February 3, 2009, The American Geophysical Union (AGU), Washington, DC
With the economy in recession and stock markets at their lowest level in years, just about every state-funded institution and all colleges with small endowments are slashing their library budgets. What are librarians looking for from vendors and publishers in this new economic reality? Where will cuts happen, and how will such decisions be made? What impact will shrinking resources have on library programs, especially new initiatives such as institutional repositories?
In these troubled times, the Society for Scholarly Publishing’s ever popular “Librarian Focus Group” returns in 2009 with a panel of leading librarians from a range of institutions primed and ready to answer the questions publishers and vendors have for them. The economy will be at the forefront of discussion, but a range of other topics will also be covered, such as trends in pricing and licensing, the future of authentication, the challenges of electronic resource preservation, the state of “open access,” and the growing interest in campus publishing.
In a proven formula, six librarians will take questions from moderators and participants on a range of themes during a full day of discussions. The panelists have been chosen for their wide ranging knowledge, and there will informal as well as formal opportunities for discussion.
Speakers:
- Bill Mayer, University Librarian, American University
- Carol Hughes, Associate University Librarian for Public Services, University of California Irvine
- Anne Linton, Director, Himmelfarb Health Sciences Library, George Washington University
- Beth Bernhardt, Electronic Resources Librarian, University of North Carolina Greensboro
- Victoria Harriston, Librarian, George E. Brown, Jr. Library, The National Academies
- Steven Mandeville-Gamble, Associate University Librarian for Collections and Scholarly Communication Gelman Library, George Washington University
