Liaison Activity The Commission continued its active program of maintaining contact with government (Federal, state and local), professional, public and private organizations and associations, both to obtain needed information and to provide input to others' deliberations. Commissioners and Staff developed extensive comments on a proposed Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Circular on the management and dissemination of Federal information, as well as provided suggestions to the Interagency Task Force appointed by the President to review the White House Conference Report. In addition, staff participated in the meetings of the Federal Interagency Committee on Education (FICE) and the meetings of the Network Advisory Committee (NAC) of the Library of Congress. Close communication was maintained with the activities of the Copyright Office, particularly in the development of the Register's five-year review of the photocopying provisions. The Commission has a particular interest in this report, because it was responsible for the incorporation of the requirement for this report in the Copyright Law revision. Other organizations with whom contact is frequent include the Association for Educational Communications and Technology (AECT), the American Library Association (ALA) and its Washington Office, the Association of Research Libraries (ARL), the American Society for Information Science (ASIS), the Council of National Library and Information Associations (CNLIA), the Chief Officers of State Library Agencies (COSLA), the Federal Automated Data Processing Users Group (FADPUG), the Federal Information Managers Group (FIMG), the Federal Library Committee (FLC), the Information Industry Association (IIA), the National Technical Information Service (NTIS), the National Science Foundation (NSF), Chief State School Officers (CSSO), Association of American Publishers (AAP), and the Special Libraries Association (SLA). Commissioners themselves are also active in establishing and maintaining contacts with other agencies and organizations, meeting with groups such as the Education Commission of the States (ECS), and the International Federation of Library Associations (IFLA), giving major addresses at professional conferences and meetings, and testifying before Congress on library and information appropriations. As part of its efforts to share the results of the White House Conference, the Commission Chairman and others made presentations to several professional associations. The first report of the Conference to an outside group was at the Cleveland Conference in Chicago, in early December 1979. In February 1980, at the Information Community Organization Heads Meeting, held at the Department of the Interior, the videotape was tested for its effectiveness as a summary report, prior to releasing the tape publicly. The tape proved itself to be an effective means of communicating the spirit and essence of the Conference and was subsequently presented at the following conferences where it was used as a springboard for discussing the specific implications of the White House Conference for each group. • American Association of Library Schools, Austin, Texas, February 1980 (First showing of videotape in rough cut form) • Library and Postal Services Committee Meeting with Postmaster William F. Bolger, Washington, D.C., March 1980 • American Society for Information Science Information Organization Presidents' Luncheon, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, May 1980 • Educational Film Library Association, New York, New York, May 1980 • Special Libraries Association, Washington, D.C., June 1980 • American Library Association, New York, New York, June 1980 (The tape was shown to Council and discussed with the Executive Board) • International Federation of Library Associations, Manila, The Philippines, August 1980 • American Association of School Libraries, Louisville, Kentucky, September 1980 (The tape was shown, and Richard M. Neustadt delivered the Presidential message) In the year following the Conference, the videotape and other materials have been distributed to all state library agencies and to all graduate schools of library and information science. The videotape has been widely shown and the other materials heavily used at state and local meetings to bring the results of the White House Conference before tens of thousands of people throughout the country. Plans for the Future The major thrust of the next year will be toward implementation of resolutions from the first White House Conference on Library and Information Services (WHCLIS). More than $7 million and 22 years of work through four administrations were devoted to planning and presenting the Conference. Through the state, territorial, and regional pre-conferences, and the White House Conference, itself, more than 100,000 citizens were actively involved. To make the most of this major investment of time, effort, and resources, the Commission plans to work with the White House Conference on Library and Information Services Taskforce (WHCLIST), and the local and state groups to review the resolutions and identify those that the Commission should play a role in implementing. The Commission will be addressing three key areas during the next several years. Specifications for Revised Legislation for Library and Currently, the Library Services and Construction Act (LSCA) comes up for renewal in 1982. Therefore, in line with the many resolutions of the White House Conference and requests from Congress, the profession, and others to help develop specifications for new legislation, we plan to make this topic our first priority. Improved Dissemination of Federal Information Every Federal agency has the responsibility to disseminate information about its activities or to diffuse the results of its research and data gathering among the people of the United States. This is done now in a variety of ways which, for the most part, reflect the agencies' missions and responsibilities. For example, there are depository library systems, energy, and agricultural extension services, and the Federal Information Centers. There are a number of other information dissemination programs and systems. Public libraries are the base for the depository system and land grant university libraries are a significant element of USDA's extension service. As a result, the dissemination and diffusion programs, including the Federal Information Center program, are pretty much stand-alone operations. The Commission will continue its efforts to promote cooperation among Federal Government agencies in the development of more rational and more efficient dissemination of Federal information. Resource Sharing and Application of Technology In the report to the President there were suggested elements of new library and information services legislation. First among these elements was improving the sharing of resources within the library and information services community. The sharing of resources and the application of technology is a fundamental thread that has run through virtually all of the work of the Commission since its inception, because these two principles form the basis of all contemporary library and information service activities. In order to reallocate Federal, state, and local resources so that they can be used most efficiently, it is essential that we utilize the newest technology and improve systems to share existing resources. The Commission will continue to build on its current and earlier activities to promote more widespread acceptance of this fact. Task forces on Community Information and Referral Services, Library and Information Services to Cultural Minorities, and the Role of the Special Library in Nationwide Networking and Cooperative Programs have already been established. The Commission will probably formalize the task force on international activities in the coming year. In order to help the Commissioners keep up with the latest technology, a series of mini-tutorials, perhaps tied in with professional and trade association conferences, is planned. With the experience and many recommendations from the White House Conference, the planning retreat, and a new Executive Director, the Commission starts the new fiscal year with a renewed sense of direction and vigor. Personnel and Administration NCLIS Commissioners Charles Benton, the Commission's Chairman, completed the unexpired term of the former Chairman, Frederick Burkhardt, on July 19, 1980. Mr. Benton also served as Chairman of the White House Conference on Library and Information Services. On September 23, 1980, he was appointed by the President to a new five-year term, and he was also reappointed Chairman. Mr. Benton, an Illinois business executive and civic activist, is Chairman, Public Media, Inc., a leading distributor of feature films, videotapes, and educational media materials, located in Wilmette, Illinois. He also now serves as President of the Benton Foundation. Two other appointments to the Commission were announced on September 23, 1980. Gordon M. Ambach, President of the University of the State of New York and Commissioner of Education, was appointed to replace former Commissioner Marian P. Leith of North Carolina, whose term expired July 19, 1980. Mr. Ambach graduated from Yale University in 1956, and he was awarded a Master of Arts in Teaching from Harvard University in 1957. As Commissioner of Education, Mr. Ambach has responsibility for the operation of the New York State Education Department, which has 3,500 employees and an annual budget of $4.5 billion. The Department has responsibility for all public and non-public elementary, secondary and postsecondary education; the State Museum, public television, vocational rehabilitation and the State Library and administration of library funds. This is the largest State Library, and the network of library systems is the most extensive of any state. Mr. Ambach was a delegate to the White House Conference, served on the General Resolutions Committee, and also chaired the Committee of the Conference. Paulette H. Holahan, Deputy Judicial Administrator for Public Information for the Louisiana Supreme Court, succeeded Mildred E. Younger of California, whose term also expired July 19, 1980. Mrs. Holahan is Chairman of the Board of Directors of the New Orleans Public Library; a Member of the Louisiana State Library Commission; a member of the Board of Directors of the National Urban Libraries Council, and National Vice President of the American Library Trustee Association. Mrs. Holahan was a Louisiana delegate to the White House Conference on Library and Information Services. |