Government Documents - what would you teach?

Imagine if you would -- that you have the opportunity to teach a library school class on Government Publications. (I know hold back your excitement) The main focus is Federal information but State and Local will also be covered. What would you teach?

Would you focus on the branches of government and the type of publications they produce? Start from the top down and explain the "types" of information produced? Or perhaps -- instead you would look at the history behind the need for a government office dedicated to printing and disseminating information to the masses -- and how the online environment has changed the scope of material produced? Would it be better to do a practical hands on course or one that looks at the ethics and democratic obligations behind such a system? Can you teach both in the same course? Would you look at how the government uses said publications to push particular foreign policy agendas? Or how change in administrations change the structure of the system over time?

I remember when I took the class in grad school it all kind of blurred together. But I really liked the instructor. None of it was real though until I got my first job as a documents librarian. I felt completely lost. Nothing I had learned in class prepared me for the actualities of government documents and the FDLP. Yeah sure I could whip up a mean bibliography on a given topic at the drop of the hat -- and even find the really freaky morbidity and mortality items out for you -- but I didn't really understand the importance of government documents for the masses.

The library school class I took prepared me for the day to day reference duties of working in government documents -- but didn't really create a passion for free access to government information. Touching the documents and my history degree brought the other aspect alive and made me look at the democratic principles involved in the depository system.



But not all librarians get that opportunity in the workplace and so they are always a stranger to the real need for government documents (beyond tax forms). Truth be told -- many times documents librarianship is viewed as some strange sub genre for the ultra odd -- those too weird to even be catalogers go into the field (and don't even mention those who catalog documents). Which is a shame that image exists -- IMHO documents librarians are perhaps the most patriotic individuals in the field and care deeply for the user's right to know -- and the need to preserve such information for future generations. Simply put - they are a wonderful group of people.

So seriously -- if you had the opportunity to teach a library school government documents class what would you do?

Job Posting | Tulsa

POSITION: Government Documents Librarian

LOCATION:
Central Library
400 Civic Center
Tulsa, OK 74103

SALARY RANGE:$40,284 - $58,284

STATUS:
40 hours per week
Includes evenings & weekends

JOB SUMMARY:
Tulsa City-County Library (TCCL) seeks an innovative, forward-thinking, technology savvy applicant and committed library professional to join the system as its Government Documents Librarian. The position is primarily responsible for the selection, development, maintenance and marketing of Tulsa City-County Library's federal, state, and local government documents print and online collections and for providing assistance to customers and staff in the use of the collection.

JOB DESCRIPTION:
1. Markets and promotes government information and resources to library staff and the community;
2. Maintains and evaluates government documents collections, identifying appropriate additions to and withdrawals from the collections in accordance with federal and state guidelines;
3. Maintains and develops an extensive government resources website including actively pursuing and collecting local and state web links;
4. Develops and leads workshops and tutorials for library staff and customers on government resources;
5. Remains current with new online services and resources including Internet sites produced and maintained by government agencies;
6. Provides research assistance via telephone, email and in person in locating materials and answering or guiding customers to appropriate sources of information;
7. Serves as the liaison/contact for the Federal Depository Library Program, the Oklahoma Publications Clearinghouse, and the State Data Center Affiliate Program; prepares and submits reports required by federal, state, and local agencies to insure TCCL compliance with depository rules and regulations; coordinates periodic inspections of collection by government officials;
8. Liaisons with community officials and agencies;
9. Serves as interlibrary loan source for federal and states documents;
10. Serves as GIS specialist;
11. Oversees cataloging using OCLC Connexion software for all newly received document titles; recatalogs and reclassifies materials as needed to conform to new cataloging decisions and GPO SuDoc changes; performs original cataloging as needed;
12. Supervises, trains, and evaluates government documents clerk in the physical maintenance of government documents collection.

QUALIFICATIONS:
1. Master’s Degree in Library Science;
2. Three to five years experience with government documents;
3. One or more years supervisory experience.

* Strong public speaking and marketing skills;
* Excellent oral, written, and interpersonal communication skills;
* First-rate teaching abilities and skills in communicating with groups;
* Proficiency using MS Office software, Windows, the Internet, and conducting online research;
* Thorough knowledge of Dreamweaver and Arc View 9 software;
* Strong teamwork and group skills;
* Enthusiasm for research and working with a wide variety of library customers;
* Working knowledge of and experience with OCLC;
* Knowledge of trends affecting the depository program at all levels (national, state, & local);
* Attendance at annual FDLP conferences required.

GENERAL INFORMATION:
Tulsa City-County Library is the primary information and resource center for the Tulsa, Oklahoma, metropolitan area. More than 2 million volumes and numerous library services are available to the public. Services range from Internet access and online databases, to adult literacy tutoring and children's reading programs. The Central Library, four regional libraries, 19 branch libraries, and a Genealogy Center in Tulsa County serve over 355,000 library cardholders who check out more than 5 million books and materials each year.

Tulsa City-County Library was designated a selective federal depository in 1963 and a full state depository in 1978. In addition, the library is a repository for Tulsa County and City of Tulsa publications and as a State Data Center affiliate receives statistical and demographic materials from the Oklahoma Department of Commerce.

TCCL's Government Documents services were awarded the first-ever Federal Depository Library of the Year Award in 2003 for embracing new technology in its ongoing efforts to make public access to Government information more easily available and comprehensible.

TCCL was selected to participate in a beta test for Z39.50 access to GPO's catalog in the coming year.

Tulsa is a great place to live. Tulsans enjoy unsurpassed beauty, a well-educated, talented workforce, and cultural diversity. All of this ensures Tulsa remains a great place to live, raise a family and work. Tulsa’s cost of living is 8 percent below the national average and Tulsa County per capita income is 11 percent above the national average.

AVAILABLE:
July 2007

TODAY'S DATE:
April 25, 2007

HOW TO APPLY:
COMPLETE AN APPLICATION:
Tulsa City-County Library
Business Office
400 Civic Center
Tulsa, OK 74103
Email Your Resume

FAX YOUR RESUME TO: (918) 596-2641

Law Librarian Blog tells OSU good job!

Many years ago, in an other life, I was a Government Documents librarian. I never felt prouder of my country than seeing the wonderful free information standards our government had put in place. Oklahoma State University's FDLP Documents Collection works on a special project for GPO that Law Librarian Blog highlights today.

Remember GPO's Subject Bibliographies Index? Browse Topics, an online finding tool, organizes US government websites using the index headings from the Subject Bibliographies Index as the basis for the site's main topic list. Browse Topics is managed by Oklahoma State University Edmon Low Library. Great job!

The best part about this resource is it accepts contributors to topics - so if you have an expertise in a topic you can help develop the webliography on the subject!