ALUMNI NEWS Several of our Alumni received honors and reached milestones. Megan Bell (MLIS, 2015) was selected as a 2018 Institute for Research Design in Librarianship (IRDL) Scholar. IRDL trains academic librarians to conduct methodologically sound research and provides a network for future collaborations. Her research explores using the flipped classroom model and active learning as tools for citation management software instruction. Zack Blanchard (MLIS, 1998) is Louisiana Tech Alumni Association’s 2018 College of Liberal Arts Alumnus of the Year. Two alumna, Kacy Helwick (MLIS, 2014) (YALSA) and Rachel Murdock (MLIS, 2016) (LITA) were selected as 2019 ALA Emerging Leaders. This leadership development program “enables newer library workers from across the country to participate in problem-solving work groups, network with peers, gain an inside look into ALA structure, and have an opportunity to sere the profession in a leadership capacity.” Brenda and Joe Crotts retired after a combined 92 years of library service. They met in the LSU Library and married in 1973. Brenda Crotts (MSLS, 71) retired on January 30, 2018, after 41 years with the Butte County, California public Spring 2019 Newsletter library. She ended her career with managing the Chico branch. Her career began in the science division of the LSU Library from 1971 to 1974. Joe Crotts (MLS, 73) retired on January 30, 2018, after over 43 years with the Meriam Library of California State University, Chico. His career began as a library trainee in the government documents and chemistry divisions of the LSU library in 1973, followed by managing the library of the Louisiana State Penitentiary in Angola until near the end of 1974. In addition to serving in the library, he served as an officer on the university’s academic senate (including chair), executive committee, and university budget committee from 1990 to 2018. DIRECTOR’S NOTE Presentations As I sit to write this, the re-accreditation team from ALA has just left campus, and I am overflowing with pride in our students, alumni, faculty and staff. This past year, we’ve Miriam Childs, (MLIS, 2014), “…And Justice for All: Three States and Three Approaches to Access to Justice,” American Association of Law Libraries Annual Meeting, Baltimore, 2018. asked for your help on numerous occasions, and you have all come through. We had Kacy Helwick (MLIS, 2014), “Unconventional Outreach: Going Where the People Are,” Louisiana Libraries Association, an overwhelming response to both our alumni and student surveys with over 300 alumni 2018. and nearly 100 students providing us with feedback. Thanks to you all! Jude Morrissey (MLIS, 2012), “Seeing the ‘Student’ in ‘Student Worker’: Utilizing the LMS for Student Worker Training & Management” Appalachian College Association Professional Development Day, 2018 I would like to take some time here to discuss our recent move to delivering our degree Michele Riggs (MLIS, 2004), “The Great Divide: Research Before, During, and After the Information Age,” Louisiana programs entirely online. As I’m sure you know, SLIS offers the only accredited MLIS Archives and Manuscript Association, 2018. program in the state of Louisiana. In order to serve all students in the state, distance Zach Tompkins (MLIS, 2013), “Store digital content for the long term,” Deep South Digital Preservation Workshop, education opportunities have always been a priority. Prior to the 1990s, faculty would Lafayette, 2018. drive to locations around the state to offer courses. (I remember one lovely semester Zach Tompkins (MLIS, 2013), “Missing Tapes and Deleted Tweets: The Presidential Records Act & Democracy.” in which I was driving to New Orleans every Thursday night to teach Abstracting and Presentation for the Presidential Symposium Behind the Ballot: Examining the Influences and Trends Driving Modern Indexing. Anyone reading this who took that course will remember that my mother came Elections at Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA, 2018. to every class; yes, my mother. She didn’t want me driving home alone after dark.) Emily Ward (MLIS, 2014), “Archiving the Web@EBRPL: Building a Community History Web Archive,” Louisiana Archives and Manuscript Association, 2018. In the mid-1990s, the Louisiana Board of Regents supported the creation of the infrastructure to support compressed Cheylon Woods (MLIS, 2015), “Protect content from everyday threats and emergency contingencies,” Deep South video courses. Faculty teaching in classrooms on the LSU campus were connected via audio and video to students Digital Preservation Workshop, Lafayette, 2018. in classrooms located around the state. Unfortunately, necessary updates and repairs to the infrastructure were not Janet Woolman, (MLIS, 2002), “Building a Sustainable Tech Community in the