Annual Report (2004)
ARLIS/NA
Professional Development Committee


Leadership Update

2004-2005 Chairperson: 

Heather Ball
Head, Art and Architecture Library
Virginia Tech

2004-2005 Executive Board Liaison: 

Carol H. Graney
Director of University Libraries
University of the Arts

2004-2005 Committee Members: 

Jacqueline H. Allen
Director of Libraries and Imaging Services
Dallas Museum of Art

Tom Reed Caswell
Assistant University Librarian
Architecture and Fine Arts Library

Sara Harrington
Art Librarian
Rutgers University

V. Heidi Hass (PDC Chairperson, 2005-2006)
Head of the Reference Collection
Pierpont Morgan Library

Angelica Moyes (New PDC Member, 2004-2005)
573 North G Street
Salt Lake City, UT 84103
We were pleased to have Angelica Moyes join our committee this year.  She attended the 2004 meeting and has actively participated in PDC projects.

Henry Pisciotta
Arts and Architecture Librarian
University Libraries
Pennsylvania State University
 

Activities

2004 Meeting in NYC

Several guests joined the 2004 PDC meeting to discuss core competencies, mentoring, or to show an interest in becoming a member on the committee.  There was a lively discussion about mentoring.  The committee decided to form a subcommittee to look at issues concerning mentoring, with the intention of presenting recommendations the following year.  Deborah Ultan and Tony White (guests) joined the Mentoring Subcommittee/Task Force, headed by Heidi Hass.  The internship award was discussed, particularly ways in which the PDC members could facilitate awardees involvement in ARLIS/NA.  A draft of the core competencies document was reviewed, followed by discussion.  Two Core Competencies subcommittee members joined the meeting as guests, Elizabeth Clarke and Barbara Prior.  A project was initiated to write/design an ARLIS/NA recruitment brochure, led by Jacqui Allen and Tom Caswell.

 

ARLIS/NA Internship Award

·          ARLIS/NA 2004-2005 Internship Award  The committee selected Lauren Edison of Brooklyn, NY. Internship Location: Department of Collection Information Systems of the Pierpont Morgan Library Supervisor: Maria Oldal, Head of Cataloging and Database Maintenance

Time period: January-May 2005

Task: Update or create records for holdings in the Department of Drawings and Prints, and other curatorial departments as needed, in CORSAIR, the Library's OPAC.

·          ARLIS/NA 2003-2004 Internship Award The committee selected Cathy Billings of Seattle, Washington.  She completed her internship at the National Gallery of Art Library Image Collections.  Her supervisor was Gregory Most.  Cathy also attended the 2004 annual meeting in NYC.  Here are excerpts from her 5-page internship report:

During my five weeks at the National Gallery, I cataloged and mounted 190 slides for the National Gallery’s Slide Collection. Cataloging included creating name and subject authority records and bibliographic, holding, and item records using the MARC format and Endeavor Information Systems Voyager application.

The beauty of the ARLIS/NA Internship Award is that it provides an opportunity to have an experience that you might not be able to arrange on your own. I wanted to take full advantage of that opportunity and was fortunate to be able to carry out my internship at the National Gallery of Art Slide Library under the supervision of Gregg Most.

This internship gave me practical experience in an art library setting that will serve me well in whatever art librarian position I eventually find myself. In particular, I was able to refresh my knowledge of the MARC format and the Art & Architecture Thesaurus facets, and my descriptive cataloging skills. I also became familiar with biographical resources in the field of architecture. I was reminded that a cataloger must be willing to bend the rules to meet the needs of any given institution and its users. Lastly, I feel I know what it would be like to work in a museum library, as opposed to an art library in an academic setting with which I am more familiar.

I am grateful to the ARLIS/NA Professional Development Committee for making this wonderful experience possible, and equally grateful to Gregg Most and his talented, friendly, and knowledgeable staff at the National Gallery of Art Image Collections.

PDC Website and Internship Roster  The website and roster are regularly kept up-to-date by Tom Caswell, the PDC’s current website administrator.  The internship roster gained 17 new entries this year, representing internship opportunities from across the United States and Canada.  Our current total is 50 entries (after some deletions).  The 2004 draft of ARLIS/NA Core Competencies for art Information Professionals was added in April 2004.

