State University Libraries are Awarded Runner-up in IGI Global

The Ball State University Libraries were recently recognized for technology excellence by IGI Global, an international publishing company specializing in research publications in the fields of computer science and information technology management.

The corporation created an award and recognition program for an organization judged to use and promote innovative technological programs or systems that have proven critical to the successful integration, implementation, and diffusion of electronic resources within an academic library setting.

The submission by Dr. Arthur W. Hafner, Dean of University Libraries, and John B. Straw, Assistant Dean for Digital Initiatives and Special Collections, focused on the Libraries’ development of the Digital Media Repository (DMR). The submission was sent to IGI Global on April 29, 2009. Dr. Hafner was notified of the award in May. The interested reader can learn more about it at
www.igi-global.com/campaign/award.asp.

The focus of the submission centered on Ball State University Libraries’ collaborative resource, the Digital Media Repository, http://libx.bsu.edu, which offers 72 collections with more than 120,000 digital objects.

It provides a centralized, coordinated, and user-focused resource to serve the teaching, learning, academic achievement, and research needs of students, faculty, and others. The DMR brings together the digital collections and projects of the University Libraries into a single, cohesive, accessible, easy to navigate, Web-based environment, while also providing access to external digital resources that support the educational processes for instructional objectives and learning outcomes.

An analysis of visits to the DMR during the seven-month period of September 2008 through March 2009 showed 286,476 hits. In March 2009, for example, there were 89,151 visits to different collections in the DMR. These statistics reflect use by Ball State students, faculty, international researchers, the media, and many other users who are both local and global.

The DMR is a key component of the Libraries’ goal to expand digital initiatives and facilitate development of emerging media opportunities for learning, research, and classroom enhancement and it continues to be a highly successful resource in the ongoing transition from print to digital resources that meet the expectations and information needs of the Ball State academic community and the continually growing international global research community.

As runner-up, the University Libraries received a plaque and the opportunity to publish an academic article featuring best practices and examples of transitions from print to electronic resources in one of IGI Global’s premier reference books.

University’s President Selects Vice President for Information Technology

Philip C. Repp accepted the position of Vice President for Information Technology, a position which encompasses providing leadership for the Teleplex Services (including Indiana Public Radio-National Public Radio and WIPB-Public Broadcasting Station), University Computing Services, and the University Libraries. The Vice President is also a member of President Jo Ann Gora’s cabinet.

Mr. Repp, who was recently recognized by Campus Technology magazine as one of its 2008 innovators of the year for the development of Ball State's Digital Corps, has held a variety of administrative positions at Ball State, including interim Vice President when Dr. H. O’Neal Smitherman vacated the position 13 months ago, and Associate Vice President for Information Technology prior to that beginning in 2002.

He joined Ball State in 1981 in the Department of Art. He has served the University as department chairman, associate dean of Sciences and Humanities, and director of the Visualization, Animation and Imaging Lab.

Mr. Repp was a contributing author of two digital technology grants from the Lilly Endowment totaling $40 million. He now will help oversee implementation of a new $17.7 million Emerging Media Initiative meant to focus and accelerate the university's expertise in the field while spurring economic development through innovation, technology transfer, and the enhanced skills of a 21st century workforce.

Dr. Gora commended Mr. Repp for his work with the David Letterman Distinguished Professional Lecture and Workshop Series, which will help bring nationally recognized media professionals to Ball State. He assisted with the Emerging Media Initiative, which stemmed from a $17.7 million Lilly Endowment grant and will go toward improving media programs at Ball State. He also led the university's digital media storage project in collaboration with Network Appliance, which received an award from InfoWorld as an example of outstanding enterprise, innovation, and information technology leadership. As well, he spearheaded the campus-wide strategic planning process for the Office of Information Technology.

Mr. Repp said that he looks forward to advancing the university’s new technologies and emerging media missions and facilitating the use of advanced technologies in teaching, learning, and research.

Among his accomplishments during 2008, Mr. Repp assisted the University Libraries in obtaining a large donation for the Helen B. and Martin D. Schwartz Special Collections and Digital Complex which will be completed in 2009 at Bracken Library, purchase of technology for public areas of the Libraries, and he has supported expansion of the Archives and Special Collections through renovation of facilities.

Friends Program on John Steinbeck by Dr. Luchen Li

Dr. Luchen Li, Associate Professor of Humanities and Communication and Director of the Office of International Programs at Kettering University, Flint, Michigan, will deliver a talk entitled, “John Steinbeck’s View of the American Presidency” in Bracken Library’s Forum Room at 7:30 p.m. on October 1, 2008.

The free program is co-sponsored by the Friends of the Alexander M. Bracken Library and by the Department of English, and is open to the public. 765-285-5078.

LSTA Innovative Library Program Grant Supposrt Second Life Library Project

An LSTA Innovative Library Program Grant award in the amount of $5,400 will be used to create a virtual reference area and exhibit. These will serve as a test bed for experimentation and innovation centering on provision of digital content and library services for the expanding user population participating in Second Life, http://secondlife.com, a 3-D virtual world. The prototype reference area will provide access to subject specialists and interactive exhibit modules focused on the University Libraries’ rich resources documenting Muncie, Indiana as “Middletown,” a representative American community.

