Minutes of April 19, 2006 Meeting

Present:: Jeanne Boyle, Judit Hajnal-Ward, Tracey Meyer, Glenn Sandburg, Jeff Teichmann (recorder), and Marilyn Wilt (chair)

I. Review of National Library Week 2006 activities

The Time Traps program presented by Marie Radford on April 4th was well received.
Lunchtime seminar program on the spring holidays (in partnership with RUL Diversity Committee) was held on April 6, 2006 and was well attended and enjoyed by all. It was noted that for future programs, more attention should be focused on the timing of the presentations. With many presenters, an interesting topic, and an enthusiastic audience, careful attention to the timing of each presenter is a must.

Lunchtime Seminar series
- April 18, 2006 - SIRSI Superconference - presented by Chris Sterback - well received by all in attendance.
- May 4, 2006 - Report on IVIES+ Access Services Symposium - to be presented by the attendees. Pane Room, Alexander.

Supervising for Excellence Series - Marilyn and Jeff were guests at the March 21, 2006 Cabinet meeting to discuss the series and answer any questions. Cabinet approved of the series and had good suggestions for additional content. Cabinet members were asked to compile a list of possible attendees for their departments. Later it was decided to run one group through the first session of the series as a pilot. Participants will be A/P/S staff who supervise and have been in their position less than five years.

New Employee Orientation - MW presented a draft proposed content to the committee. The program would include discussion tables to provide availability for in-depth questions. Presently there are 4 new Librarian Vs and 10 new staff members for the orientation. The program may be scheduled in the middle of May on a Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday.

Possible Future Lunchtime Seminar Topic: The Instructional Services Committee is conducting a qualitative assessment of student learning using Searchpath. There may be a separate program about the outcomes, and it may be interesting to have a lunchtime seminar that would look in depth at the assessment methodologies used.

Technical Skill Development Series - Begins with Basic Excel on May 22, 2006, continues through the summer and ends with Intermediate Access on August 1, 2006.

RUL Train-the-Trainer Team - a meeting will be scheduled in June with the RUL 2006 NJ Train-the- Trainer participants and the Train-the-Trainer alums.

Summer 2006 - Program on Facilitation Skills for meeting leaders and attendees. This would be a good follow-up to the programs on effective meetings and effective videoconferencing. The focus of the program would be on developing skills in group process and group dynamics.

Fall 2006
- Program on folk customs - possibly partnered with the RUL Diversity Committee
- Thinking for a Living: How to Get Better Performance and Results from Knowledge Workers by Thomas H. Davenport - possible program on this new book presented either by the author or Marilyn Wilt. The book, based on extensive research, provides rich insights into how knowledge workers think, how they accomplish tasks, and what motivates them to excel. Davenport offers a number of management strategies that will yield the greatest performance.

Other Possible Programs-
- Strategic plan roll out sessions
- Budget information sessions
- Program Series on Emotional Intelligence
- Library tours

The next meeting is scheduled for May 16, 2005, 2 pm, Nicholas Rutgers Room, 3rd Floor, Alexander Library, New Brunswick.