Wednesday, September 10, 2008

Advisory Group for Research Services and Scholarly Resources (AGRSSR)


An Advisory Group for Research Services and Scholarly Resources (AGRSSR) has been established for the George A. Smathers Libraries at the University of Florida. The acronym is pronounced AGRESSOR. This is appropriate because we intend to be aggressive in building excellent collections and providing outstanding services to support our students, faculty and researchers.

Charge:

The scale and scope of the UF Libraries scholarly resources (content) and the evolving nature of research services challenge both unified management on the one hand and adequate participative involvement on the other. Fiscal and personnel issues related to the provision of scholarly resources to our users by our research services staff are additional components of the complex nature of an effective academic research library. To achieve a balance between administrative oversight and library-wide investment, the Advisory Group for Research Services and Scholarly Resources (AGRSSR) will draw its membership from a wide range of constituencies.


AGRSSR is advisory to the Senior Associate Dean in the following areas:

  • preparation and allocation of the scholarly resources (collections) budget for Smathers Libraries individually and in collaboration with other libraries at UF and in the SUS;
  • review of other budgetary matters that relate to research services and scholarly resources, including OPS distributions and external funding opportunities;
  • evaluation of technical operations and procedures necessary to support research services and delivery of scholarly resources;
  • development of shared principles and future directions for building UF’s scholarly resources and providing research services;
  • definition and implementation of standards for managing UF’s scholarly resources;review and implementation of commonly understood expectations and methods of assessment for research services, including outreach and instruction;
  • collaboration among UF-wide selector groups to identify and prioritize digital initiatives with significant impacts and expectations for enhanced research services;
  • creation of library-wide policies and procedures that encompass research services and scholarly resources (perhaps via a sub-committee or task force); and
  • identification and, where appropriate, implementation of national trends that relate to effective content development and research services theory and practice (perhaps via a sub-committee or task force).

AGRSSR conducts its business in open meetings, held once or twice a month. Its activities are recorded in minutes that are distributed, immediately upon their formal approval, to the entire library staff.

Membership:

Chaired by the Senior Associate Dean, the Advisory Group for Research Services and Scholarly Resources (AGRSSR) is composed of representatives from each of the branch libraries (including Special Collections and Area Studies (SASC) and Government Documents); Access Support; Acquisitions/Licensing; Cataloging/Metadata; the Development Office; the Digital Library Center; Emerging Technologies; the Preservation Unit; and the SUS Shared Collections Facility, as well as colleagues from the Health Science Center Library (HSCL) and the Legal Information Center (LIC). The Associate Dean for Technology and Support Services will serve as an ex officio member of the Advisory Group.