Becoming a Great Academic Liaison Workshop

1. Becoming a Great
Academic Liaison!

2. Presenters
Joe Eshleman
Instruction Librarian
Johnson & Wales University Charlotte
Dr. Richard Moniz
Director of Library Services/LIS Instructor
Johnson & Wales University Charlotte,
University of North Carolina at Greensboro
Jo Henry
Information Services Librarian
South Piedmont Community College

3. Liaisons….
….Are you out there?

4. How many average hours per
week do you devote to your
liaison roles?
A. 1-5 Hours
B. 6-10 Hours
C. 11-15 Hours
D. More than 15 Hours

5. The Evolution
of Liaison
Fundamentals
InExistence
“PrehistoricAge”
1949
• Collection
Development
• Faculty/Department
Communication
• SubjectKnowledge
NewAge
Explosion
• TechnologySupport
• Curriculum
• Evaluation
• Copyright
• Educators
• Course Proposals
Fundamentals
NeededToday
• Subject
Knowledge
• Collection
Development
• ElectronicSupport
• StrategyDriven
Support
• Communication
Core
• Educators

6. EXPANDING ROLE OF ACADEMIC LIAISONS
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
1949 1963 1989 2001 2007 2012
Educator Role
Evaluation
Accreditation
Curriculum
Embedded
Tech Support
BI-IL
Fac/Dept. Comm.
Sub. Knowledge
Coll. Dev.

7. University of Connecticut
“A library liaison is a staff member who has been
designated the formal contact person between
the Libraries and a specific academic unit of the
University.”
Primary Role: Communication
Secondary Role: Collection Development, User
Services (reference, instruction modules, guides,
committees, program evaluation)

8. University of North Carolina at
Greensboro
“. . . in general, to serve as the contact person
for the department, school, or program.”
Role: Communication (information sharing, IL,
teaching partnerships, modules), collection
development, user services (reference, guides,
committees, department’s curriculum/research
needs)

9. University of Southampton (UK)
“The Library has designated Academic Liaison
Librarians for each Academic Unit or Faculty
who work in partnership with academic staff to
develop services in support of learning and
teaching, research and enterprise.”
Role: Collection development, support services,
new programs, budgeting, assist student
information skills, research advice, audits

10. Communication
Core
Subject
Knowledge
Strategic
Support
Education
Facilitation
Electronic
Support
Collection
Development

11. What best describes your liaison
role?
• COMMUNICATOR/SUBJECT SPECIALIST
TO A DEPARTMENT
• INFORMATION LITERACY COURSE FOR
CREDIT
• CO-TEACHING OR EMBEDDED
• LIBRARY INSTRUCTION/INFORMATION
LITERACY “ONE-SHOT”

12. Academic Library Statistics
• 3,793 Academic Libraries
• 22,504 Academic Librarians
• 98% of ACRL libraries have liaisons
• 25% of library jobs list liaison duties
• 52% of traditional librarians do liaison
duties 11-30% of the time
• 5-7 hours a week per embedded class

13. Faculty Communication and
Assistance
• Communication is often the primary role for
a liaison
• Communication can often work best face to
face, although understanding preferred
communication styles is beneficial- stay
active!
• Communication with faculty needs to be
relayed to other librarians

14. Communication Tips for Library
Liaison/Faculty Interactions
• Get to know the organizational design and
culture
• Stay visible and be proactive
• Document all of your communication-
have a focused plan and desired results
Remember the importance of having a personal librarian contact for faculty!

15. “The key to working well with faculty is to avoid the “let
me explain this to you” scenario. That never goes down
well. We’re talking about work that faculty do day in and
out, and we should avoid sounding as if we know more
about it than they do, because we don’t.“
-Barbara Fister( 2013) Decode academy. Paper presented at LOEX, 3 May 2013.
Communication Tips for Library
Liaison/Faculty Interactions
Remember , you can take the consultant or “soft sell” approach

16. • Is technology changing the nature of
relationships? Is person to person relationship
building diminishing?
• What is the role of the liaison, what is the ROI
(Return on Influence)?
Library Liaison/Faculty Interactions

17. Collection Development:
Then and Now
He must know books, book values, dealers, and dealers’
specialties . . . he must enjoy reading dealers’ catalogs and
examining secondhand books; he must know the faculty of his
area and what they are working upon; he must know where
their judgment of books can supplement his and where it is
apt to be deficient. – Herman Fussler (1949)
Fred J. Hay, “Subject Specialist in the Academic Library: A
Review Article”, The Journal of American Librarianship 16, no.
1, 11-17: 12.

18. Collection Development:
First Things First
• Immersion in the resources
• Understanding knowledge in the subject area
and how it is disseminated
• Develop relationships with faculty
• Other institutions/libraries

19. Collection Development:
Other Big Picture Issues
• Shift from print to electronic
• Shrinking budgets
• Consortial connections/arrangements
• Research-intensive versus basic needs

20. Collection Development:
Getting it Done
• Advocate for funding
• Handling suggestions and requests – What is your
system?
• Be creative:
o Have a contest
o Personalize messages to faculty
o Attend faculty meetings and request suggestions
o Explore patron driven acquisition

21. Information Literacy Standards-
SCONUL
http://www.sconul.ac.uk/sites/default/files/documents/coremodel.pdf

22. Information Literacy Standards -ACRL

23. Information Literacy Instruction

24. 1 Shot
to
4 Focused INTERACTIVE
Visits
ENG 111-Visit 1 Topic Selection
ENG 111-Visit 2 Website Analysis
ENG 112-Visit 1 Database Searching
ENG 112-Visit 2 Journal v. Magazine Analysis
A Sample . . .

