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RSS Events at Annual 2008 in Anaheim

RSS Annual at a Glance and Anaheim Meeting Location Map

Print out a summary of RSS programs, discussion groups, and meetings and meeting location map to prepare you schedule. Remember to verify rooms with the final print program after arriving.

RUSA MARS/RSS Preconference

Reinvented Reference 4: Emerging Technologies For Reference Services

Friday, June 27 from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Hyatt Regency Orange County, Garden 1-2

Registration and fees for event code: RU3

How can you best use online reference services, instant messaging, texting and other available technologies to provide virtual reference? How can social networking be used to enhance and extend reference services? How do you address privacy issues, administration and staff buy-in, skill set development, and marketing as you work to implement these changing technologies?   

Come join your colleagues during the ALA Annual Conference to hear from nationally-recognized experts on these topics. Keynote speaker Cathy De Rosa, Vice President for the Americas and Global Vice President of Marketing for OCLC, leads the market research team at OCLC which produced the report Sharing, Privacy and Trust in our Networked World (http://www.oclc.org/reports/sharing/default.htm). Michelle Jacobs, Emerging Technologies and Web Coordinator at the UCLA College Library, will talk about texting and Caleb Tucker-Raymond, Oregon Statewide Digital Reference Service Coordinator for the Multnomah County Library, will provide further insight into virtual reference. David Lankes, Director of the Information Institute of Syracuse (IIS), the first ALA Office for Information Technology Policy Fellow as well as noted speaker on participatory librarianship will delve further into the area of social networking as a reference tool.

Sponsored by Altarama Information Systems; OCLC QuestionPoint; Reference Universe by Paratext; and RefWorks, a division of ProQuest, this exciting and informative preconference occurs on Friday, June 27, from 8:30am to 5:00 pm.  Morning and afternoon refreshments as well as lunch are included in the registration fee.  

RSS All-Committee Meeting

Saturday, June 28 from 8:00 to 10:30 a.m.
Sheraton Park Hotel, Palm Ballroom

The RSS All-Committee meeting is the one time when all of the Reference Services Section officers and committee members meet in the same place at the same time. Come to the RSS All-Committee meeting if:

• You are a member of RSS and want to see what we are doing for you
• You are interested in serving on a committee
• You want to get involved with a discussion group
• You are curious about RSS, but not a member

All RSS member (and non-members) are invited to attend. This is your chance to get involved with our section. 

RSS Programs at Annual

Who you gonna call? Guidelines, Training and Tips for Practicing Cooperative Reference

Saturday, June 28 from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m.
Clarion Hotel California 2-3

Cooperative Reference Service is not just for large digital reference cooperative.  Come discuss on how we all can further develop cooperative reference service using the RUSA guidelines and ideas for a tool kit.

14th Annual New Reference Research Forum

Sunday, June 29 from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m.
Hilton Anaheim, Conference Room 8

Three researches discuss their peer-reviewed, in-process or completed research project on reference services such as user behavior, electronic services, reference effectiveness, or organizational structure and personnel.

• The READ Scale (Reference Effort Assessment Data) Project: Qualitative Statistics for Meaningful Reference Assessment, A Report of the National Study - Bella Karr Gerlich & G. Lynn Berard
• Does Size Matter? Examining Trends in the Provision of Remote Reference Services in Academic and Public Libraries - Denise Agosto, Eileen Abels & Lorri Mon
•  Problems, Processes and Judgements: User Expectations of Online Reference Service - Lynn Westbrook

Please Talk to Strangers Online: Spreading Trust in Cooperative Virtual Reference

Monday, June 30 from 10:30 to 12 Noon
Hyatt Regency Orange County, Grand B-D

Will another library make my customer happy? Will they come back after their experience? Does it make a difference if an academic or public librarian picks up the questions? What about our patrons? They trust Wikipedia. They trust Google. What do wee do to make them trust us in the same way? A lively panel of virtual reference leaders will explore the issues, present their experiences, and recommend strategies relevant to all types of libraries.

Speakers: Karen Docherty, Ask a Librarian Coordinator, Maricopa Community Colleges, AZ; Vince Mariner, AccessPA Virtual Reference Coordinator, Ask Here PA; Bill Pardue (appearing virtually), Virtual Services Librarian, Arlington Heights Memorial Library, IL; Caleb Tucker-Raymond, Oregon Statewide Digital Reference Project Coordinator, Multnomah County Library, OR

RSS Discussion Groups

"Outreach and Collection Development Librarians" by RSS/CODES Dual Assignments Discussion

Saturday June 28 from 10:30 to  Noon
Clarion Hotel, Orangewood 3

While libraries have been always been involved in a variety of marketing and education activities, there is now a renewed focus on outreach because these efforts promote and ensure our relevance to our communities. What are the best ways to communicate the value of our carefully built collections to our users? What types of collaborations are involved and how are outreach activities assessed? All conference registrants are invited to join us for a lively and timely discussion on this compelling topic.