The project will allow librarians to develop the skills necessary to provide rich library resources and services using state-of-the-art new media in this emergent digital environment. The University Libraries will support the work of students and faculty in Second Life while developing best practices for the provision of library services in virtual worlds for the benefit of libraries statewide.

Second Life is a compelling 3-D virtual world where library users can meet and interact in an immersive and collaborative environment. Participants access the world using a computer and are connected in the virtual environment where they create an avatar, a virtual representation of themselves, that they can control in the same manner that one might control a video game character.

Ball State University faculty and students are increasingly using the Second Life world as a virtual classroom. Lectures are conducted and group projects are being undertaken in it. There is great potential for Second Life to become a vehicle for distance education, allowing students to interact in virtual classrooms and library spaces.

For the project, Archives and Special Collections and the Center for Middletown Studies will collaborate to develop content for the exhibit. The central purpose of the exhibit will be to provide an overview of Muncie as Middletown, a representative American community. There will be a core module that will provide an introduction to the Studies. Additional modules will present the six subject areas covered by the Middletown Studies. The modules will include interactive elements such as click-through PowerPoint presentations and hyperlinks to external resources and streaming media such as oral histories and film clips.

The reference area will include a desk and a “drop box.” The desk will be staffed on a scheduled basis and by appointment for the provision of reference services. The “drop box” acts as a mailbox allowing visitors to leave messages and questions for staff when they are absent from the desk or to schedule reference interviews with an archivist.

For more information, contact John B. Straw, Assistant Dean for Digital Initiatives and Special Collections, JStraw@bsu.edu, 765-285-5078

University Libraries Awarded LSTA Grant from Indiana State Library

An LSTA Digitization Grant award in the amount of $21,194 will be used to create a Middletown Women’s History Digital Collection to provide online access to archival materials documenting the experiences of women in Muncie, Indiana, from the 1880s through the 1930s. The resources will illuminate women’s history in the six areas of the seminal Middletown studies conducted in Muncie as a representative American community beginning in the 1920s: Getting a Living; Making a Home; Training the Young; Using Leisure; Engaging in Religious Practices; and Engaging in Community Activities.

Through increased access to diaries, correspondence, scrapbooks, and other records of women and women’s organizations, the resource will expand research opportunities in women’s studies, women’s history, U. S. history, sociology, and other disciplines. It will provide fresh historical perspective and new areas for investigation focusing on women in Middle America.

Items to be digitized include:
Altrusa Club of Muncie, Inc., Records, 1923-45
Cassady/Nelson Family Collection, 1887-90, 1926
Grace Arthur School Memory Book, 1926-32
Louise Carey School Memory Book, 1915
Mae Evans Papers from the Fred and Penny Prow Collection, 1916-31
Marsh/Ryan Family Collection, 1902
McRae Club Records, 1894-1950
Mina McCormick Becket Diaries, 1933-34
Muncie Business and Professional Women’s Club Records, 1919-62
Reticule Circle Club Records, 1927-40
Riverside Culture Club Records, 1913-34
Unitarian Universalist Church Records, 1894-1942
Women’s Club of Muncie Records, 1876-1942
Women’s Franchise League of Muncie Records, 1912-19
YWCA – Muncie, Indiana Branch Records, 1911-38

Ball State’s Center for Middletown Studies and the Women’s Studies Program will be partners in the grant project. The resources will be part of a Web-based teaching tool under development by the Center for Middletown Studies in partnership with Archives and Special Collections. Ball State’s Women’s Studies Program will provide two student interns to assist with transcription of selected hand-written items and will promote the resource through their Web site and publications. Students from the program will also utilize the materials for classes and assignments.

Over the past several years, Ball State University Libraries have utilized more than $75,000 in Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA) grants to create digital collections. These collections have ranged from U.S. Civil War documents to oral histories to an historic anti-Ku Klux Klan newspaper.

Membership in Consortium Saves Money for the University Libraries in Obtaining Databases

The Ball State University Libraries offer an impressive selection of electronic resources, including journals and academic databases. Our Libraries’ personnel continually strive to enhance the Libraries’ collections to meet the information needs of students and faculty while keeping pace with the ever-rising cost of scholarly resources and the tremendous increase in publishing activity.

The Academic Libraries of Indiana (ALI), a consortium of 73 academic libraries, is a partner in helping its members to achieve savings in subscription costs to academic databases. This past spring, as part of its initiative for eResources, ALI signed an agreement with the Southeastern Library Network (SOLINET) that will result in ALI member libraries being able to save money when subscribing to selected academic databases.

For the University Libraries, for example, when we renew our subscription, this agreement will produce immediate savings for the LexisNexis Academic databases, a service that includes nearly 5,000 publications spanning business and financial, environmental, legal, medical, and news.

ALI’s agreement with SOLINET brings 200 existing product offerings and 50 publisher and vendor relationships to the partnership, and SOLINET will also undertake specific negotiations on behalf of ALI and its member libraries as needed.

