Royal Society of Canada Expert Panel on Library and Archives
Submission of the University of Regina Library

The following report was prepared by Robert G. Thomas, Michael Shires, Mark
Vajcner (University of Regina) and Brendan Edwards (First Nations University of
Canada Library) with special assistance from Barbara Nelke, Peter Resch and
William Sgrazzutti.

January 16, 2014, Regina, Saskatchewan.

To the Expert Panel,
Please accept the following report as reflecting the views of the faculty librarians
of the University of Regina Library and of the faculty of First Nations University of
Canada Library (a federated college of the University of Regina).
Respectfully yours,

Robert G. Thomas, RSC Submission Committee Chair.

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FRAMING QUESTIONS:
SERVICES

1. How would you describe the services Canadians, including Aboriginal Canadians and new
Canadians, are currently receiving from libraries and archives in Canada?
Considering Aboriginal Canadians specifically, there is room for improvement.
 The services libraries and archives provide would improve and be considered of
greater relevancy if there were greater representation of Aboriginal peoples in the
library professions. More work is necessary to encourage the library professions as
attractive/viable career choices for Aboriginal peoples. One reason for this lies in the
fact that many Aboriginal Canadians do not encounter libraries or library professionals
in their home communities, so collectively as institutions, libraries and archives can
seem “foreign” to Aboriginal Canadians.
 Libraries and archives have work to do in terms of reflecting Aboriginal knowledge
systems. While we do well in collecting print resources on Aboriginal topics and by
Aboriginal authors, there is room for improvement in terms of offering access to
information in other formats – through oral storytelling, audio and video, and as
collaboration spaces.
 Libraries and archives must also recognize that there is still a digital divide in many
Aboriginal communities – both in terms of access and education. Therefore, increased
digitization of materials and more digital resources are not always the solution to
reaching out to the Aboriginal and/or remote communities. Libraries need also play a
role in promoting digital and information literacy with an Aboriginal audience in mind.
For International Students and New Canadians it is important to provide several services in
different ways:
 Targeted outreach programs to ensure that the breadth of library services is
accurately understood including differences between countries. For example it has
been reported (Liu & Winn, 2009) that in the People’s Republic of China it has been
common to provide interlibrary loan services that are both slower and more costly to
students. Informing international students about services without noting important
differences may be counterproductive.
 ESL friendly and highly contextualized library instruction that is both devoid of
unnecessary library jargon and delivered in clearly enunciated and standardized
English.
 Basic introductions to services offered in various formats and in English, French and
other languages.
 Partnerships with other organizations which can bring library information to these
communities including the international office and student societies.
2. Libraries are currently hybrid operations, constantly pulled toward traditional services
by many core users and pulled, equally, by a concern for relevancy from other users and
potential users. What issues are libraries facing as they try to make the transition to new
service models?

