ACRL News Issue (B) of College & Research Libraries 133 A C R L, 1978 National Conference New Horizons for Academic Libraries Take the excitem ent generated by reliving part of our heritage— from Concord and Lexington to Bunker Hill and the Old North Church; combine that with the settin g o f a m odern m etropolis; throw in the fact that this is the cen ter o f the educational universe— with over 70 institutions of higher education in the metropolitan area, add to all of this a provocative four-day conference with outstanding speakers and a liberal distribution of contributed papers and time for visiting exhibits, and one finds a perfect setting for the November 8-11 ACRL 1978 National Conference at the Bos­ ton Sheraton Hotel in the HUB of activity. Con­ ference and hotel registration information will be mailed in early summer, but please reserve those dates now! For further information, please contact Julie A. Carroll Virgo, executive secretary o f ACRL, at ALA headquarters, or George Parks, conference chair, at the University o f Rhode Island. ■■ At right, the S h eraton -B oston H otel, h e a d q u a r ­ ters f o r th e A C R L 1978 N ation al C o n fe re n c e. Continuing L ib rary Education— II T h is m o n t h ’s g u e s t e d i t o r is J u l i e A. C a r r o l l Virgo, ex ecu tiv e se c r e ta ry o f A C R L. B e fo r e co m ­ ing to A C R L , V irgo w as th e d ir e c to r o f ed u cation w ith th e M ed ica l L ib ra r y A ssociation . S h e c u r­ ren tly s e r v e s o n th e b o a r d o f d i r e c t o r s o f th e Continuing L ib r a r y E d u ca tion N etw ork a n d Ex­ chan ge (C L E N E ). The term “continuing education” encompasses a large v ariety o f a c tiv itie s. M ost com m only thought of, perhaps, are the short-term work­ shops or institutes that are presented by associa­ tions, library schools, and commercial organiza­ tions. As conceptualized by the ACRL Continu­ ing Education Committee, the term includes not only these more formal activities but also experi­ ences such as on-the-job problem solving, keep­ ing up with the literature in the field, discussing a problem with a colleague, preparing a budget in a new or different way, writing a report, work­ ing on a project-oriented committee, developing interpersonal skills, and even visiting the exhibits at a professional meeting. Continuing education is any exp erien ce that helps the individual perform b e tter or with increased satisfaction in a present job , or in a jo b to which he or she aspires. S o m etim es one hears the arg u m en t, “ Why should I bother with professional development or growth? I do not receiv e additional salary in­ creases or promotions if I do these things and my colleagues do not; or, my employer does not pay my way to m eetings.” Such rewards as increased salaries, promotions, and tenure are external rewards that are certainly nicer to have than not to have. But more impor­ tant are the internal rewards. The ever-changing interest in one’s jo b , the intellectual stimulation of attacking old problems in imaginative better ways, the challenge of attempting new situations and stretching one’s skills, contributing to a pro­ fession that is moving, fluid, and responsive— it is for these reasons that we need to develop con­ tinuously, to continue our education. For some library staffs it is difficult to attend meetings because of cost, geographical distance, or because there is no one else on staff to provide service if someone is gone. Formal programs are not the only ways in which to nurture a fertile mind. Consider establishing a staff development 134 program in your own library. Explore a topic of use to your library. Form a journal club or dis­ cussion group. Borrow films or kits that have been developed by others and use them as the basis for your group’s activities. An example of such a kit is one titled T he L i­ b r a r ia n s G am e, which was developed under a grant from U SO E. It was designed to help train librarians in improving library service and in­ cludes a set of participant manuals and adminis­ trator manuals, budget and performance sheets, grant application forms, an assortment of “client demands,” and a map o f the hypothetical region within which the game is played. It is available for $27.50 from Harwell Associates, Pinnacle Rd., Harvard, MA 01451. Many community college libraries have excel­ lent film collections dealing with management skills, budgeting, human relations, and other top­ ics relevant to effective librarianship. And do not overlook the books in your own library. Involve­ ment does take time and effort, but the invest­ ment can make your jo b personally much more in terestin g .