• Computer Applications
• Continuing Education
• Elections/Nominations Committee
• Long-Range Planning
• Newsletter Committee
• Public Relations & Membership
• Research
• Internet Presence Task Force

Computer Applications Committee

Members Present: Barbara Cressman, Valerie Jackson Feinman, David Levinson(incoming chair), and Stephen Westman.

The meeting opened with the chair noting that there had been two resignations since mid-winter, a member added at mid-winter, and two more coming onto the committee after 1997 annual, making a total of seven on the committee for the coming year.

Members decided to continue with the collection of web-based library instruction sites. The chair reported that the committee has collected over 600 sites, many of which currently reside in static HTML pages. However, the chair has completed development of a SQL-database-based application that allows for inputting, editing, deleting, and searching records, and the database is now ready to accept records. Given the complexity of the programming involved and the nature of the project, the committee decided that the information at the site would be accessed via searching, and the program would not create static HTML pages.

In cooperation with the incoming chair, members of the committee will undertake ongoing database development. The outgoing chair will continue to provide a home for the database and application as well as sysadmin support. In addition, he will provide training and support as needed.

The committee then turned its attention to the tasks necessary to complete the project:

1. Draw up and finalize criteria for inclusion. Appointed members draft the criteria and send them to the rest of the committee for comment. Final criteria should be accomplished by early fall.
2. Investigate integrating the database with web pages that the Research Committee has completed.
3. Review categories used to identify sites to make sure that they are clear and adequately represent items in the database. This review process will include members of the Computer Applications and the Steering Committees.
4. Once the criteria have been determined and the categories finalized, committee members will input the sites already found and add sites forwarded to the committee by others (using a webbed form yet to be developed).
5. Set up the site to conform with LIRT web pages style guidelines.
6. Notify members of the Steering Committee and the Electronic Resources Manager that the site is ready for evaluation (probably by mid-November).
7. Once the site has been reviewed, make the web site public (the goal is by mid-winter) and send out appropriate publicity.

Continuing Education Committee

Members present: Marilee Birchfield, Mari Ellen Leverence, Elizabeth Lorenzen, Marji MacKenzie, Janet Sheets, and Katherine Todd

The Continuing Education Committee began planning ways to further increase continuing education efforts for LIRT members with special attention being given to the needs of non-academic librarians.

Elections/Nominations Committee

Members Present: Barbara Conant, Carole Hinshaw, Rebecca Jackson (outgoing chair), and Carol Penka.

The Elections Committee met Saturday, June 28, 1997 to compile a slate of officers for 1998-99. Members recommended that the Elections Committee receive an annual list of LIRT members. Other actions include: compiling a list of former LIRT officers; adding request for nominations and a form to LIRT-L; encouraging LIRT members to run for ALA Council.

Long Range Planning Committee

Members Present: Alison Armstrong , Gale Burrow, Judy Clarence, Barbara Conant, Chuck Dintrone , Marsha Forys, Tim Grimes, Linda Sammataro, Diana Shonrock, and Maggie Zarnosky.

 Guests: Lynn Ossolinski (VP/President-Elect), Kari Lucas (President), Linda Chopra (5-Year Financial Planning)

The chair reviewed the committee membership for 1997-98, and Barbara Conant agreed to serve as chair in 1997/98. After extensive discussions of a draft of the "Report on Goals Evaluation Forms," the committee proposed revisions, which require further review. Upon completion of a final version, it will go to the Executive Board. Assignments were completed for the Environmental Scan.

Newsletter Committee

Members Present: Susan Clark, Jana Edwards, and David G. Sherwood.

The committee discussed a suggestion that the newsletter accept paid ads and explored related questions:

• the pricing of ads
• where payment for ads should be sent
• whether to require camera-ready copy or the electronic equivalent
• whether ads should be sent to the editor or to the production editor
• whether ads would appear in both the web and print editions
• the possibility that paid ads might supplant content

Committee members also discussed the creation of a new column to include news about the professional accomplishments, honors, and awards of LIRT members. 

Public Relations/Membership Committee

Members Present: Allisa Beck, Andy Corrigan (at booth), Marie Hayden, Donna Kanapes, Pixey Anne Mosley, Barbara Pilvin, and Marilyn Whitmore.

