Home 06-07 Annual Report

ACRL 2006-2007 Annual Report

(also published in the December issue of C&RL News)

ACRL’s Core Purpose
The core purpose of the Association of College & Research Libraries is to lead academic and research librarians and libraries in advancing learning and scholarship.

Message from the President
Message from the Vice-President
Letter from the Executive Director
Year in Review
Meet the Staff
Board of Directors
Financial Report
Executive Summary

Message from the President

Pamela Snelson
ACRL’s 68th President

The accomplishments of ACRL in this 2006-07 annual report are varied and many. I am proud to have served as ACRL’s 68th president in such an outstanding year.

As I review the all of our accomplishments I am most excited by the efforts ACRL has made to partner with and learn from organizations and individuals from outside our field. Let me give you some examples:

• A fantastic, record-breaking 2007 National Conference in Baltimore featured nationally recognized keynote speakers such as Michael Eric Dyson, John Waters, and Nina Totenberg.
• Expansion of the Council of Liaisons program to include six new organizations: American Anthropological Association, American Association of University Professors, American Council of Learned Societies, American Sociological Association, Association for Educational Communications and Technology, and the Society for Information Technology and Teacher Education.
• The ACRL President’s Program at ALA Annual Conference, “The Art of Persuasion: Strategies for Effective Communication with Chief Academic Officers,” featured three senior academic administrators who talked about their expectations for the library. ACRL joined with EDUCAUSE and the National Association of College Stores to sponsor a forum, “Stepping Through the Open Door: A Forum on New Modes of Information Delivery.”
• A summit on technology and change to which ACRL invited academic administrators and information technology experts, as well as librarians, to focus on how technology and the changing climate for teaching, learning, and scholarship will recast roles and responsibilities.
• Received a report of research commissioned by ACRL on “What Chief Academic Officers Want from Their Libraries.”
• “From the Inside” column in C&RL News, where former librarians shared insights about the library from their academic administrator’s view.

The focus of my presidential year, communicating the value of libraries, infused all my activities. I enthusiastically accepted invitations to speak at chapter events, spoke with the media, and participated in award ceremonies. Hopefully I inspired librarians to recast their value in terms understood and respected by high-level campus administrators.

As I complete my ACRL presidency I would like to make one final observation — being president is very much like participating in a never-ending relay race. One athlete does not win a relay race on his or her own; it is a team effort. Likewise the ACRL presidency is not a 100-yard dash won by a single individual. ACRL Past-President Camila Alire, handed me a baton containing initiatives and projects. I made progress in many areas, adding new programs and endeavors to further the association’s strategic plan. Now it is my responsibility to effectively and efficiently turn over the association leadership to President-Elect Julie Todaro.

During this entire race (and believe me sometimes it did feel like a race!) I was coached and supported by the excellent and dynamic ACRL staff — I owe them much more than a cup of coffee. All these efforts are not to win a race, of course, but to achieve the ACRL goal of leading academic and research librarians and libraries in advancing learning and scholarship. I believe we made great strides in 2006-07 and look forward to new opportunities to serve the association and the profession.

Message from the Vice President

Julie B. Todaro
Vice-President/President-Elect
I have always felt that most well rounded professionals have both an organizational life at “home” and membership and activity in one or more associations. And certainly one of the tenets of professionalism is commitment to professional associations. Throughout our professional lives, therefore, we give of ourselves to enrich our own communities of practice and to provide opportunities for others. Not every association gives back, however, and I am honored to have been a member of a number of networks and associations that exist not to self-perpetuate, but primarily for the membership. I have long felt that ACRL existed for members, but have had that confirmed this past year of service more than ever. Daily I experience ACRL staff, services and resources work together to not only enrich or enhance but to provide the basics for – literally – thousands of professionals. From training and professional development to legislative initiatives ACRL is working to both follow and lead membership where it needs to go. In addition, I have a special respect for ACRL leadership that includes – among other things – admiration for chairs, facilitators, and member leaders who work year-round to move association business to new levels of excellence. I would be remiss if I didn’t single out our ACRL Board, a unique blend of talented individuals with extensive expertise who consistently bring the best intentions to the table and work tirelessly to move the association forward.

That being said, Vice Presidents choose initiatives for their leadership from ACRL’s strategic planning efforts that include broad mega issues statements and what we would all identify as strategies, and goals and objectives as well as outcomes. Although it is rich array of ideas and all are critical pieces of our future, I will be narrowing down my focus to recruitment and retention of academic librarians in general and specific to the role that ACRL plays in identifying, encouraging, and actively working toward this generation and the next generation of the most diverse array of academic professionals. To this end several different cohorts of members have begun to work toward reviewing our association recruitment and retention materials and creating new resources for members to use in their libraries as well as a Presidential Initiative for a conference program that suggests different ways of looking at our workplaces and our employees.

