American Library Association
Association of College and Research Libraries
ANSS CURRENTS
The Newsletter of the ACRL Anthropology & Sociology Section
Vol. 16, No. 1 ISSN 0888-5559 May 2001
ACRL ANSS PROGRAM
Sunday, June 17 , 2001, 9:00 A.M.-12:30 P.M.
“Social Movements, Marginalized Groups and the Internet: Issues for Librarians and Researchers”
This program will discuss some of the implications and effects of using the Internet as a tool for social movements and for increasing visibility of marginalized or indigenous groups. The Internet has become an important tool for disseminating information and organizing support on an international level. Researchers and scholars are working with many marginalized populations and indigenous groups to establish Internet access, digitize resources, and help create web pages.
The panel will highlight several projects and what librarians need to know to reach the evolving needs of information seekers in the rapidly changing online environment. There are four panelists:
Dr. Marc Becker teaches Latin American history at Truman State University and is the founder of the web site NativeWeb. NativeWeb began in 1994 as an attempt to extend technological resources to indigenous peoples around the world. As part of this mission, NativeWeb has assisted indigenous groups in establishing a presence on the Internet. His talk will consider the possibilities and pitfalls of bringing modern technology to marginalized areas in the world. Dr. Harry Cleaver is an economist from the University of Austin Texas. He has authored several articles on the use of the Internet by indigenous peoples, especially the Zapatistas in Mexico. He will discuss the role the Internet played in the Zapatista movement in Chiapas and how Internet communication is effecting the political fabric of national and international dialogue.
Ms. Patti Mallin is from the Institute of Global Communications (IGC) headquartered in San Francisco. This group is the host of such web sites as PeaceNet, EcoNet, AntiRacismNet, and WomensNet. IGC strives to bring Internet tools and online services to organizations and activists working on peace, economic and social justice, human rights, environmental protection, labor issues and conflict resolution. She will discuss her group’s activities, and address the broader issues of online advocacy. Mr. Itibari Zulu is the Director of the UCLA Center for African American Studies. Mr. Zulu will discuss the dynamics of the concept “information apartheid”.
Information apartheid is the “practice or policy of denying, restricting, or altering information, and its access by an informed powerful elite designed to dominate the social, economic, and political information of a less powerful or less informed population.” He will review its implications and recommend courses of action to counter its effects.
ANSS TOUR IN SAN FRANCISCO
Tuesday, June 19, 10 A.M. – 12 Noon
See the internationally famous murals of San Francisco’s Historic Mission District in the company of a professional muralist. All tours are preceded by a brief slide show on the history and process of mural art. Participants view over 75 murals in a 6-block walk which usually lasts around two hours. Admission for the tour will be $8.
Attendees should arrive at 9:45 a.m. at 2981 24th Street. Directions and maps will be on ANSSWeb. For more information see Mural Arts & Visitors Center.
ALA Annual Conference, San Francisco, CA Preliminary Schedule of ANSS MeetingsFriday, 15 June 2001 Saturday, 16 June 2001 Sunday, 17 June 2001 Monday, 18 June 2001 Tuesday, 19 June 2001 |
COMMITTEE REPORTS
ANSS Executive Committee
Cathy Moore-Jansen, Chair
The ANSS Executive Committee meetings were held on January 13 and 15 during ALA Midwinter, in Washington, D.C. We heard reports from all section committees, discussion groups, and ACRL liaisons; shared information; and addressed issues of concern to the Section. The following is a summary of key discussions at the two meetings.
The Executive Committee continued discussions about the request from ACRL’s Criminal Justice Discussion Group to become a standing committee within ANSS. After much discussion, the Committee approved a motion for the Chair to extend a formal invitation to members of CJDG to join ANSS as our third discussion group, not as a committee. The invitation will be extended before Annual.
Robert Rose, ACRL Director at Large and our Board liaison, and I reported on several ACRL initiatives including this year’s Environmental Scan of internal and external trends affecting academic librarianship, the recently completed ACRL Member Survey, and the continued implementation of the Strategic Plan.
There was some discussion about how ANSS should spend $1500 allocated by ACRL to each section to be used during FY2001 for activities that support the new Strategic Plan. Ideas ranged from providing funds for ANSS members to attend professional society meetings to funding special ANSS publications to creating a webcast of the ANSS program at Annual. A final decision is pending further discussions.
Isabel del Carmen Quintana presented a draft proposal on behalf of COPAR, the Council for the Preservation of Anthropological Records, to create a new committee to funnel anthropological and sociological subject heading recommendations to the Library of Congress. It was decided to have a wider discussion of the issue among ANSS members and revisit the proposal at Annual.
