Shipping List
Newsletter of the Public Documents Forum
of the Virginia Library Association
 

vol. 27 no.1 February 2002

From the Editor
Report from ALA Mid-Winter in New Orleans January 18-23, 2002, by Janet Justis
PDF Census Workshop at the Library of Virginia, (contact Mary Clark, Chair PDF)
Resources for Teachers, by Barbie Selby
GODORT Preconference (Census) at ALA Annual in Atlanta
GODORT will Celebrate it's 30th Anniversary in Atlanta
News from Around the Commonwealth

From the Editor

The people's right to know and the "take-down" of federal government information dominated discussions at ALA's Mid-Winter Conference in New Orleans.  The tragedies of September 11, 2001 reminded all of us how fragile life can be and how often we take our safety and freedoms for granted.  Repeatedly at the conference attendees recalled  Benjamin Franklin's thoughts, "they that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety"    (chronicled in the Historical Review of Pennsylvania 1759).  Many resolutions stressed the "reaffirmation" of intellectual freedom and the people's right to know gently reminding leaders of the freedoms and protections of open access that already exist.  These are challenging times that require thoughtful discussion and deliberation.

Please send any comments, questions, suggestions, etc. to the editor.-- Janet Justis

Report from ALA Mid-Winter in New Orleans

It was almost impossible to attend a meeting or have a casual conversation without someone mentioning their concerns about the people's right to know and the "take-down" of federal government information at ALA's Mid-Winter Conference in New Orleans.  The GODORT Legislation Committee met four times during Mid-Winter’s Conference.  Two of the meetings were held jointly with the Subcommittee on Government Information. During it’s initial meetings the committee reviewed the following issues since Annual: Laura Dickson, Michigan State University, Chair GODORT Legislation and Valerie Glenn, University of North Texas, webmaster have done an excellent job of tracking key Legislative Issues from the 107th Congress. Detailed information can be found on the GODORT Legislation Committee's Web page including postings of information removed since September 11th.

The committee endorsed three resolutions during conference.  The resolutions are available on the GODORT Legislation Committee's web page and are linked for your convenience below:

GODORT Legislation and the Subcommittee on Government Information also voted "to endorse in principle" the DRAFT “Principles for the Networked World”.  Duncan Aldrich served as GODORT’s representative on the Ad Hoc Committee to the Office for Information Technology Policy (OITP).  The DRAFT  explores six key areas in helping define the role of libraries in the networked world.   These areas include: Intellectual Freedom, Privacy, Intellectual Property, Infrastructure, Equitable Areas and Content.  For additional information visit the OITP Web site.

GODORT Legislation and the Subcommittee on Government Information (ALA/COL/GIS) also recommended that the President of ALA in consultation with the Chair of GODORT and the Chair of GIS, appoint an Ad Hoc Committee to gather information and recommend to ALA, policy regarding a variety of government information issues in light of current security concerns.  GODORT and GIS also requested that the committee have broad representation with membership drawn from GODORT, COL-GIS, ACRL, FAFLRT, Intellectual Freedom and other appropriate units.

Other issues for discussion included the possible closing of the Washington State Library based on zero funding in the Governor’s proposed budget.  Washington State Library is a regional federal depository library.  There was also a recommendation that the Committee on Legislation explore ALA’s participation, at the appropriate time, in an amicus brief in American Historical Association vs. National Archives and Records Administration and John W. Carlin.

Patrice McDermott, Assistant Director, Office of Government Relations, ALA Washington Office, gave updates on current legislative matters and suggested some things we can do to preserve public access to government information in the aftermath of September 11th.

What You Can Do:

McDermott also listed the following sites to track information taken down or restricted:

The Post_September 11 Environment: Access to Government Information
http://www.ombwatch.org/info/2001/access.html

Chilling Effects on Anti_Terrorism: "National Security" Toll on Freedom of Expression
http://ww.eff.org/Privacy/Surveillance/Terrorism_militias/antiterrorism_chill.html#usgovwebsiteremove

"States seek to restrict public access in wake of terrorists attacks"
http://www.freedomforum.org/templates/document.asp?documentID=15523

Security vs. Open Records
http://www.ire.org/related/records.html

The ALA Washington Office has also posted detailed information regarding the background and implications of the  USA Patriot Act and has suggested Guidelines for Librarians  "What to do before, during and after a 'knock at the door' ."  The Guidelines are dated January 19, 2002.