An additional focus of mine is going to be the encouragement of the identification of those unique elements that – when employed – bring academic libraries to the fore in their higher education environments, therefore I will be appointing the Task Force Positioning the 21st Century Library in the Competitive Academy: Why We Can’t Wait. This group will identify ways to position the library in the competitive academy that can be undertaken by members and by ACRL and will identify challenges in this process, short and long term aggressive activities that members/administrators can engage in to strengthen the library’s position on campus as well as programmatic initiatives that ACRL can undertake to support members addressing these challenges.

Finally, my goals always include “fun.” On several occasions people have heard me say that I won’t take on a project unless I can have fun with it as well as make the process fun for all involved. One of the perks of being around so long and – dare I say – what many would call an old war horse – is that I get to pick and choose projects and with whom I work. I am fortunate to have not only a rich pool of talent in ACRL, but individuals who like to have fun and who recognize the strength of working together for the betterment of the profession. I hope members will enjoy their upcoming year of service as much as I will.

Letter from the Executive Director

Mary Ellen K. Davis
Executive Director

ACRL took significant steps to advance “Charting Our Future: ACRL Strategic Plan 2020” in three strategic areas: higher education and research, the profession, and the association. ACRL reached out to colleagues in higher education to explore new roles for librarians and new ways of disseminating information.

In November 2006, ACRL convened an invitational summit in of librarians, presidents, provosts, technology innovators, and vendors to explore how technologies and the changing climate for teaching, learning, and scholarship will likely recast the roles, responsibilities, and resources of academic libraries over the next decade. This discussion identified key questions and solutions that should inform the national discussion of how academic libraries can best serve their institutions and the larger nation. The full essay, “Changing Roles of Academic and Research Libraries,” and an expansion of that conversation are at www.ala.org/ala/acrl
/acrlissues/future/changingroles.htm.

In March 2007, ACRL partnered with EDUCAUSE and the National Association of College Stores to host “Stepping Through the Open Door: A Forum on New Modes of Information Delivery,” an invitational forum for librarians, IT professionals, and campus bookstore professionals to discuss new modes of information delivery. The resulting paper can be found at www.ala.org/ala/acrl/acrlpubs/whitepapers/whitepapersreports.cfm.

In July 2007, ACRL’s Scholarly Communications Committee hosted an invitational discussion to identify the gaps in our understanding of the ways that scholars create and share new knowledge and prepare a preliminary research agenda for creating greater understanding of the rapidly evolving system of scholarly communication. The white paper, “Establishing a Research Agenda for Scholarly Communication: A Call for Community Engagement,” is available for comment at www.acrl.ala.org/scresearchagenda.

ACRL commissioned research to determine what chef academic officers want from libraries. This report may be found at www.ala.org/ala/acrl/acrlpubs/whitepapers/Finalreport-ACRLCAOs.doc.

In addition, ACRL advanced the profession through continuous learning opportunities and commissioned research about the profession.

The association’s premier professional development event, the ACRL National Conference, “Sailing into the Future: Charting our Destiny,” held March 29-April 1, 2007, set new records for attendance, exhibits, and donations. Evaluations from attendees were extremely positive.

Resources for College Libraries, the long awaited successor to the venerable Books for College Libraries, was published though a partnership between ACRL/CHOICE and R.R. Bowker.

ACRL commissioned a white paper on diversity, “Achieving Racial and Ethnic Diversity among Academic and Research Librarians: The Recruitment, Retention, and Advancement of Librarians of Color,” which explores the issues of professionally underrepresented groups and identifies strategies that can be undertaken to recruit and retain these individuals. It can be reviewed on the ACRL Web site at www.ala.org/ala/acrl/acrlissues/acrlrecruiting/recruitingprofession.cfm.

ACRL enjoyed a very strong year both programmatically and financially. It is rewarding to see that librarians expressed their support of ACRL and its initiatives by renewing or adding ACRL to their professional memberships despite a dues increase from ALA and the second and final year of an ACRL dues increase. ACRL set a new membership record with 13,433 individuals and organizations expressing their confidence in the association.

Thanks to all of you who elected to join ACRL and to work with us on the many new initiatives this year. We appreciate your willingness to try new things and to support the association. I also want to thank ACRL President Pamela Snelson and the ACRL Board for their leadership in advancing the strategic plan. I also want to acknowledge the generous support provided by ACRL’s many corporate colleagues and Friends. Finally, thank you to the ACRL staff that, working together with our members, helped ACRL accomplish the many activities that you will read about in this report.

Year in Review

Overview

This report highlights the activities undertaken to advance “Charting Our Future: ACRL Strategic Plan 2020” in FY 2007 and is organized by three broad categories – higher education and research, the profession, and the association.

