You can ask them about some of the words that are in the job description. To get the best possible pool of applicants, think about the timing and where the job announcements should be distributed. Take time to make them professional looking and attractive. Remember to use traditional and new methods (e.g., the Web) to post your announcements. If you know the salary range, it’s a good idea to include that information. Do not forget to follow your institution’s guidelines concerning what to include in your job announcement that pertains to ADA, affirmative action, diversity, and so on. Avoid a dry-language job announcement if possible. Make the announcement sound somewhat inviting and warm.

When contacting each applicant you want to interview, tell them who you are and what position it is that you are calling them about. Remember that this person may be applying for several jobs and doesn’t remember or can’t quickly connect with you about your job opening. Tell them how long the interview will take, briefly describe how the interview will proceed, and give them your phone number in case some emergency comes up with them just prior to the interview - this way they don’t have to be uncomfortable about whom to contact. Be sure they understand where to park, how to get to your library, where they are to go when they are in the building, and who will be waiting for them when they go to the circulation desk. You want the candidate to be as comfortable as possible prior to the interview and during the interview.

This is your interview. Plan. Plan. Plan. You want to show off your department: that it is well-run and performs crucial operations that support the mission of the rest of the organization efficiently. Candidates who leave the library after the interview will take with them opinions and memories of the entire organization based on the interview. Involve as many library staff as possible somewhere in the interview process, without overdoing it. Include liaisons in public services to sit in on at least one portion of the question and answer time. Determine ahead of time, who will ask their "favorite" question of each candidate. Most everyone by now knows which questions are illegal, and if any of your staff are new and do not know, then it is your responsibility to tell them about what is not appropriate to say or ask during the interview. . [TIP: did you know that there are some subtle questions you may NOT ask that you may not be aware of, like "Do you straighten your hair?" or "Is that a perm?" or "I hope you didn’t have to make any child care arrangements for this interview?" - be very careful about the questions you or the interviewing library staff asks the candidates. Allow at least an hour and a half per candidate. This is to help get each candidate to relax and learn a lot about your department and the job for which they have applied. Many candidates for technical services staff positions are not as savvy about what happens in the workroom of today’s library. Applicants for support staff job oftentimes do not have library experience, but do meet the minimum qualifications. Do not schedule candidates back to back. Allow at least a half hour between interviews so candidates don’t see one another coming and going or waiting. This also gives the existing staff some time to record their rankings immediately after they’ve seen and talked with each candidate. During the interview, turn off your phone, close the door. Do not permit interruptions unless there’s a tornado or fire in the building - nothing conveys disrespect for interviewees like interruptions. Treat each candidate the same. Tell each candidate the same thing about the job and the department. Show them the kinds of work they will be doing. You want each candidate to understand the kinds of detailed, technical work they will be doing daily. For example, if the position is for a Library Assistant II in interlibrary loan and copy cataloging, show them the screens they’ll be viewing and the kinds of data in which they’ll be expected to become proficient. Expect alert, inquisitive behavior from them with at least one relevant question related to what they are seeing and what you are telling them. Since they are interviewing for over an hour, offer them a drink, a place to put their coat, purse or anything else they are carrying. Give them a quick tour of the department, and the library if your facility is smaller. Allow for a restroom break. Allow for some period of silence after each question. Don’t be too quick to help them with an answer. If there’s a 15 minute silence from a candidate trying to answer a question about his greatest accomplishment in his past job, you gain some insight in how he might work in your department. But seriously, give the candidates time to process and think about an answer. Ignore clothing and other personal appearances which have nothing to do with how well they could perform the job. Draw out behavioral answers, but not to the point of not being able to set a good understanding of the depth of their technical skills. Remember they are applying for a technical services position. You still want to determine as best as you can during the questioning how they behave during stressful times or how creative they’ve been in problem solving for some workflow in a previous job. You want to also determine how comfortable they are in "just doing the job: step-by-step, with no deviation permitted," because there are many elements of technical services work which require a continuity of adherence to repetitive tasks for completing projects under deadline. Do not be afraid to ask each candidate to tell you exactly what they did in their past positions which relates or "translates" to the position for which you’re hiring

Reserve time for each candidate to return to you so they can get their purse, etc. Close the door for a short time and ask if they have any questions, now that they’ve seen the place and talked with many of the library staff. It’s a good idea to tell each candidate the time frame you would like the position to be filled by and how they will be contacted concerning the decision that was made. It’s a good idea to offer them a copy of the job description that was advertised with the starting salary written on it and with your phone number in case they have any questions once they get home. Other contact information can be written on the job description if they have questions about benefits, retirement packages, etc., and specialized office personnel in your organization can better answer those type questions. Shake their hand and accompany them to the circulation desk to close the interview. You want them to feel good about their time spent, and that the organization is a good place to work.

