§ SAALCK Directors' Meeting
March 4, 1988
Minutes
Present: Coy Harmon, President (MuSu); Larry Besant (MoSu); Michael Binder (WKU); Martha Bowman (UL); Michael Loch (UK, for Paul Willis); Don Lyons (KSU); June Martin (EKU, for Ernest Weyhrauch); Rebecca Sturm (NKU, for Mary Ellen Elsbernd).
Invitees: Ron Moore (UL) and Jim Nelson (KDLA).
The meeting convened at 10 a.m. in the conference room of Ekstrom Library, UL. The minutes of the December 4, 1987 meeting were approved.
Ron Moore, Vice President for Information Technology, UL, presented a report on behalf of the Kentucky Communications Task Force regarding “possible changes to revitalize KECNET by moving to a packet switch type technology.”
Jim Nelson, State Librarian and Commissioner, Department for Libraries and Archives, gave a report on behalf of KDLA updating the directors on current activities. Among the items discussed were: the continuing responsibility of KDLA for statewide library development and cooperation at the same time that an independent organization (KLN) is developing a statewide cooperative library network; the current transition phase that KENCLIP is undergoing; a bill introduced in the Senate (No. 234) that concerns library theft; maintaining the initiative with the computer and telecommunications specialists (reference to the discussion held earlier with Ron Moore); and the depository role of the state library for state agency documents. He also addressed the topics of government documents in electronic format and the possibility of control of access to federal information by the information industry.
Michael Binder, Coordinator of the SAALCK Telefacsimile Library Network, updated the directors on the status of the network. Discussion followed on the difficulties of implementing telefacsimile-based library services in tight budgetary times. There was consensus that by July 1988, SAALCK should provide a report to both the Council of Higher Education and the Council of Presidents regarding the status of the network. There was also discussion regarding the positive benefits of offering FAX services to the university community.
Michael Loch described the problem which UK is presently facing re: Serials; methods being applied to identify high, medium and low priority journals; and approaches being used at the university to cut subscriptions. He felt there was growing understanding of the inflation problem being faced by the library. The directors generally voiced belief that library concerns are being better communicated and were pleased that the presidents have been including library funding problems in their discussions with Governor Wilkinson. SAALCK members were encouraged to send their cancellation lists to the others. The UK list of serials cancellations is being put on BITNET, Michael Loch reported.
It was announced by Rebecca Sturm that Mary Ellen Elsbernd has resigned as library director at NKU.
The next regular meeting of SAALCK will be held April 8, 1988, in conjunction with the KLA Academic Section’s Conference at the Seelbach Hotel in Louisville.
Respectfully submitted,
/signed/
Michael Binder
Vice President/President-Elect