Panhandle,” ITEN Wired Conference, 2018, supported, and we stopped offering classes via this method in 2013. (I’m sure those of you who took compressed video https://www.itenwired.com/2017-presentations/Ebe_Randeree_2017.pdf. courses remember the following: “New Orleans? Are you there New Orleans? OK, we lost New Orleans.”) Catherine Word (MLIS, 2014), “Building Strong Relationships in the School Library,” ALA National Conference, New Orleans, 2018. We started using alternatives to the failing compressed video system in 2012. We offered hybrid classes in which Publications local students were physically located in the classroom and distance students were connected via Adobe Connect. Edward Benoit, III and Amanda Munson (MLIS, 2017). “Proceed with Caution: Deepening Concerns about Social Tagging Unfortunately, Internet connectivity in Louisiana was an issue, especially in rural areas. Many students relied on their local within Digital Collections, 2010-2016,” portal: Libraries and the Academy 18, no. 4 (2018): 759-779. libraries to connect to classes, but encountered issues in signing up for computer use for the three-hour class period. Amy Catania (CARST, 2018), “Re-conceptualizing Oral Culture Collections and Archival Practices,” Provenance 35, no. There were also many instances of connection interruptions, during which students lost access to the class. 2 (2018): 45-70. Janet Kearney (MLIS, 2016), Immigration and Asylum: Striving for Recognition, in Sexual Orientation, Gender Identities, We were also offering classes that were entirely web-based, using first the Blackboard and then the Moodle course and the Law: A Research Bibliography (2d ed., William H. Hein 2018). management platforms. Most of these courses were asynchronous, eliminating the issue of students needing to find Janet Kearney (MLIS, 2016), Military Employment: Navigating the Repeal of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, in Sexual Orientation, computers and Internet connections for a three-hour class period. Gender Identities, and the Law: A Research Bibliography (2d ed., William H. Hein 2018). Janet Kearney (MLIS, 2016), “Distinct Topics in Public Sector Employment,” in Sexual Orientation, Gender Identities, and So, during the 2012/13 through 2014/15 academic years, we were offering classes using three delivery methods: face- the Law: A Research Bibliography (2d ed., William H. Hein 2018). to-face, hybrid face-to-face/Adobe connect, and entirely web-based. We were alternating the delivery methods of Janet Kearney (MLIS, 2016), “Review of Christopher T. Marsden, Network Neutrality: From Policy to Law to Regulation,” classes so that students had the option to take each class face-to-face in the classroom, or to take classes connected 110 Law Libr. J. 277 (2018). via Adobe Connect or connected via the web. Giving students these options was the ideal situation. However, we soon Melissa Mallon, (MLIS, 2007), The Pivotal Role of Academic Librarians in Digital Learning (Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO, encountered an environment in which enrollment in the face-to-face classes rapidly decreased. 2018). Jude Morrissey (MLIS, 2012) and Lindsay Kenderes, “Building Bridges with No Trolls: The Practical Ethics of Open Access The evidence of this trend can be seen in enrollment in core courses during this period of time. Core courses are offered Institutional Repositories and Digital Archives.” In Applying Library Values to Emerging Technology: Decision-Making in the every fall and spring semester. Each academic year, every core course was offered as a face-to-face course during Age of Open Access, Maker Spaces, and the Ever-Changing Library (pp. 285-303). (ACRL Publications in Librarianship, one semester and as either a hybrid or web-based course the other semester. In the 2012/13 academic year, 45% of no. 72). Chicago: ACRL, 2018. students enrolled in face-to-face classes and 55% of students enrolled in classes in which they participated via Adobe Janet Woolman (MLIS, 2002), Pensacola Cyber Coast: Live Coastal. Work Cyber. A Cybersecurity Strategic Plan Connect or via the web. In 2013/14, these numbers were 33% and 67%; in 2014/15, these numbers were 18% and 82%. Report. FloridaWest Economic Development Alliance and Pensacola Cybersecurity Community. 2018. https://www. floridawesteda.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/Cyber-Plan-Smmary-PDF.pdf. 12 1 Continued from page 1 Stauffer, S. (2018). The public library as frontier: Shifting borders, permeable boundaries. Presented at the Southwest P/ ACA Annual Conference, Albuquerque, NM. This raised the following questions: was it an efficient use of resources for faculty to teach a face-to-face course with as Stewart, B. (2018). Southern agricultural literature: A practical literacy for the american south.