The University Libraries anticipate that this is only the beginning of other favorable deals to come from being an ALI member. According to an ALI Resource Advisory Committee report, “… this relationship will offer ALI member libraries a broader range of electronic resources through a single agent, at optimum pricing, with management information available to each ALI member library for resources that they have acquired.”

Ball State University Libraries’ participation in the ALI-SOLINET partnership will help enhance our students’ pursuits for academic success and will help to increase faculty endeavors for knowledge creation, research, and classroom instruction.

This initiative between ALI and SOLINET represents a significant development in cooperation among ALI libraries to increase the range of resources provided to the students, faculty, and communities that they serve while making the most of available fiscal resources. According to Dan N. Bowell, Chair of ALI’s Database Licensing Task Force and University Librarian at Taylor University’s Zondervan Library, “It provides a strong complement to the resource sharing, including direct borrowing, that exists among ALI libraries.”

For more information, contact Hilde M. Calvert, University Libraries’ Head of Collections Development and member of the ALI Database Licensing Task Force, HCalvert@bsu.edu, 765-285-8033.

Sustainability Planning at Ball State Libraries

Ball State University’s Strategic Plan 2007-2012 (Goal 4 and Objective F) calls for the University Council on the Environment, through its representative members, to create sustainability plans for each university unit. The University’s vision and commitment are summarized by its Sustainability Statement, www.bsu.edu/sustainability.

To begin planning and establishing guidelines to encourage sustainability initiatives within the University Libraries, the Dean of University Libraries recently appointed a Sustainability Committee. The initial four members are Dixie D. DeWitt, Bradley D. Faust, Suzanne S. Rice, and Sharon A. Roberts. At a later time, the Committee may expand to include more personnel.

The Sustainability Committee’s purpose is to promote awareness of sustainability initiatives among the Libraries’ personnel and to take positive steps to incorporate greater environmental awareness into the operations of the Libraries. These include steps for energy conservation, enhanced recycling, and conservation of natural resources.

The University Libraries have made efforts over the past several years to “think green.” Some of the actions we have already taken include:

· Encouraging double-sided copying to reduce use of paper
· Encouraging students to save files electronically as PDFs rather than print documents
· Installing new energy-saving florescent bulbs
· Installing sensors in rooms so lights are turned off when rooms are not in use
· Providing recycle containers on every floor
· Recycling of photocopy toner cartridges; recycling paper as scrap paper and note pads
· Requesting students to limit printing to 30 pages per day
· Setting thermostats at 72° throughout the Libraries
· Using equipment that features the Energy Star or other power management functionality to conserve electricity
· Using teleconferencing in lieu of travel
· Encouraging the Libraries’ personnel to carpool to work

We are committed to these initiatives and look forward to achieving higher levels of sustainability.

Historic 1915 Film Available in University Libraries’ Digital Media Repository

Almost 15 years after it was discovered and restored, the historic film The Man Haters is now accessible online through the Ball State University Libraries Digital Media Repository.

This rare 1915 silent movie is one of the few surviving films documenting life in the World War I years, and it provides a rich resource for film and history students at Ball State University and researchers around the world.

The film was produced by Basil McHenry, a traveling film producer from Akron, Ohio. He financed the film with sponsorship by Muncie's Majestic Theater and The Muncie Evening Press newspaper.

Readers of the Press were asked to cast their votes for the leading actresses using coupons printed in the newspaper. Out of Muncie’s population of 34,000, there were over 22,000 votes cast in the contest.

Dora Grim, a 17-year-old telephone operator, won the starring role of Ruth and 16-year old Vernon Davis was cast as the male lead. Filming began in Muncie, Indiana on November 3, 1915. The movie opened at the Majestic Theater at 417 South Walnut on November 15, 1915.

The film contains rich documentation of the Muncie landscape and local life in the early 20th century. Basil McHenry also produced similar films in other towns in Indiana and Ohio.

Archives and Special Collections acquired the film from the Dora Grim-Vlaskamp family in 1994. The family found it in storage at a local car dealership. Nancy Turner, former director of Archives and Special Collections, and the late William (Bill) Barnett, former Director of Library Business Services, recognized the importance of the film and applied for a $3,000 grant from the Indiana Humanities Council to have the original 35mm nitrate film transferred to VHS and music, narration, and additional footage added. The film was shown at numerous screenings in Indiana and nationwide and a documentary on the film aired on the History Channel.

The Man Haters Collection contains the 10-minute original version and the longer documentary version of the film, newspaper clippings about the contest, still photographs from the film, and a booklet about the history of the film by Nancy Turner. The collection can be accessed in the Digital Media Repository, at http://libx.bsu.edu, under the “The Man Haters Film Collection.”

For more information, contact Maren L. Read, Assistant Archivist for Manuscript Collections, Ball State University Libraries, MLRead@bsu.edu, (765) 285-5078.

Activities of Ball State University’s All-Campus Library Committee, 2006-2007

Ball State University’s all-campus Library Committee is a standing committee of Faculty Council. This committee provides an opportunity for faculty, staff, and students to discuss issues and concerns about library and information services that are of interest to the Ball State University community.