There was a discussion about a 30th anniversary party that the Membership Committee is planning for Annual. Current plans are to have a reception after our program at Annual — we hope to see everyone there!
More detailed information on the work of each committee and discussion group is included in this issue of ANSS Currents. Also, you are welcome to attend any of the committee and discussion group meetings, except the Nominating committee meeting which is closed.
ANSS Conference Planning Committee 2001
Erin Daix, Chair
The Committee reviewed the status of speakers and the tour. All speakers have been confirmed and have been sent letters with presentation specifics. Daix discussed the budget and fundraising efforts. The Committee received funding from Cambridge Scientific Abstracts to cover travel and lodging expenses of one non-San Francisco speaker. The Committee also discussed possible co-sponsorship with the Social Responsibilities Round Table. Daix will work on a web page to be linked from ANSSWeb. The web page will have program and tour information, including tour directions and maps. The tour, a Mission District Mural Walk, will be on Tuesday morning at 10 am. The cost of the tour will be $8 per person.
Bibliography Committee
Wade Kotter, Chair
The Bibliography Committee met twice during the ALA Midwinter Meetings in Washington, DC. Janet Stein’s review of Zoological Record as a tool for research in anthropology was discussed at our meeting on Saturday morning. Janet will bring a revised version to the upcoming Annual Conference in San Francisco. On Sunday morning we edited Mimmo Bonanni’s review of Ecology Abstracts. Mimmo will be circulating revisions electronically with the goal of submitting it for publication in the May 2001 issue of ANSS Currents. Jim Williams continues to work on his review of Social Work Abstracts, which will also be discussed in San Francisco. In addition, committee members are looking into the following products as subjects for future reviews: Alternative Press Index, BIOSIS, and Bibliography of Native North Americans.
Liaison Committee
Christine Whittington, Chair
The Liaison Committee is still working on the idea for an Ask-A-Sociology or Anthropology Librarian form that could be linked from the ANSS website. Input from Liaison Committee members and those who sent comments by e-mail indicate that most people like the form, but we need more definition of policies, procedures, and the scope of the service. The form now goes to an e-mail box or collects information on a website. The Committee also discussed the possibility of offering live reference service or scripted answers at some point, but did not want to hold off on establishing an e-mail reference service now. The Chair will continue to work on the form, including a draft of policies and procedures.
The Liaison Committee also discussed the possibility of taking the lead in establishing an annotated bibliography database on public anthropology, based on the model of Berkeley’s Current Cites: An Annotated Bibliography of Selected Articles, Books, and Digital Documents on Information Technology.
Membership Committee
Christine Whittington, Co-Chair
The newly-established Membership Committee met for the first time. Co-Chairs are Brian Quinn and Christine Whittington. The Committee is working on plans for an event to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the Anthropology and Sociology Section at the ALA Annual Conference in San Francisco (2001). Although no final decision has been made, the Committee is thinking of having a party after the Executive and Membership Committee Meeting. The Membership Committee wants to continue having informal gatherings to which we invite new or potential members. The Midwinter gathering at the Capitol City Brewing Company attracted only a few participants. The Committee hopes to identify a more convenient time and place for the Annual Conference gathering.
Nominating Committee 2002
Sally Willson Weimer, Chair
The ANSS Nominating Committee is eagerly working to select candidates for the Spring 2002 elections, i.e., candidates to run for the offices of ANSS Vice Chair-Chair Elect and Member at Large. Both positions will begin at the conclusion of ALA Annual Conference, 2002. Also, both positions require that you are a current ANSS and ACRL member and that you plan to attend both Midwinter and Annual Conference meetings if at all possible. The Vice Chair-Chair Elect serves on the Conference Program Planning Committee his or her first two years in office. The Member at Large serves for a two-year term.
More information is given in the ACRL ANSS Manual for Officers, Committee Chairs, and Members. Please contact any of the former Vice Chair / Chair Elects or members at large for their advice and suggestions. To volunteer, contact Maggie Dittemore, James Williams, or me at the Donald C. Davidson Library, Information Services Dept., University of California, Santa Barbara, 93106. Thanks so much, and we look forward to hearing from you.
Publications Committee
Erin Daix, Chair
The Committee’s main agenda item was the discussion of proposed ANSSWeb changes. Comments were positive and it was decided that changes would be implemented soon. Suggestions included having full committee rosters with names and institutions. There was also much discussion about an ANSS Logo. The logo would be an identifying graphic to be used on the web pages and on ANSS Currents. Quintana has volunteered to look into creating a new ANSS logo.
The Committee also discussed updating the ANSS brochure. An updated brochure will be provided at Annual at all meetings. Brochures will also be given to the Membership Committee to be included in new membership recruitment materials.