The Public Relations/Membership Committee continues its role in promoting LIRT membership through the LIRT booth and the popular Bites with LIRT program. LIRT membership as of March, 1997 is 1145, which is a slight increase over last year's 1112 members.

Bites with LIRT in Washington DC attracted over 30 librarians. The Bites sessions in San Francisco were also very popular with over 60 librarians meeting for lunch and conversation. Most registrations are now received and confirmed using electronic mail and the BI-L listserv, although a few still mail or fax the newsletter form. This year Pixey Mosley took over registration for Bites with LIRT and will continue in that position for the New Orleans conference.

With the help of our President Kari Lucas we were able to replace the LIRT booth banner that was lost in shipping to NYC. Kari's institution also provided the graphic design and production for our new membership brochure. As we require a check for $15.00 with each membership application, it is currently not possible to join LIRT via the LIRT website; however, our new member Lisa Beinhoff will post an electronic version of our membership brochure that can be printed and then mailed into ALA.

The LIRT booth requires many hands to make it a success. Andy Corrigan has taken responsibility for setting up and dismantling it for several years while Marie Hayden has coordinated the staffing by booth volunteers. Alissa Beck runs a prize drawing each day. This year we gave away the last remaining LIRT 15th anniversary canvas bags, several instruction books donated by Marilyn Whitmore, and lunch bags with the LIRT logo provided by Kari Lucas.

The booth is a gathering place for instruction librarians, and we made a concerted effort this year to update the materials on display. The BI-L listserv was useful in soliciting print materials for display in our booth in San Francisco. We now have excellent examples of websites and tutorials as well as various PowerPoint presentations. It is unfortunate that LIRT and ALA finances do not support having audio visual or online materials in the booth. It was suggested that we scan these examples so they could be available on the LIRT web page rather than packed up and stored at ALA between conferences. This suggestion will be passed on to Billie Peterson.

This year Member A-LIRT, our regular column in the newsletter, has featured Marie Hayden, Marilyn Whitmore, Lynn Ossolinski and Andy Corrigan.

A special thank you for their years of service to members Laura Bottoms and Barbara Pilvin who went off the committee this year.

Research Committee

Members Present: Lenora Berendt, Hilary Craiglow , Sherry DeDecker, Rachel Fenske , Jim Kapoun (incoming chair), Nerea Llamas, Elaine Nowick, , Gina Persichini, Sharon Stewart, Esteban Valdez, and Victoria Williamson.

Meetings: June 28 & 30, 1997

 The Research Committee has almost completed its project to gather web instruction tutorials into an annotated web site. The committee requested that this site be transferred to the main LIRT home page; in order to do this, guidelines for maintenance of the page were determined. Members have divided the sites into areas of responsibility, and have agreed to maintain and update the sites on a regular basis.

Once the site resides on the LIRT page, one rotating member will send revisions on a regular basis. The committee will review the site at each ALA conference, to determine if the site is still useful.

Internet Presence Task Force

Members Present: Marilee Birchfield, Jana Edwards, Mitch Stepanovich, and Billie Peterson.

The primary purpose of the meeting was to finalize the decision for handling the long-term storage, care, and upkeep of the LIRT web pages. The task force decided that the web pages would continue to reside on the server at Baylor University. If an unexpected problem arises with the Baylor server, the LIRT web site can be moved to the ALA server, as a contingency plan. Options for the location of the LIRT web pages will be reviewed each year, and if a more viable solution presents itself, it will be pursued. A formal report with this recommendation was submitted to the LIRT Executive Board on Tuesday, July 1.

Also discussed was the form to be used by LIRT entities when they propose a project that will result in the development of the LIRT web pages. This form was also submitted to the LIRT Executive Board on Saturday, June 28 for discussion and approval at the July 1 Executive Board meeting.

This was the last meeting of the LIRT Internet Presence Task Force because its term came to an end at the end of the ALA 1997 Annual Conference. The committee chair expresses much thanks to Marilee Birchfield, Jana Edwards, Mitch Stepanovich, and Steve Westman for their participation in and contributions to the outcomes of the work done by this Task Force.