The membership of the Library committee consists of 14 persons, as follows:
· Seven faculty members, one from each academic college, appointed by the Faculty Council for two-year terms
· One undergraduate and one graduate student, each appointed by the Student Government Association
· Two professional personnel with primary appointment in different professional areas, each appointed by University Council for staggered two-year terms
· One member from the Graduate Education Committee, for a one-year term
· One member appointed by the Undergraduate Education Committee, for a one-year term
· The Dean of University Libraries, ex officio or a designee

The current members of the Library Committee are
Amy Leahy, Family/Consumer Science
Amy Sheaffer, Undergraduate Education Committee
Angela Tanney, Graduate student
Ashley Johnson, Undergraduate
Carol Friesen, Graduate Education Committee
David Sumner, Journalism
Jeffrey Green, Economics
Keith Cochran, University Libraries
Murray Steib, Music History
Nicole Feldhues, Career Center
Robert R. Pinger, Physiology and Health Science
Susan Tancock, Elementary Education and
Dr. Arthur W. Hafner, Dean of University Libraries, ex officio.

The Library Committee’s officers have been Chairperson Murray Stein, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Music History at the College of Fine Arts, and Secretary Keith H. Cochran, Ph.D., Music Librarian at the University Libraries.

Over the current academic year, the Library Committee met four times: November 16, 2006, December 12, 2006, March 23, 2007, and April 20, 2007. At these meetings, the Library Committee has concentrated on three topics that demonstrate the Committee’s dedicated support of the University Libraries as being second only to the classroom for learning and discovery:
· Augmenting the University Libraries’ acquisitions budget through various fund-raising methods
· Discussion about the University Library’s Guidelines for Replacing Paper Subscriptions with Digital Forma
· Concept that the Libraries’ acquisitions budget should be increased yearly to keep up with inflation and the rising cost of informational materials

At the committee’s April 20, 2007, meeting, the Library Committee elected Professor Robert R. Pinger as Chairperson for the coming academic year, 2007-2008.

For more information, contact Dr. Keith H. Cochran, Ball State University Libraries’ Music Librarian, KCochran@bsu.edu, (765) 285-5065.

This newsletter article first appeared in The Library Insider 5(5): 7; May 2007.

Ceremony at Ball State University’s Indianapolis Center Announces the Bowen Center for Public Affairs and the Availability of the Otis R. Bowen Papers

The papers of Otis R. Bowen, M.D., two-term governor of Indiana and former U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services under President Ronald Reagan, were officially opened for public access during a ceremony held at the Ball State Indianapolis Center honoring Dr. Bowen on March 23, 2007. Dr. Bowen premiered the collection opening by pressing a button to activate a “virtual ribbon cutting” that was created by the Ball State University Teleplex using images from the Bowen Papers.

Ball State University President Jo Ann M. Gora presided over the ceremony that also launched the new Bowen Center for Public Affairs to honor “Doc” Bowen for his years of public service to the state and nation. During her remarks, Gora stated that the gift of the Bowen Papers to Ball State University “… offers a tremendously rich resource for historical, political, and cultural study.”

President Gora described how the papers and the center “promise to raise the collective levels of both our civic literacy and community involvement, at the same time they preserve for posterity the life’s work of an individual who to this day, less than a month removed from his 89th birthday, remains the very embodiment of civic responsibility.”

A video, online exhibit, and Web page were available on computers at the event for the approximately 70 attendees to view and use to learn more about the Bowen Papers that are being preserved and made accessible in the University Libraries’ Archives and Special Collections. Maren Read, Assistant Archivist for Manuscript Collections, developed a Web site (www.bsu.edu/library/bowenpapers) that includes a finding aid, chronology, biography, virtual exhibit, and video.

Maren and Robert Seaton, University Libraries’ Web Developer in Library Information Technology Services (LITS), created the virtual exhibit featuring photographs and information on Dr. Bowen’s career and his collection.
Alexandru Amira, Part-time Desktop Computer Technician in LITS, produced the video available on the Web site that includes interviews with Political Science professors Sally Jo Vasicko and Ray Scheele, who will co-direct the new Bowen Center.

In addition to the virtual exhibit, an extensive onsite exhibit of the Bowen materials is available for viewing on Bracken Library’s second floor through June 31, 2007.

For more information on the Bowen Papers, contact John B. Straw, Ball State University Libraries’ Director for Archives and Special Collections, JStraw@bsu.edu, (765) 285-5078.

This newsletter article first appeared in The Library Insider 5(4): 6; April 2007.

4th Annual Copyright Conference at Ball State Well-Received

Speakers at the Fourth Annual Copyright Conference, held April 11, 2007, sponsored by Ball State University Libraries, combined copyright with a classic theme from the popular television series Star Trek to make the subject of the U.S. Copyright Law educational, understandable, and entertaining. According to comments from the 114 attendees, the six speakers succeeded in boldly exploring copyright in teaching and learning.