2006–2007 Highlights

ACRL National Conference

In March, ACRL offered its premier professional development event—the 14th National Conference, “Sailing into the Future – Charting our Destiny” in Baltimore, Maryland, March 29-April 1, 2007. The conference, chaired by Mary Reichel(Appalachian State University) was the most successful conference to date, attracting 4,784 individuals and breaking previous attendance records by 20 percent. Among the records set were the number of paid attendees (3,069), number of exhibiting companies (223), and total number of exhibit booths (343 10x10 booths). More than 95% of conference attendees indicated that their experience at the conference was “very” or “somewhat” positive. Nearly all respondents (97.9%) would be “very” or “somewhat likely” to recommend the ACRL National Conference to a colleague. Conference attendees were able to choose from more than 300 concurrent programs and preconferences. For each National Conference, ACRL aims to retain the best activities and services from previous conferences and introduce some new activities aimed at better meeting member needs. In Baltimore, ACRL offered these enhancements:

• Cruisin’ with Cameras–Conference attendees were encouraged to submit their digital pictures from the conference to the official conference Flickr site.
• Cyber Zed Shed–20-minute long presentations allowed presenters to show how they are using new technologies in innovative ways.
• Conference Wiki–included details about favorite Baltimore restaurants and attractions, transportation, questions and answers, and more.
• First-Time Conference Attendee “Fair”–an interactive “orientation fair” allowed first-time attendees to meet ACRL leaders, volunteer for a committee, explore opportunities to publish or teach with ACRL, and more.
• Podcasts–interviews with conference attendees and speakers were posted in the Virtual Conference online community.

Those who were not able to travel to Baltimore were able to participate via the ACRL Virtual Conference, held March 30-31, which offered live, interactive Web casts of select conference speakers, text-based discussion boards, speaker materials, and more. The flavor and discussions of the conference were also represented online by a group of more than 20 official conference bloggers. A video of conference highlights, produced by American Libraries editors George Eberhart and Daniel Kraus, was made available online (blip.tv/file/203139) after the conclusion of the event.

48th Annual RBMS Preconference

Baltimore was a popular destination for ACRL in 2007, hosting the 48th Annual RBMS Preconference, “From Here to Ephemerality: Fugitive Sources in Libraries, Archives, and Museums,” June 19-22, 2007. This preconference explored the building and use of ephemera collections to their full potential. This was the largest RBMS Preconference to date and sold out with 380 registrants. RBMS offered more than $11,000 in scholarships that were funded by the 2006 RBMS preconference revenue share, 2006 RBMS preconference scholarship donation fund, and FY07 RBMS Action Plan. The evaluation results were overwhelmingly positive with 92% of respondents indicating that they would attend another RBMS preconference.

Connecting with Higher Education Colleagues

During the fiscal year ACRL hosted two invitational summits. The first, held in November 2006, asked librarians, presidents, provosts, technology innovators and vendors to focus on how technologies and the changing climate for teaching, learning, and scholarship will likely recast the roles, responsibilities and resources of academic libraries over the next decade. The full essay resulting from that gathering, “Changing Roles of Academic and Research Libraries,” and an expansion of that conversation are available online at http://www.ala.org/ala/acrl/acrlissues/future/changingroles.htm.

The second summit, “Stepping Through the Open Door: A Forum on New Modes of Information Delivery,” gathered librarians, IT professionals, and bookstore professionals to explore new modes of information delivery. A white paper detailing the summit is available on the ACRL Web site at http://www.ala.org/ala/acrl/acrlpubs/whitepapers/whitepapersreports.cfm.

ACRL commissioned research to discover what chief academic officers want from their libraries. The report from these interviews is available online at www.ala.org/ala/acrl/acrlpubs/whitepapers/Finalreport-ACRLCAOs.doc.

Launched new products

ACRL Podcasts, a new media series, launched in late 2006. This series provides fresh dimension on the issues and events in academic and research librarianship.

Choice launched a new version of its online publication, Choice Reviews Online (CRO2), which includes all of Choice’s editorial content, as well as over 120,000 Choice reviews (www.cro2.org)

In August 2007, ACRL launched a New Member Wiki (http://wikis.ala.org/acrl/index.php/ACRL_New_Member_Wiki) to help first-time ACRL members get involved and find their home in the association. Topics were suggested by more than 200 new members who attended the ACRL 101 programs at the 2007 ALA Annual Meeting in Washington, D.C. As of late October 2007, the wiki has been visited 1,547 times, an average 773 times a month since it was launched.

Higher Education and Research

ACRL advocates for a strong role for librarians in learning and scholarship, as well as advocates for the value of libraries in the higher education, legislative, and regulatory communities.

Learning

Information Literacy Standards

Information literacy-related standards and guidelines revised, approved, and published this year include “Standards for Proficiencies for Instruction Librarians and Coordinators” (approved June 2007) and “Research Competency Guidelines for Literatures in English” (revised and approved June 2007).

The ACRL Information Literacy Competency Skills Task Force reviewed the “Information Literacy Competency Standards for Higher Education,” last approved in 2000, and recommended the standards not be revised at this time. The task force also suggested further study to learn how the standards are serving higher education.

Institute for Information Literacy

To help librarians and institutions develop and implement information literacy programs on their campuses, ACRL’s Institute for Information Literacy offered both a regional and national Immersion Program in 2007. These four-and-a-half day programs provided two tracks of intensive training and education. The Teacher Track focused on individual development for librarians interested in enhancing or extending their individual instruction skills, while the Program Track focused on developing, integrating, or managing campus-wide and programmatic information literacy programs.

