ACRL News Issue (B) of College & Research Libraries March 1989 / 217 ACRL a ctio n s, J a n u a r y 1 9 8 9 Highlights of the Midwinter meetings of the A C R L Board. T he Board of Directors of the Association of Col­ lege and Research Libraries met twice during the ALA M idwinter M eeting in W ashington, D .C .: on Sunday, January 8, 1989, and Tuesday, January 10, 1989. Awards The Board approved a new aw ard proposed by the Com m unity and Junior College Libraries Sec­ tio n . T w o C o m m u n ity C ollege L e a rn in g R e­ sources Achievement Awards will be given annu­ ally to recognize significant achievement in the areas of program development and leadership or community service. Individuals, groups, and insti­ tutions will be eligible to receive the awards. In a related action, the Board approved the p u r­ pose an d p ro c e d u res fo r p re sen tin g o n e-tim e awards. T h e B oard a p p ro v e d tw o proposals for th e W orld Book/ALA Goal Award: 1) preparation of an ethics m anual for special collections librarians, subm itted by the RBMS Ethical Standards Review Committee, chaired by Beverly Lynch; and 2) a survey of scientists and engineers òn the use and valuation of conference proceedings, subm itted by the Science and Technology Section. Chapters The Board accepted the petition for chapter sta­ tus for Arkansas, making it the 40th chapter affili­ ated w ith ACRL. Choice The Board revised the fiscal policy concerning the Choice reserve fund level. The reserve fund is now set at an am ount equal to at least 50 % of the average annual operating expenditures over the preceding three years. Fund-raising The Board approved the Planning Committee’s recom m endation to appoint an organizing com­ m ittee to p u rsu e th e establishm ent of a F u n d ­ raising Discussion Group. Output measures The Board agreed to allocate any surplus funds over the perm anent reserve available at the close of Fiscal Year 1988 to the O utput Measures project. It is expected th a t $9,000 will be available to be ap­ plied to the project. Outreach services The Board endorsed the ALA Minority Intern- ship/Fellowship Program proposed by the ALA Of­ fice for Library O utreach Services Advisory Com­ m ittee and offered to accept a headquarters intern if the project is implemented by ALA. The Board also supported th e creation of a Li­ brary Literacy Assembly, proposed by the ALA Of­ fice for Library Outreach Services. The Assembly would coordinate program m ing, identify concerns and gaps, and develop and prom ote strategies for increased literary activity w ithin ALA. Professional liaison The Board approved informal liaison arrange­ ments w ith the American Association for Higher Education, the Association of American Colleges, and the American Association of University Profes­ sors. As clearance is received from the ALA Com­ m ittee on Organization, further liaisons will be es­ tablished w ith associations identified by the ACRL Professional Association Liaison Committee. Programs The Board approved policies and procedures on 218 / C&RL News the approval, budgeting, and planning for confer­ ence and preconference programs. They will be published in the next edition of the A C R L Guide to Policies and Procedures. Sources of revenue The Board endorsed the “Sources of Revenue” proposal to the H .W . Wilson Foundation for a study of academic library funding. ALA’s Office of Research will conduct the study. Standards The Board approved a new version of the ACRL “Standards for University Libraries,” which re­ place the 1979 edition. A draft of the standards was published in the June 1988 issue of C&RL News; the finished standards will appear in the Septem­ ber 1989 issue. The standards are being sent to the Association of Research Libraries for endorsement and to the ALA Awards Committee for approval. The ACRL Standards and Accreditation Com­ mittee was asked to continue its work on the defini­ tion of “standard,” “guideline,” and “related docu­ m ent,” and to recommend which of these should be subject to review by the Committee, the ACRL Board, and the ALA Standards Committee. Strategic planning The Board recommended th at strategic plan­ ning responsibilities be added to information sent to ACRL candidates and officers, and th at a state­ ment of planning responsibility be added to the general charge for committees and sections in the A L A Handbook of Organization. ACRL executive summary Professional development The Rare Books and Manuscripts Section moved along on three fronts. They made plans for their one-day preconference at Annual Conference in Dallas, furthered their work on the RBMS Confer­ ence in Cambridge this September, and began ac­ tivity on the 1990 preconference, which will be in Minneapolis. All the aw ards committees met and selected their awardees, the most prestigious among them the Academic/Research L ib rarian of the Year, which will go to Northwestern University Library Director John McGowan. T he C h ap ters C o u n cil’s S trategic P lan n in g Committee came in w ith a strong report identify­ ing continuing education as their highest priority. W ith our NEH projects all coming to a conclu­ sion, we began the work, authorized by the Execu­ tive Committee in October, of preparing a pro­ posal for a new series, sim ilarly designed and co-sponsored with the Public Library Association. Teleconference on CD-ROM The Board agreed to co-sponsor a second tele­ conference on CD-ROM between the Community and Junior College Libraries Section and the Asso­ ciation for E d u catio n al C om m unications and Technology. ■ ■ ACRL dues increase amendment proposed T he single m ost im p o rta n t decision the ACRL Board m ade at the M idwinter Meeting was to vote (unanimously) to subm it to the membership a Bylaws am endm ent increasing the dues for personal and organizational mem­ bers from $25 to $35 annually. The Board members took this action because they are convinced th at the programs of the As­ sociation, based as they are on the Strategic Plan, are w hat ACRL members w ant. They therefore believe it is im portant not to curtail the present roster of programs, but to continue revising and adding projects in line w ith mem­ bers’ wishes. (The mem bership survey, last completed in 1984-1985, will be carried out this year in its regular five-year cycle.) Some excellent inform ation on ACRL fi­ nances can be found in C&R L News, Decem­ ber 1988, p p .757-73. W atch for a special “Let­ te r from T h re e P re sid e n ts” an d m ore information in the April issue. Enhancing service capability The Academic Library Statistics Committee met w ith Art Podolsky and Larry La Moure from the National Center for Educational Statistics to dis­ cuss NCES activities and plan a strategy for more frequent data collection. Staff at ACRL and ALA worked w ith the College and University Personnel Association to make their salary survey results available to ACRL m em bers, in p a rt through C &R L News and in p art upon request. The ACRL staff answered more than 50 “advi­ sory questions”—long reference questions—on the topics of standards for college libraries; accredita­ tion; collection development; planning a new li­ brary building; marketing fashion videos to aca­ demic libraries; collection development tools for business; faculty status; academic status and sanc­ tions; lists of academic libraries; how to use aca­ demic libraries; curriculum materials centers; au­ tom ation; bibliographic instruction; standards revisions; materials retention; and salaries.