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There are many challenges associated with balancing traditional and non-traditional services.
A primary one is that of money as purchasing multiple formats may not be always possible and
in such cases special care must be taken to balance the needs of various user groups.
Libraries should also continue working with vendors to ensure that non-traditional formats are
easily accessible through a variety of technological formats (tablets, e-book readers and
traditional PCs). Beyond this it is important to provide training to staff and users on how
these technologies can be best used.
3. How do libraries and archives measure outcomes of their service and community
impacts?
Quantitative data from turnstiles, circulation of material, reference transactions,
instruction classes, and Counter (Counting Online Usage of Networked Electronic Resources)
statistics are common outcomes to measure in many academic libraries. Many post secondary
institutions, including the University of Regina collect it for the Canadian Association of
Research Libraries’ annual Statistical Survey of Canadian University Libraries. However, they
don’t effectively address outcomes of services to their users.
A more useful method is collecting and analyzing qualitative data. It contains more
meaningful data but it can be time-consuming to obtain. Our institution implemented an
online user satisfaction survey in fall 2012. A mainstream product was used; however,
meaningful data was difficult to obtain due to the survey’s clunky platform, complications
with data collection, and a low response rate. A platform that has a more intuitive back-end
interface to handle a complex array of parameters and is mobile friendly may impact the
collection and reporting of measuring outcomes.
Megan Oakleaf has written extensively on this topic vis-a-vis higher education
institutions. She has stated that librarians can establish, assess, and link academic library
outcomes to institutional outcomes in the following areas: student enrollment, student
retention, and graduation rates, student success, student achievement, student learning,
student engagement , faculty research productivity, faculty teaching, service, and
overarching institutional quality. A publication titled New Review of Academic Librarianship
has a special issue (May 2013) focuses exclusively on mapping student journeys and using the
library. The SPEC survey on the Library User Experience (2011) contains data from
Association of Research Library members. Another option is for libraries to create or adopt
systems for assessment management. Some are available for purchase but libraries could
adopt a system that is used by an entire institution.
Conducting a longitudinal study is a very time intensive undertaking but it retrieves
valuable data on the impact of library services on students. Examples are A longitudinal
study of undergraduates’ academic library experience by Whitmire, 2001 and Studying
students: The undergraduate research project at the University of Rochester by Foster and
Gibbons, 2007.
A similar study in the Canadian context is the Canadian University Survey Consortium
(CUSC) survey that tracks experiences and characteristics on three-year cycles for first-year,
all undergraduates, and graduate students . The University of Regina has posted survey
findings at http://www.uregina.ca/orp/papers.shtml and
http://www.uregina.ca/orp/cuscsurveys.shtml. Unfortunately the library and archives
occupy a small component in the survey (e.g. CUSC 2012 Report 3 of 6 Examining the
University of Regina Student Experience: Use and satisfaction with university facilities and
services)
http://www.uregina.ca/orp/PapersPresentations/CUSC_2012_rpt%203_Student_use_and_satis
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faction_with_university_facilities_and_services.pdf. The only library data that is in the
survey provides a percentage of students that use the library. It would be advantageous for
CUSC to increase the library’s component in its survey and perhaps use focus groups or ask
more specific questions to better understand students’ social and research needs and their
information seeking behavior. Our institution has recently started conducting focus groups
with graduate students to gather similar data.
COMMUNITY OUTREACH AND AWARENESS
1. Would Canadians know of, or understand, the contribution you make to library/archival
service in Canada?
As with most libraries the University of Regina Library makes a significant impact in its
immediate community. Our resources are used by a variety of patrons from first year
students starting their university careers to senior researchers. Although it falls outside our
core mandate we also have a number of community members who use our study spaces and
research resources including senior citizens, high school students and recent immigrants.
Many of our students connect to our virtual resources from off campus including e-journals
and e-books. Although it is quite certain the library’s work is valued by many in our
community it is less certain if the full extent of the effort and costs put into maintaining both
the collection and library’s services is fully understood by users.
In addition to this we also offer research and teaching support to faculty members for their
courses. This can include purchasing or otherwise obtaining books, journals and various
multimedia sources. It can also require teaching students how to create Boolean search
strings or how to build a multifaceted search strategy.
2. Describe the services provided directly to users within your context, or whether they
are consortial in nature; please describe the mechanisms in place to define, refine and
measure the impact of the services.
The University of Regina Library provides various services that are standard for students,
faculty, and staff in many post-secondary institutions. Unless stated, there are no
mechanisms in place to refine and measure impact of the services listed below.
1. Interlibrary Loan (ILL) and document delivery – we follow the policy and procedures
of several borrowing conventions and agreements to obtain materials for our users.
Some of these include resource sharing agreements from: COPPUL Council of Prairie
and Pacific University Libraries(COPPUL), Ontario Council of University Libraries
(OCUL), Council of Atlantic University Libraries(CAUL)/CBUA/CREPUQ, Library and
Archives Canada, Interlibrary Loan Code for the United States, and International
Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA).
2. Subscriptions to online resources – this service is largely supported by consortia such
as COPPUL (Council of Prairie and Pacific University Libraries), CRKN (Canadian
Research Knowledge Network), and Saskatchewan’s Multitype Database Licensing
Program (MDLP). Approximately 60% of databases are purchased and made available
through institutional membership discounts in consortia. However, consortial
subscriptions cover a much higher percentage of the Library’s budget for all
databases. The library’s Collections and Assessment Team makes decisions on a
majority of subscription renewals and purchasing one-off collections and subscribing to
new ones.