The 2007 Regional Immersion Program, hosted by the Consortium of Academic and Research Libraries in Illinois (CARLI), was held at Illinois State University, in Normal, Illinois, July 13-18, 2007. The 2007 National Program was held at the University of Manitoba in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, August 5-10, 2007, and was ACRL’s first international Immersion Program.

In addition to the popular Immersion program, the institute also offered its newest program: “The Intentional Teacher: Renewal through Informed Reflection.” During the three-and-a-half day program, participants examined their teaching practice through the four lenses of autobiography, student perspective, colleague as resource, and research literature on teaching and learning.

Professional Development

Three e-learning seminars provided opportunities to learn more about information literacy-related topics. Topics of the seminars included assessing student learning outcomes, creating a comprehensive plan for information, and the role of the librarian in combating student plagiarism. ACRL also published Teaching Information Literacy to Social Sciences Students and Practitioners, edited by Douglas Cook and Natasha Cooper, during FY2007. Three annual conference programs provided additional focus on information literacy issues.

Scholarship

ACRL is working to support and develop new scholarly communication models; play a leadership role in promoting research and publication in academic and research librarianship, thereby creating and disseminating tools and a body of knowledge for the field; and strengthen ACRL’s relationships with learned societies.

Scholarly Communication

ACRL and the Association of Research Libraries (ARL) continue to cosponsor the Institute for Scholarly Communication, with a national event in summer 2007 and the first regional event, hosted by the Consortium of Academic and Research Libraries in Illinois, December 5–7, 2007, in Chicago. Participants come to the institute in teams and create plans for their institution focusing on ways to encourage faculty to support change in the system of scholarly communication.

ACRL together with ARL and the Scholarly Publishing and Academic Resources Coalition (SPARC) offered a joint Web cast on author rights designed to help faculty, authors, and researchers modify publishers’ copyright transfer agreements to keep key rights to their articles The sponsors have jointly underwritten costs so that the archived Webcast is freely available at www.ala.org/ala/acrl/acrlissues/scholarlycomm/author_rights_webcas.cfm.

Believing that meaningful research can inform and assist the entire academic community in influencing and managing the evolving system of scholarly communication, ACRL held a one-day invitational meeting in July 2007 to collectively identify the evidence needed to manage and influence the changing environment. The ACRL Scholarly Communication Committee issued the resulting white paper “Establishing a Research Agenda for Scholarly Communication: A Call for Community Engagement,” which identifies eight themes, with research possibilities in each area. Substantive comment from librarians and their partners is needed to outline a community research agenda. The report is available for public comment at www.acrl.ala.org/scresearchagenda.

ACRL sponsored the Public Knowledge Project’s first conference in July 2007 to assist this breakthrough organization in its efforts to better understand the potential of open source publishing technologies, including its own Open Journal Systems. Because the Public Knowledge Project is based in Canada, sponsorship also strengthens ACRL’s ties to existing and potential Canadian members.

ACRL became a member of the Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations (NDLTD). Since its inception in 1996, NDLTD has worked to improve graduate education, increase the availability of student research, empower students and universities, advance digital library technology, and lower the costs of submitting and handling electronic theses and dissertations.

In early March 2007, ACRL jointly sponsored “Stepping through the Open Door: A Forum on New Modes of Information Delivery in Higher Education” with EDUCAUSE and the National Association of College Stores. This invitation-only forum focused on changing roles within higher education as the nature of scholarship and course materials evolves. Many of the traditional modes for creating and disseminating information are changing, as are the roles of associated individuals and organizations. A report is available on the ACRL Web site at www.ala.org/ala/acrl/acrlpubs/whitepapers/whitepapersreports.cfm.

Standards and Guidelines

The development and dissemination of standards and guidelines for all areas of academic and research librarianship is a core service ACRL provides to the profession. Members look to ACRL for these standards and see them as a key contribution to the profession. Standards and guidelines revised, approved, and published this year are listed in the accompanying table.

Relationships with Learned Societies

ACRL worked at all levels to develop and create new partnerships within higher education. Work in the areas of technology, information dissemination, and scholarly communication is described on pages 724–727.

ACRL’s CUPA-HR Position Descriptions of Academic Librarians Task Force worked with College and University Professional Association for Human Resources (CUPA-HR) to update the position descriptions for academic librarians used by CUPA-HR in its annual survey. A number of job descriptions and titles were updated to better reflect the role of librarians today.

ACRL’s section members are important liaisons to the higher education community. This year, ACRL section members and staff worked to build and sustain relationships with many organizations, including American Anthropological Association, American Association for the Advancement of Slavic Studies (AAASS), American Association of State Colleges and Universities, American Educational Research Association, American Federation of Teachers, American Political Science Association, American Sociological Association, Association of American Colleges and Universities, Association of Learned and Professional Society Publishers (North American Chapter), Art Libraries Society of North American (ARLIS/NA), Association of Research Libraries (ARL), Coalition for Networked Information (CNI), College and University Professional Association for Human Resources, Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR), EDUCAUSE, Free Exchange on Campus Coalition, Information Access Alliance, National Association of College Stores, National Communications Association, National Resource Center for the First-Year Experience & Students in Transition, Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations, Society for Information Technology and Teacher Education, and Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC) Accrediting Commission for Senior Colleges & Universities. The nature of these relationships vary and include activities such as attending conferences, presenting programs, serving on committees, and drafting guidelines.

