Compliance Certification Report
| 3.8.3 | The institution provides a sufficient number of qualified staff with appropriate education or experiences in library and/or other learning/information resources to accomplish the mission of the institution. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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[Compliance] |
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Narrative: |
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| The University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH) is in compliance with Principle 3.8.3 because UAH provides a sufficient number of qualified staff with appropriate education and experience in the Library or experiences in Library and/or other learning /information resources to accomplish the mission of the institution. The Institutional Goals of the University require that it have colleges in administrative science, engineering, liberal arts, nursing, and science, and that it promote regional development, and technological innovation. This compliance is verified and documented through the professional and support staff at the M. Louis Salmon Library, UAH job descriptions on file in the UAH Office of Human Resources, Faculty Activity Reports (FARs), and Library staff evaluations in periodic surveys. Resumes/vita and academic transcripts of all Library faculty members are available in the Library Dean's Office. Resumes/vita are available in the Reference Room on the UAH SACS website. In the past decade, the library has gone from eight ALA Accredited MLSs and no systems staff to ten accredited MLSs (two with PhDs) and five full-time systems staff with 33 additional temporary contract staff members. The ten Library faculty members are Library subject specialists with individual areas of collection development responsibility. All of them hold ALA Accredited MLSs and/or PhDs, and they support various aspects of the mission of the University. Library support staff and faculty members with their main areas of responsibility are shown in the material that follows. Anne Coleman - Government Documents Librarian and Archivist/Reference Art/Art History, Philosophy/Religion, Humanities Center, Government Documents S. Annette Parrish - Technology Instruction Librarian/Reference Engineering (Chemical, Civil, Computer, Electrical, Industrial and Systems, Mechanical, Optical) Lisa Hullett - Subject Specialist/Reference Literature, Music, Communication Arts, Education, History, Political Science, Sociology Belinda Ong - Subject Specialist/Reference Nursing, Psychology, Science (Atmospheric Science, Biological Sciences, Chemistry, Computer Science, Mathematics, Physics) David P. Moore - Electronic Resources Librarian/Reference Services Coordinator General Reference, Administrative Science (Business, Economics, etc.) Library Science Linda Vaughan - Interlibrary Loan Librarian/Reference Psychology, Foreign Languages and Literatures, Nursing John Warren - Subject Specialist/Reference Science (Atmospheric Science, Biological Sciences, Chemistry, Computer Science, Mathematics, Physics) Jack Drost - Systems Librarian Susan McCreless - Head of Technical Services Wilson Luquire - Dean of the Library The Library's organization chart is available on the Library website and reflects the Library's and the institution's ability to provide qualified staff to accomplish the University mission. The M. Louis Salmon Library has chosen the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) Statement on the Terminal Professional Degree for Academic Librarians as the appropriate standard for education and training of academic librarians. The Salmon Library is currently staffed by nine professionals holding either a MA degree in Library science from institutions accredited by ALA or appropriate specialized degrees in other fields. The Library adopts the ACRL Standards for University Libraries, Evaluation of Performance which states "Basic to this document is the proposition that each University Library system is unique and therefore should determine its own criteria for performance and evaluation. This process should be undertaken within the framework of the University's mission and goals. Another assumption is that, however the Library is placed within the governing structure of the University, its relationship should be such that adequate communication flows to it concerning basic shifts in the mission of the University and changes in its programs. This document also assumes that the critical assessment resulting from the defined process will be transmitted appropriately throughout the University." The Library also adheres to the ACRL Guidelines for Academic Status of University Librarians. All University librarians have faculty status and are assigned responsibilities matched to their educational competencies and interests when possible. Each librarian completes a yearly Faculty Activity Report (FAR) that reflects experiences in Library learning and other information resources. These reports are included in the Library Annual Report. The Library's overall evaluation on the LibQUAL Survey which was very good in comparison to other libraries. LibQUAL + is a suite of services that libraries use to solicit, track, understand, and act upon users' opinions of service quality. Beginning in 2003, the Salmon Library participated in the survey and regarding Library instruction, the Library compares favorably. In the LibQUAL+ survey results, on which 9 is the highest-possible score, the Salmon Library received a score of 6.82 on the staff's ability to answer patron questions, and a 6.80 on overall quality of service. To ensure that the Library's services, collections, and resources are sufficient to support all its educational, research, and public service programs, a 24/7 survey is located on the Library's website that allows Library users to evaluate and offer suggestions about the Library. The Library administration uses these responses along with other data to determine the sufficiency of programs and resources. About 90% of the evaluations or feedback is positive. UAH Campus Computer Labs verify substantial access to and instruction and training in the use of technology. |
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