In 1983, a Communications Committee was created and charged to prepare and distribute a staff directory of all academic and research libraries in the state. Other publications and publicity were to be handled by the Committee. To further the communication capabilities of the Chapter, a newsletter was initiated in 1991, and produced and distributed by this Committee. The success of the ILA/ACRL newsletter led to the need for a new organizational arrangement, and subsequently, development and adoption of the 1992 Bylaws. The Communications Committee was divided into the Directory Committee that continues to prepare and distribute the staff directory and the Newsletter Committee (formerly the Communications Committee) that publishes the newsletter. The directory is now linked from the Chapter's Web site at http://www.iowaacrl.org..  The electronic directory undergoes a comprehensive revision annually, with other changes made as they come to the attention of the Directory Committee Chair. 

Schedule of Activities  

November/December – Incoming Chair

Attend the transitional ILA/ACRL Executive Board planning meeting. Obtain electronic files, past records, and information on the Committee's assignment. Executive Board meetings will be called several times during the year. Plan to attend and assume responsibility as appropriate.  

Correspond with members of the Committee acknowledging their appointments and outlining the work that will be done and their expected contributions. Send a copy to the ILA/ACRL President so that communication channels are open.  

Begin keeping records of information changes such as errors or omissions from the previous directory, phone and FAX number changes, e-mail changes, school name changes, etc. Send changes to Chair of the Electronic Communications Committee.  Request an end-of-year list of ILA/ACRL members from the ILA office. 

At least two months before the ILA/ACRL Spring Conference: 

Divide the Iowa colleges, universities, and other research libraries among the Committee members. Send the assigned institutions and corresponding sections from the previous Directory to them for updating. Encourage each to gather information in writing for optimal accuracy. Consider sending a sample letter for committee-wide use. State a deadline for replies.  

Check formatting on the files from the previous directory and adjust as necessary.  

At least one month before the ILA/ACRL Spring Conference: 

Compile information received from Committee members and make sure all formatting is consistent.  Look out for the tendency to cross off the name of someone who left and add a new name without concern for maintaining alphabetical order. 

Email edited sections of directory file to Committee members. Ask them to verify what you have typed and also the order in which the names are given. They may have to check back with the libraries.  

At least two weeks before the ILA/ACRL Spring Conference: 

Send updated files to the Chair of the Electronic Communications Committee. 

Extract two lists of library directors from the directory file information: one with full contact information, one with email addresses only.  Send these to the members of the ILA/ACRL Executive Board.  If directory updates later in the year include director changes, edit these two files accordingly and resend. 

At the ILA/ACRL Spring Conference: 

During the business meeting, report on Directory Committee activities and thank Committee members by name. 

Following the Spring Conference: 

Write letters of appreciation to committee members.  Make changes in the electronic Directory as needed the rest of the year.

October

Attend the ILA Annual Meeting and provide a brief report on the Directory at the ILA/ACRL membership meeting. 

November/December – Outgoing Chair 

Prepare the annual report. Update these Organization Manual pages. Make plans with the next Chair for passing the records of the Committee. Attend the Annual Planning Session and pass information and directory-related computer files to the incoming Chair, archival records for the year and two copies of the Directory to the outgoing Secretary/Treasurer, and Organization Manual revisions to the incoming Vice-President/President-Elect.  
 

Special Information  

1. Decide whether additional important people in the preliminary pages need to be included in the index, e.g., ILA office staff.
2. Information to include in the Calendar can be obtained from the ILA office or website, Library Journal, American Libraries, Library Hotline, and/or the ALA website.
3. Evaluate the special libraries that are listed in the Directory. Are they members? Have they been active in the organization? Do they cooperate through interlibrary loan? Should they continue to be included?
4. If someone is a member of ILA/ACRL, their name should be included in the Directory.
5. Remember that all names listed in the Directory also need to appear in the Index.
6. The Index function of word processing was used at one time. Due to the number of changes and the different people who will use the computerized information, making the Index manually is probably a better idea.
7. [Still needs editing to match current schedule of publication, based on discussion at ILA/ACRL Exec.] There has always been a problem in applying a calendar year to an academic publication. The ILA year begins on January 1 as does the Chapter's membership year. Much of the calendar year is an unsettled time when the Membership Committee is working on recruiting new members. The membership tends to stabilize in the late summer, and at that time a membership directory becomes feasible. Starting with the 1992-93 year, the Directory reflects membership near the end of the calendar year, and will designate the leadership for the following calendar year.

 
 

The Directory Committee Chair  

1983 Eleanor Mathews, Iowa State University

1984 Liga Briedis, Drake University

1985 Lorna Peterson, Iowa State University

1986 Lorna Peterson, Iowa State University

1987 Thomas Shaw, Cornell College

1988 Thomas Shaw, Cornell College and Lorna Peterson, Iowa State University

1989 Jeanne M.K. Boydston, Iowa State University

1990 Tracy Russell, Iowa State University

1991 Georgia Quirk, University of Northern Iowa

1992 Philip Howze, Iowa State University

1993 Julie Hansen, William Penn College

1994 Peter Hartford, University of Iowa

1995 John Forys, University of Iowa

1996 Joan Loslo, University of Northern Iowa

1997 Ross Petra, University of Northern Iowa/Randall Roeder, Coe College

1998 Randall Roeder, Coe College

1999 Michael Levine-Clark, University of Iowa

1999 Susan Knippel, Iowa State University

2000 Susan Knippel, Iowa State University

2001 Joyce Lindstrom, Iowa State University

2002 Susan Moore, University of Northern Iowa

2003 Susan Moore, University of Northern Iowa

2004 Susan Moore, University of Northern Iowa

2005 Kris Stacy-Bates, Iowa State University

2006 Kris Stacy-Bates, Iowa State University

2007 Kris Stacy-Bates, Iowa State University

2008 Karen Goodell, Palmer College of Chiropractic