University Library Committee Minutes
May 9, 2001

Present: H. Cannon, A. Goodman, J. Langlois, J. Moseley, V. Neale, G. Reid, C. Roney, S. Yee, L. Sutton

  1. Members of the Committee introduced themselves to new Dean Sandra Yee.
  2. Minutes of the March 19, 2001 were approved as moved by A. Goodman and seconded by H. Canon.
  3. S. Yee updated the Committee on her conversations with the Provost on the scholarly communications document and event. The Provost would like to bring in Brian Hawkins as a guest speaker and looks toward a spring 2002 date. Discussion took place on how to keep momentum going on this project during the summer. H. Canon and V. Neale offered to work via e-mail throughout the summer and meet early in September. H. Canon suggested enlisting help from the university’s General Counsel on an alternate copyright release form. J. Moseley recommended contacting department chairs as one of the next steps. J. Langlois suggested updating faculty with brief summaries of the issues through departmental listservs.
  4. L. Sutton gave an update on the controversy involving the journal Nature. After a boycott by many research libraries, including Wayne State, the publisher changed the pricing and terms of their proposed site license agreement to allow concurrent release of the paper and electronic versions to institutional users. This is viewed in the industry as a major victory for libraries and their users. WSU Libraries have now subscribed to the online version of Nature and its seven monthly journals.
  5. As incoming chair, C. Roney recommended an early start on the committee appointment process for next year. A. Goodman offered to stay on the committee for a second term. H. Canon will be on sabbatical next Winter. L. Sutton will contact the AAUP for early recommendations on committee members.

Minutes by: Lynn Sutton