Council Meeting Minutes #8 : January 20-21, 2005
Orbis Cascade Alliance
Council Meeting
January 20-21, 2005
Portland Community College
Sylvania Campus Library,
Room 204
Agenda
with links to documents
Present
David Bilyeu (COCC),
Tom Peischl (CWU), Leonoor Ingraham-Swets (Clark), Shirley Roberts (EOU) by
phone, Pat Kelley (EWU), Lee Lyttle (TESC), Merrill Johnson (GFU), Jim Kopp
(L&C), Susan Barnes-Whyte (Linfield), Nancy Hoover (Marylhurst), Jan Marie
Fortier (MHCC), Jim Morgan (OHSU), Marita Kunkel (OIT), Karyle Butcher (OSU),
Ben Wakashige (Pacific), Berniece Owen (PCC), Terry Rohe (PSU), Vickie Hanawalt
(Reed), Dalia Hagan (SMC), Ray Doerksen (SPU), Sue Burkholder (SOU), Deb Carver
(UO), Caroline Mann for Rich Hines (UP), Karen Fischer (UPS), Betsy Wilson
(UW), Ginny Steel (WSU), Gary Jensen (WOU), Joni Roberts (WU), Béla
Foltin (WWU), Henry Yaple (Whitman).
Absent: John Popko (SU)
Consortium staff: John F. Helmer,
Nancy Nathanson
Guest on Thursday afternoon: Nana
Lowell, Director of the UW Office of Educational Assessment
The meeting was chaired by Pat
Kelley.
1. Introductions
Berniece Owen, Leslie Riester (PCC Associate Vice President, Information
Technology) and Guy Sievert (PCC Vice President for Academic & Student
Services) welcomed Council to Portland Community College.
2. Review of agenda
3. Minutes from October
7 - 8, 2004 (Kelley)
Approved as written.
4. Reports
Executive Committee (Kelley)
Kelley summarized Executive Committee's December 8 meeting. Highlights included:
-
Decision to
prepare an application for the first NWACC Excellence Award. General discussion
about the ways in which the Alliance and NWACC might work together.
-
Selection of
Vickie Hanawalt as Council mentor for Helen Spalding (PSU)
-
-
Determination
of questions to include in a survey of member digitizing projects.
-
-
Kelley reviewed
potential Council discussion topics and asked Council members to forward
additional ideas to her.
Executive Director (Helmer)
Helmer reviewed his written report covering the following topics:
-
Summit Update
-
Electronic
Resources Program Update for July-December 2004
-
Regional Library
Services Center
-
Collective
Purchase for III Electronic Resources Module: Helmer expanded on his written
report by noting that participating members received credits of $1,750 to
$2,750 each with a total credit of $28,700.
-
Center for
Research Libraries Proposal: Butcher asked for feedback on CRL's group membership
model. In general, Council members felt that CRL membership fees are too
high for the benefit derived.
-
Courier RFP:
Foltin noted that WWU has experienced poor courier service and asked if
this is a system-wide problem. Helmer explained that WWU, EWU and TESC are
all experiencing unacceptable service and that Alliance staff have been
working with Lanter to resolve the problem. At any given time a few of the
62 dropsites experience severe problems but overall the system continues
to work very well.
-
Reference Interest
Group
-
Executive Committee
Elections
-
Conferences
Nathanson provided a brief report
on early Pick-up Anywhere statistics. Council expressed an interest in seeing
such stats from time to time. Nathanson will prepare a report.
5. Council meeting schedule
(Kelley)
Council reviewed the following meeting schedule
-
April 14-15,
2005: Southern Oregon University, Ashland
-
July 14-15,
2005: Lewis & Clark College, Portland
-
October 13-14,
2005: WWU, Bellingham
-
January 12-13,
2006: Pacific University, Forest Grove
-
April 13-14,
2006: University of Washington, Seattle
-
July 13-14,
2006: Portland or Vancouver
Council
expressed a continuing interest in investigating teleconferencing options,
especially for the January meeting. ICCL and OUS libraries all have teleconferencing
equipment available. For Executive Committee's next meeting (March 11), ICCL
and OUS will report back on options. Aspects to consider include system compatibility,
need for and availability of a bridge for connecting several sites, scheduling,
appropriate regional groupings, costs, and technical support staffing during
a teleconference.
6. Summit Catalog Task
Force report (Kelley)
Discussion on Thursday, decision on Friday.
Carolynne Myall (SCTF Chair) joined Council by phone on Thursday to review
the SCTF report. Myall noted that recurring Summit challenges will probably
include the fact that INN-Reach systems do not allow centralized database
maintenance (i.e., the union catalog is only updated as a result of updates
made in local systems), the existence of batches of inferior records, and
the challenge of cataloging electronic resources. When asked about staff that
might serve on such a committee, Myall noted the importance of the catalog
to all library staff and endorsed the concept of a committee with "varied
membership."