25. Topic Selection Visit
Learning Outcome: Work through exercises in topic selection for a specific
assignment using mind mapping, keyword phrases, and database searching to
gain understanding of how to find reliable information on their topic.
Topic for the Day

26. Embedded Librarian
“[the embedded] librarian becomes a member of the
customer community rather than a service provider
standing apart.” - David Shumaker
”Embedded Librarian - A librarian located online, in
the classroom, or in a department assisting with
liaison support and services. This librarian
communicates as part of the group.”
- Eshleman, Henry, & Moniz

27. Embedded Online
Information
Literacy
Instruction

28. Embedded in Class
• Defining embedded can be tricky , but however it is
defined, librarians need to be engaged in a proactive
way
David Shumaker’s Four Keys:

29. Accreditation
• CHEA (Council for Higher Education Accreditation)
• MSCACS
• NCACS
• NEASC
• SACS
• WASC
• Specialized Accreditation
• e.g. CHRIE (International Council on Hotel,
Restaurant, and Institutional Education)
• e.g. ALA

30. Accreditation
• Documentation
o Roles (as specified in job descriptions)
o Collection development
o Library or IL instruction (in general or as it
relates to programs)
o Any student assessment
o Feedback

31. Accreditation

32. New Courses/Programs:
Key Ingredients
• Knowledge of the collection – What do we have now?
• Appropriate committee participation
• Meet with chair
• Meet with faculty (current and, as possible, future)
• Explore other institutions

33. New Courses/Programs:
Special Needs
• Software (e.g. ESHA)
• Hardware (e.g. 3D printers)
• Online versus traditional
• Graduate or research intensive versus basic
• Other connections or resources

34. Questions?

35. Online Tutorial Checklist
Objective
Medium (Screencast/Animated/Film)
Equipment/software
Design (Storyboard and Scripting)
Creation

36. Storyboard and Scripting
Software
• Atomic Learning’s Video Storyboard Pro (Free)
• Celtx (storyboard and scripting) (Free)
• Springboard Storyboard Software (Free-$40)
• PowerProduction Storyboard Quick ($180+)
• Toonboom Storyboard ($200-$900)

37. Free Tutorial Software
• Screencast
(Jing, Snagit, Screencast-O-Matic)
• Animated Software
(Voki, Animoto, PowToon-Free+)

38. LibGuides
• Use guides for general listing or directory
• Use guides to explain and expand upon
liaison assignments and roles

39. Use guides for general listing or directory

40. Use guides to explain and expand upon liaison assignments and
roles

41. Evaluation
• Surveys
• Focus groups
• Libguide usage
• Circulations or database statistics

42. Evaluation

43. Trend 1: Develop user-
centered library services
Trend 2: A hybrid model of
liaison and functional
specialist is emerging
Trend 3: Organizational
flexibility must meet
changing user needs
Trend 4: No liaison is an
island
Trend 5: Collaboration is key
Trend 6: Create and sustain a
flexible workforce

44. • Tech-Driven
• MOOC’s
• TechnicalandCopyright Support
• DeeperInvolvementwithAdministrationand
otherDepartments
• Co-existencewithEducators
• ResearchSupport/Advocacy
• DigitalPreservation
• ScholarlyCommunication
• DataCuration
The Future of Liaison Work

45. “In a society oriented around specialization, where knowledge is
fragmented, librarians play critical integrating roles.”
Brian Matthews – Engines for Change
The Future of Liaison Work

46. The Future of Liaison Work
“…it is our challenge to
make them expect more and
to deliver the expertise,
services, and resources that
will be differentiators in
their academic lives”

47. Liaisons….
….put yourselves out there!

48. References
Attebury, Ramirose Ilene and Joshua Finnell. (2009). “What do LIS students in the United States know about liaison duties?,” New Library World, 110(7/8), 331.
Bennett, Erika and Jennie Simning. (2010). “Embedded Librarians and Reference Traffic: A Quantitative Analysis,” Journal of Library Administration, 50(5), 454.
Fister, Barbara (2013) “Decode academy”. Paper presented at LOEX, 3 May 2013.
Kenney, Anne R. Leveraging the Liaison Model: From Defining 21st Century Research Libraries to Implementing 21st Century Research Universities
Kranich, Nancy. The Future of Library Liaison Relationships.
Jaguszewski, Janice M and Karen Williams. New Roles for New times: Transforming Liaison Roles in Research Libraries
Leonard, Elisabeth. “Academic Libraries: Themes in Liaison Responsibilities.” Retrieved from http://www.elisabethleonard.com/resources/ALALiaison.pdf
Logue, Susan, John Ballestro, Andrea Imre, and Julie Arendt. (2007). “SPEC Kit 301: Liaison Services.” Association of Research Libraries. Retrieved from
http://publications.arl.org/Liaison- Services-SPEC-Kit-301/
Matthews, Brian. “Engines for Change: Libraries as Drivers for Engagement”.
Phan, Tai, Laura Hardesty, and Jamie Hug. (2014). “Academic Libraries: 2012 First Look,” U.S. Department of Education. Retrieved from
http://nces.ed.gov/pubs2014/2014038.pdf
Shank, John and Nancy Dewald. (2003). “Establishing Our Presence in Courseware: Adding Library Services to the Virtual Classroom,” Information Technology
and Libraries, 22( 1).
Stauffer, Scott and Nina Parikh. Get Creative! The Digital Video Idea Book. New York: McGraw Hill.

49. Further reading…
…and/or contact us later with
your questions!