Collection Management for Community College Libraries

ABSTRACTThe author describes the challenges and rewards of creating and growing a new community college library from the ground up, sharing details about the new college, the state of the library when she arrived as director, and the process of prioritizing the organization's development. She further describes particular lessons gained through this experience, including maintaining perspective, focusing growth in productive directions, and being willing to experiment even if it means there will be failure as well as success. The article will appeal in particular to librarians who have the rare opportunity to launch a new college library as well as those who are working on reinventing small college libraries.

ABSTRACTThis is the second part of a series on Web 2.0 tools available from community college libraries' Websites. The first article appeared in an earlier volume of this journal and it illustrated the wide variety of Web 2.0 tools on community college libraries' Websites serving large student bodies (Blummer and Kenton 2014). The research found many of these tools, especially LibGuides and YouTube videos, contained instructional content. This research focuses on the use of Web 2.0 tools to deliver library training to users in community colleges with large student bodies. The study considers the diversity of Web 2.0 tools utilized for instructional purposes. It also examines the relationship between the population ranking of the community college and the availability of these tutorials.

A study of information literacy instruction (ILI) practices in community college libraries in the United States has included a survey of instructional librarians and interviews with students. The goals of the study were to examine how librarians’ ILI is being impacted by the ACRL Framework for Information Literacy in the community college context; to understand librarians’ perceptions of their students’ information literacy (IL) abilities; and, to explore students’ experiences of ILI and their perceptions of their IL abilities. The study revealed challenges facing community college librarians, as well as gaps between the librarians’ and students’ perceptions, pinpointing opportunities for instructional improvements.

ABSTRACTThe author presents the results of a review and analysis of thirty-five colleges and universities in the United States that currently offer an Associate's degree and/or vocational certificate(s) in Library and Information Science. These programs, which are geared primarily to existing library support staff who seek additional training, have been created independently of each other and without a national standard to guide the curriculum. Although the American Library Association-Allied Professional Association's Library Support Staff Certification offers guidelines for the educational content of Associate's level LIS programs, a comparison reveals significant gaps. Furthermore, the ALA-APA program currently approves courses at only three institutions in the nation, and certifies graduates from only fourteen. The author identifies areas of misalignment between the Library Support Staff Certification and existing LIS programs and suggests directions for future improvement.Column Editor’s Note Community college libraries are deeply underrepresented in the professional literature and organizations of academic librarianship. As a result, the challenges and successes that take place in the community college world are largely invisible to others. This JLA column lifts the curtain to reveal the uniqueness of community college libraries as described by their most passionate advocates: the librarians who work there. Articles in this column pay tribute to the commitment and creativity of community college librarians by providing a platform where they can share their professional perspectives and stories. Want to write for this column? Interested authors are invited to submit articles to the editor at kimreed@cwidaho.cc.

Engagement and its antithesis burnout are topics of great interest to the working world, including for-profit businesses, non-profits, and government agencies. A 2013 Gallup Study showed that roughly seventy-five percent of all employees in the United States are burned out and not engaged. The 2017 update to this study found very little change to the 2013 data, and shows that burnout levels remain largely the same (GALLUP Inc., 2017). There has been a great deal written about how to engage and re-engage employees who have burned out. Some researchers have proposed interventions ranging from job crafting to meditation, and the majority of studies have yielded positive results. Despite successful interventions, what is not clear in the literature is the role played by the person's personality and how this relates to behaviors such as job crafting, strength use, and even meditation. This doctoral study intended to bring some clarity to this interplay between personality (personal resources) and behavior (job crafting, strength use, and self-handicapping). Quantitative survey data was collected in the Spring of 2018 from the Community and Junior College email list. Of the 1795 subscribers, 213 responded. Of these, 153 responses were used in this study. The study participants completed the JD-R (Job Demands and Resources) questionnaire. The results of the research suggest that opportunities for development and work pressure were the main variables influencing engagement. Work pressure was the largest variable influencing burnout. The question of personal resources versus behavior was answered in that neither behaviors nor personal resources played a significant role in engagement. Instead, job resources had the largest influence on engagement. The research also showed that the JD-R model is valid for this population, and that 66% of all community college librarians do not feel engaged in their work.

Pitt Community College Librarians describe their partnership with their Early College High School students and teachers, and share ideas they learned from peers while presenting at the North Carolina Community College Library Association's annual conference in February 2025.

Community and technical colleges have long been sites for educating two groups of students: those going on to baccalaureate education and those seeking degrees in vocational-technical fields. If there are specialized programs of information literacy instruction for these divergent groups, they have not been described in the literature. This article examines prior relevant literature and empirical evidence from focus groups and a survey to provide a brief outline of the vocational/technical information literacy programs in community college libraries and makes recommendations for reassessing the priority assigned to these activities.