The ACRL Board of Directors approved the establishment of new liaison relationships with six new organizations. A complete list of ACRL’s Council of Liaison organizations is in the accompanying table.

Advocacy

In support of its advocacy goal, ACRL aims to increase its communication on major trends and issues in libraries and increase its influence in public policy affecting higher education. ACRL’s work this year in the scholarly communication arena has helped us to meet these objectives.

Legislative Advocacy

ACRL approved a new legislative agenda (www.ala.org/ala/acrl/acrlissues/washingtonwatch/washingtonwatch.cfm#agenda) during the fiscal year. In keeping with this agenda, ACRL continued to work with the Alliance for Taxpayer Access and the Open Access Working Group to make mandatory the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Public Access Policy. Under the currently voluntary policy, NIH-funded researchers are encouraged to deposit their final peer-reviewed manuscripts in PubMed Central, the digital archive of the National Library of Medicine. ACRL joined with six other national organizations to send letters in July and September to the U.S. Senate and U.S. House supporting language on the NIH Public Access Policy included in the FY08 Labor, Health, and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies appropriations bills.

ACRL carried out the Board-approved recommendations of the Task Force on National Advocacy, recruiting and appointing 41 new ACRL Legislative Advocates. These positions supplement the existing Legislative Network through the Chapters. Members of both groups have been very instrumental in building relationships with their Members of Congress to convey librarians’ positions on relevant federal policy. These legislative advocates provide a direct voice to legislators on topics of interest, such as the NIH policy.

The association sent a letter in June 2007 to the Government Printing Office (GPO) that strongly supports the draft GPO guidelines for shared regional depository libraries, because they offer the flexibility libraries seek as they develop models for cooperation. ACRL also continued its support of ALA’s National Library Legislative Day and hosted a luncheon in Washington, D.C., featuring George L. Mehaffy, vice president for academic leadership and change at the American Association of State Colleges and Universities. Mehaffy spoke to academic librarians on “Developing Informed and Engaged Citizens: The Imperative for Higher Education.” View his presentation slides and hear about his work on campuses through the American Democracy Project and why he views academic libraries as “citizenship centers” and “more relevant now than ever in history” at blogs.ala.org/acrlpodcast.php.

The Profession

Continuous learning, leadership, and information technology define ACRL’s strategic goal area of the profession.

Continuous Learning

Continuous learning is important to every individual, and ACRL has initiatives to increase professional development opportunities focused in the areas of advocating the value of the library, librarians, and information technology. ACRL is working to provide cutting-edge content and delivery formats for programs and publications.

A variety of opportunities

ACRL hosted its largest National Conference to date this year, with 4,784 registrants, exhibitors, and guests in attendance at the 13th National Conference in Baltimore, Maryland (see details pages 723–24). The corresponding Virtual National Conference was also a success with more than 110 participants. This was also a record-breaking year for the Rare Books and Manuscripts Section Preconference that sold out with 380 registrants. ACRL also offered a variety of face-to-face professional development opportunities at the ALA Midwinter Meeting and the ALA Annual Conference, in addition to increasing its e-learning offerings. ACRL offered 16 WebCT-based online seminars and 11 Webcasts, as well as the popular Online Information Literacy Seminar Series, cosponsored with TLT Group (see chart on page 731 for a full listing of events).

Publications

ACRL’s publications program had a busy year, publishing six new books and updating one pamphlet in FY 2007, which are listed in the accompanying table. ACRL also collaborated with the National Resource Center for the First-Year Experience & Students in Transition at the University of South Carolina to publish The Role of the Library in the First College Year, edited by Larry Hardesty. This monograph grew out of a session that John Gardner, of the FYE project, gave at the 2003 ACRL National Conference. This is #45 in the University of South Carolina’s “The First Year Experience Monograph Series,” and was published in Spring 2007.

In FY07, ACRL created an “Editorial Point of View” document to guide decisions regarding new publications. In addition, the publications program mounted a marketing effort to ensure that ACRL members think of ACRL as their publisher of choice. To provide more than one way to find ACRL publications, ACRL also submitted its current publication list for inclusion in Google BookSearch as well as to the ALA Online Store.

The “ACRL/LAMA Guide for Architects,” a resource developed by a joint ACRL/LAMA Task Force assists librarians and architects designing or renovating academic libraries. The wiki is currently available at wikis.ala.org/acrl/index.php/ACRL/LAMA_Guide_for_Architects.

