Breakout Brainstorming Session
(Small/Medium Academic Libraries)
and a few observations from the Regional Librarians meeting
from the Spring 2003 FDLC
Wednesday morning we broke into groups by type of library and brainstormed ideas for the "new" FDLP. Some of the more important ideas that our group came up with were the notion of GPO printing on demand, rather than just sending us everything; the fact that in an electronic environment collaboration doesn't need to rely on geographical proximity; and the increasing importance of training. After the breakout session, we came back together and the council members who were in each group reported on their group's ideas. Summaries of these ideas will eventually be posted on the Council's web site: www.access.gpo.gov/su_docs/fdlp/council/index.html.
A few encouraging things came out the Regional librarians meeting that I "crashed": the Washington and Florida State Libraries are not going away, after all, in spite of their governors wanting this, since the legislatures in the two states blocked their dissolution. Several states are in terrible financial shape, though; I think Maryland's State Library was looking at a 60% reduction in staffing. The California State Library uses something called MEKEL to scan fiche into PDF files for ILL. A potentially important item: there is a vacancy for a depository in Texas District 21, which is Lamar Smith's. The district does cover a large area of south central and west Texas, though, so we probably won't be getting another San Antonio area depository.