Use numerical rankings for the library staff to rank each of the interviewed candidates. Do not allow for "general comments" to be written on paper. You don’t want to put yourself or your library in jeopardy if a disgruntled candidate files a discrimination suit against you, and you are asked to hand over all hiring documentation but someone has written an inappropriate comment on their ranking sheet. If anyone on staff wants to share some information that’s not possible to record numerically, then they need to come and talk to you with their comments and information. This verbal information can be extremely valuable in a final decision as to whom you offer the job to, so be sure to include opportunities for staff to discuss a candidate with you privately. Someone on your staff may know something about one of the candidates, and this information could prevent a poor hiring decision. It’s best if everyone on staff understands the need to avoid sharing comments about a candidate among themselves "off record" since it can quickly put a candidate on unfair ground. The list of criteria for ranking that the staff fills out after the interviews should be linked directly to the job description that was advertised. You want staff to numerically rank the top 3 candidates, if possible. Design your candidate selection sheet so that each library staff person who participates in the interviews can "grade" each candidate using a numerical ranking. Make the form simple and on one page; do not use staff names on the sheets. After each interview encourage staff to fill out the form right away. Then after the last interview ask each staff to rank the top 2 or 3 candidates. Don’t allow the staff to write on the form "they are pretty much equal: either one will work out" - be firm that you want the top 3 prioritized - they must select 1-2-3. This will aid you went you compile all the sheets for making your final decision on who to offer the position to first. If the top candidate has already accepted another job, you can quickly proceed to offer the position to the second best choice without having to go back to staff for questions about "what next?" Competition for jobs in the workplace is keen. You don’t want to waste time in the offer process once you’ve determined your top candidates. If you’ve dallied too much and you’re down to the third-best candidate, you may need to consider reopening the position again and hope the pool of candidates who apply will be good. Many larger institutions require that their Human Resources department make the "offer." But before we get to the offer stage, YOU MUST CALL REFERENCES!!

You will eventually get stung with a bad hire if you do not contact all the references. The references that are the most difficult to reach are most likely the ones you need to reach the most! Avoid the temptation not to contact all references. Do not make any shortcuts in this crucial stage of the hiring process. A candidate may leave a powerful "halo" after the interview, and rank very high in all the staff ranking but you must ask your questions to verify from previous supervisors and co-workers the quality, skill level, ability and personality attributes that are needed for your position. Each position should have its own set of reference check questions that you will ask. The last question oftentimes includes an open-ended "tell me anything else about the person" and the traditional follow-up "would you hire this person again?" question. Be wary of positions listed in the resume in which you are requested by the candidate not to contact the supervisor for a reference for that job. Also be sure to ask detailed questions about gaps in years where jobs are not listed. Be sensitive to candidates if they tell you they had problems with a previous supervisor. Be sure to ask them if they can give you one or two more references that are related to that time period, and that job so you can get an accurate picture of what was going on and who was the problem in that job. If reference information given in the resume is not current or accurate, always follow up with the candidate about that, and get the newest contact information.

While talking with the candidate to offer the position, be certain the potential new employee fully understands all the fundamentals of the position, when the first day will be, the salary, hours, duties and responsibilities. Be prepared to wait for a day or so while the employee thinks about it, or for some other reason why they can’t accept immediately. Oftentimes candidates have several jobs they are waiting to hear about or in the process of interviewing for, so be patient: hopefully the wait will be worth it. Be sure to tell them they will need to sign a letter of offer document that will be mailed to them (assuming they will start to work in about 2 weeks). This letter of offer document should at least state the position title, first day expected at work, and the starting pay. They need to sign and return the original document on the day they begin work, or prior to the first day. This document is kept in the employee’s new personnel folder.

Hundreds of books have been written about the hiring process in general. New methods keep emerging to try to improve the hiring process so the best candidate is hired. Of all these hundreds of books, only a handful of recently published books and articles have been written about hiring library staff, and even fewer on hiring library technical services support staff. How can we improve the process of hiring the best person for our technical services staff positions? To help your Technical Services staff department become the best it can be, Librarians and library specialists who hire staff need to consider all of the basic points discussed in this article and more.

SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY

Buhler, Patricia "Teach Yourself Management Skills in 24 Hours," Alpha Publishers, 2001.

Dewey, Barbara J. "Library Jobs: How to Fill Them, How to Find Them," American Library Association, 1987.

Low, Kathleen "Recruiting Library Staff: A How-to-do-it Manual for Librarians," Neal-Schuman Publishers, 1999.

Rubin, Richard "Hiring Library Employees: A How-to-do-it Manual," Neal-Schuman Publishers, 1993.

What Makes a Good Technical Services Student?

"Technically Speaking" interviewed two long-time supervisory employees at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries, asking them what their experience showed to be the makeup of a good student worker in a technical services setting. Sheila Orth is in charge of bindery students and Anita Kreps is in charge of cataloging department students. They were interviewed separately, but, interestingly, some of their conclusions were just the same. Following are their thoughts:

T.S.: Do you have to spend a lot of time on organizing your students and keeping watch over them?

S.O.: No. Because of our workload the students have to be able to work on their own. Once instruction is given to them, they should be able to be independent. It is very helpful if the student can take verbal direction quickly. They have to be able to learn quickly and produce.

A.K.: Yes, definitely. I always stress to them that they are a student first, an employee second, but that they have to take both seriously. If they think they don’t have to show up, then they have to learn that there are consequences that will follow. Many of them are away from home for the first time, and personal problems do happen, so they sometimes need to be watched for possible absences from work because of their student lives.

They must be taught to communicate with us, so we both know where we stand in terms of getting the job done.

T.S.: Do you have much to do with the personal aspects of the students’ lives?

S.O.: I’m so removed from them in my position. I don’t get into their personal lives. The longer a student is here, the more personal conversations become, but I don’t make it a habit to get into gossip. The full-time staff sets the tone for the students. The more focused they are, the more the students stay focused.

A.K.: It’s important to keep an open communication with the students, but they do sometimes take advantage of your good nature. I try to get them to realize that we mean business, and that they should be as committed to us as we are to them. So many students want to just stay in school because they don’t want to deal with reality. A lot don’t have a concept of what it is to have a true job with consequences for unsuitable behavior, and we’re doing a disservice to them now if we don’t give them consequences at this stage of their work life. It’s good to expect more and require more of people, so I’m always giving them new projects.

T.S.: Do you get more women or more men working for you?

S.O.: It fluctuates. Sometimes there are more males; now we have two guys and four girls, but last summer we had three guys. It depends on who gets sent over from the administration office. Mostly it’s just first-come, first-served.

A.K.: The administration office sends mostly women to us. Maybe it depends on who comes into the library for a job in the first place - so the sex might be connected to the interest in the field.

T.S.: Do the same students come back every semester? Is it a job they feel comfortable and happy enough in to come back, and you would be happy to rehire them?

S.O.: About 25% of our bindery students stay for the full four years. We’re laid back and easy-going, so we’re good to work for. Our jobs can conform to their lives and pressures, so they appreciate the flexibility.

A.K.: Yes, our students come back, and a lot of them have ended up becoming full-time staff after they finish their degree. Sometimes they stop going to school full-time and work in the library and receive a tuition remission and then get their degree.

T.S.: Do your students feel included in the library’s life?

S.O.: We try to cater to our students in different ways. For example, there’s a "Student Appreciation Day," in the library, and in our department on that day we try to give them substantial, non-snack food, since we want to provide some comforts they don’t get because of dorm life. We always include them in holiday celebrations and so on.

A.K.: Yes, we try to include them, and they enjoy it. We want them to know they are an integral part of the library. Everyone in the department contributes something to them on "Student Appreciation Day," and we have a celebration with a cake, for each one when they graduate. They like that, and feel appreciated. On the other hand, they are somewhat isolated from the other library student workers because our layout makes us pretty spread out.

T.S.: So what might be some of the first obvious traits that come to your mind that make a good technical services student?