—Ju lie A. C. V irgo, E xecu tive S ec r e­ ta ry ‚ A C R L. ■■ C ontinuing E d u catio n for C ollege L ib ra ria n s A Continuing Education Comm ittee o f the College Library Section met for the first time at the Midwinter Conference. Although there appears to be a sudden proliferation of groups dealing with continuing education, this com­ mittee is the only one that has involved itself entirely with the needs o f college librarians. There are many concerns that all academic li­ brarians share, and yet certain areas do exist that are unique to the college library setting. It is to this aspect of continuing education that the committee plans to address itself. At the ALA Summer Conference the mem­ bership o f the College Library Section will have an opportunity to express its views on the types o f activities that the section should be engaged in in the future. This input will be valuable to th e C o n tin u in g E d u c a tio n Committee as well. There are many people, however, who will be unable to attend the co nferen ce. F u rth e rm o re , num erous ideas occur during this interim period that might not be remembered by June or discussed at that time. As a result, the committee is asking that college librarians send any suggestions about continuing education to the ch airper­ son, G r e tc h e n R ed fie ld , 1 6 7 1 7 K en y on , Shaker Heights, OH 44120. All input will be greatly appreciated. EXECU TIVE DIRECTOR O H IO N E T The E xecutive D ire c to r o f O H IO N E T is re s p o n s ib le fo r th e a d m in is tra tio n , d e v e lo p m e n t and m a n a g e m e n t o f a s ta te w id e lib r a r y c o o p e ra tiv e n e tw o rk t h a t w ill p ro v id e a w id e v a r ie ty o f services t o a ll ty p e s o f lib ra rie s . The E xecutive D ire c to r's re s p o n s ib ilitie s in­ c lu d e p la n n in g , b u d g e tin g , im p le m e n t­ ing, c o o rd in a tin g , c o n tro llin g , e v a lu ­ a tin g and m o n ito rin g services and o p e ra tio n s , c on sisten t w ith th e o v e ra ll o b je c tiv e s and g o als o f O H IO N E T . Q u a lific a tio n s in c lu d e an M .L.S . d e ­ gre e o r e q u iv a le n t c re d e n tia ls , te n years o f p ro fe s s io n a l e x p e rie n c e and d e m o n s tra te d successful p e rfo rm a n c e in p o s itio n s o f p ro g re s s iv e ly g re a te r a d m in is tra tiv e re s p o n s ib ility . In a d ­ d itio n , th e E xecutive D ire c to r shall have an extensive k n o w le d g e o f l i ­ b ra ria n s h ip w ith stro n g in te re s t in a ll ty p e s o f lib ra rie s and lib r a r y netw orks. E vidence o f s ig n ific a n t p ro fe ssio nal a c ­ c o m p lis h m e n t is d e s ira b le . Previous re le v a n t e x p e rie n c e should in c lu d e : b u d g e tin g , p ro g ra m p la n n in g and im ­ p le m e n ta tio n , lib r a r y a u to m a tio n a n d / o r lib r a r y n e tw o rk in g and d a ta process­ in g. The a b ilit y t o c o m m u n ic a te e f­ fe c t iv e ly is esse ntia l. E xperience w ith th e O C L C system o r s im ila r system is h ig h ly d e s ira b le . Benefits in c lu d e s ocial s e c u rity , r e t ir e ­ m ent, life and h e a lth insurance, h o li­ days, v a c a tio n and sick leave. S a la ry c o m m e nsu rate w ith e d u c a tio n and ex p e rie n c e , m in im um $30,000. Po­ s itio n a v a ila b le S e p te m b e r I, 1978. To be assured f u ll c o n s id e ra tio n , n o m i­ na tion s and a p p lic a tio n s (in c lu d in g resume c itin g 3 refere nce s) sh o u ld be s u b m itte d b y J u ly I, 1978 t o : M rs . H a n n a h M c C a u le y C h a ir p e r s o n , O H I O N E T O h i o U n iv e r s it y 157 0 G r a n v ille Pike La n c a s te r, O h io 4 3 1 3 0 " A n A ffir m a t iv e A c tio n , Equa l O p p o r t u n it y E m p lo y e r"