Information literacy is a community issue, not just an issue for librarians. As such it demands the formation of new partnerships among librarians and between librarians and community agencies to ensure that the importance of information literacy is understood within the context of economic viability, workforce preparation, and an informed citizenry. This talk will focus on a new American Librarian Association initiative that is currently underway: the Information Literacy Community Partnerships Initiative.

During bibliographic instruction sessions for high school students at Lucy Scribner Library, Skidmore College, it has become apparent that in addition to information literacy, lifelong learning, and easing the transition to college-level research, promoting the value of college education is a viable goal. It is another example of ongoing and potential partnerships between academic librarians and high school teachers.

An Information Literacy/Cultural Arts Program for Detroit Area High School Teachers and Students: Meeting the Challenge of the Information Age. Presenters: Lothar Spang and Deborah J. Tucker.

Preparing teachers in financially constrained urban areas to help students meet the learning requirements of the Information Age is a foremost challenge in American education today. Unavailable technology and inexperience with technology applications have left many such educators unable to teach students how to locate, evaluate, organize, and apply information available through technology. Librarians at the David Adamany Undergraduate Library, Wayne State University, have formulated a program, in partnership with selected Detroit area schools, to introduce teachers and, in turn, students to such skills. The program demonstrates that university librarians, in partnership with public schools, can play an integral role in preparing urban area teachers and students for Information Age learning requirements.

Nova Southeastern University and Broward County (Florida) Public Library are building a joint- use library, research, and information technology center. This may be the world’s first private university and public library joint-use facility. Strong support for engaging in this joint-use endeavor was evident from students, faculty, general public, and the 2 governing bodies. Unique synergies, economies of scale, and improved services for all are to be realized in this 300,000 square feet facility.

Throughout 1998 and 1999, the Sojourner Truth Library at SUNY New Paltz and the Department of Library and Archives at the Huguenot Historical Society of New Paltz collaborated on several important projects. These projects have allowed both organizations to provide enhanced library services to patrons while simultaneously stretching limited budgetary resources. Such cooperative efforts have provided beneficial results in four areas of operations: increased external financial support, increased internal support, improved public and community relations, and better documentation and management of collections. This presentation will discuss the origins, processes, and results of the specific cooperative projects undertaken by the two libraries.

The Cornell University Geospatial Information Repository (CUGIR) provides a web-based clearinghouse of spatial data and metadata for New York State and is a node on the National Geospatial Data Clearinghouse. Mann Library has forged relationships with New York State agencies, Cornell faculty, and other clearinghouses in order to provide the best access to data files and metadata. These successful partnerships have led to a new project called AgMaps that was initiated to encourage and enhance the use of numeric and geographic data in agricultural and life sciences. By using customized data-extraction and basic Geographic Information System (GIS) capabilities, the public will be able to manipulate NASS (the National Agricultural Statistical Service) and other USDA datasets and create maps with the data. AgMaps involves partnerships with the USDA as well as Cornell Cooperative Extension.

In May 1997, the Davis Educational Foundation awarded a $300,000 grant to the College of the Holy Cross. The grant, "A New Vision for Arts and Humanities Teaching, Learning and Research at the College of the Holy Cross, the Worcester Art Museum, and the Worcester Public Schools," was to fund the automation of the Worcester Art Museum's card catalog on the Holy Cross DRA system and the development of a database of digitized images of the museum's art collection and related curatorial documents. Curatorial documents are not normally available to the public for security reasons. However, in conjunction with the Curatorial Department, records that are historical or bibliographical in nature will be selected and scanned, making these previously "hidden records” available to the public. All images will be cataloged using the MARC format, and all databases will be available on Holy Cross's DRAWEB2 interface. The success of this project may lead to other productive partnering relationships between the College and the Museum.