S.O.: An important thing is detail. They have to be able to pick up on detail. For example, proofing and revising before a shipment goes out requires accuracy. Once a shipment comes back they check the quality of the product. Again, they are proofing the material. Students are the final checkers for revision or processing and releasing the books. They are not expected to handle the problem-solving aspects of bindery work, but they are taught to make sure the information is where it should be, and is in the form that it should be in. Also, any good employee, not just a student employee, needs to be asking questions. If you give them enough information, they’ll know when to ask a question.

A.K.: The student should be detail-oriented. Full-time staff also need to have this trait. A good student should be someone who takes an interest in what he or she is doing. When you are teaching them, and they ask appropriate questions, that’s good. If they don’t ask questions it might be that they don’t understand or don’t care about their tasks.

T.S.: What about punctuality?

S.O.: For the good students, as long as they are able to grasp the instruction they’re given, and able to follow verbal instruction, there will be a good workflow. So being at work at a particular time isn’t as important as getting the job done and being able to produce. I work their schedules around their class hours. We aren’t a public services department so the students aren’t manning a desk where they have to be on time. It’s more important that they just put their hours in.

A.K.: Punctuality can be on a fine line. We aren’t public services, so it’s not as big a thing being here at an assigned time. But, if they want to stay at the University Libraries in general, where punctuality is required, they should be committed now. Unfortunately, the longer we have a student, the more their punctuality and attendance seem to worsen. They feel that they fit in at the library and know their jobs, and since their classes are more difficult, they spend more time on that. We have to stress the importance of getting the job done — production has to continue — and the students are very necessary. They have to be accountable for the amount of hours they give versus the amount of hours they have promised.

T.S.: Do you care about what their penmanship looks like?

S.O.: No. Penmanship has deteriorated over the generations. I like it to be legible, but it doesn’t have to be neat. Experience of my own penmanship shows that that is not a good clue about whether or not a student can do a good job.

A.K.: No. Precision is important, but good penmanship does not fall into that category for us.

T.S.: What do you try to notice about a student?

S.O.: When I interview students I first try to explain the environment they’ll be working in, and, in that process, some then say they aren’t interested in the job, which I think is good. Also, I check to see if they’ve taken the basic library course offered at the university because that implies that they should have an understanding of the Library of Congress system, etc. If the student has more public service work experience, I ask about their studies to see if there’s an indication of experience in working alone and in detail-oriented work. I notice extra-curricular activities. For example, if a student lists a hobby collecting something, to me that means attention to detail; if a student has been involved in sports, that means ability to focus well, and so on. In the bindery we have both "commercial" students and "in-house" students. What makes a good commercial student won’t necessarily make a good in-house student. The in-house students work with cloth, gluing, and construction and repair of materials. These students need to have somewhat more dexterity and require more training than the commercial students. The in-house students need to appreciate the art of what makes a book. We actually go through the process of having them make a journal so we can teach them how to do sewing, gluing, binding, and spine repairs. The commercial students do more proofing and revision work. I only actually hire for the commercial student jobs, but then, with evidence of their interest, questions, etc. in bindery work, I then create a pool of in-house type students.

A.K.: When a student is meticulous and detail-oriented those are strong points in their favor. It’s good when they ask many questions, and they have even made me look at things differently sometimes. You can learn a lot by just listening to the student. A good technical services student in our area also has to be somewhat a people person as well because our students answer the phones for the department. They need to work well in a group since a lot of what they do involves teamwork. We have a contract for them to sign, that includes key points that they need to pay attention to, like respecting another employee’s request for help, use/misuse of the telephone, when they are expected to come in and do their jobs, etc. The contract is adjustable, but I read it to them and have them sign it every year.

T.S.: How good is the communication between the student generation and the staff generation?

S.O.: I notice subtleties here. For example, one student would come in and put his feet up on the desk, but he was good on detail. I felt it was irrelevant for me to say something about his feet being up. Also, you start paying attention to the age differences because of what comes up in conversation.

A.K.: Our communication works well. This generation of students could have been our children and some of them like that. They like having an adult sounding board and someone to give them advice. I even call them my kids. We talk to our students, and I make sure how school is going, etc. Part of the reason for that is that if they’re having difficulty in class I can tell them not to get too stressed out about it, and so on, but on the other hand it’s best not to get too friendly. The employee-supervisor relationship is the main one. But we’ve had a lot of people work for us whom we’ve already known, and I’ve become friends with some of the students.

T.S.: Finally, could you comment on any traits that make for a technical services student who probably won’t work out?

