ACRL News Issue (B) of College & Research Libraries 5 5 8 / C&RL News Give the members what they want: Results of ACRL’s membership survey By JoAn S. Segal Executive Director, A C R L Who we are and what we do. A ccording to a recent survey conducted for the Association o f College and Re­ search Libraries (ACRL), th e typical ACR b er is an adm inistrator in a university library. She has been a m em ber 8.5 years, belongs to h er state library association, and is eligible for tenure. She regularly reads half or m ore o f h er C & RL and C& RL News issues. She is responsible directly or indirectly for a budget of almost $750,000, buying books and serials, furniture and equipm ent, sup­ plies, and autom ation hardw are and software. Al­ though she has not attended an ACRL National Conference, she believes they should be held more frequently than every th ree years. She has taken part in an A CRL-sponsored educational activity and would be interested in one in th e future. She attends chapter meetings regularly or occasionally. She is almost 45 years old and holds the MLS degree, bu t has not served on an ACRL com m ittee, section com m ittee, editorial board, or the Board of Directors. Objectives The ACRL commissioned Research USA, Inc., to conduct the survey o f a sample o f its current m em bers in the fall o f 1989, to find out m ore about them , th eir libraries, and th e ir involvement with L ACRL. Some o f the specific areas studied in the survey included: m•e mT­ype and place o f em ploym ent • M em berships within ALA and other disci­ pline-related association. • Critical issues facing libraries • Value o f ACRL activities • Readership of ACRL publications • Purchasing involvement and budget respon­ sibility • A ttendance at National Conferences • Interest in educational activities • Contacts with ACRL • Local chapter m em bership • Participation in discussion groups • Dem ographic characteristics M ethodology Six h u n d red nam es w ere selected from the ACRL m em bership list on an nth nam e basis. On O ctober 3,1989, a postcard announcing th e survey was mailed to each one over the nam e o f William A. Moffett, ACRL president, asking for th eir coopera­ tion. On O ctober 6, 1989, a four-page question­ naire was mailed to each nam e, together with a cover le tter from Research USA, a one-dollar bill, and a stam ped return envelope. O ne week later, a June 1 9 9 0 /5 5 9 Membership in other Organizations second questionnaire with another cover letter and return envelope was mailed. It asked for responses from those who had not yet returned the survey, and thanked those who had already responded. By Novem ber 10,1989, 468 questionnaires had been com pleted and returned, or 79.5% Results are projectable within a range of ±5% (with 95% confidence). Results Results show that 47.2% of ACRL m em bers are employed at a research/doctoral-granting univer­ sity, 23.7% work in a four-year college, 7.9% in a community or junior college, and 21% in other environments, including special or public libraries or library-related businesses. Thirty-eight percent of the sample are administrators, 28.9% work in public services, 15.8% in technical services, and 15.1% in collection development. The average length of m em bership is 8.5 years, but 12.7% have been m em bers for twenty years or more. A total of 93.8% of the respondents asserted they read C& RL regularly (3 out of 4 issues); 89.9% said they read C& RL News with similar frequency. 39.8% read Choice, and 39.4% their section news­ letters. 78% said they read half or more of each issue of C& RL and 85.1% said the same of C&RL News. Only 1.1% o f respondents read none of ACRL’s serial publications. The dem ographics have changed slightly over the past five years. M em bership is 60.4% female (in 1985, it was 65%). The average age is 44.8 and the bulk of the m em bers are betw een 35 and 54. An overwhelming 88% hold the MLS; 32.9% have a second m aster’s, and 15.5% a Ph.D. T here is over 20% overlap with each of the following other ALA divisions: ALCTS, RASD, LITA, and LAMA. As many as 55.8% belong to their state library organization, while 42.5% said they were eligible for tenure. Although 68% have not attended any of ACRL’s national conferences, of those who went, their libraries sent 3 to 4 people and more than half had their way paid by their libraries. They considered the program to be the most im portant factor in making the decision to attend; cost/benefit was the second most