GENERAL NEWS: Milwaukee, October, Job Ad

Dear Friends and Colleagues:

I am off to Milwaukee for the American Society for Information Science and Technology conference. We are taking all six of our Ph.D. students thanks to the IMLS grant for the program. I'm sure you will hear many tales when we return. I am chair of the publications committee for the Society and monograph editor for the ASIST series that Information Today, Inc. publishes. I'm also doing a paper on Social computing, folksonomies, and image tagging: Reports from the research front with Hemalata Iyer, Diane Neal, Abebe Rorissa and JungWon Yoon. Dr. Jinmook Kim is doing a paper on Information seeking and use of low-level students with Jin Soo Chung. The complete program is at http://www.asis.org/Conferences/AM07/program.html

We will have a display table for SLIS with the announcement of our faculty searches. I have pasted the ad below so you can help us search for our new colleagues. Instructions on how to apply are at the end of the page.

I'll send your five things next update. In the meantime, enjoy October and let us know if there is anything we can do for you!

sam

FACULTY JOB AD:
The University of South Carolina School of Library and Information Science in Columbia invites applications and nominations for multiple tenure track faculty positions at all levels.

Pursue your interests in an environment that provides support and encouragement as part of a collaborative work culture. Minimum requirements include an earned doctorate in library and information science or a related field, a clearly articulated research agenda, and enthusiasm for and excellence in teaching.

The School is particularly interested in candidates with a specialization in any of the following areas: information science, information management, information organization and retrieval, research design, technology, academic libraries, special libraries, and literacy. Selected candidates will be expected to provide leadership and help focus the research, teaching, and service missions of the School in her/his area of specialization.

The School of Library and Information Science, fully accredited by the American Library Association (ALA), and approved by the National Council for the Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE), offers the Master of Library and Information Science degree and two programs of advanced study beyond the Master's degree (the Certificate of Advanced Graduate Study in Library and Information Science and the Specialist in Library and Information Science) and a doctoral degree. The undergraduate degree program in information science begins in Fall 2008. The School has a strong commitment to distance education throughout the state of South Carolina and beyond. The School is one of two Schools in the College of Mass Communications and Information Studies. The second is the School of Journalism and Mass Communications. Although the two Schools are structurally separate, they are involved in a number of collaborative activities, intend to share faculty expertise, and have merged the leadership boards of their respective advisory committees. The School is located on the campus’ historic Horseshoe. It has nationally recognized programs in school library media, youth services, and medical librarianship. Since its inception, the School has emphasized the use of information technology as a vital component of library and information services.

The University, founded in 1801, is the flagship campus of an eight-campus, fully accredited, state-supported system. The University of South Carolina-Columbia has strong undergraduate and graduate programs and other highly regarded professional schools including: medicine, law, education, engineering, social work, pharmacy, public health, arts and sciences, nursing, and business administration. The University is a Carnegie Research I institution. About 27,390 students are enrolled on the Columbia campus and more than 40,000 throughout the system. The City of Columbia is the state capital with a metropolitan area population of almost half a million. It is a state center of financial, transportation, and industrial development, and it has a rich historical and cultural tradition. It is located within easy driving distance of both mountains and coast.

Applications and nominations are invited for positions to be available on August 16, 2008. Salary is fully competitive. The Committee will begin full reviews of applications and nominations on December 1, 2007 and continue until the positions are filled. SLIS representatives will be available at the ASIS&T and ALISE conferences.

TO APPLY: Applicants should send a letter of application and a complete resume including the names of three references to School of Library and Information Science, Attn: Faculty Searches, 1501 Greene Street, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC 29208. For further information or to submit nominations, send an email to slisadmin@gwm.sc.edu.

School Information is available at http://www.libsci.sc.edu/ . Minorities and women are encouraged to apply. The University of South Carolina is responsive to the needs of dual career couples.

The University of South Carolina is an equal opportunity institution.

GENERAL NEWS: Gamecocks, Fairs, Fall, Meetings, 5 Things to Do

Dear Friends and Colleagues,

So many wonderful things have happened since last time I posted an update! The follow-up from the Annual Literacy Leaders Awards ceremony was absolutely wonderful and we are just delighted that Lynn Teague is chairing the ALL Nominations Committee for next year. We had a lively and exciting homecoming celebration. Dr. Pat Feehan had us all involved in her interactive history of Cocky (the USC mascot!) We laughed, we sang and I even got to dance with Cocky. We had a large part of a 30 second Cocky commercial featuring Cocky’s Reading Express and the Center for Children’s Books and Literacy. AND DA DUM. . . . . The Gamecocks are ranked number seven in the SEC!

Now let’s talk seriously about fall and fairs and Dean Fred Roper’s cream cakes and fried dough and cotton candy and the South Carolina State Fair! Last year SLIS went to the fair so now it is a tradition! Meet us outside the main gate of the fair on Friday, October 12 at 6:00 p.m. and I’ll buy entry tickets for the first ten SLIS students to show up by 6:15. This is co-sponsored by our LISSA organization so fun is guaranteed. For those of you in other states, the first five posts of a great State Fair story to my blog and I’ll send you the cost of your admittance. Has to be this year’s fair!

All is going well at SLIS. We have our National Advisory Council meeting this Friday morning and the members will be helping us get ready for our next accreditation visit. The African American Leadership Group is meeting November 30 and they will be helping us finish our Student Diversity Recruitment Plan. Our doctoral students are working on a chapter for the _Encyclopedia of Library and Information Science_, writing a paper a day and generally becoming a welcome part of our research and scholarly endeavors. Our masters students are shining stars and every where they work they leave a legacy of expertise AND good will. I even get compliments about our students when I’m in the grocery line!

Check out the new DISCUS website http://www.scdiscus.org/ and new _Access Science_resource. Hope to see many of you when SCLA comes to Columbia October 31 to November 2 http://www.scla.org/AnnualConference2007/HomePage .

There is always more to tell but time keeps on ticking. . .. In the meantime, here are your five things to read or do and be sure to check out the blog and hold discussions by commenting on the postings at http://fridaymatters.blogspot.com.

1. The University of Connecticut Libraries, along with 18 other institutions in the Boston Library Consortium, recently agreed to scan more than 10 million pages from books no longer in copyright into the Open Content Alliance holdings during the next two years. http://www.advance.uconn.edu/2007/071001/07100109.htm

2. Library Policy Hurts Privacy, Patron Says [The Washington Post] http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/09/19/AR2007091900610.html

3. Libraries attract record crowds: Public libraries evolving to meet demand for digital services http://www.denverpost.com/business/ci_6913453

4. Tags Help Make Libraries Del.icio.us. Social bookmarking and tagging boost participation http://www.libraryjournal.com/article/CA6476403.html

5. And from our own Dr. Walling: “I know some of you like "professional" tee shirts. I just got my Wireless catalog and found a good one that is new to me. It says: "Librarians: the thin blue line between you and the FBI." In case you don't get their catalog, the Web address is http://www.thewirelesscatalog.com/wireless/T-Shirts-amp-Sweatshirts_1HA/Item_Librarians-The-Thin-Blue-Line-Shirts_VF2871G_ps_cti-1HA.html and phone is 800.669.999”

Let me know if there is anything we can do for you and keep making a difference!

Yours,
Dr. sam