May was the month of finishes with semester finals and Commencement as the highlights. Use of the libraries slowed down and library faculty and staff began to plan summer projects to renovate and update facilities, equipment, hardware and software. Budget planning for the next year accelerated and this year’s budget outcomes were assessed. The Libraries are working with the new Associate Vice President for Communication and Marketing, Rae Goldsmith, to prepare a marketing plan.

Almost 9,000 persons used the new computer center in Ekstrom Library since February. It is a very popular place for students to work on research and other projects.

On May 13 the library faculty participated in a successful faculty development seminar sponsored by the Provost’s Office. Betsy Wilson from the University of Washington provided several appropriate and very helpful sessions on teaching in the electronic environment. Several members of the teaching faculty and the Provost’s Office participated in the afternoon session.

At the invitation of Lee Carruthers, on May 5 the Government Documents area was visited by an inspector from the Government Publications Office, Tom Oertel, to assess the accessibility and use of government documents. Mr. Oertel was most complimentary regarding our plans for cataloging this collection for better access and expressed appreciation for our future plans.

We finalized our planning and budget proposals for the next year with the Provost and received compliments for our strategic plan and its assessment.

The KCVL (Kentucky Commonwealth Virtual Library) continues to work on service agreements for document delivery and other services. The KCVL Information Literacy Committee continues to finalize their six information literacy modules on the Web using EDUPRISE (name change from COLLEGIS) software and the assistance of several consultants.

The KCVU (Kentucky Commonwealth Virtual University) Faculty Development Committee held a successful 2-day faculty development program on May 17-18 in Louisville with an emphasis on pedagogy and teaching in the electronic environment. A virtual groundbreaking ceremony was held to initiate the KCVU. Approximately 450 delegates attended this event including a large delegation from the University of Louisville and the Libraries.

--Hannelore Rader