Daix is still working on scanning back issues of ANSS Currents in Adobe Acrobat PDF format. She plans to have these completed by the Annual Meeting.
Review and Planning Committee
Sally Willson Weimer, Chair
The Chair & members of the Review & Planning committee participated in a lively discussion of the Section’s goals and structure. One part of the committee’s charge is to study and make a recommendation on the proposal to establish an ad hoc or standing criminal justice/criminology discussion group. This proposal was discussed with many differing viewpoints. It was suggested that our Section Chair would ask the ACRL Criminal Justice/Criminology Discussion Group Chair if her group would be interested in joining our Section as an ad hoc or standing discussion group. I welcomed criticisms and concerns expressed by committee members and visitors.
Attendees also discussed the Section’s ACRL ANSS Strategic Plan Implementation Annual Activity Report to ACRL, 1999-2000, which is available at __ . A study of this report gives the committee an idea of the range of the Section’s activities and programs with an understanding of our goals, concerns, and opportunities for growth and development to serve our members and the broader research community creatively and effectively.
I want to thank committee members and other attendees for the ideas and suggestions. I have enjoyed working with each of you on the section’s goals and structure.
DISCUSSION GROUP REPORTS
Anthropology Librarians Discussion Group
Brita Servaes, Convener
Susan Skomal, Director of Publication Services of the American Anthropological Association (AAA), was our guest speaker. She explained the AAA publications programs and her plans for the future, which focus on getting all AAA publications online. This started a lively discussion about the merits of different online distributors and publication models.
Susan invited interested librarians to serve as advisers to AAA on questions of online publishing. She also suggested that ANSS consider forming an AAA librarians interest group in order to be able to have a professional presence at AAA annual meetings and to work more closely with AAA. Also, the Anthropology Librarians’ Discussion Group is still looking for a co-convener!
Sociology Librarians Discussion Group
Dana Edwards, Co-Convener
The main topic for discussion was library instruction by sociology librarians. Co-Conveners were Dana Edwards, California State University, Hayward, and Stephen Fowlkes, Tulane University.
A lively discussion touched upon several issues being faced by sociology librarians in the academic setting. The majority of librarians present indicated that their instructional activities, comprising both classroom instruction and individual student and faculty consultations, have increased, sometimes dramatically, during the past few years. Some felt that the proliferation of electronic resources was directly related to this increasing instructional load. Several librarians present discussed their use of the World Wide Web in instruction, by making resources available and creating class-specific course materials. Some interesting aspects of librarians’ interactions with sociology faculty members in regard to instructional activities were touched upon. One librarian discussed the possibility of discipline-based, credit bearing library instruction courses. Several present reported that they provide one-time, drop-in workshops on specific resources and research strategies in the discipline. The discussion provided a useful and welcome forum for sociology librarians to discover what their colleagues are doing and to share ideas for library instruction.
GET INVOLVED IN ANSS!
ANSS-Web
Please visit our ANSS-Website to learn more about officers, committees, discussion groups, programs, and publications.
ANSS-L
To subscribe to the ANSS-L listserv, send an e-mail message to LISTSERV@UCI.EDU containing the following message, SUBSCRIBE ANSS-L (your name). It’s a great way to keep informed on new topics and developments.
REVIEW
ANSS Currents (ISSN 0888-5559) is published by the Anthropology and Sociology Section of the Association of College and Research Libraries, a division of the American Library Association, 50 E. Huron St., Chicago IL 60611; (800) 545-2433, ext. 2515.
����American Library Association, 2001.
Co-Editors: Isabel del Carmen Quintana, Tozzer Library, Harvard University, 21 Divinity Ave., Cambridge MA 02138- 2019. (617) 495-2292 quintana@fas.harvard.edu
Mary M. Nofsinger, Holland Library, Washington State University, Pullman, WA 99164-5610, (509) 335-8614; (509) 332-1274. mnofsing@wsu.edu
Production & Circulation Office: 50 E. Huron St., Chicago IL 60611.
ANSS Currents is published semi-annually in May and November and is distributed, at no additional charge, to members of the section. Back issues are available from ALA/ACRL, 50 East Huron St., Chicago IL 60611.
Chair, 2000-2001: Cathy L. Moore-Jansen, Wichita State University Libraries, 1845 Fairmount, Wichita, KS 67260- 0068. (316) 978-5080. moorejan@twsuvm.uc.twsu.edu
Vice-Chair/Chair-Elect, 2000-2001: Anna L. DeMiller, Reference Services, Colorado State University Libraries, Fort Collins, CO 80523-1019. (970) 491-1858. ademiller@manta.colostate.edu