ACRL News Issue (B) of College & Research Libraries


196

— represented b y  clear statements o f purpose, 
objectives, and goals rather than an agenda o f 
internal operational procedures? H ow  and w hy 
is a U G L different today from what it was in 
the 1960s or before? H ow  is it changing? W hat 
are the institutional and environmental pres­
sures that influence and shape the nature o f 
U G L  service? W hat is the U G L  role in the 
larger scheme o f a library system’s service? 
W h o should formulate a service philosophy 
statement?

A third issue is shared by other types o f li­
braries w hich for decades have relied heavily 
on experience rather than research and study 
to effect change and improvement. Undergrad­
uate libraries, though relatively new, d o not 
escape the im pact o f the observation even 
though they are generally perceived as innova­
tive, creative service units. W h y  don ’t under­
graduate libraries engage in more scientific 
research to determine such things as the char­
acteristics o f successful U G L  services? W hat 
will research tell us about the role which a 
U G L  should assume in the scheme o f providing 
university-wide library services? In what ways 
are the needs o f the academ ic community not

being met b y  undergraduate library service?
These three major issues— the need for 

unique collection developm ent statements, the 
urgency to formulate relevant service philoso­
phies, and the requirement for developing and 
applying sound evaluative m ethodologies—  
could be broken into simple, practical problems 
and reduced to levels o f information exchange. 
O n the contrary, they are evolving as ever 
larger and inclusive areas o f debate and contro­
versy. The principals are not only those direct­
ly responsible for undergraduate library service, 
but also the faculty, students, and university 
administrators w ho are forcing the issues. Those 
w ho must have answers are probin g for new  di­
rections and assurances as the need for change 
inexorably becom es a major challenge. W e  can 
neither respond nor contribute to the need in 
a vacuum o f knowledge and understanding, 
and there is no better time than now  to face the 
challenge through discussion o f the issues with 
personal resolve and collective consideration. 

Keith M. Cottam 
Assistant Director, Library,
University o f Tennessee, Knoxville ■ ■

ACRL Chapters
• The spring elections o f the E a s t e r n  N e w  

Y o r k  C h a p t e r  o f A C R L  produced the follow ­
ing results for 1977-78 officers:

President— Kingsley Greene, Union College, 
Schenectady.

Vice-President— Lynn Hannan, Skidmore 
College, Saratoga Springs.

Secretary— D orothy Christiansen, State Uni­
versity o f N ew  York, Albany.

Treasurer— N ancy Lufburrow , State Univer­
sity o f N ew  York, C ollege at Potsdam.

At-Large Representative— Lynn Case, St. 
Lawrence University, Canton.

At-Large Representative— Barbara Rice, 
State University o f N ew  York, Albany.

The spring conference o f the chapter was 
held at Williams College, Williamstown, Mas­
sachusetts on  M ay 26. Sheila Creth, personnel 
librarian o f the University o f Connecticut, pre­
sented the program on “ Evaluative Interview­
ing.”

• “ Book Conservation”  was the topic at the 
A C R L  O r e g o n  C h a p t e r  meeting May 20. The 
guest speaker was Jack C. Thompson, a con ­
servator specializing in the conservation and 
restoration o f  paper, textiles, and leather. He 
has been a consultant for conservation to the 
Oregon Historical Society since 1974.

• The K a n s a s  C h a p t e r  o f A C R L  held its 
regular spring conference in conjunction with 
the Kansas Library Association M ay 1 2 -1 3  in 
Topeka. Speakers were Dr. G ordon R. W il­
liams, director o f the Center for Research L i­
braries in Chicago, on “ The Library’s Role in 
Providing Access to Inform ation” ; and Dr. 
Florence DeHart, professor at Emporia Library 
School, on “ The Copyright Scene.”

N ew  officers selected for 1977-78 were the 
follow ing:

Chairperson: Richard Rohrer, assistant di­
rector, Kansas State University Libraries, Man­
hattan, Kansas

Vice-Chairperson: Barbara Robins, human­
ities librarian, Emporia State University L i­
brary, Emporia, Kansas

Secretary-Treasurer: Rowena Olsen, director, 
McPherson College Library, McPherson, Kan­
sas

Nominating Committee: Meredith Litchfield, 
chairperson, assistant director, Kansas State 
University Libraries, Manhattan, Kansas; Jane 
Hatch, associate librarian, Marymount College, 
Salina, Kansas; and Irma Dietrich, reference li­
brarian, Johnson County Community College, 
Overland Park, Kansas. ■ ■