A central focus of the conference was to explore Fair Use and how it can be used in both face-to-face and distance education classrooms. To accomplish this, five nationally-known copyright experts and one internationally known intellectual property expert, both from academe and the private sector, spoke about how to use another person’s intellectual property through Fair Use and the TEACH Act, among other alternatives.

“This was one of the most worthwhile conferences I've been to,” said Kevin Roe, Supervisor of Media Processing for Fort Wayne Community Schools. “The conference is such a valuable resource for those of us who deal with the questions and problems of copyright at work.”

The Conference began with a welcoming address from H. O’Neal Smitherman, Ph.D., Ball State University’s Vice President of Information Technology and Executive Assistant to the President, to the 114 attendees, some of whom traveled from Arkansas, Illinois, Iowa, Kentucky, Michigan, Missouri, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, and Texas to attend. Conference Chairperson Dr. Fritz Dolak then framed the larger discussion about copyright and intellectual property that set the tone for the day’s conference.

In order of their presentations, the speakers were

Donna L. Ferullo, J.D., Director of the Copyright Office, Purdue University: “Digital Fair Use Trek: Section 107”Ms. Ferullo covered the Four Factors of Fair Use: Purpose, Nature, Amount, and Effect. She discussed relevant court cases on Fair Use, including derivative works, transformative use, and parodies.
· Dwayne K. Buttler, J.D., Professor and Evelyn J. Schneider Endowed Chair for Scholarly Communication, University of Louisville: “Live Long and Prosper:” A warp speed view of library copying with phasers on stun for the TEACH Act
Mr. Buttler delved into Section 108, Library Copying, of the Copyright Law, as well as Section 110(2), which addresses how to use someone else’s intellectual property in the classroom without walls. He covered the many ins and outs, and the vagaries for both of these sections in the Copyright Law.
Michelle L. Cooper, J.D., Bose McKinney & Evans LLP, Education Law Group: “The Menagerie:” Practical digital legal advice
Ms. Cooper concentrated on intellectual property ownership issues, including the exclusive, oftentimes overlooked, rights that students have in the intellectual property they create for classes. She used several real-life situations that upheld and verified student rights and that also enhanced the work-for-hire doctrine.
James R. Williams, J. D., DeFur Voran LLP, Ball State University's Legal Counsel for Education Law: “Subspace Education:” iTunes U
Mr. Williams discussed the uses of a new, free, 365/24 technology for the classroom, i.e., the Apple iPod-oriented, iTunes U. He also discussed problematic issues including the uploading of course content without permission to YouTube, etc., and the potential abuse of embedded copyrighted materials in iTunes U’s approach for educating today’s students.
Kenneth D. Crews, Ph.D., J.D., Samuel R. Rosen II Professor, Indiana University School of Law (Indianapolis), Indiana University School of Library and Information Science; Associate Dean of the Faculties for Copyright Management; Director, IUPUI Copyright Management Center: “The Way to Eden:” Current issues & updates in copyright including the Google challenge
Dr. Crews’ discourse was a duality of today’s copyright issues and future issues via a unique, time warp interview with himself: “Google eventually uploaded the universe,” he said. Dr. Crews opined that the Constitution’s original role in copyright is being overplayed by the Congress to the detriment of education.
Carl M. Johnson, Director of the University Copyright Licensing Office, Brigham Young University: “The City on the Edge of Forever:” Inside the scenes at a University Copyright Office
Mr. Johnson shared some of his practical experiences that call for the administration at one’s institution to be involved in intellectual property issues, including crafting a copyright policy, and directing copyright education. He discussed his approach to Fair Use analysis and how this effects a given decision. Mr. Johnson provided a comprehensive intellectual property resource list in his handout.

Copyright Conference Awarded Continuing Legal Education Credits
Again this year, the Indiana Supreme Court’s Commission for Continuing Legal Education granted 5.7 Continuing Legal Education credits for Indiana attorneys who attended the Conference. As was done last year, a petition has been sent to the Ohio Supreme Court for CLE credits for those Ohio lawyers who attended this year’s conference.

Conference Breakout Session
The conference included a breakout session on using various types of materials under the concept of Fair Use. The attendees were divided into four groups and each was given a Fair Use scenario. One of the Conference experts was available to each group as a resource for determining what digital uses could and could not be invoked for educational Fair Use.

Conference Blogged Live by Chadwick Seagraves
This year, there was a unique perspective for the Conference since it was blogged live by Chadwick Seagraves, Information Technology Librarian, Marian College, Indianapolis. His blog on Digital Trek can be viewed,http://technorati.com/tag/copyright?from=http://infosciphi.info.


Conclusion
For the attendees, Digital Trek was a successful, one-day, concentrated tour de force through a plethora of intellectual property and copyright issues. The skills, legal proficiencies and professionalism of the presenters -- Dwayne K. Buttler, J.D.; Michelle L. Cooper, J.D.; Kenny D. Crews, J.D., Ph.D.; Donna L. Ferullo, J.D.; Carl M. Johnson; and James R. Williams, J.D. -- made the Fourth Annual Copyright Conference at Ball State University an educational and worthwhile Digital Trek!

