Sara Lowman announced that a preliminary design for the new LSC module has been selected. The Rice Board of Trustees will need to approve the new module, likely at the February/ March meeting.
The Executive Committee discussed the trend of some researchers using disciplinary repositories such as arXiv rather than institutional repositories. This practice does not appear to remove the need for an institutional repository. Not every discipline has a repository, and often researchers who make available their work through a disciplinary repository are also willing to share it through an institutional repository.
The Executive Committee also discussed the increasing efforts of publishing companies to move into research analytics and data services. Exec members will read a recent report on the topic to inform potential next steps.
Denis Galvin described how Fondren currently handles privacy. As we move to Alma as our library service platform, it will be easier to anonymize patron data. Denis is working with Fondren IT to improve privacy practices, following emerging library best practices.
Lisa Spiro shared suggestions from Fondren staff who recently attended the Library Assessment Conference. These suggestions include making assessment data and reports available in a common area (such as the new staff portal); offering training on topics such as IRB, privacy, and analytical tools; getting started on ROARS assessment activities earlier in the academic year; building assessment into new project plans (including conducting user analysis and feasibility studies at the beginning and evaluations at the end); and promoting a culture of inquiry and trust.