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3. Serials Solutions 360 Counter – this electronic resources management system provides
data that is used to assist with collection development (e.g. providing cost/use ratios
for online journals). This could be considered a mechanism for measuring the use of
library resources
4. Circulation/borrowing/reserves/study rooms – our institution completed significant
building renovations in 2013 and added additional study space, hardware and software
for student use. This was based, in part, upon anecdotal comments from students and
faculty, and following trends in other academic libraries. Additional renovations to
have a one service point will take place in 2014. This was done based upon a
comprehensive LEAN study to provide a more fulfilling experience for patrons and
library staff.
5. Reference assistance - includes SANDS (spatial and numeric data services). The
Library recently conducted a comprehensive LEAN program and it will be
implementing a one service desk model by amalgamating the Circulation and
Information desks into one. It will be co-jointly staffed by support staff from the
Circulation and Reference Services units. All staff will have offices in the same area
on the main floor for close proximity to patrons.
6. UREAD (University of Regina Education at a Distance) is a service that uses
components of ILL, reference assistance, and in-depth research referrals to subject
liaison librarians. Staff time and resources have been scaled back over the last few
years due to a drop in use of UREAD.
7. Library Liaison program - includes instruction, research referrals, and collections
work.
8. Donations – our institution accepts donations that are relevant to supporting the
teaching and research needs of the University or are rare and valuable materials. The
University will cover costs for an appraisal and issue a tax receipt if a donation is
valued by Librarians at an amount of at least $5,000. This policy cuts down on the
amount of time spent by the Collections Librarian in processing donations.
3. In the digital era, what support for patrons do/should libraries provide?
At the moment there is a wide variety of information sources available either for free or
through subscription. Research libraries must not only provide access to essential
subscription services but it is also incumbent on them to provide training on how to properly
access and use them. Research has shown that patrons are more likely to use services that
they perceive to be easy to manage and intuitive, even if these resources are not as high
quality, than to use resources that are high quality but perceived to be difficult to navigate
(Griffiths and Brophy, 2005). For this reason we have implemented the Summon discovery
service which provides patrons with a Google-like single keyword search box as a gateway to
nearly everything we have access to.
We also provide a number of instructional sessions for our patrons on using our databases. In
2011 this included 247 sessions attended by over 4300 students. Through these sessions
students come to a greater understanding of the breadth of databases available to them
including subject specific ones. They learn about how to obtain statistical data, newspapers,
professional documents, government information and journal articles.
4. What in your opinion are the specific roles of libraries and/or archives and/or museums
and other heritage institutions in community building and memory building?
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There is an infrastructure of community based archives and museums across Canada.
These institutions are supported by various provincial and national organizations. One
of these supports is funding programs. It was particularity disappointing when the
National Archival Development Program (NADP) was cancelled in 2012. This funding
program was generally recognized as a successful tool in community and memory
building.
Libraries and archives play a strong role in both community and memory building. The
work of various provincial and national organizations, consortia, and individual
institutions has been essential. Examples in Saskatchewan include:
Saskatchewan Council for Archives and Archivists
 Highly successful Archives Week offerings
 Outreach Archivist and Conservation Service program
 Institutional Grants Program
 Saskatchewan Archival Information Network (as part of Archives Canada portal)
Saskatchewan Library Association\



Saskatchewan Libraries Conference allows libraries to share strategies and best
practices
TD Summer Reading Club, Saskatchewan Library Week and Freedom to Read
Week grants support a variety of community based programming much of it in
smaller centres across the province.