S.O.: If a student is more public-service oriented they won’t work out as well in binding. Also, the "socialites" don’t work out well because they may come in and start working, but then fifteen minutes later they want to go talk to someone. And a last thought — a perfectionist is a bad type to have. They slow down production.

A.K.: A student who doesn’t want to be in school won’t want to work here either. Their unhappiness spreads out around them. Someone who’s overly sociable doesn’t fit. It’s good to be outgoing, but not too outgoing, and we do want them to fit into the group, but not just by talking. On the other hand, the withdrawn ones are not easy to read. It’s hard to decide if they understand what you’re telling them.

Expansion Cutter Table for Use with LC Class P Literature Table 40, Biography and Criticism: General Works Distribution Cutter Table

n 1969 I developed an expansion Cutter table for my own use in order to create biography and criticism Cutter numbers for "individual authors with a Cutter number" because I found existing guidelines were insufficient. The expansion Cutter table is for use with the Library of Congress (LC) distribution table of "Z" Cutter numbers for individual authors in the biography and criticism, general works, .xZ5-.xZ999 (where ".x" represents the Cutter number for the author) subdivision of LC’s Class P literature Table 40 for authors with a Cutter number. I have continued to use this expansion table with occasional modifications. Catalogers using LC’s Class P may find this local expansion table useful for them as well.

Lois Mai Chan gives an explanation for the construction of a "Z" Cutter number in Immroth’s…, fourth edition. Basically stated, Cutter "Z" numbers are sub-arranged alphabetically by main entry. After the Z, the first number reflects the relative position in the alphabet of the first letter of the main entry and is then extended by successive numbers, in alphabetical sequence, relative to works already existing in the shelflist.

I have found LC’s .Z5-.Z989 (.Z99-999 is not listed) Cutter distribution table at two websites to be very useful. These sites are The Library Corporation’s Cataloger’s Reference Shelf’s "P-Classification (LC Cutter Table) Tables for Individual authors, Table XL, Guide II: Biography and Criticism" and Queen’s University at Kingston’s QTECH Web’s "LC’s P Class Cutters, Tables for Individual Authors, Table XL, Guide II, Distribution of Cutter numbers for Biography and Criticism". With access to the distribution table came the need to revise my expansion Cutter table.

.Z52-529 An-Az .Z76-769 Mn-Mz use number: 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

.Z53-539 Ba-Bm .Z77-779 Na-Nm

.Z54-549 Bn-Bz .Z78-789 Nn-Nz * (Use this table in conjunction with the Local

.Z57-579 Da-Dm .Z82-829 Pn-Pz

.Z58-589 Dn-Dz .Z83-839 Qa-Qz

.Z59-599 Ea-Ez .Z84-849 Ra-Rm

.Z61-619 Fa-Fm .Z85-859 Rn-Rz

.Z62-629 Fn-Fz .Z86-869 Sa-Sm

.Z63-639 Ga-Gm .Z87-879 Sn-Sz

.Z64-649 Gn-Gz .Z88-889 Ta-Tm

.Z65-659 Ha-Hm .Z89-899 Tn-Tz

.Z66-669 Hn-Hz .Z91-919 Ua-Uz

.Z67-679 Ia-Iz .Z92-929 Va-Vz

.Z68-689 Ja-Jm .Z93-939 Wa-Wm

.Z69-699 Jn-Jz .Z94-949 Wn-Wz

.Z71-719 Ka-Km .Z95-959 Xa-Xz

.Z72-729 Kn-Kz .Z96-969 Ya-Yz

.Z73-739 La-Lm .Z97-979 Za-Zm

.Z74-749 Ln-Lz .Z98-989 Zn-Zz

Local Expansion Table for the Distribution of the Z5-Z989 Cutter Table

use number: .Zxx 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

use number: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

use number: .Zxx 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

Distribution number: .Z51-519 Aa-Am

Local expansion number: .Z51 (extend if needed,

Distribution number: .Z51-519 Aa-Am

Local expansion number: .Z512 (extend if needed,

Distribution number: .Z52-529 An-Az

Local expansion number: .Z529 (extend if needed,

Distribution number: .Z59-599 Ea-Ez

Local expansion number: .Z59 (extend if needed,

Distribution number: .Z59-599 Ea-Ez

Local expansion number: .Z595 (extend if needed,

Distribution number: .Z79-799 Oa-Oz

Local expansion number: .Z797 (extend if needed,

Bibliography

Cataloging Service Bulletin 17 (Summer 1982), pp. 45-46.

