Theology Cataloging Bulletin Section 3 
Vol. 19, No. 1—November 2010 

3-1 

Section Three: News and Views of the Members of the 
ATLA Technical Services Section 

Edited by Tammy Johnson
 
ATLA NACO Funnel 8th Among NACO Funnel Projects in 

New Record Creation  
 
During the first half of the fiscal year, Sept. 2009-Mar. 2010, the ATLA NACO Funnel 
members created 509 new name authority records, making it the eighth most productive 
funnel project. In Fiscal year 2009, there were 696 headings created and 129 headings 
modified. To date, September 2009 to June 2010, there have been 799 headings created and 
149 modified. 
 
Submitted by  
Judy Knop, Digitization Coordinator,  
American Theological Library Association 
 

Two ATLA NACO Funnel Members Gain Independence 
 
This spring, Michael Bradford gained independence in creating and modifying 
corporate/conference/geographic names. Denise Pakala gained independence in creating 
and modifying personal names.  
 
Submitted by  
Judy Knop, Digitization Coordinator,  
American Theological Library Association 
 

ATLA Conser Funnel Project off to a Good Start 
 
Five ATLA members attended CONSER training in conjunction with the ALA Midwinter 
2010 meetings in Boston, Mass. By June 2010, those new CONSER members have added 85 
new serial records to the CONSER database and have maintained 14 records which were 
already authenticated. Four of the five trainees have submitted records for review.  
 
Submitted by  
Judy Knop, Digitization Coordinator,  
American Theological Library Association 
 

RDA Workshop 
 
Technical Services at Westminster Theological Seminary Library plans to prepare for 
implementation of RDA in the following manner: May 9-10, 2011, in conjunction with 
Southeastern Pennsylvania Theological Library Association (SEPTLA), Westminster 
Theological Seminary will host a two-day educational workshop with guest lecturer, Armin 
Siedlecki, Head of Cataloging, Pitts Theological Seminary, Emory University, an official 
RDA test site.  



Theology Cataloging Bulletin Section 3 
Vol. 19, No. 1—November 2010 
 

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May 9, 2011  
SEPTLA meeting at Westminster Theological Seminary 
Morning session (75 min.): Cataloging with RDA 
 
RDA is more than an updated set of cataloging rules. Based on the principles of FRBR 
(Functional Requirements for Bibliographic Records), RDA presents a new way of thinking 
about organizing information. This presentation will explore the changes that catalogers can 
expect in their daily work as a result of the implementation of RDA. Special emphasis will be 
given to issues concerning catalogers in theological libraries. 
 
Afternoon session (90 min.): RDA – Not Just for Catalogers 
RDA (Resource Description and Access) is a new descriptive standard for cataloging. Based 
on new ways of organizing information, this innovation in bibliographic description relates 
not only to the world of technical services. This presentation will explore the impact of RDA 
on libraries, librarians and library users. 
 
May 10, 2011  
RDA training workshop at Westminster Theological Seminary 
Two half-day sessions of official RDA training accompanied by insights from experience 
during the RDA test period. Training will include hands-on examples and exercises based on 
materials relevant to catalogers in theological libraries. Limited to 30 participants, registration 
will be open exclusively to SEPTLA members initially. Later, if any slots are available, 
registration will be advertised to non-SEPTLA libraries. 
 
Submitted by  
Donna R. Campbell, Technical Services & Systems Librarian 
Westminster Theological Seminary Library 
 

RDA Webcast 
 
Introduction to RDA Toolkit, a webcast originally presented Feb 8-9, 2010, is now available 
http://www.ala.org/ala/onlinelearning/collection/classes/publishing/rda_toolkit_intro_we
cast.cfm. 
 

RDA Web Courses 
 
RDA: On the Road to Implementation, November 17, 
http://www.lyrasis.org/?sc_itemid={15B77F67-7DEA-4B30-A802-91AC9D20558E} 
&RowId=1-KU7D7 
 
An Active Approach to Teaching FRBR, December 1, 
http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/alcts/confevents/upcoming/webinar/cat/120110.cfm 
 
FRBR, FRAD, FRSAD: A New Model for Cataloging, December 12, 
http://www.lyrasis.org/?sc_itemid={DDD1FDFC-617D-4C72-9BF4-B29619BAE12A} 
&RowId=1-GXPME 



Theology Cataloging Bulletin Section 3 
Vol. 19, No. 1—November 2010 
 

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FRBR as a Foundation for RDA, December 15, 
http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/alcts/confevents/upcoming/webinar/cat/121510.cfm 
 
 

Technical Services Courses of Interest 
 
Fundamentals of Electronic Resources Acquisitions, November 15 - December 10, 
http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/alcts/confevents/upcoming/webcourse/fera/session6
.cfm 
 
Fundamentals of Collection Development/Mgt., November 15 - December 17, 
http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/alcts/confevents/upcoming/webcourse/fcdm/session
6.cfm 
 
Digital Preservation: An Introduction, November 17, 
http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/alcts/confevents/upcoming/webinar/pres/101710digi
tal.cfm 
 

LC Genre/Form Terms for Religious Material Project 
 
A significant number of proposed terms were added to the Project wiki during the past few 
weeks. Please login to the wiki to review the current list.  
 
Use the following directions to access the wiki at 
http://dev.atla.com/rosters/CONGRESS/default.aspx: 
Use your regular username and password. Once you are signed in, go the COMMUNITY 
tab. On the right, you should see “My Communities” and under that “Rosters.” Expand that 
roster list to see the link to the LC Genre Form Project. For best results, continue to use 
Internet Explorer to access the website. 
 
A new question concerning genre headings for different types of theologies has been added 
to the Project webpage under the Roster Discussion link that appears towards the bottom of 
the column on the left. You may add additional discussion questions by clicking on “New” 
directly above the list of questions. Once you’ve filled in the resulting blank form with a title 
and body (if any), click on OK. Your new question will appear at the top of the list. 
 
To comment upon a proposed term in the A-Z list that appears in the roster wiki, click on 
the term to display the full proposal which may include cross-references and notes, then on 
“edit” towards the upper right of the page. You may add references and notes in addition to 
general comments. When finished, click on OK. 
 
LC’s schedule calls for the project to be completed in mid-2011. We would like to have a 
complete first draft of terms ready no later than the end of April 2011 for project 
participants to review and comment on. A model for that draft is the Genre/Form Terms 
for Law Materials