Statement of Need
There is a seemingly unlimited number of issues affecting and influencing libraries today. Keeping current on all the trends, especially those outside one’s areas of expertise, is challenging. In the Spring of 2005, Sharon Weiner organized and lead a successful Journal Club to discuss some of the many issues affecting libraries today, and since then, there have been many requests to continue the Journal Club. Benefits of the Journal Club would be:
- the opportunity for staff to read and discuss articles in order to stay informed of current trends affecting libraries;
- the opportunity to brainstorm in an informal, welcoming environment about library trends and issues and discuss how the Heard Libraries might respond; and
- the opportunity to get to know library colleagues outside of one’s immediate working environment.
Project Summary
This project team will support the library’s strategic mission and the goal of developing a Learning Organization culture. The project team will:
- Select topics for readings on current issues. The first topic will be the concept of a Learning Organization; the Staff Development Committee can provide guidance on key resources for this topic. Thereafter, the team will select other appropriate topics of interest to library staff. The project team can solicit input from others within the library as deemed necessary.
- Choose thought-provoking readings and prepare questions based on those readings.
- Facilitate (or choose facilitators) for each discussion on those topics.
- Determine the ground rules for participation in the Journal Club.
- Develop a schedule for the semester and determine venues for the meetings. This project team may also examine the need for multiple, simultaneously occurring discussions throughout the semester, depending on the needs of other committees.
- Develop and maintain a Journal Club wiki with links to readings, ground rules, and meeting times, places, and dates.
- Publicize the Journal Club within the Heard Library system to solicit participants.
- Capture key points from each group and share them with the Staff Development Committee and others.
Project Champion/Owner
The Journal Club Project Team will report directly to the Staff Development Committee.
Project Leader/Coordinator
- Leslie Boyd and Kitty Porter will serve as Co-chairs of the Project Team
Documentation and Reporting
The project leader will report on participation/attendance, key points learned, and proposed future topics to the Staff Development Committee quarterly. Facilitators of each group will be encouraged to post ideas generated by their group to the wiki. The leader will also report results of evaluation and assessment measurements for the Journal Club itself.
Other Personnel Involved/Required
- Leslie Boyd and Kitty Porter, Co-chairs
- Denise Chavez
- Jo Nell Owens
- Rachel Vacek, liaison SDC Member
Related Projects
Although this project team will be working closely with the SDC, they may on occasion need to lead discussions on topics suggested by other committees or the Strategy & Planning Council.
Budget
No additional funding needs are anticipated for this project team.
Timeline
This project team will continue until the members have determined that library staff are no longer interested in participating in a Journal Club, as thought-provoking and discussions cannot occur if there are none attending. Members have the option to rotate off the project team after a year of service, and invite new members to the team.
Assessment
As participating in the Journal Club is purely voluntary, it is essential that the Journal Club Project Team do what it can to make sure the experience is enjoyable, interactive, and for participants to feel that their voices are heard, their opinions are valued, and they have learned something new. The project team will therefore need to develop appropriate evaluation and assessment tools.