Communicate with the Senate

Present: Ross Christensen, Harry Davis, Jim Hollyer, Karen Jolly, Rebecca Knuth, Sara Rutter (recorder), Robert Sullivan, Ginny Tanji

1) Organization

Jim Hollyer and Rebecca Knuth agreed to be co-chairs of the task force.

2) A discussion about assistance for maintaining a webpage and posting minutes led to suggestions that Rutter find out from the SEC if the task force could have a budget to fund student help for administrative support.

Action: Rutter will pursue question regarding budget to fund clerical assistance to the task force.

3) The timeline for producing a report was discussed. The group decided that it would be better to complete the report earlier than April, perhaps by February or earlier so that it might have an affect on the budget requests.

Knuth will be away September through December. Sullivan will be away for the summer beginning in mid-May and several members will be away in July to August.

4) Charge to Task Force (discussion, brainstorming)

a) It was noted that a graduate student and undergraduate student are to be members of the task force. Jolly recommended going through GSO and ASUH. The task force can go to these organizations with suggestions for candidates but should allow GSO and ASUH to make the decision.

ACTION: SEC will contact ASUH and GSO for a member.

b) Discussion revolved around item 2 of the charge with the group agreeing that collecting survey data that has already been produced would be more efficient than launching a big survey. The group agreed that the three categories of users was important to keep in mind as each had different expectations of the library and different resource needs.

c) It was noted that besides the three groups identified in the charge there are community, both UH and outside of UH users and Pacific region users. Davis observed that UH Manoa library is the only research library in the state. d) Because the library supports research a case should be made to receive a share of the RTRF. We need to know how much RTRF the library has received over the last 10-15 years. RTRF is not currently distributed to the library in an institutionalized manner but as a handout from the VCRGE.

e)A suggestion that the task force might look at the reporting lines of the library; perhaps the library is not reporting to the correct vice chancellor or perhaps the library should report to the system.

f) Hollyer observed that the library mission uses language that is not as strong as it should be; rather than "support," the library should use, "is the premier library inÉ" Look at value and quantitative data to develop alignment between amount of library funding and value, rather than focusing on the "needs." We need language for the intangibles, for the value given. We need to articulate the value of a collection in terms of a curriculum and research. If it is important for a student to understand how knowledge is developed then they need to understand how knowledge is shared within their discipline.

Keeping up with other institutions-benchmarking with peers FAQ's Can the university afford a premier library? Is google a substitute for a library? Why do we have to buy books, can we just use ILL? Costs of ILL, restricting access to current content Is the library a museum? What are the effects on the library and by extension the university if the library cannot purchase the books-long term effects? What is the future legacy? Hidden costs in faculty buying books, photocopying borrowed books

g) A list of FAQ's on the web would be a good way to begin showing the value of the library.

ACTION: Christensen will circulate a message to the library staff to request input on FAQ's so that questions will be posted to the web with facts and figures to support the answers.

h) The library has a premier Pacific collection, what will happen to its status? Collection levels, what are the mandates for the different collections? Does the Research intensive status have library standards? The collection policies are on the web and will be linked to the task force's webpage. How is the library not just a box-variations between disciplines in collections, requirements for materials.

ACTION: Rutter will link to collection policy page from library task force page

i)There is an economic reason for the existence of libraries in that there is a shared knowledge-base that is created based on the assumption that it is more cost effective to share resources because individuals cannot afford to purchase all that they need.

The task force should look at funding streams to the library and see how they've changed over the last 15 years. A steady budget in a time of 7-10% inflation is essentially a cut.

ACTION: Hollyer will call Kathy Cutshaw to get funding data for last 15 years to see how library fits into UHM funding.

ACTION: Hollyer will also request RTRF distribution information through ORS.

ACTION: Rutter will ask for internal funding data from John Awakuni, library fiscal officer, for the past 15 years

Cost of ILL for books, journal articles, consortial deals, staffing. Is ILL a cost effective measure instead of purchasing books or journals.

ACTION: Rutter will work on getting this data from the ILS office.

5) A meeting with the interim University Librarian, Paula Mochida, and fiscal officer, John Awakuni was suggested.

ACTION: Christensen will find some times when Paula and John can meet and take them back to the group. Our next meeting will then be confirmed.