Ethical & Legal Issues Discussion

Saturday June 28, from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m.
Hilton Anaheim, Conference Room 4

"Disney provides great service, do we?" by Hot Topics in Frontline Reference

Saturday, June 28 from 4:00 to  5:00 p.m.
Disney's Paradise Pier, Santa Monica Room

Two members of the DG steering committee will introduce the topic and open the floor for discussion about how libraries can look to corporate models of customer satisfaction. A list of suggested readings will be provided. Anyone interested in the topic is welcome to attend and join a lively conversation!                          handout       bibliography

Virtual Reference Discussion

Saturday, June 28 from 4:00 to 5:30 p.m.
Marriott Anaheim, Salon G-K

"I'm Too Sexy For My Job!" Career Advancement for Reference Librarians by Reference Services in Small and Medium-Sized Libraries Discussion Group

Sunday, June 29 from 10:30 to 11:30 a.m.
Hyatt Regency Orange County, Grand A

The Reference Services in Small and Medium-Sized Libraries Discussion Group is sponsoring "I'm Too Sexy for My Job!" Career Advancement for Reference Librarians." This informal session will be held on Sunday, June 29th from 10:30 AM-11:30 AM. We will be discussing the special challenges of librarians and small and medium-sized libraries in terms of opportunities for advancement. We will have talking points and an open discussion in which everyone is encouraged to share their questions, observations, and experiences.

Reference Services in Large Research Libraries Discussion

Sunday, June 29 from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m.
Disneyland Hotel, Dreams A

Reference Services in Public Libraries Discussion

Sunday, June 29 from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m.
Hyatt Regency Orange County, Salon VII/VIII

Performance Issues of Reference & Information Librarians Discussion Group

Monday, June 30 from 8:00 to 10:00 a.m.
Disneyland Hotel No. Exhibit Hall Mtg. Room H

This discussion group provides a forum for the informal exchange of information and the discussion of common challenges relating to performance issues in reference services. Our group also serves as a vehicle for raising awareness of performance standards and their use in the provision of quality reference service. There are usually around 25 people at our discussions. Many topics are brought to the table and the discussion is free flowing.  

Additional RSS Committee Meetings at Annual

Saturday, June 28

• New Chair Orientation, 10:30 to 12:00 Noon. at Sheraton Park Hotel, Palm Ballroom
• Executive Committee Meeting I, 10:30 to 12:00 Noon at Sheraton Park Hotel, Palm Ballroom

Sunday, June 29

• RSS/MARS Virtual Reference Services Committee Meeting, 8  to 10 a.m. at Disneyland Hotel Magic, Kingdom 3

Monday, June 30

• Executive Committee Meeting II, 8:00 to 10:00 a.m. at Hilton Anaheim, Conference Room 12

Tuesday, July 1

• Executive Committee Meeting III, 8 a.m. - 12:00 p.m at Hilton Anaheim, Avilia

Other RUSA Programs at Annual

RUSA Presidents' Program, "Quality Service in an Impersonal World"

Monday, June 30 from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m.

Is service important in today’s do-it-yourself world? Institutions as varied as banks, gas stations, grocery stores, and government agencies have all moved towards self-service models of commerce. Telephone trees, FAQs, and web pages have replaced human interaction in most customer service situations. Even libraries have moved toward a self-service model for circulation and computing. Should libraries still be in the service business? Is the traditional model of reference service – where a librarian interacts one-on-one with a user – still of value? And what defines quality library service in today’s interconnected technological world? Representatives from the business, library, and education fields will present their opinions on why service is important (or not) and what factors lead to quality service.

Speakers include:

• Robert Spector, consultant and author of The Nordstrom Way: the Inside Story of America's #1 Customer Service Company and The Nordstrom Way to Customer Service Excellence. Robert has studied customer service in the corporate world and is a frequent consultant and speaker.
• Donna Bachowski, Head of Reference Central, Orange County Public Library, Orlando, Florida.
• Marie Radford, Associate Professor & Library Consultant, School of Communication, Information & Library Studies, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey. Marie is the author of The Reference Encounter: Interpersonal Communication in the Academic Library, which was published in 1999 by the American Library Association/Association of College and Research Libraries, Chicago, Illinois.

Make sure to look at RUSA's Annual 2008 conference programs page to see what BRASS, CODES, History, MARS, and STARS are sponsoring.