Graduate School of Library and Information Science
The University of Texas at Austin
January 1995, No. 50
It seems like only yesterday that we completed our Strategic Plan (1992), not to mention our Vision Plan for Technology (1993), our Plan for Distance Education (1993) and our Minority Recruitment Plan (1991), but sure enough, we all gathered (faculty, sta ff, selected alumni, and practitioners) on September 29 to review our progress, affirm our objectives, and re-direct as appropriate. Perhaps our most notable accomplishment is in the area of minority recruitment. In 1991 we set out to double our minorit y enrollment. This past fall we had 60 minority students, a triple increase since 1991. GSLIS now has more minority students than any other LIS school in the US except the University of Puerto Rico.
We attribute this to several factors: faculty have been awarded more than $360,000 in US Department of Education Title IIb fellowships for masters and doctoral students; through generous support of alumni, and other friends of the school, we have three n ew endowed scholarships; the El Paso and San Antonio distance education programs; and one-on-one recruitment activities on the part of faculty, staff and alumni.
A highlight of the fall was the opportunity to participate in the UTEP graduation where our first 18 El Paso MLIS graduates were recognized as part of the ceremonies, and their families and friends attended a reception hosted by the GSLIS. Most of the pi oneer 18 worked full time, some attended UT Austin in the summer... one graduate's little boy said to me, "My mom said I was a big help when I cooked and was good so she could study, and now she has a master's degree and a new job." This is what it's al l about!
If during the past few years we have seemingly been obsessed with planning, we have also been enhancing our continuing education activities, and 1995 will surely be known as the "Year of the Institute." In June we will be co-sponsoring, with members of t he Computer Science Dept. at Texas A&M University, the second digital library conference to be held in Austin at the Guest Quarters Hotel. Professors Fran Miksa and Phil Doty are the local hosts for the conference. In August we will host a national inst itute on film and the use of multi-media in libraries. This institute is being organized by Sally Mason, video consultant, and funded by the MacArthur Foundation. It is invitational and intended for LIS faculty members, and state library continuing educ ation specialists.
In November the 2nd National Institute for Hispanic Library Education will be hosted by UT-Austin. The theme will be "Public Library Service to Latinos." This conference is also sponsored by the Trejo Foundation and REFORMA, with a planning grant from t he Kellogg Foundation. All of these events are of course in addition to a full range of continuing education offerings, described elsewhere in this newsletter. Events like these following in the wake of the highly successful "Readiness for School" Insti tute, funded by USDE, and organized by Prof. Barbara Immroth and Viki Ash-Geisler, may be a major factor in the rapidly growing reputation of the school.
That our reputation is growing in a positive way is evidenced by the increasing sophistication of the student body. Of 504 students enrolled last fall, 167 were out-of-state, eight were lawyers, five were Fulbright and two were IREX scholars. Our out-of -state ratio exceeds most other accredited library schools except those conducting out-of-state distance education programs.
I'll save talk about faculty research efforts for the next newsletter; suffice it to say that because of activities noted above and a variety of initiatives underway, GSLIS is an exciting place to work and study these days - we are invigorated by all of t his activity and by growing alumni support. We look forward to seeing you when you are in Austin, or at your favorite professional conference.
Brooke E. Sheldon
Building Name Change
The name of the Education Building has officially been changed to the George I. Sanchez Building. Sanchez was a distinguished Hispanic educator who served on the UT faculty from 1940 until his death in 1972. He was co-founder of the UT Center for Mexica n American Studies. The new abbreviation for our building is SZB, so the GSLIS address is now: Graduate School of Library and Information Science, SZB 564/MC D7000, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712-1276. While it is not essent ial that the Mail Code be used except for on-campus mail, it does help to keep our mail from going to General Libraries.
PCS Now Publishes Conservation News
The University of Tulsa Libraries published its last issue of Conservation Administration News with number 56 (January, 1994). At that time the University of Tulsa announced that year-long negotiations had been completed with Preservation and Cons ervation Studies of GSLIS to transfer ownership and editorial responsibility from Tulsa to UT.
April of 1994 was the first issue published by PCS. The July/October 1994 issue of Conservation Administration News is now out. The publication underwent an extensive redesign and will return to its quarterly publication schedule as of January 1 995.
A new editorial board has been chosen. The new members of the board are Peter S. Graham from Rutgers, Marcella Grendler from the University of North Carolina, Pete Jermann from St. Bonaventure University, Biruta Celmins Kearl from the Austin History and Records Center, and Mary Lynn Ritzenthaler from the National Archives and Records Service.
Tax Charges Now On Our Publications
GSLIS now has to charge sales tax on subscription mailings of the Placement Bulletin and Austin/Central Texas Jobs for in-state residents. There is no added tax if you reside outside of Texas. The rate for mailings throughout Austin differs from those to areas of Texas outside Austin. For Austin mailings of the Placement Bulletin, the charge for 6-month subscriptions including tax is now $18.36 and for 1-year subscriptions, $32.40. For outside-Austin Texas mailings, the charge for 6- month subscriptions including tax is now $18.23 and for 1-year subscriptions, $32.18. For Austin/Central Texas Jobs, the charge is now $17.28 for Austin mailings for a 6-month subscription and $28.08 for 1-year subscriptions. For outside-Austin Texas mailings of this publication, the charge is now $17.16 for 6-month subscriptions and $27.89 for 1-year subscriptions.
What's new? A Trip? New Job? Moving? Recently wed? New baby? Publications? Offices? Activities? Honors? We want your news, of all sorts. Masters and doctoral graduates AND those of you who received your school certifications through GSLIS. Send us phot os when you can.
Mail us at:
Mel Boggins, Editor, Alumni News
GSLIS, SZB 564/MC D7000
UT-Austin, Austin, TX 78712-1276
Or E-mail us at: glmb@uts.cc.utexas.edu
Alums! If you did not receive this issue of Alumni News, let us know. We want to stay in touch with you.
January 1995 Alumni News page created by Colleen Nunn, nunn@texas.net
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