For more information, contact Dr. Fritz Dolak, University Libraries’ Copyright and Intellectual Property Manager and Special Assistant to the Dean, University Copyright Center, FDolak@bsu.edu, (765) 285-5330.

This article first appeared in The Library Insider 5(4): 1; April 2007.

Ball State University's First Technology Enhanced Teaching in Distance Education Conference is Successful

Ball State University held its first Technology Enhanced Teaching in Distance Education Conference on Friday, February 16, 2007, at the L.A. Pittenger Student Center. The event drew about 60 participants, despite the weather.

Attendees were very pleased with the conference format and more so with the content. One person commented "Well planned and organized conference, good sessions with good speakers," and everyone who filled out the conference evaluation form indicated they would attend again next year.

Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs Dr. Terry S. King opened the conference with his remarks about technology in teaching and learning. Interim Associate Provost and Dean of Extended Education Frank Sabatine addressed the attendees as he outlined Ball State's goals for increasing enrollment in distance education and laid the plans for future conferences.

During the morning session, Ball State faculty delivered presentations in nine topics such as course design, organization, evaluation, and technologies available for online teaching.

"Organized and informative" was a comment made for the majority of the sessions. One attendee wrote, "Really wonderful, very helpful," while another wrote, "nice job with good suggestions … ."

Assessing student performance is an issue of interest to many faculty members, particularly when students are not in a specific place at a specific time for test taking. Panelists provided the attendees with ideas for alternative assessments and shared experiences about academic dishonesty. In the panel discussion, "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly" panelists shared a variety of experiences they have had with their online students and provided a rich overview of what it is like to teach students who are located around the country.

The presenters at the event were
· Bryan Byers, Criminal Justice and Criminology
· Cheryll Adams, Center for Gifted Studies and Talent Development
· Greg Siering, Office of Teaching Learning Advancement
· Jerome Kotecki, Physiology and Health Science
· Jim Flowers, Sam Cotton, and Richard Seymour, Department of Technology
· Karen Ford and Susan Tancock, Elementary Education
· Kristin Ritchey, Psychological Science
· Marilyn Ryan and Linda Siktberg, Nursing
· Matthew Stuve, Educational Studies
· Melinda Messineo, Sociology
· Roch King, Physical Education
· Suzanne S. Rice and Yasemin Tunç, University Libraries
· Vinayak Tanksale, Computer Sciences

Judging from the success of this year’s event, and encouraged by attendees and administrators alike, John Burton (Director, Electronic Programs, School of Extended Education) and I have already started to work on our next conference. I will be facilitating the program for next year’s conference which we hope will be a statewide event.

For more information, or to arrange for a technology consultation, contact Yasemin Tunç, Ball State University Libraries’ Director for Technology Training Support Services, YTunc@bsu.edu, (765) 285-5902.

This newsletter article first appeared in The Library Insider 5(3): 10; March 2007.

What Classroom Faculty at Ball State University Say about Library Instruction Services … Dr. Laura A. Snyder’s Perspective

Dr. Laura A. Snyder, Department of English, shared her perspective about the value and importance of the library instruction sessions at the Ball State University Libraries.

I have been delighted with how Library Instruction Services has tailored sessions to my students’ needs. When I bring classes to Bracken Library to address their various research projects, I know that Instructional Services’ librarians will provide the students with specific, detailed research strategies that help them with the general assignment I’ve given. Furthermore, the librarians also help me to stress how the specific research strategy we are employing is indicative of a pattern for research — from general reference sources in books and databases all the way through specific articles in journals and databases — that is useful across the curriculum.

This is an excerpt from an article, which first appeared in The Library Insider 5(3): 4; March 2007.

Ball State University's Student Participation in Library Instruction is High

The University Libraries’ Library Instruction Program introduces new researchers to the world of online and print resources in addition to providing advanced searching techniques to upper-level undergraduates and graduate students. It uses a multi-faceted approach of classroom and one-on-one instruction in the libraries as well as visiting academic classrooms on campus.

Bracken Library is equipped with two e-classrooms devoted to library instruction sessions. A review of e-classroom use during the Fall Semester 2006, as gauged by computer log-ins during the sessions, revealed interesting details about class participation and the University Libraries’ efforts to provide students with the tools and skills needed for research.

Forty-two percent (2,023) of the freshman class of 4,838 attended instruction sessions last fall. Entry-level students are the focus of the outreach efforts with the goal of providing Freshmen with basic research skills upon which they can build throughout their academic careers. This high level of involvement underscores the broad participation of introductory English classes and collaboration with their faculty.

The number of participants follows an inverse relationship; that is, as students progress from one year to the next and gain confidence in their research abilities, they participate less in formal library instruction sessions. Participation rates for students in Ball State’s other classes logging-in to the e-classrooms were Sophomores, 19%; Juniors, 14%; and Seniors, 9%.

Ten percent of the University’s graduate students were involved in e-classroom sessions during the same period. While smaller in number than the sweeping efforts with the Freshman class, upper-level instruction sessions are devoted to area-specific resources and provide the greater depth needed for concentrated academic pursuits.

