University Library Committee Meeting Minutes 10/8/12
Members present: A. Armstrong, L. Muir, E. Plant, D. Patterson, T. Ravas
Members absent/excused: B. Brown, S. Brown, B. Clark, R. Wakimoto
Ex-officio member: S. Li Zhang
The meeting was called to order at 4:10 p.m.
The minutes from 9-10-12 were approved.
Communication Items:

Members introduced themselves and welcomed Dean Shali Zhang. She has only been on
campus for two weeks.

The committee charge and annual report were reviewed to provide the new dean with an idea
of the business conducted by the committee.
Committee Responsibilities:




Communication: The University Library Committee (ULC) communicates between the
Faculty Senate and the library administration.
Advocacy: The ULC advocates on behalf of the development and maintenance of library
resources and services as well as the needs of library stakeholders, including faculty,
students and staff, especially as communicated through the Faculty Senate. Additionally,
the committee reviews library matters as they relate to the University’s academic
mission.
Review: The ULC reviews the annual library acquisitions budget and strategic plan. The
committee participates in the selection and periodic evaluations of the Dean of
Libraries. The committee also participates in the accreditation processes affecting or
involving the Mansfield Library.
Dean Zhang has only been here for two weeks, but will be focusing on how the library can
support students and faculty to reach their potential and align with the 2020 strategic plan.
On Friday, October 12th the Library Faculty will be updated on the Learning Commons
initiative. Members of the Committee are welcome to attend. The Planning Team visited
several Universities with Learning Commons. In some cases the usage in the library
increased by 30%. The Learning Commons will also help to increase instruction offered in
the library. The hope is to make the library a comfortable place for students to work on class
assignments.
The library will be exploring Cloud Computing and possible platforms for data curation and
long term preservation.
The meeting was adjourned at 4:55p.m.