Core Competencies Subcommittee Heather Ball and Sara Harrington are leading the subcommittee’s effort to write and edit the competencies statement. Suggestions from subcommittee members, members of the PDC, and the Executive Board were integrated into a final draft. This draft is a major revision of the 2004 version and incorporates the results of a perception survey to which 136 people responded.  The final draft will be presented to incoming and outgoing members of the Executive Board a few weeks prior to the 2005 annual meeting for review.  The subcommittee will seek approval of the document by the Board at the annual meeting.  Once approved, it will be published on the ARLIS/NA website, and will be included in an Occasional Paper on core competencies and core curricula in the art information field.

John Taormina stepped off the committee in 2004 due to SEI responsibilities.

 

Mentoring Task Force A summary of findings will be presented to the PDC in April.  The task force has produced a literature review and has been studying similar associations’ mentoring programs.  Members include:  Heidi Hass and Tony White (co-chairs), Deborah Ultan, Angelica Moyes, and Miguel Juarez.

Recruitment Brochure  Tom Caswell and Angel Moyes report that the brochure has been edited.  A draft is currently being reviewed by members of the Diversity and Membership Committees, asking for further input on the content.  After approval by other members of the PDC this spring, a new brochure with an updated design and content will be presented at the PDC meeting in Houston.

Planning Issues & Goals 2005-2006

·         Website – include bios of previous internship award recipients and excerpts from their reports.

·         Internship roster – call for submissions needed again soon. Updates? Is all info correct?

·         Complete writing/designing brochure – send off to printing.

·         Propose Banff conference session on mentoring with guest speaker Eileen McGowan, an expert on mentoring.

 

Issues for the Executive Board

1.        ARLIS/NA Internship Award  The committee was asked by the Board to consider the possibility of forming a separate Internship Award Committee.  The PDC agrees unanimously with this decision but makes the following recommendations:

·         The Internship Award program includes a important mentoring component that should not be lost in the formation of a separate committee.  Members of the committee, particularly the chair, serve as mentors to the award recipient throughout the year, and in some cases this mentoring has continued as recipients start their new careers.  Recipients are introduced to ARLIS/NA members at chapter and national conferences.  Appointing members with PDC/Internship Award experience would ensure a continuation of this tradition.

2.        Core Competencies - recommendations

·         The PDC will continue to revise and amend the document on a regular basis, based on feedback from constituents.

·         The final and approved document should be posted on the AWS.

·         Other recommendations will be included in a report to the Board at the 2005 annual meeting.

3.        Committee meetings – length and timing

·         For an active committee, the one-hour length of time is too short.  Is there/could there be more flexibility in designating committee meeting lengths at future conferences?

·         Heidi pointed out that the PDC meeting is regularly scheduled at the same time as the New Members meeting.  Perhaps it could be scheduled so that new members could attend the PDC, and so that PDC and PDC members with mentoring interests could attend the New Members meeting.

 

ARLIS/NA Strategic Plan Action Items 2000-2005:  Professional Development Committee

1. Investigate new methods of offering programs to the membership such as developing an ARLIS/NA summer institute with an affiliated organization, establishing an ARLIS/NA speakers bureau, co-hosting or sponsoring events with organizations and institutions, as well as utilizing computer technology through distance learning and web-based education programs. (I B, II A B C).  No action to report at this time.

2. Investigate the possibility of an Education Coordinator for the Society. (I B) No action to report at this time.

3. Create, working closely with Divisions, Sections, and Chapters, a roster of libraries and visual resource collections that support internships in art librarianship. (I D)  Roster gained 17 new entries totaling 50 entries.

4. Expand the existing mentor program to include new members, mid-career professionals, committee chairs, and first-time presenters thus increasing membership retention as well as offering leadership training for Society members. Work with Chapters to develop ways to identify local mentors. (I E, IV C) A mentoring task force was appointed.

5. Develop a core curriculum for art librarianship and visual resources curatorship and create a strategy, working closely with the Executive Board, for active recommendation of this course in graduate programs. (I A)  Work is in progress to create a statement of core competencies.  Final draft will be ready for Executive Board approval at the 2005 annual meeting.  On a related note, an Occasional Paper is being written on core competencies and core curricula for art librarianship and visual resources.

Submitted by Heather Ball, Chairperson, on behalf of members of the PDC.

h.ball@vt.edu

540-231-9272