Public Documents Forum Hosts Census Workshop at the Library of Virginia

Mary Clark, Chair of the Public Documents Forum, wants to remind everyone of the upcoming workshop "Understanding Federal Census Statistics : A Hands-On Workshop".  Sponsored by the Public Documents Forum of the Virginia Library Association and the Library of Virginia, this timely training will be held on May 1, 2002 from 9:00a.m. to 4:00p.m. at the Library of Virginia in the Computer Training Room.  JR Wycinsky, Marketing Specialist with the Census Bureau will lead the session. Seating is limited so don't delay.  The deadline for registering for the workshop is April 19, 2002.   The cost for VLA members is $35.00 and non-members $45.00.  Lunch is included in the registration fee.  You can obtain a copy of the registration form at:

http://www.vla.org/Programs/050102census-registration.pdf

If you have additional questions please contact Mary Clark at the Library of Virginia at
phone:  (804) 692-3754
email: mclark@lva.lib.va.us

Resources for Teachers

Documents Librarians "Branch Out"
In the wake of the popular series of regional workshops on government information put together by members of the VLA Public Documents Forum, two members are traveling to Grundy, Virginia to put on a similar workshop for public librarians and teachers there.  Mary Clark and Barbie Selby will conduct a day long training session in Grundy focusing on government information and its uses in the classroom.  Sherry Bright, Outreach Librarian/Serials Manager at Buchanan Public Library,  obtained a small grant to hold the workshop.  Mary and Barbie will work from a web page:

http://www.vla.org/PDF/Programs/Grundweb.htm

They plan to  provide hands on practice for the participants, as well as tips on using government resources in the classroom.
"Documents to the People"!

Barbie Selby, UVA Law Library

GODORT Preconference at ALA Annual in Atlanta

"A Horse of a Different Color: Census 2000 and Creating Customized Tables on the Web"

SPONSORED by: GODORT Federal Documents Task Force
WHERE: Georgia State Unviersity
WHEN: June 13, 2002
TIME: 9:00 a.m - 5:30 p.m.
FEES: GODORT Members $ 100; ALA Members $125; Non-ALA Member $150; Students $100
ENROLLMENT:  Limited to 40  (so don't delay)

This workshop is described as a hands-on experience in working with Census 2000 data and maps.  Participants will learn how to use American Factfinder as well as Census CD-ROMs and DVDs.  You will also learn how to create and print custom maps from Census PDF files.  Learn the basics such as unzipping files, importing data into Excel and explore the challenges of using I-PUMS (the Minnesota Population Center site for Census microdata).

SPEAKERS (listed at the time of mid-winter):

For additional information watch the GODORT Web site.
You can register at http://cs.ala.org/annual/2002/
 

GODORT will Celebrate it's 30th Anniversary at ALA Atlanta

GODORT will celebrate it's 30th anniversary at ALA's annual conference in Atlanta June 13-19.  Bill Sudduth is updating a history of the round table.  Steering has approved the Margaret Mitchell House as the site for the annual reception.  Watch for additional details.

News from Around the Commonwealth

Congratulations to Carol Hunter  newly appointed  Director of Science and Engineering Libraries at the University of Virginia.  Carol's new appointment is effective February 1, 2002.  We will miss her in government documents.  One of Carol's former roles was serving as the contributor of the New and Noteworthy International Documents column for Shipping List.  We have some big shoes to fill.  Anyone interested in filling the column position please contact the editor.

Virginia State Plan  Update

The following depository librarians have agreed to serve on a committee to draft a state plan for Virginia depository libraries.

The committee has divided the early work into three categories and chairs and members are beginning to draft sections of the plan.  Here are the three initial areas and coordinators of these groups: The committee will hold its first meeting at the UVA Law Library on March 14, 2002.  All comments and suggestions are appreciated.

Old Dominion University's Perry Library is hosting an exhibit to celebrate Women's History Month. "Partners in Promoting Women's Health" presents a  lobby exhibit featuring print publications from a variety of agencies within the Dept. of Health and Human Services and focuses on the unique health care experiences of women. The lobby exhibit will be open from March 1st-19th. A companion Web exhibit will also run for the entire month on March.  Please visit the Web exhibit at:

http://www.lib.odu.edu/womenshistory

Like all Web events the exhibit will have a short run on the library's main web page, but will hopefully find a long term archival home in our special digital collections area.

The editor always appreciates news about personnel, special events, workshops, and anything that's on your mind.