Higher education institutions (HEIs) have institutionalized global citizenship education (GCE) in response to globalization.Critics caution that current initiatives may perpetuate global inequities and advocate for a critical, multidisciplinary approach to GCE.Despite serving a crucial role in fostering students' critical global consciousness, academic libraries are sidelined from institutional pedagogical engagements.Arising from a need to bridge this divide, this qualitative study explored how U.S. and global library faculty perceive their roles in a globalized world and how they collaborate with disciplinary faculty to cultivate GCE-centered shared learning spaces for students.This dissertation is comprised of three interconnected papers, introduced by an overview chapter, all intended for peer-reviewed publication as separate papers.Data were collected through interviews with library faculty/librarians from U.S., European, and Japanese HEIs, and disciplinary faculty and administrators from a California community college, which served as the research site.Library faculty/librarians identified fostering critically conscious informed global citizens and enhancing students' sense of belonging as their crucial roles, achieved through globalizing library services and collaborating with disciplinary faculty to create GCE-centered shared learning spaces.Library faculty/librarians pinpointed exclusion from teaching as the biggest barrier.Library faculty/librarians and disciplinary faculty both identified narrowly defined roles, academic silos, ego, overwork, and insufficient appreciation, institutional support, financial resources, and professional development as obstacles to collaborating and implementing GCE.Recommendations urge college administrators to demonstrate their commitment to the institution's mission by elevating the library's role within the institution and bolstering collaborative, GCE-centered initiatives through direct financial support and enhanced professional development.v Gratitude and DedicationTo my mother, aai, who taught me to fit myself in confined spaces and yet keep my mind boundless and free.To my brother, dada, who pushed me beyond the cozy confines and thrust me into our vast wide world.To my father, baba, who compelled me to love the very person who

In the Fall 1967 issue, Volume 25, Number 4, editor Alva W. Stewart briefly described the evolution of the North Carolina Libraries journal during its first quarter century. One way Stewart highlighted this was to include articles about the growth and development of various kinds of libraries within our state, including public, academic, school, special, and community college libraries. This present issue hearkens back to the spirit of this introspection by including articles about contemporary issues facing academic libraries, the evolution of special libraries, an in-depth look at a special public library, and a crucial opportunity for collaboration that community college libraries are taking advantage of. With all our editors along the way, it is also my hope that our journal will “serve the cause of books and libraries throughout our state.”

University libraries play a vital role in the academic landscape by providing a wide range of essential support and services to their members. From research materials and academic resources to access to cutting-edge technology and expert staff, these libraries are at the forefront of fostering a culture of learning, collaboration, and innovation both within their physical spaces and online. Their importance extends beyond the academic environment, as they are also expected to contribute to the development of their respective countries by providing the resources and tools necessary to support a strong and thriving knowledge economy. The objective of this research is to provide a detailed analysis of the situation and challenges experienced by university libraries in Türkiye. This study utilized descriptive and documentary scanning methods to analyze and interpret data obtained from a wide range of both domestic and foreign literature, as well as official primary documents and media. The scope of the study was determined by historical, managerial, legal, and technological problems faced by Türkiye’s university libraries. To ensure systematic integrity, the study grouped various dimensions thought to have a direct or indirect impact on university libraries in Türkiye under different headings. These headings, which constitute the scope of the study, include: “Legislation, organization, and administrative structure”; “Policy, regulations, and standards”; “Budget, building, collection management, human resources, user-related matters, and other relevant issues”; “Collaborations”, and “Information and communication technologies”. By taking into account the historical context, this study aims to offer a comprehensive understanding of the issues that these libraries have faced and continue to face in the present day. The findings of this research indicate that the challenges encountered by university libraries in the past have yet to be effectively addressed and resolved. The study’s methodical, multifaceted, and multidimensional approach to evaluating university libraries, both in the historical context and current situation, presents a unique perspective. The comprehensive and in-depth evaluation process applied in this study is unparalleled and distinguishes it from prior studies in the field. This approach provides a holistic view of university libraries, allowing for a more detailed and accurate assessment of their overall performance.

