Recently in Libraries & Museums Category

Source: Stephanie Maatta, Library Journal, 2008

The latest annual LJ annual Placements & Salaries Survey is out, with news on how the class of 2007 fared in the library and information marketplace. Overall, graduates drew starting salaries 3.1% higher this year than last, hitting an average of $42,361. Strong growth in some areas contrasts with new challenges: more temp positions, a longer job search, and a reinforced gender gap.

For the first time, the survey takes a hard look at the so-called information schools as opposed to the traditional library schools. And there's much more, with individual sections on minorities, the library gender gap, job searching and where the jobs are, the changing academic library job environment, catalogers and archivists, public vs. private sector jobs, and on and on.

Source: Barbara Holton, Patricia O'Shea, Cindy Sheckells, Suzanne Dorinski, and Michael Freeman, Institute of Museum and Library Services, November 2007

This report marks the first release of library statistics data from the Institute of Museum and Library Services. It contains data on state library agencies in the 50 states and the District of Columbia for state fiscal year (FY) 2006. The data were collected through the State Library Agencies (StLA) Survey, the product of a cooperative effort between the Chief Officers of State Library Agencies (COSLA), the U.S. National Commission on Libraries and Information Science (NCLIS), the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), and the U.S. Census Bureau. This cooperative effort makes possible the 100 percent response rate achieved for this survey. The frame or source of the list of respondents for this survey is based on the list that COSLA maintains of state library agencies. The FY 2006 survey is the 13th in the StLA series. The data upon which this report is based are final.

Source: Mary Downs, Institute of Museum and Library Services, April 2008

Created for museum and library practitioners who are building, or wish to build, strong programs to reach and engage youth, this guide contains a variety of resources and references to critical works that have been gathered from the fields of youth and community development, education, and informal learning.

Source: Institute of Museum and Library Services, Press release, October 2, 2008

The Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) is pleased to announce the early release of data on state library agencies in the 50 states and the District of Columbia for state fiscal year (FY) 2007. The data were collected through the State Library Agencies (StLA) Survey, a voluntary survey conducted annually by IMLS. The FY 2007 StLA Survey is the 14th in the series.
See also:
• information on library statistics
• The data is available in Access and Flat (ascii) File format
• The data documentation that supports the FY 2007 data file is available in PDF format

Source: Norman Oder, Library Journal, 9/3/2008

• Computer use surges; demand exceeds supply
• Libraries offer more digital services
• Bandwith issues remain

While the number of public access Internet computers grew for the first time in six years--12 per branch, up from 10.7 in a year--nearly 20% of public libraries say demand for computers exceeds supply all the time, while 63% say that occurs some of the time. And while the number of library visits grew 18.6% in five years, full-time staff increased just 6%.
Such increased demands on libraries are documented in "Libraries Connect Communities: Public Library Funding & Technology Access Study 2007-2008," conducted by the American Library Association (ALA) and the Information Use Management and Policy Institute at Florida State University (FSU), with funding from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

Source: Heritage Emergency National Task Force, 2008

This 10-minute video provides step-by-step guidance on dealing with water damage at museums, libraries, and archives. Practical tips on safety, simple equipment, and salvage priorities also make the video a useful guide for home owners who want to rescue treasured family heirlooms.

Source: Library Journal, Academic Newswire, September 4, 2008

In a comprehensive, engaging report released this week, the Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR) has laid out the challenges--and opportunities--for the next generation of research libraries. Overall, the report: No Brief Candle: Reconceiving Research Libraries for the 21st Century, addresses a common theme--that a "transformation" is underway in research libraries. Harnessing the insight and experience of some two dozen stakeholders, however, the report offers a forceful call to action, and a penetrating take on the forces shaping the future of libraries and the academic enterprise.

Among the report's most notable aspects, an exciting, provocative thread suggesting a "redefinition" of the library workforce. "We tend to think of technology as the enabling factor in the new information environment, but the human aspect is just as important," the report states, noting that libraries must think about staffing in new ways--including looking beyond the MLIS degree. "Hiring only staff with the MLIS is unlikely to bring in the breadth of skill and experience that is needed," it concludes. "We need new career paths for people who want to work in academic libraries, and we need the means to support them."

Source: Department for Professional Employees AFL-CIO, 2008

Wage and salary differences between union and non-union workers, based on the American Library Association - Allied Professional Association Salary Survey, 2006.
See also:
ALA Press release: There is a union difference in library salaries

Source: Gannett News Service, 2008

Use the database to search for trends affecting public library systems between 2002 and 2006. To get started, choose a state and then a county. Select a library system from the list to learn more about changes in circulation of items such as books and videos, number of visits to the library, operating expenses and the number of computers for public use. The reports on each system include general demographic information about the counties where those libraries are located.

You can compare how your local library system with others across the country by looking at these reports:
• Public library systems with the highest circulation per capita
• Public library systems with the most Internet-capable public computers per capita
• Public library systems with the largest operating expenses per capita

Source: Ithaka, 2008

Our 2006 survey of faculty members sought to determine their attitudes related to online resources, electronic archiving, teaching and learning and related subjects. This study affords the opportunity to develop trend analysis of many measurements that we collected in the 2003 and 2000 faculty surveys. As in the past, we have developed a robust set of disciplinary and other demographic analyses that have allowed us to learn more about how best to serve the needs of different types of faculty members. In 2006, for the first time, we are also able to offer extensive comparison with the attitudes and perspectives of academic librarians on the perceived roles of the library and librarian on campuses; the impact of transitioning to electronic material on library practices; the place of digital repositories in the campus information-services landscape; and the future plans of academic libraries. Librarians surveyed include both directors and collection development leaders from a wide variety of 4-year academic institutions across the United States.

We have produced an in-depth white paper which details our findings and provides analysis and recommendations based on these studies. For those who are interested in investigating this data on their own, we have deposited the raw datasets from the faculty and librarian studies with ICPSR