Day 10, Hour 50

It's amazing how invigorating a break can be! I took some time off from collection development since I've been working on policy, and I am back with an energy you would not believe. As you may remember, before I began my practicum here, I was volunteering by developing a list of videos that would complete the library's collection. For my practicum, I decided to expand this collection development to include books about past inductees. After all, the Rock Hall would not be the Rock Hall without its inductees. Since I now have both lists going, I can work on them simultaneously, which is helping me to fill in holes in each.

When I began to compile the videos list this summer, I had absolutely no experience in collection development. I decided to break down my search into categories, so I started by looking for concert footage. I then moved on to biopics and dramas centered around rock (fictional artists, great soundtracks, etc.). Documentaries were easiest, so I left those for last; interestingly enough, many of the documentary titles I found fell into my lap through looking for the other types of films. I did most of my searching through four sources: WorldCat.org (which is a great site that allows you to search libraries around the world for all kinds of materials), Amazon.com, The Rock & Roll Film Encyclopedia (Applause Theatre and Cinema Books, 2007), and bibliographies in two books (The Encyclopedia of Popular Music [Omnibus Press, 2007] and The Mojo Collection: the Ultimate Music Companion [Canongate, 2000]). I particularly enjoyed browsing through The Rock & Roll Film Encyclopedia because the author gave great depictions of the films and included some of my favorites. Unfortunately, I sometimes have difficulty deciding which films to include, especially in cases where the artist or inductee is in or is the subject of a long list of titles (such as Elvis). In those cases, I tried to look into the films' ratings through Amazon.com and the Internet Movie Database.

Since I was focusing mainly on books based on inductees, I put off the list of videos for quite a while. It was a pleasant surprise, then, to find that I was able to fill in some empty slots in my videos list with films about inductees. This had not been a category that I was previously searching, so I have been able to find a vast amount of films to add to my list. It is really coming along quite well!

It is possible that some of you would like to see what books and films are on my lists, for personal interest reasons, so I would be happy to provide them to anyone who contacts me through my blog. I know that I, personally, have been adding a lot of titles to my Netflix.com list as I go!

Coming up next: As of today, I have reached the half-way point for my required on-site hours. This means that it is time for me to re-evaluate my practicum wiki, to make sure I have tracked all of my logged hours correctly, and to contact my off-site practicum advisor to inform him that I have complete 50 hours. I think we are supposed to discuss my project at that time, as well. I have been really enjoying my experience here, and I cannot wait to continue with policy and collection development for the Rock Hall Library!

Thanks for reading, and have a good one!

Laura

Day 8, Hour 40

I got to read a lot of information on web filtering (content control, internet filtering, etc.) today, and almost all of it confirmed my personal view that filters, if implemented, must be used with caution and in an appropriate fashion.

This, the Rock Hall Library, is not a public library. Therefore, one could surmise that it should be used for research purposes mainly. This library will not serve as an internet cafe like so many public libraries do. One would think, then, that filters would be appropriate here; they would keep people within the research context and steer them away from browsing for porn, right?

This is where things get tricky. Think about the one phrase that everyone knows to describe a certain lifestyle: Sex, drugs, and rock 'n' roll. What would rock be without sex? What if patrons wanted to browse photographs of John Lennon, and some of them happened to be nude photos? Should the library censor that?

There are so many questions to be considered still, and I am thankful for the opportunity for real-world decision-making that this practicum has provided me so far. I will continue to research this topic, and compile my findings into a report for Andy. These are questions that a lowly practicum student cannot answer, but I am happy to provide the research to help others to do so.

Coming up next: I was able to fit some more of the policy draft I created into the mock website, and I will continue this next week. I will also continue researching on filters, with a focus on different filters that exist and their functions. I also need to work some more on the collection development for works on the inductees, so maybe I will set some time aside for that next week.

Thanks for reading, and have a good one!

Laura

Day 5, Hour 25

Not content to simply offer Andy a list of rules and regulations, I set my sights today on creating a mock website--not unlike other institutions'--to house my workup of policies and procedures. I was delighted to see that the laptop I work on here has a copy of the Microsoft Publisher program. I have never used the program before, so it was exciting to try it out in a practical way without any instruction. I like learning in hands-on ways and figuring things out for myself, so I had a lot of fun today.

