Evolving research library environments—including changes in technology, student learning, and scholarly practices—call for a fresh look into the role of research library liaisons, the people who proactively connect the library with its users. The Association of Research Libraries (ARL) is gathering liaison supervisors from ARL member libraries at the 2016 American Library Association (ALA) Midwinter Meeting in Boston, Massachusetts, to continue the conversation around new roles for liaison librarians.
If you are a liaison supervisor in an ARL library, please join us for this free event on Monday, January 11, 10:00 a.m.–noon at the W Boston,100 Stuart Street, to hear highlights from the June 2015 pilot liaison institute held at Cornell University, where over 45 liaison librarians from Cornell, Columbia University, and the University of Toronto discussed their changing roles.
A panel of top-level liaison supervisors from each of the three participating libraries will be convened by Judy Ruttenberg of the Association of Research Libraries, followed by an open question-and-answer session. The panel will summarize what they have learned from liaison librarians and functional specialists on such topics as:
- How liaisons see their roles now and in the future
- How liaisons see themselves being able to embrace new activities while honoring legacy library practices
- How liaisons see themselves engaging with new functional specialists
- How liaisons see the challenges in reaching out confidently to university stakeholders
- Suggestions and lessons learned for other libraries considering similar liaison institutes
The panelists will also offer some of their own observations and recommendations for consideration, and reflect on the future of research library workforce transformation and development.
Panelists will include:
- Barbara Rockenbach, Director of the Humanities and History Libraries, Columbia University Libraries
- Kornelia Tancheva, Associate University Librarian for Research and Learning Services, Cornell University Library
- Rita Vine, Head of Faculty and Student Engagement, University of Toronto Libraries
Event Details
Title: ARL Library Liaison Supervisors Meeting
Date: Monday, January 11, 2016
Time: 10:00 a.m.–noon EST
Location: W Boston,100 Stuart Street, Boston, Massachusetts 02116
Fee: None
Registration: Please RSVP to judy@arl.org by December 1, 2015. You do not need to register for the ALA Midwinter Meeting to participate in this session.
About the Association of Research Libraries
The Association of Research Libraries (ARL) is a nonprofit organization of 124 research libraries in the US and Canada. ARL’s mission is to influence the changing environment of scholarly communication and the public policies that affect research libraries and the diverse communities they serve. ARL pursues this mission by advancing the goals of its member research libraries, providing leadership in public and information policy to the scholarly and higher education communities, fostering the exchange of ideas and expertise, facilitating the emergence of new roles for research libraries, and shaping a future environment that leverages its interests with those of allied organizations. ARL is on the web at https://www.arl.org/.
