Kathleen Spring

How Is That Going to Work? Rethinking Acquisitions in a Next-Generation ILS

What do acquisitions policies and workflows look like in next-generation systems? How can institutions leverage automated processes to improve efficiency, and what happens when you also belong to a consortium that is looking to increase collaboration? The Orbis Cascade Alliance is a consortium of 37 public and private academic institutions in Oregon, Washington, and Idaho. In January 2012, the Alliance began a 2year process of migrating all 37 institutions to a shared ILS. Migrating in four cohorts every 6 months, the first cohort of six institutions went live with Ex Libris’s Alma and Primo in June 2013. Representatives from three of the six pioneering libraries discuss topics such as preparing for migration to a new system, changes in workflow, challenges and opportunities for a new system, and what may be coming down the pike for cooperative collection development in the Alliance.

Takin' It to the Web: Updating Operations Manuals for Today's Techno-Realities

This article describes the process of revamping an existing operations manual for the interlibrary loan department at a small, private liberal arts college. It documents how staff met their goals of integrating traditional reference materials and training information, utilizing Web-based tools for content creation and delivery, consolidating assessment and evaluation mechanisms, and facilitating updating of content. By incorporating theories of blended learning into the design of the new resource, supervisors were able to shift their existing documentation from 2D to 2.0. Strategies for implementing an interactive training resource and operations manual are provided.

How Is That Going To Work?: Part II - Acquisitions Challenges and Opportunities in a Shared ILS

Building on a presentation given at the 2013 Charleston Conference, this article continues the discussion about acquisitions policies, workflows, and consortial collaboration in a next‐generation shared ILS. The Orbis Cascade Alliance is a consortium of 37 public and private academic institutions in Oregon, Washington, and Idaho. In January 2013, the Alliance began a two‐year process of migrating all 37 institutions (in 4 cohorts, with a new cohort going live every 6 months) to Ex Libris’s Alma and Primo in order to realize efficiencies and increase collaboration within the consortium. The authors, who represent institutions in the first and third cohorts, offer perspectives on new consortial structures stemming from changing workflows, policy issues to consider from a consortial viewpoint, challenges and opportunities for the new system, partnering with vendors, and ongoing considerations for large‐scale cooperative collection development and assessment.

Building Bridges with Boats: Preserving Community History through Intra- and Inter-Institutional Collaboration

Abstract This chapter discusses Launching through the Surf: The Dory Fleet of Pacific City, a project which documents the historical and contemporary role of dory fishers in the life of the coastal village of Pacific City, Oregon, U.S. Linfield College’s Department of Theatre and Communication Arts, its Jereld R. Nicholson Library, the Pacific City Arts Association, the Pacific City Dorymen’s Association, and the Linfield Center for the Northwest joined forces to engage in a collaborative college and community venture to preserve this important facet of Oregon’s history. Using ethnography as a theoretical grounding and oral history as a method, the project utilized artifacts from the dory fleet to augment interview data, and faculty/student teams created a searchable digital archive available via open access. The chapter draws on the authors’ experiences to identify a philosophy of strategic collaboration. Topics include project development and management, assessment, and the role of serendipity. In an era of value-added services where libraries need to continue to prove their worth, partnering with internal and external entities to create content is one way for academic libraries to remain relevant to agencies that do not have direct connections to higher education. This project not only developed a positive “town and gown” relationship with a regional community, it also benefited partner organizations as they sought to fulfill their missions. The project also serves as a potential model for intra- and inter-agency collaboration for all types of libraries.