I was able to find more information on similar libraries' policies and procedure, like BGSU's Browne Popular Culture Library and The Cleveland Institute of Art's Gund Library. Many of the libraries have a similar structure where the "university community" is allowed borrowing privileges for circulating materials and can browse freely in the non-circulating materials, like reference collections. The policy for those outside of the community usually states that those members may browse materials but not check them out, may browse or check out items for a yearly membership fee, or may only access certain areas of the library, like the main stacks. The Rock Hall's library will differ, however, in that it does not have a clearly defined membership community. While the library is located on the Tri-C campus and is directly affiliated with the school, browsing privileges will not be permitted solely to faculty and staff. This may simplify our policy and procedures by allowing the rules to apply to all who visit the library, not just a specified community.

On an interesting side note, I found some great articles on the Library + Archives through my research that I'd like to share with you here. One was written by Library Director Andy Leach himself, and they all provide a really exciting idea of what the library is going to be all about. (Keep in mind that the library's original opening date of December 2010, which you will read in all of the articles, has been moved to May 2011.)

The Library and Archives at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum, Andy Leach (Ohio Archivist's Spring 2010 Newsletter, p. 4.).

Music History Finds a New Home Inside Rock Hall's Library and Archives at Tri-C's Center for Creative Arts, John Soeder (The Plain Dealer, February 28, 2010).

Rock and Roll Never Forgets, Anastasia Pantsios (Cleveland Scene, March 10, 2010).

Coming up next: I spoke with Dr. Belinda Boon, who teaches Selection and Acquisition of Library Materials at Kent, about getting some ideas for good resources for biographies and reference books that would fit into the library's collection. She said she will try to get back to me later on this week with some ideas, so I am going to put any collection development on hold until I can pick her brain a bit.

Thanks for reading, and have a good one!

Laura

Day 3, Hour 15

Today, I wanted to get back to the list of biographies I am compiling for the inductees. So far I have added 1-3 sources for almost every person inducted in 1986 and most of 1987. However, I am still having a difficult time narrowing down which biographies are "better" than others. Since this is a brand new library and we are going to need to acquire basic sources first, I need to know which are the most important to get for right now. I imagine that the librarians will also be working on a limited budget, so selection will be important.

The most important thing I must focus on, especially since I am currently enrolled in the Selection and Acquisition of Library Materials course at Kent State, is to choose items fairly and intelligently. I do not intend to censor or reject certain items, and I know this can be a difficult topic to consider. Not having any experience in collection development until now, I believe this practicum is going to prove extremely valuable in helping me to develop a keen eye for quality and a discern for the most important materials.

That being said, I would be interested to hear ideas from others on how you would choose the "best" sources on certain artists. Keep in mind that sometimes, the list of biographies for one person can reach up to twenty; I am trying to keep the titles I add to the list at under three per person.

Coming up next: I will continue to research policy and procedure to get a working idea of how patrons will use this very unique library.

Thanks for reading, and have a good one!

Laura

Day 1, Hour 5

Today was the first official day of my practicum at the new (and not yet open to the public) Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Library and Archives, though I volunteered here this summer. After a grueling one hour and forty-five minute commute (thanks, I-77 construction!), I sat down with library director Andy Leach (check out his Rock Hall blog posts here) to discuss opportunities for my practicum experience.

As I mentioned earlier, I volunteered at the library this summer. During that time, I got some collection development experience while compiling a basic list of DVDs that should be a part of the library's collection. Andy and I decided that it would be a good experience to continue this work, but to now focus on biographies and other books related to and about the inductees of all years past.

We also talked about my practicum having a second focus: Policy and procedure. Andy has asked me to come up with information to help them decide what their patron experience will look like; we discussed things like membership, borrowing, and organization, just to name a few.

For my day today, I spent my time compiling lists of biographies for the inductees, starting with inductees from the first ceremony in 1986. I began by looking in the bibliographies of two books, and expanded my search with Wikipedia and other informational websites. For some artists, it is difficult to weed through the massive amounts of biographies--books about Elvis are surely in the hundreds--so I tried to narrow my search with recommendations from the authors of the bibliographies and ratings on Amazon. If I determine any other ways to limit those searches, I will surely list them here.

Coming up next: After today, I am really excited to begin research on policy and procedure. That is how I will spend my day here next time I am in, which is Thursday.

Thanks for reading, and have a good one!

Laura