im portant, and convenience of loca­ tion the third. A total o f 61.4% thought ACRL should offer a national conference more often than it now does. O f the respondents, 46.5% have taken part in an ACRL-sponsored educational activity; 83.5% said they would be interested in one in the future. T hey’d like som ething in m anagem ent (62%), technology (59.1%), or professional developm ent (56%). They want th e activity in th e ir region (65.4%), at ALA Annual Conference (44.7%), or at a local chapter m eeting (42.8%). Among off-site delivery formats, they prefer videotape (54%) over audio or video conferencing (28.2%) or com puter- assisted instruction (28%). Those who have been in contact with ACRL staff (34.9%) used the telephone (71%) or the mail At Ballen, everybody works in customer service. B allen’s commitment to customer service spans from the boardroom to the stockroom. It’s what sets us apart from other booksellers, and a big reason why we have the highest fulfillment and lowest return rates in the industry.Whether you’re a large university, small junior college, medical school or special library, we work with you to tailor our services to your specific needs. These include our Approval Program , which is one of the most comprehensive and efficient available. O r our Firm Order Services, which produce the fastest possible response to every order, no matter how obscure the title. And our Continuation/Standing Order Services, in which no volume in any series is ever overlooked.O ur philosophy is simple: the better we serve each customer, the more customers w e’ll have to serve.To see the difference constant attention to customer service makes, call Ballen at 800-645-5237. June 1990 / 561 (52.5%); they felt their business was handled very (75.2%) or somewhat (21.1%) satisfactorily and characterized the contacts as quick and helpful (66.7%). Chapters claim only 43.2% as members; respon­ dents attend regularly (37.4%) or occasionally (38.5%), and consider the meetings as o f great (25.7%) or some (56.5%) value. Over half (55.9%) had used the Chapters Speakers Bureau within the past two years. Discussion group activity reached only 25.8% o f the m em bers, and 23.7% o f those responding had served on an ACRL com mittee, section com m ittee, editorial board, or Board of Directors. Respondents are responsible for sizable budget amounts: 15.8% were responsible for budgets over $1 million; th e average was $723,000 and the median $161,500. More than half of them buy books and serials, furniture and equipm ent, library supplies, m icrocom puter hardware and software for library automation; 92.9% are involved in rec­ omm ending or selecting materials for their library. Issues and activities The top five “critical issues” identified by re ­ spondents were: • rising journal prices (70.9%); • providing access to information (48.5%); • preservation o f library materials (46.6%); • recru itm en t and retention o f library staff (35%); and • maintaining security o f collections and users (26.3%). H ighest-ranked ACRL activities included: • Standards and guidelines; • job information; • opportunities to discuss issues; • research; • statistics collection; • education; • publications; • awards; • advisory services; and • liaison activities. In reviewing ACRL activities for their fit with m em bers’ concerns, executive director JoAn Segal noted that ACRL has taken some measures in relation to all o f the top five issues identified. On the topic of journal prices, it has established a discussion group and, as a result of Board action, has joined with ARL on a num ber of initiatives. The 1989 ACRL President’s Program addressed the issue of serials pricing, with librarians from a com ­ munity college, a four-year college, and a non-ARL university providing evidence that the problem is not confined to large research libraries. ACRL has taken th e lead in providing access to information for librarians through its programs of publishing and education. Although preservation falls within the bailiwick o f ALCTS, ACRL’s in ter­ est has been expressed through program co-spon­ sorship at the ALA Annual Conference in Chicago, through activity in the Rare Books and Manuscripts Section (RBMS), by honoring preservation leader Patricia Battin as Academic or Research Librarian of the Year 1990, by starting a “Preservation News” column in C& R L News, by adding a field to Choice reviews that recognizes publications on acid-free paper, and by publishing Choice