Date: 4-23-2001
To: UT System Library Directors
From: Mark McFarland
Subject: Update on Distance Learning Activities

This is a LONG message. Following is a summary of what it is about:

1. News about newly hired staff of the UT System Digital Library, the TeleCampus, and UT Austin General Libraries. Two new librarians in the UTSDL are dedicated to distance learning support and are working closely with a new librarian who is responsible for offcampus library services in the General Libraries.

2. Information about a new initiative in the UTSDL that will focus on assisting components with planning, developing and deploying library services for distance learners throughout the UT System.

3. The text of an email message for YOUR REVIEW that will be sent to the UT System distance learning contacts.

UPDATE ON DISTANCE LEARNING ACTIVITIES

As you know the UT System Digital Library and the UT TeleCampus (UTTC) hired Meredith Ault as the UTTC Librarian. Meredith brings years of full-time, distance learning support experience to this position. Meredith brings a working knowledge of ACRL standards combined with practical operations experience that we are fortunate to have.

Some of you may also be aware that the UT Austin General Libraries recently hired Jenifer Flaxbart (you may already know Jennifer through her work at the Texas State Library and Archives Commission), to serve as coordinator for off-campus library services at UT Austin. Jennifer brings extensive experience working with users from across the state.

In addition the UTSDL hired Alexia (Lexie) Thompson-Young as Distance Learning Librarian, a new title in the UTSDL, in support of System libraries. As you know, Lexie's primary responsibility is information licensing, but Lexie will play other roles as well. Lexie brings years of experience in Austin's inter-library services department to her UTSDL position and we expect that experience will be very valuable to us.

These 3 positions combined represent a significant emphasis on the delivery of services to distant learners. Jenifer, Lexie, and Meredith have recently begun meeting with Rue Ramirez and myself to begin to sort out and prioritize the issues we need to tackle as we move forward with plans to develop and deploy new services for distant learners. One of the obvious "first steps" is to expand this conversation to include the UT System distance learning contacts.

Along these lines we have set up a discussion list and a website for this purpose. The name of the list is offcamp@lists.cc.utexas.edu . To subscribe send an email message to listproc@lists.cc.utexas.edu with the message "subscribe offcamp your name" in the body.

The website address is www.lib.utsystem.edu/offcamp/index.html . We will continue to work on this site as we move ahead.

Finally, we will be asking the DL contacts to form a committee to discuss and develop ideas for services and implementation strategies. This committee would only meet face-to-face twice a year, but would use the OFFCAMP list, the website and video conferences (and probably even the telephone) to keep communications going.

Following is the text of a message that we will be sending to the UT System Distance Learning Contacts on Wednesday of this week for your review. Also, please feel free to join the OFFCAMP list, visit the website and make any comments/suggestions you feel are useful or necessary.

Mark