NOVEL SC CONFERENCE CALL
Wednesday, October 22, 2003
1:00-2:00 PM

PRESENT: Alrutz, Baaklini, Brink, Courtney, Cunningham, Douglas, Ebert, Ericson, Hiebing, Johns, Knight,
Little, Lynch, McCain, Monahan, Roe, Shaloiko, Storms,Todd, Welch

ABSENT: Cannell, Crumlish, Desch, Hatch, Huxley, Janowsky, Kadamus, Kaplan, Keitel, Meierhoffer, Nichols, Redmond, Walsh

RECORDER: Petrocelli

REPORT FROM THE STATE LIBRARY

Marilyn Douglas reported.

• The digitization project was recently announced in a NYLINE message dated October 15. Marilyn read excerpt from message:
  "The State Library is entering an exciting new era as it prepares to launch a digital media archive in collaboration with the New York State Museum and the New York State Archives. This archive will include images of all the documents that have been scanned over the years, as well as those generated in the future."

• There was a question about funding for this project. Kathleen Roe chaired a group that started one component. The group analyzed combining resources in one digital collection. Purchased Hyperion, which is a software digitization component of Sirsi. State Library selected the topic, "Native American Collections," and we are using our own resources, digitizing records related to Native Americans, and will pull all together in integrated way. Hoping to seek outside funding but using own resources now. Timeframe - early November should be able to bring site live. We had Library, Archives, and the Museum talk about technical based pieces - could be useful for other people when trying to put print and non-print materials in one place. Kathleen will bring draft summary of the project to the next meeting.

NYLA

• Programs at NYLA:

  • Thursday, November 6, 4:30-5:45 PM: "News From the State Library" - NOVEL will be one component. NOVEL SC members are invited and encouraged to attend. There will be questions and answers re NOVEL databases, information on the updated website, portal, toolkit, any other issues. Sent message asking people to send in questions about databases that will be answered at this meeting.

  • Friday, November 7, 8:00-11:15 AM: "NCL - Now More than Ever." Co-sponsored by NYLA, NYSALB, and NYSL. Commissioner will address conference and review NCL. There will be a question and answer period with Commissioner and a panel of presenters from PULISDO, SLSA, NYTRO - Jennifer Morris, Dee Portzer, Gail Staines, Erin Apostol. Encouraging every member of steering committee to attend. Good opportunity to hear what people are doing for NCL.

  • Saturday, November 8, 10:00-12:00 PM: Poster session, focusing on NOVEL toolkit. Marilyn Douglas and Nancy Reynolds of NYSL, will staff the booth.

LEGISLATION

• Regents have formally renewed their commitment to NCL as high priority, with NOVEL a special focus of this effort. NYLA encourages advocates to write to the Governor now while the budget is being drafted. There is information on the NYLA website, including sample letters.

PORTAL WORKING GROUP

• Reviewed details about Education Department's Virtual Learning Space (VLS). We are hoping to have space on it to link to NOVEL databases. They are looking to launch VLS by the end of the year. We are looking at working with the Education Department for an authentication methodology. We will probably need to have alternate way for people to access the NOVEL portal. We would like to have within the portal cross database federated searching so people would not have to go to individual vendor databases.

• Marilyn Douglas, Sara McCain and Linda Todd met with Virtual Learning Space representatives - people within SED Elementary, Middle, Secondary, and Continuing Education unit of the State Education Department. They have been in the process of establishing an education portal. Initial focus is for teachers to bring together NYS learning standards and performance indicators. We want to make sure that NOVEL resources will be available to people coming into Department's portal. Department is working with Governor's Office for Technology on statewide authentication process and also exploring authentication of seven BOCES sites that have been involved in providing content for the portal. Department is also working on student identification. We would like to make NOVEL available statewide to anyone.

• Marilyn is in the process of setting up a meeting with the Department of Motor Vehicles and State Library staff to discuss issues. Will discuss providing remote access. Only 15% of libraries currently make NOVEL databases available by remote access.

• Discussed possibility of bringing in one of our vendors to attend the VLS meeting and show how library resources can be tied to NYS Learning Standards and performance indicators. Hopefully by next spring we will be able to give a demonstration. EBSCO would probably be vendor we would work with.

• We have the opportunity to possibly work with OCLC and Gates. Gates gave OCLC a grant to develop portals - agreed we should pursue. Marilyn Douglas is pulling information together to provide OCLC with background on a NOVEL portal. Marilyn will forward document to committee. Planning to report on results of that meeting at next steering committee meeting. Marilyn Mason, from OCLC, is managing this project.

• COSLA had presentation about OCLC project - Web Junction. They have put a lot of effort into developing portal technology and are now looking at turning it into a broader basic access computing portal, trying out with few a states. States that participate in pilot will have opportunity to shape it. In this case we might be able to develop something according to our specifications. Website: www.webjunction.org

ELECTRONIC RESOURCES WORKING GROUP

• Marilyn will check on status of getting one-page customer satisfaction survey up on web.

• NECAT will be a group of four people from around the state recommended by each of three systems and include a representative from the NOVEL Steering Committee. This group will be working with team at NYSL to review and select electronic resources with funding through LSTA. Once we get the representatives appointed, we can begin to focus on the first meeting, hopefully before the end of year. Might meet informally at NYLA. Requested from State Library information about the current NOVEL databases - costs, subscription dates, etc. so we have better feeling what we are dealing with.

• Survey on NOVEL website - comments on databases. This larger evaluation would be targeted to public. Focusing on evaluations from users of these databases and could include statistics from vendors. Needs to be discussed internally by State Library people.

• BOCES are surprised at what is available and interested in how they can get their schools connected.

• Janet Welch talked to Commissioner's Advisory Council on Higher Education Chancellors. Reactions were positive that they could get this information and that it is so easy to get.

NEXT MEETING: Thursday, December 4, Albany Public Library