EPA National Library Network News

EPA Enhances Library Services - September 2008

EPA is enhancing its comprehensive suite of library and information access services available to the public and Agency staff. Services are provided through EPA’s National Library Network and online resources. Many locations are expanding service hours and adding to their local collections.

Onsite libraries for the public and Agency staff are open in Region 5, Chicago; Region 6, Dallas; Region 7, Kansas City; and at the EPA Headquarters and Chemical Libraries in Washington, DC. In addition, EPA is providing onsite staff at the Fort Meade, MD satellite library in Region 3. These libraries join the EPA National Library Network which consists of regional, laboratory, repository, and specialized libraries. The libraries provide physical space for walk-in traffic and maintain onsite collections of materials developed and tailored to meet local and regional needs.

All libraries are staffed by professional librarians who provide services to EPA staff and the public via phone, e-mail, or in person. Each of the libraries in EPA’s National Library Network provides a consistent set of core services: onsite reference and research services; a minimum of 24 hours of staff support services a week; and a standard reference collection. Additional services and hours of operation are provided by some of the Network libraries.

EPA is committed to supporting an effective physical and virtual library network that provides timely information access and library services. EPA’s library services and local collections are supported and supplemented by an array of electronic resources, including access to hundreds of journals, databases and news sources for EPA employees.

Information about library locations, hours of operation, and available library services.

EPA Presence at National Library Conferences - June 2008

EPA's National Library Network is represented at two professional library association conferences this summer through its participation as an exhibitor. EPA will have an information booth at the Special Libraries Association (SLA) Annual Conference INFO-EXPO, June 15-18, 2008 in Seattle, as well as the American Library Association (ALA) Annual Conference Exhibition, June 26-July 2, 2008 in Anaheim. The two conferences attract thousands of professional librarians and library community affiliates each year and will allow EPA to update stakeholders on its future direction for the Library Network. EPA has developed a Highlights from the EPA National Library Network (PDF) (2 pp, 49K, About PDF) resource for the two library conference venues. Information about EPA library services, publications, and online resources will also be featured.

Update on EPA's Library Network - March 2008

EPA submitted a National Library Network Report to Congress (PDF) (8 pp, 52K, About PDF) on March 26 as requested in the Explanatory Statement accompanying the FY 2008 consolidated Appropriations Act (H.R. 2764).

In the Report, EPA commits to reestablish physical libraries in EPA Regions 5, 6, and 7, as well as the Headquarters and Chemical libraries by September 30, 2008 to complement existing library services. The report was transmitted to the Honorable Todd Tiahrt (PDF) (1 pp, 42K, About PDF), the Honorable Wayne Allard (PDF) (1 pp, 42K, About PDF), the Honorable Norman Dicks (PDF) (1 pp, 47K, About PDF) and the Honorable Dianne Feinstein (PDF) (1 pp, 43K, About PDF).

The Report lays out the general approach EPA plans to take for each location to reopen, and establishes operational standards applicable to every library in the EPA Network. More specific planning for each site continues.

EPA will allocate the Congressional appropriation of $1 million using the following priorities:

Re-establish onsite libraries in Region 5 in Chicago, Region 6 in Dallas, Region 7 in Kansas City, and the consolidated EPA Headquarters Repository and Chemical Library in Washington, DC.
Enable Regional EPA libraries to update their collections, facilities, and equipment to meet Network standards.
Conduct a formal needs assessment for EPA library services to support future development.

Over the next few months, EPA will continue to engage with internal and external stakeholders on developing final plans for each library. The Agency is committed to working with its employees and outside parties on its future digitization plans (based on the third party review), a customer needs assessment, and long term strategic planning efforts.

