Reinventing the Library; New York Times, 10/23/15

Alberto Manguel, New York Times; Reinventing the Library:

"It is in the nature of libraries to adapt to changing circumstances and threats, and all libraries exist in constant danger of being destroyed by war, vermin, fire, water or the idiocies of bureaucracy.

But today, the principal danger facing libraries comes not from threats like these but from ill-considered changes that may cause libraries to lose their defining triple role: as preservers of the memory of our society, as providers of the accounts of our experience and the tools to navigate them — and as symbols of our identity."

Strategic Plan 2016-2020 Public Draft: Positioning the United States Copyright Office for the Future; U.S. Copyright Office, 10/23/15

U.S. Copyright Office; Strategic Plan 2016-2020 Public Draft: Positioning the United States Copyright Office for the Future:

"Register of Copyrights Maria A. Pallante today released a public draft of the Copyright Office’s Strategic Plan, setting forth the Office’s performance objectives for the next five years.

Reflecting the results of four years of internal evaluations and public input, the Strategic Plan lays out a vision of a modern Copyright Office that is equal to the task of administering the Nation’s copyright laws effectively and efficiently both today and tomorrow. It will remain in draft form for 30 days to permit public feedback, and will take effect on December 1, 2015."

Author explains why libraries matter even in the Internet age; Deseret News, 9/21/15

Chandra Johnson, Deseret News; Author explains why libraries matter even in the Internet age:

"Today, when people want information on the Internet, they turn to Google.

The search engine has grown in popularity exponentially since its first year in the late 90s. In 1998, Google averaged 9,800 searches per day and 3.6 million searches that year. In 2014, there was an average of 5.7 billion Google searches per day and 2 trillion searches that year.

All of this is good news for Google and anyone with money for a computer and Internet connection. But it's not great for libraries, the go-to for information in the pre-Google days, says John Palfrey, a director of Harvard's Berkman Center for Internet & Society and founder of the Digital Public Library of America.

In his new book, "Bibliotech: Why Libraries Matter More Than Ever in the Age of Google," Palfrey argues that society still needs libraries for many reasons, including that the Internet doesn't provide free access to information for anyone as libraries do."

Senate Passes 10 Year Term for Librarian of Congress; Library Journal, 10/13/15

Bob Warburton, Library Journal; Senate Passes 10 Year Term for Librarian of Congress:

"As President Obama ponders his choice for the next Librarian of Congress, the first time in nearly three decades that such a nomination will be necessary, the U.S. Senate has passed a bill to put a 10-year term on the position. If passed by the House and signed by the president, the bill will strip the job of the lifetime tenure it has carried since 1802...

Politics aside, another reason supporters feel the limit is now necessary is the accelerating rate of change—in library service, in technology, and in the demands on and challenges to copyright law that tech brings in its wake."

More Companies Say Targets Are the Key to Diversity; Wall Street Journal, 9/30/15

Rachel Feintzeig, Wall Street Journal; More Companies Say Targets Are the Key to Diversity:

Realizing that simply voicing support for diversity initiatives won’t lead to meaningful change, big companies are setting discrete goals for hiring and retaining women. These include mandating that diverse candidates are interviewed for jobs, and ensuring that new hires get interviewed or vetted by someone other than white men.

J&J, Intel Corp. , BASF SE and many others say putting hard numbers around diversity and tying those numbers to pay and performance helps ensure real progress when it comes to advancing women. Data suggest that the approach makes a difference. But it remains controversial in the U.S., where companies must battle the stigma associated with quotas as well as risks of unintended consequences."

Delving Into Leadership Development Programs; Library Journal, 9/30/15

Steven Bell, Library Journal; Delving Into Leadership Development Programs:

Like that of many academic library leaders, my career path has included stops at library leadership programs. There is no dearth of them; many are organized and managed by library associations. Academic institutions offer them as well, some in cooperation with associations, such as the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL)’s Harvard Leadership Institute for Academic Librarians (LIAL). When I took a position as a college library director, one of my first development moves was to attend the ACRL College Libraries Section program for new college library directors, College Library Director’s Mentor Program (CLDMP). It gave many aspiring leaders one-on-one executive mentoring by matching them with a seasoned college library director. In addition to three days of training, it was an opportunity to bond with other new directors and join a network of more experienced ones. The program gave me more confidence in my leadership abilities and a support system to help me grow as a leader. Sometime around 2002 I also attended a Harvard program for academic administrators. I was the only librarian so it made for a rather different learning experience, but one that helped make me a better leader by exposing me to new ideas, practices, and colleagues.

One of the other newbie directors in my CLDMP cohort was Irene Herold. Through the years we have shared a number of leadership experiences, including stints with ACRL’s College Libraries Section and on the ACRL Executive Board. Herold took more than a passing interest in leadership. She went on to take positions of increasing leadership responsibility in academic libraries and is now the University Librarian at the University of Hawai′i at Mānoa. Along the way Herold earned a Ph.D. in Managerial Leadership in the Information Professions from Simmons College and made leadership development the focus of her doctoral research. Herold did a deep dive into library leadership programs. That research has led to the publication of a new book, Creating Leaders: An Examination of Academic and Research Library Leadership Institutes, which includes a review of 18 academic librarian leadership development programs from 26 past participants for an examination of whether they develop leadership.

Herold was kind enough to share what she learned about library leadership development programs with me in a recent interview."