Association members continue to receive College & Research Libraries News, ACRL’s news magazine and publication of record, and the scholarly journal, College & Research Libraries, as a perquisite of membership. Both serials are also available by subscription. ACRL also publishes RBM: A Journal of Rare Books, Manuscripts, and Cultural Heritage twice yearly, which is available through subscription.

Joseph Branin (Ohio State University) was appointed editor designate of College & Research Libraries, succeeding William Potter of the University of Georgia. Craig Gibson (George Mason University) was appointed editor designate of Publications in Librarianship. He succeeds Charles (Tony) Schwartz of Florida International University. David Free joined the ACRL staff as editor-in-chief of C&RL News in July 2007.

A new media series, ACRL Podcasts, was launched in late 2006. ACRL Podcasts provide fresh dimensions on the issues and events in academic librarianship. Podcasts included discussions of ACRL publications such as Student Engagement and Information Literacy, a discussion of the ALA Emerging Leaders program with then ACRL Vice-President/ President Elect Julie Todaro, and an interview with filmmaker John Waters at the ACRL National Conference in Baltimore. The most popular podcast, with 2,811 listens, was a discussion of the top ten assumptions for the future of academic libraries. ACRL Podcasts are available both on the ACRL Web site and through iTunes.

ACRLog, now almost two years old, has grown and become established. During FY07, lead blogger Steve Bell added the blogging voice of a first-year academic librarian, Lauren Jensen (Monmouth College, IL).

Choice celebrated the new year by launching a new version of its Web publication, Choice Reviews Online (CRO2) in January 2007. Version 2.0 of CRO2 features a completely new interface and a new state-of-the art platform, jointly developed with Booklist. CRO2 also contains Choice’s bibliographic essays, forthcoming title lists, and other special features in addition to all Choice reviews published since September 1988. The URL is www.cro2.org/.

Effective in 2007, Choice’s flagship product, the magazine, became a monthly publication. It is now issued 12 times a year, as is its companion, Choice Reviews on Cards. As a result, the special August issue first published in 1997, a.k.a. the Web Issue, has become a regular issue. The August 2007 edition contained approximately 550 new reviews along with a number of special Web-related editorial features. Primarily intended to improve the timeliness of with which Choice reviews appear in print, the change in frequency has also had a beneficial impact on the number of reviews published by Choice. The 2007 total of 7,146 reviews was Choice’s highest output in some years.

Finally, 2007 marked the first full year of publication of Resources for College Libraries (RCL), copublished with R. R. Bowker. RCL, the long-awaited successor to Books for College Libraries 3rd Edition, features a core list of more than 62,000 essential titles for academic libraries, including selected electronic resources. RCL is available in three flavors. RCLWeb (www.rclweb.net/) is an online database with sophisticated browse, search, and list management features. RCL Print, is a seven-volume print edition. In addition, the RCL list is a key component of the academic library edition of Bowker’s new collection analysis product, Bowker Book Analysis System (BBAS). The RCL Project Editor, Marcus Elmore, and the 300+ member RCL editorial team, are currently working on the first full update of RCL, which will be revised annually in future years. For additional information, please visit www.rclinfo.net/.

Scholarships

ACRL’s scholarship program continues to support the continuous learning goals in ACRL’s strategic plan, as well as reflect ACRL’s commitment to diversity and inclusion in the profession.

• More than 100 people received scholarships from ACRL, supporting the continuous learning goals in the association’s strategic plan and reflecting ACRL’s commitment to diversity and inclusion in the profession.
• ACRL awarded 85 scholarships worth more than $45,000 for its 13th National Conference, increasing the accessibility of the learning opportunity for new librarians, library school students, Spectrum scholars, and library support staff.
• RBMS offered more than $11,000 in scholarships for the 48th Annual RBMS preconference that were funded by the 2006 RBMS preconference revenue share, 2006 RBMS preconference scholarship donation fund, and FY07 RBMS Action Plan.
• Twelve individuals received scholarships for the Institute for Information Literacy National Immersion Program. These scholarships helped offset registration fees for the four-and-a-half-day program held at the University of Manitoba.
• For the third year in a row, scholarships were offered for the ACRL/Harvard Leadership Institute. The scholarships were established to provide support for the participation of academic and research librarians from Historically Black Colleges and Universities or those employed at Tribal Colleges and Universities. The scholarships covered the cost of tuition to the institute. ACRL awarded one scholarship to the 2007 institute.

Leadership

ACRL seeks to empower members to communicate the value of their contributions to learning and scholarship and to increase recognition of the value of libraries and librarians by leaders in higher education, information technology, funding agencies, and campus decision-making.

Awards

Through its awards program, which recognizes the achievements of academic and research librarians and libraries, ACRL provides a platform for librarians to bring notice of their work to their broader communities. Since 1923, the ACRL Awards Program has recognized and honored the professional contributions and achievements of academic libraries and librarians. This special recognition by ACRL enhances the sense of personal growth and accomplishment of our members, provides our membership with role models, and strengthens the image of our membership in the eyes of employers, leadership, and the academic community as a whole.