Immroth, John Phillip. A Guide to Library of Congress Classification. Rochester, N.Y. : Libraries Unlimited, 1968, pp. 124, 149.

"LC’s P Class Cutters, Tables for Individual Authors, Table XL, Guide II, Distribution of Cutter numbers for Biography and Criticism." QTECH Web. LC Cutter Tables

http://130.15.161.74/techserv/lc-cut.html

Library of Congress. Library of Congress Classification. P-PZ Tables. Language and Literature Tables, prepared by the Cataloging Policy and Support Office, Library Services. 1998 ed. Washington, D.C. : Library of Congress, Cataloging Distribution Service, 1998, p. 100.

"P-Classification (LC Cutter Table) Tables for Individual authors, Table XL, Guide II : Biography and Criticism." Cataloger’s Reference Shelf. LC Cutter Table: P-Classification http://www.TLCdelivers.com/tlc/crs/ctrs/cutr0029.htm

Tri-Conference

Report

About 35 people made their way out to the Aurora Leadership Center on April 23, a lovely spring day, for the ITART/TSRT/NMRT Tri-Conference. The participants started the conference day by attending a keynote talk on wireless technology by Tom Berve of Papillion LaVista High School. Mr. Berve pioneered the use of wireless networking in the Papillion school district, and gave a thorough and interesting overview of the steps involved in setting up a wireless computer system as well as some of the history behind the technology. After business meetings and a break for lunch, attendees chose from a variety of concurrent sessions, including "How to Avoid Technology Stress @ Your Library," "Publishing Research and Reviews in Library Journals," and "Minor and Major Changes: A Preview of Changes to Serials Cataloging."

It was an enjoyable and informative day, and several people commented that the meeting location was ideal. I would like to thank John Seyfarth, Devra Dragos, Andrew Wertheimer, Steve Hunt, and all of the others who helped, for all of their hard work in putting the conference together.

Fight Anomie

Technical Services Round Table

Spring Meeting

April 23, 2002

TSRT, ITART and NMRT held a Tri-Roundtable Spring meeting April 23, 2002 at the Leadership Center in Aurora, Nebraska from 9:30-3:00. The theme was Technology@your library. Thirteen were present at the business meeting with President Sue Ann Gardner presiding.

Secretary’s Report: Secretary Cec Slingsby distributed the minutes for the January 15, 2002 TSRT Board Meeting. Devra Dragos moved that they be accepted and Pat Hughes seconded.

The motion carried after the correction of the spelling of Jean Dickinson’s name.

Treasurer’s Report: The treasurer’s report consisting of the 2001 Annual Financial Report with an ending cash balance of $1,453.17 and the April 18, 2002 Quarterly Report with a balance of $1,425.00 was sent for audit. Charity Martin will remain as treasurer through October 2004.

Newsletter editor: Jean Dickinson urged members to submit news articles to "Technically Speaking" about sessions they attended during the Tri-Roundtable Spring meeting day.

By-laws: Sheryl Williams, Margaret Mering and Sue Ann Gardner will review ARTICLE VI - Committees to clarify interpretation of the Sections and the length of the terms of office.

Sue Ann announced that Corinne Jacox will be a candidate for TSRT vice chair/chair-elect and Susan Mallum for secretary.

Fall Conference: Devra Dragos updated the NLA Fall Convention activities. The TSRT business meeting will be held Friday, October 25 at 7:00 am. Devra announced that the three programs will be the Colorado Digitalization Project by Liz Bishoff, a follow-up panel discussion on the Western Trails Digitalization Project, and a co-sponsored NMRT and TSRT session discussing the difference between cataloging and reference service. Devra will check if TSRT can have a booth by the ALCTS table. Volunteers will be needed.

Spring Conference: Sue Ann announced that TSRT had been invited to visit the Marie Sandoz Museum in Gordon, Nebraska for the Spring meeting or possibly a field trip. Pat Hughes suggested finding more programs for ILL people - e-journals available through ILL? Margaret Mering suggested Union List topics.

Sue Ann issued an invitation to members to volunteer for the NLA task force on benefits and pay equity. She also suggested that we start thinking about possible date and time changes that might bring more involvement and attendance at NLA conferences.

Sue Ann adjourned the meeting.

Respectfully submitted,

Cec Slingsby, Secretary