The numbers cited above provide an interesting picture of the University Libraries’ Library Instruction Program. Equally insightful and important are comments garnered from faculty whose students make use of the sessions. They underscore the value of the skills and knowledge students gain during the sessions and reinforce the partnerships forged between the faculty and librarians.

For more information, contact Jeremiah S. Kinney, Library Teaching Assistant in Ball State University Libraries’ Information Services, JSKinney2@bsu.edu, (765) 285-8017.

This newsletter article first appeared in The Library Insider 5(3): 4; March 2007.

4th Annual Faculty Technology Showcase Highlights Use of Technology for Classroom Instruction at Ball State University

At the Fourth Annual Faculty Technology Showcase, held Wednesday afternoon, March 7, 2007 at Ball State University’s Bracken Library, several classroom faculty shared their use of technology in teaching and learning with the campus community through their interactive exhibits.

Dr. Arthur W. Hafner, Dean of University Libraries, said that the annual Faculty Technology Showcases are very popular and are well attended by other faculty. “Using this forum is an excellent way for faculty to share their experiences with others and to promote technology.”

Attendees were offered a unique opportunity to discuss the projects one-on-one with presenters and to see demonstrations of how specific technology is used in the classroom and on campus.

“Faculty teaching faculty has always been a successful approach to creating an enriched classroom,” said Dr. David R. Pearson, Associate Professor of Physical Education and chairperson for the Information Technology Advisory Group (ITAG).

“It was a great showcase,” said Ball State University President Jo Ann Gora, who spent time talking with several faculty and studying their exhibits. “I learned a lot.”

Dr. Donald E. Van Meter, Associate Dean of the College of Sciences and Humanities, said, “The Showcase was an excellent chance for me to see how faculty are using technology in teaching. I was especially interested in the ways Dr. Guohe Zheng uses a Tablet PC to teach his Japanese language classes. I was also quite interested in learning how GIS is being used in journalism classes.”

Yasemin Tunç, Director, University Libraries’ Technology Training Support Services, coordinated the popular fourth annual event with assistance from Technology Training Specialists Linda M. Putman and Barbara R. Wills. The unit’s personnel continually offer sessions to assist faculty and staff in learning about a variety of software and hardware for classroom instruction and office productivity.

A new concept called Distributed Podcasting was presented by Dr. Matthew J. Stuve, Department of Educational Studies and demonstrated by Van Hnem Bualteng, a graduate student enrolled in Dr. Stuve’s EdTec 485 class, Distance Learning and School Infrastructures. Attendees learned how anyone with a BookPod account can publish content to a common podcast.

Using Wikis for Collaboration was the focus of the exhibit by Dr. John B. Horowitz, Department of Economics. In his classes, he uses wikis to post topics and discussions in the classroom. He reports that students find the wikis a convenient “go to” site to review terms and concepts.

Dr. Lisa F. Huffman, Department of Educational Psychology, and Mark J. Lora, Assessment System Programmer, Teachers College, demonstrated Rubric-Based Assessment with rGrade. The rGrade software has all of the features of a grade book with the added power to include performance-based rubrics linked to course standards and objectives. Students can use this information to follow their own progress as they move through the course. “This means increased accountability for both instructors and students,” said Dr. Huffman.

Sheryl A. Swingley, Instructor, Department of Journalism, and Angela S. Gibson, University Libraries’ Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Specialist, demonstrated the Use of Geographic Information Systems in Journalism. The exhibit featured their collaboration in the classroom to show students how GIS software can be used in researching and reporting news to illustrate data or to show trends by creating data-driven maps.

Dr. Guohe Zheng, Modern Languages and Classics, featured Using a Tablet PC in the Classroom. “Thanks to a powerful PC featured called Phoentic Guide of Asian Language, students can visit various Japanese newspaper Web sites, copy any article they wish to read, then a Word file provides the pronunciation of all of the kanji or characters by using only a few clicks of the mouse,” he said. Dr. Zheng also uses the Tablet PC to input Japanese characters, teach note-taking by handwriting, mark lecture notes, convert handwritten texts into printed ones, and add pronunciation notes to kanji.

For more information, or to arrange for a technology consultation, contact Yasemin Tunç, Ball State University Libraries’ Director for Technology Training Support Services, YTunc@bsu.edu, (765) 285-5902.

This article first appeared in The Library Insider 5(3): 3; March 2007.

Ball State University Classes Cancelled due to Severe Winter Storm; Library Remains Open Except for 3 Hours

On Tuesday, February 13, 2007, Muncie, Indiana received 11 to 12 inches of snow or more, depending on where you were in the city or surrounding area. This was the region’s third largest snowfall in 60 years, according to the National Weather Service. The snow fell on top of an existing four-inch base. Wind gusts exceeded 41 mph on Tuesday afternoon, with visibility dropping to less than a quarter mile, and continued to blow causing drifting through the evening and Wednesday.

Ball State University cancelled classes on Tuesday; however, all Ball State offices remained open, including Bracken Library. As the day went on, Libraries’ staff called to report that they could not drive to work because of the inclement weather and poor condition of local streets and county roads. For this reason, Bracken closed at midnight rather than at its usual closing time of 3 a.m.