In 2007, 31 outstanding individuals and institutions received ACRL awards recognizing their accomplishments. ACRL’s top honor, the Academic/Research Librarian of the Year Award, was presented to Lizabeth (Betsy) A. Wilson, dean of university libraries at the University of Washington. The award, sponsored by ACRL and YBP Library Services, was presented during the ACRL 13th National Conference in Baltimore, Maryland, on Thursday, March 29, 2007.

ACRL continues to present the Excellence in Academic Libraries Award to recognize the staff of a community college, a college, and a university library for exemplary programs that deliver outstanding services and resources to further the educational mission of their institution. This year’s recipients were the Hostos Community College in the Bronx, New York in the community college category; Trinity University in San Antonio, Texas in the college category; and the Georgia Institute of Technology Library and Information Center in Atlanta, Georgia, in the university category. The award, sponsored by ACRL and Blackwell’s Book Services, includes a presentation ceremony on the campus of the award-winning library.

ACRL/Harvard Leadership Institute

A record-number 117 participants took part in the 2007 ACRL/Harvard Leadership Institute for Academic Libraries. Harvard Institutes for Higher Education faculty gave special attention to issues such as leadership, organizational strategy, transformational learning, and planning. Institute participants (97%) rated their experience at the program “very positive” (93%) or “positive” (4%). Evaluation comments include:

“I feel that I am returning to my institution with a sharper focus on what I need to do and the importance of my role as an advocate for change. I also have a larger palette of tools for sustaining my enthusiasm,” “The institute met and exceeded my expectations in the way it was organized, well prepared, carefully selected study materials very enlightening and rich,” and ”I will definitely recommend this program to others and hope to participate in another future program myself.”

Recruitment to the profession

A diversity white paper commissioned by the Board and authored by Lorna Peterson and Teresa Neely, “Achieving Racial and Ethnic Diversity Among Academic and Research Librarians: The Recruitment, Retention, and Advancement of Librarians of Color,” was presented to the Board at the ALA Midwinter Meeting. The final version is available through the white papers section of the ACRL Web site at www.acrl.org/ala/acrl/acrlpubs/whitepapers/ACRL_AchievingRacial.pdf. Peterson and 2007-2008 ACRL President Julie Todaro presented the paper at the Black Caucus of the American Library Association (BCALA) national conference in August 2007. A companion piece by to the white paper by Todaro, is available at www.acrl.org/ala/acrl/acrlpubs/whitepapers/culturekeepers.pdf.

Information Technology

ACRL remains committed to supporting the development and recognition of academic and research librarians as leaders and experts in information technology applications in libraries. To this end, the association offered a variety of programs on technology-related issues, including e-learning on topics such as designing effective Web sites, podcasting in academic libraries, electronic collection development, and technology trends in academic libraries.

In February 2007, ACRL published “Changing Roles of Academic and Research Libraries,” an essay on technology and change in academic libraries that resulted from a November 2-3, 2006, summit held in Chicago. (see page 722)

ACRL worked with the EDUCAUSE Learning Initiative advisory committee to plan the ELI Fall Session, August 15-16, on “Being Net Savvy.”

With ALA TechSource, ACRL cosponsored the first “Gaming, Learning, and Libraries Symposium,” held in Chicago, July 22-24, 2007. The symposium covered such wide-ranging topics as creating games for information literacy, implementing gaming programs, teaching kids how to make their own games, gaming for adults, digital downloads for gamers, and online fiction games.

The Association

To thrive as an association, ACRL must continue to grow its membership and maintain its financial stability. ACRL strives to retain and build on its core membership, while recruiting from new and diverse communities. ACRL must have the fiscal resources, staff expertise, and organizational structure to advance the association’s strategic plan.

Membership

In the second year of a two-year ACRL dues increase and first year of a three-year ALA dues increase, ACRL experienced a 3.35 percent increase in the number of members. As of August 31, 2007, ACRL membership increased over FY 2005–06, rising from 12,976 to an all-time high of 13,411 members.

Membership Focus Groups

In order to find out how to expand the value of ACRL membership among current members, ACRL conducted three focus groups with new members, rank-and-file, and scholarship winners at the 13th National Conference on March 30, 2007 to learn more about their challenges and perceptions of the value of ACRL membership.

Sections

ACRL provides special connections for members, both virtual and personal. ACRL sections offer 17 vibrant and dynamic communities that nurture individual development and foster a deeper connection to the profession. Sections offering (or planning to offer) mentoring programs including ANSS, CLS, EBSS, IS, LES, RBMS, STS, and WESS. Sections also hosted 28 special events (tours, dinners, cruises, anniversary celebrations) at the ALA Midwinter Meeting, National Conference, and Annual Conference to create community among new and continuing members.

Sustainability

ACRL seeks to acquire the fiscal resources, staff expertise, and organizational structure necessary to advance the association’s strategic plan.

ACRL Staff

In 2007 ACRL said goodbye to Stephanie Orphan, editor-in-chief, C&RL News/manager of Web services, and Coordinator of Classified Advertising/Editorial Assistant Olivia Hodges, who accepted new positions outside of ALA. ACRL welcomed David Free as editor-in-chief, C&RL News/marketing communications specialist. Searches are underway for three positions: manager of Web services, coordinator of classified advertising/editorial assistant, and a new program coordinator position.