Council member were impressed
by the thoroughness and readability of the report and asked Myall to convey
Council's thanks to the task force.
Recommendation 1.a.
"The TF recommends that Council appoint a standing Summit Catalog Committee,
to identify, plan for, and address emerging issues related to database quality
and usability. "
MOTION: Hagan moved to adopt Recommendation
1.a.
SECOND: Peischl
DISCUSSION:
Council members discussed the relative merits of forming a committee, task
force, or some other kind of group. Discussion largely focused on charge and
committee membership. Council's wide-ranging discussion included the following
concepts:
-
Necessity for
such a committee to provide advice to Council on this important resource
-
Desire for a
charge that addresses future challenges rather than examining past decisions
or the detail of daily operation
-
Concern about
the potential long timeline, cost, and unwieldy nature of a large committee
-
Sense that the
steering team model will address concerns about large committees
- The report lists many issues but
not all are of equal import; need to focus on those areas where return is
greatest for the effort expended
-
Strong support
for a group with varied input and perspectives, general sense that what
is needed is a "catalog" rather than a "cataloging"
group.
- Support
for the concept of having the EC select members of both the committee and
steering team so that the resulting groups include members with varied background
and skills. This could be accomplished by allowing Council members to offer
more than one potential representative.
-
Usefulness of
pooled knowledge and potential for staff development
-
Need for Council
to be involved, as with all committees
VOTE: Yes: 30, No: 0, Abstain:
0. Recommendation approved unanimously.
Charge: Committee charge will be
drafted by Executive Committee and, like the CDMC charge, will include both
a broad charge and specific tasks or projects for the first year. Areas of
particular interest are those directed toward quickly evolving topics (e.g.,
electronic resources) and future challenges (e.g., relationship of Summit
to internet search engines like Google).
Membership: Council members will
have the option to designate more than one potential member with final composition
of the committee and steering team determined by Executive Committee. In making
appointments, Executive Committee's goal is to create a broadly representative
committee and steering team composed of staff with experience in cataloging,
reference, usability, systems, etc.
Recommendation 1.b.
"The TF recommends that Council develop mechanisms for gathering
data, on a modest level, about user behavior and use of the system apart from
circulation functions. "
MOTION: Fischer moved to adopt Recommendation 1.b.
SECOND: Owen
DISCUSSION: The general sense among Council members was that this is already
happening elsewhere and that the committee will need to maintain focus in
other areas.
VOTE: Yes: 6, No: 18, Abstain:
1. Recommendation 1.b. not approved.
Recommendation 2.1.
"The TF recommends that the Alliance discontinue the current 'Guidelines
for Cataloging Electronic Resources.'”
MOTION: Hagan moved to adopt Recommendation 2.1.
SECOND: Yaple
DISCUSSION: Council members agreed that the guidelines are outdated.
VOTE: Yes:
30, No: 0, Abstain: 0. Recommendation 2.1 approved unanimously.
Recommendation 2.2.
"The TF recommends that Council ask the Summit Catalog Committee,
if created, to determine how Alliance libraries are treating electronic resources,
what their plans are for the next one-to-two years, and what the impact of
use of WebBridge, SFX, and similar linking products is on practice with regard
to the 856 field. Then the Committee should revise and streamline the Guidelines
to include realistic options within the current environment. "
MOTION: Peischl moved to adopt Recommendation 2.2.
SECOND: Fischer
DISCUSSION: none
VOTE: Yes: 27 (estimated),
No: 1, Abstain: 2. Recommendation 2.2 approved.
Recommendation 2.3.
"The TF recommends that Council determine how records for licensed
electronic resources are used at Summit institutions that do not have access
to them and that cannot borrow the electronic versions."
MOTION: Motion was made to adopt Recommendation 2.3. (minute taker missed
the name of the person making this motion)
SECOND: Seconded (minute taker missed the name of the person seconding this
motion)
DISCUSSION: Electronic resources continue to change and cause challenges in
the catalog. General sense among Council members was that the committee will
need to maintain focus in other areas.
VOTE: Yes:
0, No: 27 (estimated), Abstain: 2. Recommendation 2.3 not approved.
7. Financial report: income
& expenses, reserve (Helmer)
Helmer presented two reports and noted the very substantial
role of Debi Baker in tracking and preparing such financial information:
Actual to Budget Comparison:
July - December 2004: income and expense in each project area follow a
predictable pattern throughout the year (e.g., courier fees collected early
in the FY and then paid to vendor on a monthly basis). Income and expense
are on track for FY05. Council accepted this report without revision.
Reserve funds at the close of
FY04: Helmer indicated that his intent is to close the books on the pre-merger
financial history of the consortium and use this report to both summarize
and explain the sources of the Orbis Cascade Alliance reserve. Helmer noted
that policies concerning the reserve have not been examined in some time and
suggested that Council consider how such funds are distributed (e.g., system
vs. general reserve) as well as circumstances under which reserve funds are
expended. Council accepted this report without revision.