Annual Meeting of the EPA National Library Network and OEI Symposium – December 2007

The EPA National Library Network held its 2007 Annual Meeting in conjunction with the EPA Office of Environmental Information (OEI) Symposium in St. Louis, Missouri. The mid-November meeting brought library staff and managers together in person, with close to 60 participants representing 19 of the EPA locations and their libraries. A range of sessions fostered discussion of issues related to the day-to-day operation of EPA libraries as well as the strategic direction of the Library Network. Guest speakers offered additional perspectives on environmental information access and the role of EPA libraries and information professionals. Molly O’Neill, EPA’s Assistant Administrator for Environmental Information and Chief Information Officer, discussed her vision for integrated access to agency-wide information. Roberta Shaffer, Executive Director of the Federal Library and Information Center Committee (FLICC) and Federal Library and Information Network (FEDLINK), spoke to trends in federal libraries and highlighted the trailblazing efforts of the EPA National Library Network in addressing challenges that cut across many library systems. Fred Stoss, Associate Librarian for Biological and Environmental Sciences at the State University of New York at Buffalo, also shared perspectives on access to environmental information and the importance of making library services available to a range of users.

The November 14-16 OEI Symposium: “Getting it Right: Access to Environmental Information,” continued this information access conversation for the EPA library community along with hundreds of other participants from EPA and beyond. Plenary sessions, small-group forums, booth displays, and a “mash-up camp” comprised the core symposium offerings, all of which explored growing possibilities for collecting and delivering the right information to the right people at the right time.

Highlighting Professional Librarian Staff Changes – December 2007

In the course of this year, the management and operation of EPA’s National Library Network has been strengthened with the addition of several highly qualified professional librarians. Some of the notable staff enhancements include:

Deborah K. Balsamo was named as the National Program Manager for EPA’s Library Network. Ms. Balsamo joins EPA’s Office of Environmental Information from the Office of Administration and Resources Management where she served as the Federal Library Manager of the Research Triangle Park (RTP), North Carolina library for four years. Prior to that, Ms. Balsamo was the Director of the RTP library in a contractor support role and is a former librarian at Duke University's Office of Research Support.

A professional librarian for over ten years, Ms. Balsamo currently serves as the president of the North Carolina chapter of the Special Library Association and is also active in the American Library Association; she has received awards from both these organizations. Ms. Balsamo earned her Master of Science in Library Science (MSLS) from the School of Information and Library Science (SILS) at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill where she also served as adjunct lecturer for the science reference course. An Honors Graduate of Florida Atlantic University, she was named University Scholar and was elected to the Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society.

Ms. Balsamo is leading the Agency’s library services program. The EPA Library Network is composed of libraries and repositories located in the Agency's Headquarters, Regional and Field Offices, Research Centers, and specialized laboratories, as well as web-based access to electronic holdings. EPA is leveraging information technology to provide more effective information access to the public and its employees by making more information available on-line.

April Errickson was selected as the Federal Library Manager for EPA’s library in Research Triangle Park (RTP), NC operated by the Office of Administration and Resources Management. For almost four years, Ms. Errickson has managed the EPA-RTP Library as a University of North Carolina contractor where she was involved with implementing library liaison services for EPA Headquarters, Region 6 and Region 7 employees, as well as coordinating the 2007 journals procurement through RTP. Prior to joining EPA, Ms. Errickson was employed at Thomson-Dialog for almost five years in a variety of roles, including Director of the Knowledge Center, Dialog's customer support department which provides technical and reference support to librarians and information specialists. Ms. Errickson holds a Master's Degree in Library Science from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Heather Wright is serving as the Federal Library Manager in Cincinnati's Office of Administration and Resources Management, Information Resources Management Division. Previously, she was the Supervisory Librarian in EPA’s Andrew W. Breidenbach Environmental Research Center Library (AWBERC) in Cincinnati as a contractor with ASRC Management Services. She also worked as AWBERC's Reference Librarian for two years. As the Supervisory Librarian, Ms. Wright worked to assist Regions 4 and 5 with new library service models, providing liaison library services. Before coming to EPA, she worked as a law librarian at a large legal firm in Cincinnati, Ohio. Ms. Wright holds a Master's Degree in Library Science from Indiana University and an MA in Slavic Languages and Literature from the University of Kansas. Ms. Wright is also a book reviewer for Library Journal.

Tamika Barnes McCollough serves as the EPA-RTP Library Director as a University of North Carolina contractor. Prior to becoming the EPA Library Director, Ms. McCollough was the Head of Reference and Information Literacy at North Carolina A&T State in Greensboro, North Carolina where she was responsible for supervision and development of six librarians, coordinating the instruction program and managing the reference collection. Before working at North Carolina A&T State University, Ms. McCollough was the Engineering Services Librarian at North Carolina State University.

