November 21, 2007
Public access to federal court records is now available at the State Library of Ohio, one of 16 libraries in 14 states under a joint pilot project of the Administrative Office of the United States Courts and the Government Printing Office. Though accessible only by the State Library of Ohio staff, information can be quickly located for patrons. Patrons can access PACER at our public access terminals as long as the reference staff logs them in. To use this service library users need to contact the Reference staff at 614-644-7051 or refhelp@sloma.state.oh.us
The project offers access to the federal judiciary's Public Access to Court Electronic Records (PACER) system. PACER allows users to obtain case file documents, listings of all case parties, judgments, and other information from district, bankruptcy and appellate courts online, with the data immediately available for printing or downloading. Frequently Asked Questions
PACER normally carries an eight-cents-per-page fee which is used to fund the system's costs. That fee will be waived for all users, even those who already have PACER accounts, when the system is accessed from the 16 federal depository libraries.
Each of the libraries has agreed to promote the PACER service, provide users with a three-question PACER survey, report PACER activities to the GPO every two months, and provide access only from computers within the library. The libraries also have agreed to maintain login and password security.
The project, which will last up to two years, is part of the judiciary's continuing effort to expand public access to court records by discovering if a segment of the public desires access to information contained in the PACER system but is unlikely to go to a courthouse or become a PACER user.
For more information contact the State Library of Ohio reference staff at 614-644-7051 or refhelp@sloma.state.oh.us
November 14, 2007
Can you imagine a day when everyone in Ohio has access to all materials in all libraries in the state including public, universities, k-12 schools, and special libraries? The vision, “anything, anywhere, at anytime” may be a reality in the coming years if all libraries can connect their technology driven library loan systems, agree to collaborate and share their resources.
The State Library of Ohio is leading the way by bringing together library representatives from around state to plan the next generation of resource sharing. According to State Librarian Jo Budler, “It’s important to get input from the entire library community to determine the future of resource sharing in Ohio”. The video conference today is part of a process that was started in May at the Ohio Libraries Partnership Summit in Columbus. Current resource sharing systems and agreements allow groups of libraries to share amongst themselves. Our university libraries share resources in their collections through OhioLink. School districts share resources through INFOhio. Public libraries have numerous disparate systems that share within their own consortiums. “In the future we would like to see all of these library systems sharing with each other. By working together and sharing resources we are able to make the most of Ohio tax payers’ investment in our library systems.”
The State Library of Ohio hosted a statewide videoconference today with 100 representatives from all types of libraries in Ohio to plan the next phase in statewide resource sharing. Participants were located at seven sites across the state.
Information about the video conference including background information about resource sharing and library collaboration can be found at www.library.ohio.gov/swrs.
Discussion notes taken at each of the seven sites and a list of the attendees is available at: www.library.ohio.gov/swrs/videoconferencing.
November 6, 2007
The State Library of Ohio is pleased to announce that Jeff Jones and Shannon Kupfer have joined the staff of the State Library. Jeff is the Head, Employee Services and Shannon Kupfer is the Digital/Tangible Media Cataloger.
As Head, Employee Services, Jeff’s main focus will be upon the coordination of personnel activities which includes the recruitment, selection, orientation and retention of employees. He will also be the agency’s point person for benefits, collective bargaining/labor relations, disability/workers compensation, EEO, ADA, FMLA and agency/state policies and how these impact State Library staff. Additionally, Jeff will work with employees and supervisory personnel on professional development, training, and performance evaluation. Employee Services also coordinate the State Library’s connection with the OAKS HCM (Human Capital Management) application for the management of human resource activities such as the hiring, position changes, separation, etc.
Jeff will be a liaison with other agencies, boards and commissions with a focus on human resource and training issues. An example of this will be his work with DAS’ Office of Collective Bargaining and Office of Training & Development. Additional duties for Jeff will include coordinating the Combined Charitable Campaign, Operation Feed and providing leadership to the State Library’s Employee Recognition Committee.
Jeff has a dual master’s degree in university administration/adult education from Michigan State University and an undergraduate degree in special education from Illinois State University. With more than fifteen years public service experience, Jeff will bring his knowledge, skills and abilities in employee relations, leadership development, training, recruitment, customer service, policy development and review, and coaching to work for us here at the State Library. Over the past several years Jeff has been a member of the Department of Administrative Services and the Ohio Department of Education.
As the Tangible/Digital Media Cataloguer, Shannon will further the mission of the State Library of Ohio by providing bibliographic control and access to tangible media and digital resources available from the collections of the State Library. Shannon’s position is responsible for performing original and complex OCLC member cataloging while exploring, learning and employing the most appropriate metadata formats to provide better access to library resources most needed by State Library customers. Along with those duties, Shannon will collaborate with special collections personnel, subject specialists and appropriate other interested parties to help determine the best way to provide access to materials and resources.
Shannon is a recent KSU MLIS graduate. She has worked as a volunteer at OHS, cataloging and creating finding aids for the Bob Taft Gubernatorial Collection. Her practicum was at the Westerville Public Library where she cataloged unique materials from the Anti-Saloon League Museum