4.8 Tips, Practical Advice, and Lessons Learned

• Your depository library should write a public services policy that includes the public service functions listed in this chapter.
• Examples of handouts, instructional and promotional materials, and tutorials for specific tools or subjects for your users and the library staff, as well as policies on access, Internet use, and public services for government information in electronic formats can be found at the GODORT Handout Exchange (http://wikis.ala.org/godort/index.php/Exchange).
• GODORT’s E-competencies (http://www.ala.org/ala/godort/godortcommittees/gitco/ecomps.htm) document provides a tiered outline of skills useful for providing services in the use of electronic government information and links to resources to acquire proficiency in each area.
• Develop Web guides, training aids, and instructional programs for library staff as well as library users. As libraries consolidate service points and departments, more library staff members who are not government information specialists are providing reference services for users seeking government information; this creates opportunities for you to promote greater knowledge of government information resources, to educate staff about the legal requirements of the FDLP and to make staff aware of the principles of the program. Continuous cross-training of all reference staff is critical. While a strong culture of referral and consultation with government information specialists is strongly encouraged, users are more efficiently and effectively served when all reference personnel can provide some level of government information reference.
• Since users looking for government information may approach any service point or person initially, all library staff that provides services directly to the public should be aware of the access and service requirements and the policies for Federal Government information. Maintain clear, updated, and easily accessible summaries of policies and procedures relating to access and service for depository resources and provide them to all staff members of your library.
• Maintain awareness of your cataloging and technical service processes, including your library’s policies in this area since they frequently have a large impact on public services. For example, the way the library catalog displays information can have a strong influence on your users’ ability to easily locate government information. Shared library catalogs facilitate increased awareness of government information resources at other depositories, promote resource sharing, and facilitate referrals.
• Visit nearby depository libraries and your regional depository library to get a better understanding of their collections and areas of expertise including the specific reference tools and resources available. These visits help establish people and resource networks that can assist you in providing better services to your users.
• Monitor and participate in local, regional or national government information groups either in person or electronically through their e-mail discussion groups. Lists such as GOVDOC-L (http://lists.psu.edu/cgi-bin/wa?A0=GOVDOC-L), MAPS-L (http://www.listserv.uga.edu/archives/maps-l.html), and DocTech-L (http://list.lib.usu.edu/mailman/listinfo/doctech-l) provide invaluable access to other government information specialists’ expertise. Most states also have an active GODORT organization (http://www.ala.org/ala/godort/godort.cfm). Subscribe to the Really Simple Syndication (RSS) feed (http://www.gpoaccess.gov/rss/index.html) from the FDLP Desktop News and Updates to keep current on news and issues in the FDLP program.
• Cultivate good relationships with your library’s technical and systems staff, and provide input into technology-related policies affecting user access to government information. The policies, procedures, and personnel of the larger library and library information technology environment often have a significant impact on public services for electronic government information.
• Create or participate in library or regional public service standards, and establish regular and quantifiable measurements of service to help assess and improve public services in your library. Examples of service standards and public service measures include the Metrodocs Libraries Service Standards (http://www.odl.state.ok.us/usinfo/metrodocs.htm) and the Association of Research Libraries’ LIBQUAL+ (http://www.libqual.org/) program.
• Get ideas for displays to promote depository collections at the Government Documents Display Clearinghouse (http://lib.mnsu.edu/govdoc/finalfront2.html) and by networking with your colleagues online or at meetings.
• Ensure your library Web pages are handicapped-accessible. The W3C Markup Validation Service (http://validator.w3.org/) can check the coding of a Web page formatted with HTML or XHTML for errors.
• If your library policy is to have filters on all public computers, talk to your administrator about the need to be able to override the filter for free public access to government information resources. Library staff should be able to override or turn off the filter for depository users. Use or access to depository resources may be unmediated or mediated.
• Public access computer workstations may require user authentication for security reasons; however, signage (on computers, posted at tables, on desks) MUST indicate that users may inquire at the public service desk for assistance. Your library may provide guests the ability to log in at a workstation or staff may log them in at authenticated stations. At a minimum, if all workstations providing Internet access require authentication, your users should be directed to public service desks for assistance through mediated searching.
• Libraries should address the provision of depository information to minors that might otherwise be subject to restricted access. Any Internet security policies MUST insure depository resources are not denied to your users because of their age.