on such paper. R ecruitm ent o f underrepresented groups, an objective in the ACRL Strategic Plan, is being addressed by a Task Force chaired by E dith Fisher. Maintaining security is an im portant facet o f RBMS activity; m em bers o f ACRL were active in the recent apprehension o f a national book thief. Summary and conclusion ACRL’s m em bership survey has provided the Association with confirmation that it is “doing the right thing” and indications of areas for future Call for help: What is information literacy? Barbara J. Ford, ACRL vice-president/presi- dent-elect, is asking for your help in succinctly explaining the phrase “information literacy.” Although the words “information literacy” are often used, the concept has eluded a short, jargon-less explanation clear to those outside the library and information science community. Inform ation literacy is the them e for F o rd ’s presidential year. To increase its impact in the higher education community, F ord wants your ideas in coining a clear explanation o f the con­ cept. Also needed are quotations from published literature or papers that articulate the concept o f information literacy, and/or express the need for an inform ation-literate society. All suggestions or quotations will be re ­ viewed by Ford and used as she develops her information literacy them e in 1990-1991. Proj­ ects already planned by her President’s Pro­ gram Planning C om m ittee include brochures on information literacy, articles on information literacy in College & Research Libraries News and a presentation during the 1991 ALA An­ nual C onference in Atlanta. Please send your definitions and quotations as soon as possible, but not later than Novem­ b er 1,1990, to Barbara J. Ford, Trinity Univer­ sity Library, 715 Stadium Drive, San Antonio, TX 78212. 5 6 2 / C&RL News development. “T he survey provides evidence o f an intelligent, professionally com m itted group o f m em bers,” com m ented Susan Stussy, director of libraries at St. N orbert College and a m em ber of ACRL’s M em bership C om m ittee, which directed staff to work on the quintennial survey. Betsy Hine, monograph cataloger at Indiana State University, who also serves on the M em ber­ ship C om m ittee, noted “It seems to me that what ACRL does now ranks quite high . . . the m em ber­ ship seems fairly happy with what ACRL is doing.., Response(s) reflect a very pragmatically oriented group.” As ACRL carries on its regular planning process and as individual com m ittees plan activities over the next years, this survey will provide a helpful guide to m em bers’ opinions. ■ ■ Curriculum materials in online catalogs Developed by the EBSS Curriculum Materials in the Online Catalog ad hoc Subcommittee* Rolland H. McGiverin, Chair Standardized cataloging fo r curriculum centers. This paper is to assist curriculum librarians, systems personnel, and catalogers who have responsibility for preparing curriculum m ate­ rials for inclusion in online catalogs in academic libraries. Curriculum materials in this docum ent are defined as materials traditionally found in cu r­ riculum centers, e.g., curriculum guides, elem en­ tary and secondary textbooks, instructional media, and juvenile literature. This docum ent will give an overview o f the history o f cataloging curriculum materials and identify cataloging issues which are unique to curriculum materials to facilitate the inclusion o f these materials in online catalogs. Historical background In the early decades o f this century, curriculum laboratories or centers were developed at various colleges of education to study, improve, revise, and produce elem entary and secondary school curric­ ula. As th eir products and programs becam e im- * E ditor’s Note: This is a jo in t subcommittee o f the E B SS Problems o f Access and Control o f Education Materials Committee and the E B SS Curriculum Materials Committee. Its members are as follows: Rolland H. McGiverin (chair), Indiana State Uni­ versity; Joan Berman, H um boldt State University; Doris Brookshier, Central Missouri State Univer­ sity; Lawrence Marble, Temple University; Vir­ ginia Nordstrom, Queens College; and Ilene Rock- man (chair o f the E B SS Problems o f Access and C urriculum M aterials Com mittees), California Polytechnic State University. The authors extended their appreciation to Allison Kaplan, University o f Delaware, and Kathleen McGowan, University o f Rochester, f o r their assistance in the preparation o f this document.