Government Information
Completed the FDLP Coordinator Certificate Program
The Interagency Depository Seminar was a weeklong program aimed at new depository coordinators and it provided an overview of the Federal Depository Library Program (FDLP), such as legal requirements and the role of the depository coordinator. I found attendance especially helpful as a new coordinator, in order to better orient myself with the program and to gain a better understanding of how to manage our depository collection, such as viewing and changing our selection profile through the GPO’s Depository Selection Information Management System (DSIMS).
Attended the 2014, 2015, 2016, and 2017 Depository Library Council (DLC) Meeting/Federal Depository Library Program (FDLP) Conference
This three day conference hosted by the Government Publishing Office (GPO) provides training and updates about the FDLP. Training sessions included finding and using government information as primary sources. As more government agencies bypass the GPO and instead directly publish reports on their own websites, when searching for government information on a topic, it is far more efficient to utilize a powerful search engine like Google, rather than going to each individual government agency that may have information related to your topic.
Completed the ALCTS Fundaments of Cataloging
Webinars
The FDLP, University of Minnesota, and the North Carolina Library Association all offer regular webinars dealing with finding and using U.S. and international government information. These webinars are all recorded, so they allow me to watch them when it’s convenient for me. Topics have included using American FactFinder for Census data, finding historic economic data, United Nations statistics and data resources, and international human rights resources. These webinars have been invaluable tools for getting me up to speed on working with government information sources.
Meetings
I attend bi-weekly Collection Coordinator meetings to discuss issues related to the collection and how the collection’s budget is to be used for purchasing materials. Common discussion issues revolve around licensing issues and accessibility remediation.
I attend a virtual meeting with our regional library at the University of Minnesota to discuss issues and trends related to the federal government publications.
I attend biweekly Cataloging and Metadata Services meetings to discuss issues related to cataloging, including to new policies and procedures.
Since my tertiary assignment is in Reference, it is important that I try to learn as much as possible about the subject areas of others and common, recurring assignments to ensure that I am providing the best level of reference services possible. In order to do this, I attend the biweekly reference meetings, which also include training on specialized databases by the subject specialist.
Copyright
Copyright scenarios and discussions.
U.S. copyright law is incredibly complex. When I began as Assistant Copyright Librarian in December 2011, I began working extensively with the Copyright Librarian, Amy Blair, to learn about copyright law and appropriate exceptions for academic uses. She provided me with copyright scenarios and questions based on copyright-related questions that she had received in the past. I would investigate those questions, such as searching for articles dealing with similar situations and looking at the source material that was intended to be used and then she and I would meet to discuss these scenarios and whether a legal copyright exception, such as fair use or the TEACH Act would allow the person to use the copyrighted material without permission, or if an exception did not apply, then why the situation did not match the criteria for an exception. These scenarios and following discussions greatly helped to increase my confidence with answering questions related to copyright. Please refer to page B5 for my written responses to general copyright questions and to page B6 for my brief analysis to a copyright query regarding using images found in a published book in a face-to-face presentation.
Copyright Webinars
I attended ten webinars on copyright from various organizations, such as the Association of Research Libraries and the Copyright Clearance Center. These webinars ranged in complexity of topic from covering the most basic aspects of copyright through more advanced discussion of recent copyright litigation. Please see page C2 for a complete list of webinars attended.
Completed University of Maryland University College’s Center for Intellectual Property’s Certificate in Intellectual Property Management and Leadership program in February 2013.
This certificate program required the completion of two online courses: an eight week Foundations in Copyright Management and Leadership course and a two-week elective on Fair Use and Licensing.
Foundations in Copyright Management and Leadership provided an comprehensive examination on U.S. copyright law, including the evolution of copyright law, what constitutes infringement, and copyright exemptions.
The course on Fair Use and Licensing was especially helpful because as the Assistant Copyright Librarian, I helped with determining whether or not a use of a copyrighted item fell under the fair use exception. Fair use is vague by design, and this course provided two-weeks of readings, discussions, and activities to help us better understand how to make a fair use determination.
To receive certification, I was also required to create a final project that would help others understand copyright. My final project for this program was the creation of the libguide on Copyright on page B7.
Completed a paralegal certificate program from Blackstone University in December 2011.
This two-year program provided a strong overview of the legislative process and conducting legal research through West Law and LexisNexis. Topics included how to efficiently use legal sources for research purposes, such as the Code of Federal Regulations and the United States Code, as well as tracking bills through Congress and Shepardizing cases to make sure they are still good law. This program has proved most useful in my current position of Government Information Librarian and Liaison to James Madison College (JMC). I often find myself assisting students and faculty, especially from JMC, with legislative research, such as examining the history of bills as they move through Congress and searching for on-point legal cases for their research interests. Please see pages B8-B12 for two reference interactions that utilize my legal research education.