Late Tuesday evening, University President Jo Ann Gora announced that the University was closed, effective at 10:30 p.m. and that it would remain closed until Wednesday noon. As conditions worsened, this announcement was later modified to an all-campus closing of offices and classes until Wednesday at 5:00 p.m. The exception was that essential services personnel were required to report for work during the closure. The University’s Essential Services Units include:
· Residence and Dining Halls
· Public Safety
· University Computing Services
· Bracken Library
· Health Center
· Switchboard
· Student Center Hotel
· Heat Plant
· University Gyms
· WIPB-TV
· Indiana Public Radio

Special thanks are due to Suzanne S. Rice, Assistant Dean for Public Services; Jan A. Vance, Periodical/Reserve/Microforms Collection Supervisor; and student assistants Laura E. Shackelford and Max F. Hackman who worked Tuesday night until midnight. Similarly, Suzanne and Jan were first on hand Wednesday morning for Bracken Library’s 7 a.m. opening. They were joined by Diane L. Frankland, Circulation Supervisor, and Bradley C. Johnston, Educational Resources Center Booking/Reserves Assistant, both of whom walked to work to help open Bracken. Additional essential staff members arrived through the day as soon as they could find means to do so.

Thanks are also due to the University’s 28-person grounds crew who worked tirelessly to clear sidewalks, streets, and parking lots to allow students to park and move around campus. This included cleaning the walks leading to Bracken Library’s north and south entrances.

Thanks are also due to the University Libraries’ personnel who, despite the really bad weather, made it possible for the Libraries to provide our students and faculty with services for research and learning.

For more information, contact Arthur W. Hafner, Ph.D., M.B.A., Ball State University’s Dean of University Libraries, AHafner@bsu.edu, (765) 285-5277.

This newsletter article first appeared in The Library Insider 5(3): 2; March 2007. Photo courtesy of Derick L. Brattain.

Ball State University Libraries' Popular Bookmark Cafe Demonstrates Elements of Libraries' Destination Tagline

Nearly two years ago, Ball State University Dining conducted a survey about locating a café in Bracken Library. The idea received enthusiastic support from students and faculty. Their responses demonstrated that a café offering a hot and cold menu, beverages, and other items would prove to be a significant and worthwhile addition to their Bracken Library experience.

The Bookmark Café provides another important facet in the Ball State University dynamics of educational and social convergence. By fostering group interactivity in a relaxed setting where food and conversation are welcome and part of the academic library experience, the Bookmark Café expands the meaning of the University Libraries’ tag line, A destination for research, learning, and friends.

The Bookmark Café opened in early January near the start of Spring Semester 2007. The Café is an inviting facility of 900 square feet conveniently located at the southeast corner of Bracken’s first floor. Its menu consists of a wide variety of hot and cold beverages, and an appealing selection of sandwiches, desserts, soups, and salads. Café choices can be enjoyed sitting at one of the many comfortable chairs and tables inside the Café or just outside its doors or elsewhere throughout Bracken. Besides cash, students can also use their meal cards or pay with their credit or debit card.

In commenting about the significance of the Bookmark Café for the Libraries’ users, Dean of University Libraries Dr. Arthur W. Hafner said, “Students, faculty, and staff use this new, engaging café space as a unique social milieu to talk, share experiences, and discuss various and sundry matters such as academic, social, and political issues. In this way, the Bookmark Café contributes to the continuing transformation of the University Libraries as the primary, social, learning, and gathering space on campus for teamwork, communication, and creative student engagement.”

Ball State University President Jo Ann Gora attended the official opening of the Bookmark Cafe on March 7, 2007. In commenting about the importance of this new social space, she said, “The Café is an element in Ball State’s Strategic Plan for improving the university community’s quality of life through new construction and renovations of campus facilities to best support learning, scholarship, and institutional effectiveness as well as increase the vitality of the campus social and cultural life.”

Historically, coffee houses and libraries have served as egalitarian meeting places where community members could hear political debates, poets, writers, artists, and scientists talk and freely share their thoughts and ideas. The popularity of the Bookmark Café shows that people still need and enjoy informal gathering spots that provide a sense of community. Our new Café benefits and enhances our students’ learning, research, and social experiences while studying in Bracken Library.

Each day during the fall and spring academic semesters, over 4,600 persons use Bracken Library. Students, faculty, and staff come to talk with our librarians who help them with their research projects and assignments, to take advantage of the comfortable and friendly atmosphere for individual and collaborative learning, to access the print and digital collections, and to use the excellent technology, software, and printing that is freely accessible to them.

Plan to stop by the Bookmark Café during your next visit to Bracken Library to enjoy the friendliness and conviviality that shows the University Libraries continues to be A destination for research, learning, and friends.

For more information, contact Arthur W. Hafner, Ph.D., M.B.A., Ball State University’s Dean of University Libraries, AHafner@bsu.edu, (765) 285-5277.

This newsletter article first appeared in The Library Insider 5(3): 1; March 2007.