DECISION: Council asked Executive
Committee to review and propose policies for the management of reserve funds.
Topics of interest include the amount and purpose of system reserve, expenditure
of general reserve, and distribution of funds should Council decide to discontinue
the consortium or change its legal status.
8. III Development Partnership
for INN-Reach Non-Returnables Module (Helmer)
Helmer reported: At the July
2004 retreat, Council approved two new service initiatives
The latter task has been assigned
to CDMC. Helmer and Nathanson have been working with III to clarify the costs
and functionality associated with entering in to a development partnership
to create an INN-Reach non-returnables module. Council reviewed Helmer's January
11, 2005 memo and III's INN-Reach Non-Returnables Development Project
dated August 4, 2004.
Council discussion included the
following:
-
Concern that
the need for article requesting will decline as the extent of electronic
access increases
-
Would all member
institutions agree to participate?
-
Are holdings
in Summit recorded in such a way as to make requesting sufficiently accurate?
-
Regardless of
the technology used, are collections within the Alliance membership able
to fill most needs?
-
Is there enough
duplication in holdings to make load balancing possible?
- To what extent can the Alliance
influence the functionality described by III?
- What are the costs (financial
and human resources) associated with such a project?
- Need for data about ILL requests
at member libraries
DECISION: Council approved continuing
this discussion with III, noting that more information will be needed before
Council can vote on entering in to such a partnership.
DECISION: Council asked Helmer
to pose the following questions to III:
-
If we entered
in to a development partnership, to what extent would the Alliance be able
to influence the way this module works? In other words, is the functionality
largely fixed at this point or is III willing and able to incorporate additional
input on how it would work?
-
What would such
a development partnership cost, both financially and in terms of a commitment
of human resources?
-
Council members
have great respect for III's proven ability to analyze potential development
ideas and pursue only those features that appear to have long-term and wide-spread
value. Given this strong track record, what is III's assessment of the long-term
value of an INN-Reach non-returnables module compared with other methods
for meeting such needs?
DECISION: Council will ask Collection
Development and Management Committee (CDMC) to gather ILL data on journal
article requests for one month to determine
-
Number of journal
articles requested from within or without the Alliance membership
-
Number of article
requests that could have been filled from within the Alliance membership
-
Number of copies
of those articles that could have been filled from within the Alliance membership
-
The potential
effectiveness of load balancing journal article requests
CDMC will be asked to complete
the study by April and, to the extent practical, the committee is encouraged
to provide Council with observations concerning fill rate, load balancing,
and other factors related to article requesting within the consortium. The
April deadline was chosen to avoid spring break and to ensure that information
is available in time for Council discussion on April 14-15.
This ILL data, together with additional
cost information from III, will be used to help determine the potential cost
and benefit of an investment in non-returnables technology that is confined
to Alliance members. It may also be used to determine the potential for filling
such requests as returnables (i.e., circulating serial volumes).
9. Extending Summit Borrowing
privileges to donors (Kelley)
Council discussed the merits and complications of allowing
Council members to extend Summit Borrowing privileges to a small number of
special library supporters (e.g., donors).
Council discussion included the
following
DECISION: Council approved an experimental
expansion of Summit Borrowing privileges as follows:
"At their discretion, each
Council member may extend Summit Borrowing privileges, including on-site visiting
patron, to a small number of special library supporters. The maximum number
of such borrowers at each member institution is 10. This policy will be assessed
by Council prior to its expiration on December 31, 2006."
10. NorthWest Academic
Computing Consortium (NWACC) Excellence Award application (Kelley)
Council reviewed the application drafted by Helmer: http://www.orbiscascade.org/nwacc/excellenceaward.html
DECISION: Approved for submission
to NWACC.
Council feels that there is a clear
shared interest between NWACC and the Alliance. Some Council members are also
members of NWACC's board and the membership overlap is now 74%.
11. Walla Walla College
membership application (Kelley)
Council reviewed WWC's application and reaffirmed the policy that every member
institution must directly participate as a dropsite in the courier system.
Any member may choose to support additional dropsites (e.g., serving other
campuses or branches) as determined by institutional needs.
Beyond clarifying the division
of collections between WWC branch libraries, access to the courier system,
and potential impact on Summit Borrowing service, Council had no concerns
specific to WWC. Following normal procedures, Executive Committee will visit
WWC in February or March with Council vote expected in April.
Council members wished Ray
Doerksen well as he departs for Palm Beach Atlantic University. Thank you
Ray!
Council members wished Dalia
Hagan well as she departs for Whitman College. Congratulations Dalia, we are
glad you are still part of Council!
Minutes: John F. Helmer