Adjunct Faculty in Community Colleges: An Academic Administrator's Guide to Recruiting, Supporting, and Retaining Great Teachers Desna L. Wallin (Ed.). Anker Publishing: Bolton, MA. 2005, 227 pages. $39.95, Cloth. ISBN 1-882982-81-9. Reviewed by Clifford P. Harbour.Desna L. Wallin's book, Adjunct Faculty in Community Colleges: An Academic Administrator's Guide to Recruiting, Supporting, and Retaining Great Teachers, provides campus leaders with a new resource to improve institutional practice regarding employment of part-time faculty. This work is an edited volume published by Anker in 2005 and is comprised of 13 chapters written by community college presidents, academic administrators, faculty, and university researchers.Community colleges are facing new challenges in the 21st century because of budgetary constraints, looming retirements in the faculty and leadership ranks, demands for new curricula and delivery modalities, and a student population that is becoming increasingly diverse and complex. These developments mean public two-year institutions must become more efficient and effective in providing educational programs and services to their communities. Many institutions have realized new efficiencies through increased use of adjunct faculty. Wallin's goal in publishing Adjunct Faculty in Community Colleges is to explain how campus leaders can now become more effective in selecting, developing, supporting, and retaining this critical human resource.Wallin has organized the volume in three parts. Pan One presents Wallin's excellent overview of the text, and this overview is supplemented by research reported by university scholars. Akroyd and Caison report on their analysis of recent data from the National Study of Postsecondary Faculty. They describe how adjunct faculty compare with their full-time counterparts on factors such as demographics and job satisfaction. This work is complemented by research findings presented by Phillips and Campbell regarding faculty development at Florida's community colleges. Results from these two studies paint a picture of important similarities and differences concerning adjunct faculty and their full-time colleagues.Akroyd and Caison's comparison of adjunct and full time instructors reveals that the two populations are quite similar regarding (a) age, gender, and academic qualifications, and (b) overall job satisfaction. But there are important differences in how these two populations perceive job security, advancement opportunities, and benefits. Adjunct faculty are significantly less satisfied with these aspects of their employment. To date, these lower levels of satisfaction have not significantly affected community colleges. Institutions have been able to replace departing adjuncts with new ones. However, Akroyd and Caison's research suggests practitioners should not overlook the possibility that a dissatisfied adjunct faculty could have serious implications for institutional stability.Phillips and Campbell report on a statewide survey of mathematics and communications faculty at Florida community colleges regarding the value of certain professional development activities. These authors found that adjunct and full-time faculty agreed that new faculty orientation programs were a very valuable professional development activity. However, they differed, for example, on the importance of (a) travel money, (b) on campus workshops, and (c) access to professional development materials in the college library. The first two items were characterized as very valuable by full-time faculty but less so by adjuncts. Conversely, adjuncts regarded access to on campus professional development materials as more valuable than did their full-time counterparts.These two chapters provide a sound introduction to critical similarities and differences to be considered by campus leaders working to improve the selection, development, support, and retention of adjuncts. …

Brittany Dudek, MLIS, is the Colorado Community College System’s OER subject matter expert, advocate, and trailblazer. As the Library Coordinator at Colorado Community Colleges Online, Brittany has been instrumental in the collaborative efforts leading to more than 80 zero textbook courses (ZTC) and Z-degree pathways in HIS and ECE. Brittany has served on the Colorado Department of Higher Education’s OER Council since 2017, and is currently serving as Chair. She is also a member of the CCCOER’s Executive Council, the Association of College and Research Libraries’ Community and Junior College Library Section OER Task Force. Brittany is a 2019-2020 Open Education Group OER Research Fellow. IJOER’s OER & Beyond Moderator, Hilary Baribeau, sat down with Brittany to glean her thoughts on COVID-19’s impact on students and instructors. To prevent further spreading of the virus, stay-at-home orders across the globe have forced higher educational institutions to rapidly convert face-to-face courses to a fully online learning format. Experienced in online learning, Brittany shares who instructors should contact first when designing their online courses.

Student affairs professionals are neglected clientele to whom community college librarians need to extend their services. Counselors and librarians share mutual values and experiences in their roles as learning facilitators. Although disinclined to embrace technology, most counselors now recognize its import and are receptive to integrating it into the workplace to become more effective. Inclusion of student personnel in library/learning resources services acknowledges the unique contributions of both professional groups as full partners in creating a successful learning environment.

To best design technological pedagogical content knowledge (TPCK) related instruction for preservice teachers or for practicing teachers, community college librarians must have an accurate assessment of their audience's attitudes towards technology. A summary, analysis, and excerpts from 225 student responses to a course reflection regarding attitude toward technology are shared. The course, Learning with Technology, was a required course in an online master in education degree program. Students were practicing teachers or certified education professionals. Results indicated the majority, 52%, had positive feelings about and were integrating technology into instruction, 28% had positive feelings but cited obstacles to integration, 13% were fully integrating technology, and 7% were not integrating technology at all. Common obstacles to technology integration included knowledge/skills, confidence, access, and time. Based on the findings, implications of and suggestions for the design of TPCK related instruc...

In the same way as television did not replace movies but merely opened up new dimensions in entertainment, the digital world is not replacing the printed word but is giving us new and additional dimensions of knowledge. Information competency is the ability to exploit information in various formats. The article reviews the efforts of California colleges to make information competency a true part of higher education through coursework and supplemental study.