Many of you have had phone and e-mail contact with ACRL’s staff, of which there are 15.35 ALA-approved FTE positions at headquarters. Here’s your chance to put a face with that voice or e-mail signature. Below is a listing of current ACRL staff members (including two of ACRL’s Choice 22.5 FTE staff) with information about their responsibilities. Take a minute to “meet the staff.” We look forward to hearing from you!

ACRL’s office hours are 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. (CST), Monday through Friday. All ALA staff have direct telephone lines. All prefixes are (312) 280-, followed by the four-digit extension. If you use the toll-free number (800-545-2433) you will be instructed to enter the extension of the person you wish to speak with.

Meet the Staff

ACRL Board of Directors, 2006–2007

ACRL Board 2006-07 (l to r): (back) Mary Ellen K. Davis, Nancy H. Allen, Karen A. Williams, Dorothy Ann Washington, Lynne O. King, Tyrone H. Cannon; (front) Susan M. Kroll, Janis M. Bandelin, Julie B. Todaro, Pamela Snelson, Camila A. Alire, Lori A. Goetsch, Debbie L. Malone. Not shown: Mary M. Carr.

Financial Report

Susan M. Kroll
Budget & Finance Committee Chair

Fiscal year 2006-07 has been active, productive, and positive. The budget has been closely monitored this year by the ACRL Board of Directors, the Budget and Finance Committee, and the Executive Director. Working together this group ensures that the budget is strategically positioned to support current and future growth for member-based initiatives. The ACRL budget is based on the fiscal year September 1, 2006-August 31, 2007.

2006-2007 ACRL Performance

ACRL
Total Revenue $4,352,162
Total Expense $3,485,194
Net Revenue $866,968

This year ACRL held a national conference, which resulted in record-breaking attendance. This played a major role in adding to the organization’s net revenue.

Choice
Total Revenue $3,304,985
Total Expense $2,768,166
Net Revenue $536,820

Factors Influencing Budget Outcomes

ACRL

• ACRL’s 13th National Conference in Baltimore provided net revenue of $473,919. Revenue was $1,993,600 with expenses from FY05 through FY07 of $1,519,681. Although a very positive outcome, it is important to recognize that the National Conference net revenue provides ACRL with the resources that allow ACRL to provide a broad array of nonrevenue generating programs, such as awards, scholarships, scholarly communications and information literacy initiatives, etc. in both conference and nonconference years, ACRL typically expects a deficit budget in non-conference years. Careful monitoring of the budget will need to continue in fiscal year 2007-08.
• Membership Dues: Dues revenue continues to be ahead of last year, which reflects the better than expected retention of members. This is the first year of the ALA dues increase and the second and final year of the ACRL dues increases.
• Web Courses and Publications: The number and popularity of the Web courses offered continues to increase as does the revenue they generate. Although priced moderately, the Web courses provide a solid new revenue stream for ACRL that helps support the member services. Publications have made modest gains this year but will still end up with a small deficit.

Choice

• Subscription revenues are slightly below last year. Sales of Resources for College Libraries have been very good, exceeding budget.
• Choice continued to review potential sites for relocation of the operations throughout the fiscal year with the goal to purchase all or part of a building. Choice has been renting space since its inception.

ACRL Asset Management

Long Term Investment
At the 2007 ALA Annual Conference, the ACRL Board of Directors voted to revise the Choice financial policies and “ACRL Guide to Policies and Procedures” to allow “ACRL to make use of a predetermined portion of Choice assets for ACRL operational expenses effective September 1, 2008.” This will provide some additional flexibility for the ACRL budget in funding member-supported initiatives. Neither ACRL nor Choice transferred funds to their Long-Term Investment Funds (LTI) this year; this is intended to offset the interest income ALA would not earn should Choice spend part of its net asset balance to purchase office space. There was $45,608 of interest generated from the ACRL LTI fund this year, of which $25,000 was used to cover most of the costs of the Roundtable on Technology and Change in Academic Libraries (see page 723), one of ACRL’s strategic initiatives.

2007–08 ACRL Budget

The 2007-08 fiscal year budget was approved at the ALA Annual Conference by the ACRL Board of Directors. ACRL will have funds to support a modest number of new initiatives but the Association must begin to critically review current initiatives and make choices about what will no longer be supported.

Revenue is expected to be $2,118,408, and expenses are projected to be $2,718,011.

This year completes my term as Budget and Finance Committee Chair. I want to express my deep gratitude for the extraordinary attention, advice, energy, and guidance that ACRL Executive Director Mary Ellen Davis has provided to me and the members of the committee. ACRL Program Officer David Connolly has also provided outstanding support in preparing numerous documents that must be generated to ensure continuing review of the budget. The members of the budget and finance committee have also devoted many, many hours reviewing and providing input on the budget.

Executive Summary 2006-2007