Multitype Library Board
 Saskatchewan Digital Alliance and Saskatchewan History Online
 Multitype Database Licencing Program
NEW DIRECTIONS
Digitization
1. What are the main challenges of born-digital material for your institution?
The fundamental challenge of born-digital materials will be their long-term curation.
This includes preservation and access. Libraries and archives will need to focus
greater attention on migrating their digital materials to new systems and formats as
they arise. Such migrations must ensure that the digital materials are not
compromised either technically or intellectually.
We believe that these challenges will require leadership and partnerships. Canada's
national institutions should be encouraged to follow the examples being set in other
jurisdictions.
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2. What role should libraries and archives take in the digitization, the
dissemination and the long-term preservation of Canadian heritage (print
publications and archives)?
It is our view that libraries and archives have important roles to play in the
digitization of print publications and archival materials. Digitization is more than the
scanning and mounting of materials on the internet. It involves the provision of
context that makes it possible for researchers to effectively understand and use the
materials. In addition to reference services, libraries and archives, should collect and
present the necessary metadata with digitized items and collections.
As more and more access is provided digitally, how will researchers know that the
digital item is an accurate representation of the original? Without access to the
original it is difficult to determine if all the pages of an item were scanned, or if the
colour reproduction of an art work is correct. Without ready access to the original the
researcher must rely on trust. To safeguard the value of Canadian heritage in the
digital world, libraries and archives cannot simply digitize materials. Materials will
need to be subject to careful selection, to a quality digital reproduction process, and
our institutions will need to provide a high level of contextual and metadata
information. If we value online access to research-quality heritage collections we
must build trusted digital repositories.
3. What will be the function and future of a brick-and-mortar library or archive in
a paperless future?
We do not believe that the future will indeed be paperless. For some time to come,
the future will be a place in which libraries and archives will be hybrid institutions -operating in both the digital and brink-and mortar worlds.
Space is a premium on many university and college campuses and libraries commonly
occupy large buildings. Physical collections of journals and magazines continue to
shrink substantially and the number of book acquisitions is arguably slowing with
electronic versions being available for access to a larger audience. In libraries,
weeding, consolidation of physical collections (e.g. paper, microform) with nearby
institutions, and relocating targeted sections of collections to high density
repositories (on or off campus) are growing trends. Due to these cost saving measures,
the reduction of hard copy materials is freeing up space. Many libraries have repurposed floor space to accommodate more group study rooms, computer labs, maker
spaces, learning commons, and lounges.
Archives and Special Collections acquire materials that possess intrinsic value. This
value would be lost if materials were discarded in favour of digital copy. We believe
that archives will always remain hybrid institutions, collecting, preserving, and
providing access to both traditional and digital materials.

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Future functions will reflect this hybrid duality. Libraries and archives digitize
materials to increase access to unique materials they hold. People come to libraries
and archives for trusted information and evidential records. Evaluating information is
more important than ever in the digital world and librarians and archivists are well
positioned to build this part of digital literacy. Libraries and archives are also making
strategic partnerships with other academic and administrative units on campus such
as information technology, learning, training, and engagement centres for students
and faculty. Our facilities are increasingly social centres for learning and discovery.

Education
1. What changes, in your judgment, are necessary in the professional education and
training of librarians/archivists in the 21st century?
Library science education has traditionally been strong in acculturating students into the
values of the profession. This education has not been primarily vocational but rather has
been focused on giving new professionals a broader understanding of the theory and governing
principals of librarianship. Although this type of preparation is valuable more should be done.
In particular there has been a move toward encouraging formal and informal mentorship
programs. Bringing seasoned professionals together with those at the beginning of their
careers will allow better skill transfer and give those just starting out a firmer foothold in
their careers. In addition, encouraging further skills development on an on-going basis
through webinars, conference presentations and colloquia can lead to shared expertise and a
better understanding of best practices across the profession.
An important move in the direction of further education is the new program Continuing
Education Certificate Program (http://cec.laa.ca/) which creates a more structured program
for maintaining and obtaining library competencies.
Resources
3. What percentage increase to your current budget would permit you to realize the
aspirations of your users? If you received an increased budget and consistent adequate
resources, describe your library/archives in 2017.
In specific reference to the University Archives:
We believe that an adequately resourced archives in 2017 would be a hybrid institution that
would both maintain core traditional functions and provide strong digital services. Additional
resources would in all likelihood be directed toward gaining a greater handle on born-digital
materials (acquisition, access, preservation) and increasing the level of quality digitization
activities. Traditional functions like arrangement, description, and reference would continue
to evolve to integrate the digital aspects of these functions into a seamless provision of
service.

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Being the 150th anniversary of Confederation, 2017 would also see our collections and
services as an integral part of year's activities highlighting the significance of libraries and
archives in society.

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