Ms. McCollough is active in the library profession and currently serves on the Executive Board of the Special Libraries Association (SLA) and the North Carolina Chapter of SLA. She is also a member of the ACRL Professional Development Coordinating Committee. Ms. McCollough has been very involved with ALA’s Spectrum Program which is an effort to increase the number of minority librarians in the profession and the Secretary/Treasurer for NCLA’s Roundtable of Ethnic and Minority Concerns.

Tamika Barnes McCollough is currently an adjunct lecturer at both North Carolina Central University School of Library and Information Sciences and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Information and Library Science. Her undergraduate degree is a B.A. in Biology from The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and she received her MLS from North Carolina Central University.

EPA Collaboration with Federal Library and Information Center Committee - August 2007

The Office of Environmental Information is collaborating with the Federal Library and Information Center Committee (FLICC) regarding EPA's National Library Network. FLICC is a component of the Library of Congress and will convene a Board of Advisors to provide input to EPA as it develops its strategy for the future delivery of library and information access services. As part of its portfolio of programs and services, FLICC provides advice to federal libraries and information centers in all branches of government including the military; its mission is to foster excellence in federal library and information services through interagency cooperation.

The FLICC Board of Advisors will work with EPA staff to help address challenges and share collective expertise and experience. The Board's membership was selected to consider a broad range of topics relevant to EPA's National Library Network planning. EPA is pleased to work with this distinguished Board of Advisors:

Janice Beattie, Director of Central and Regional Libraries, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce
Blane Dessy, Director of Staff, Patrick Henry Library, Department of Justice
Richard Huffine, National Library Coordinator, US Geological Survey
James King, Director, Ruth H. Hooker Research Library, US Naval Research Laboratory
Maria Pisa, Associate Director for Public Services, National Agriculture Library, US Department of Agriculture
Roberta Shaffer, FLICC/FEDLINK Executive Director, Library of Congress
Amanda Wilson, Head of the National Transportation Library, Department of Transportation

Update on EPA’s Library Network - July 2007

EPA is committed to increasing access to environmental information through a combination of online and traditional library services via the EPA Library Network. As EPA plans for the future direction of the Library Network, updates will be provided to library users and stakeholders with information on the planning activities and ways to be involved in the process.

No changes are being made while EPA is reviewing its plans.

EPA is in the process of reviewing its methods of delivering library services. No changes are being made in the Library Network at this time; no changes will be made until EPA's plans have been widely reviewed and communicated. EPA is implementing a strategy to involve a broader group of internal and external stakeholders in the library network planning process.

An Interim Library Policy was issued and procedures are being developed.

EPA's Chief Information Officer issued an Interim Library Policy (PDF) (5 pp, 87K, About PDF) on April 16, 2007 that clarifies the governance process and responsibilities for the Library Network. The Library Policy process follows the Agency's policy framework: procedures in support of the Policy are being developed with stakeholder input.

Procedures for the transfer of library materials to other libraries are in draft and are under internal review; these procedures were developed by professional EPA librarians based on best library practices. Draft procedures for collecting library usage statistics are also in review. Additional procedures will be developed in the course of the coming months and will go through similar development and review processes, including input from experts outside of EPA when appropriate. Document digitization procedures are being developed. EPA has commissioned an independent third party review of its Digitization standards and processes; this review will inform the development of EPA's future Digitization procedures.

Stakeholder input and communication efforts have been expanded.

EPA is working with internal and external stakeholders as it develops plans for the Library Network. A meeting of EPA's federal library managers was held in Chapel Hill, NC on April 10-11, 2007, and additional meetings are planned. EPA has participated in several national library conferences over the past few months to engage in information exchange. Other opportunities for stakeholder input are being explored and forums for stakeholder input are being planned. EPA's web presence for the Library Network has been updated to reflect current information and activities. The most current information is available at: http://www.epa.gov/libraries/.

To provide feedback on EPA’s current library services or input for its longer term plans, please submit your comments via the Feedback Form or send an e-mail to library_feedback@epa.gov. For more information on EPA’s library services, visit http://www.epa.gov/libraries/.