Reference Desk Live: Successes and Failures at the Reference Desk
Despite all of the technological and environmental changes taking place in today's academic libraries, the core of reference service remains the interaction between the librarian and the patron.  Effective reference interviewing skills are essential to the success of the reference transaction.  Join your reference colleagues as we play out some sample reference transactions in a mythical college library.  This program is both humorous and instructive and should help you refine your reference interview skills.

Presenter: David Tyckoson, Head, Reference Department, California State University Fresno

Invisible Librarians for Invisible Patrons: Remote Access to Electronic Journals 
Coordinated by the Southern California Technical Processes Group
An enlightening panel discussion on the challenges of managing electronic journals, including those in aggregator databases.  Panelists will discuss: (1) impact on acquisitions (print vs. electronic) and collection development (selection and archiving, subscription vs. aggregator); (2) perspectives from publishers and vendors; (3) access solutions (OPAC or web page); (4) implications for reference librarians and patrons. 

Presenters: Jina Wakimoto, Librarian, California State University Northridge; Kathryn Kjaer, Acting Department Head, Science Library, University of California Irvine; Kittie Henderson, Academic Representative, EBSCO Information Services

Everyone Can See What's on Your Screen: Using Classroom Control Systems in the Hands-On BI Classroom
With the touch of a button, classroom control systems allow an instructor to control everything from screen displays to lights and window coverings.  We will explore the implications of using such systems in a hands-on bibliographic instruction classroom. Do these systems improve the quality of instruction for students and the instructor? In what ways do they impact the librarian's role and image as teacher?

Presenters: Gale Burrow, Kimberly Franklin, Carrie Marsh, Amy Wallace, The Claremont Colleges

The Road Less Traveled: Expanding Librarian Horizons and Images 
Although the situation is changing, librarians still suffer from the image problem of a profession comprised of individuals who only catalog and check out books, work at reference desks, and reboot computers, all within the safe confines of the library. To expand these narrowly perceived images we need to follow different paths to expand our horizons. For example, by participating as instructors in institutional programs other than traditional library instruction programs, librarians can not only increase their visibility within their campus communities, but can also enhance their working relationships with colleagues and students, fostering mutual respect and appreciation. The satisfaction comes from knowing we are making a difference and are part of something larger than the library. The presenters, both key players in on-campus instructional programs administered outside their respective institution's libraries, will discuss their experiences on the "road less traveled" and how they were able to transfer their core professional knowledge and skills to programs outside the library. Expanding our images depends on expanding our horizons and the paths we follow, even if some lead to detours or dead ends. What to bring? A healthy dose of enthusiasm, energy, and endurance is strongly recommended. 

Presenters: Bruce Harley, Associate Librarian, San Diego State University and Sarah Blakeslee, Information Literacy/Instruction Librarian, California State University Chico

Paraprofessionals: Roles, Structures & Organization Within the Library and the Profession
This session takes an insightful look at the critical role of support staff, with an emphasis on new responsibilities in administration, project development and other areas previously considered "librarian's work." We will examine the transition from library assistant to librarian, and efforts to diversify the profession. 

Presenters: Kathleen Messer, Document Delivery Services, San Francisco State University; Clara M. Chu, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Department of Information Studies, University of California Los Angeles; Ed Martinez, Public Access Librarian, El Camino College; Charlie Fox, Editor, Library Mosaics 

High and Low: Images of Libraries and Are They Us? 
It is said that academic libraries are undergoing a profound soul searching for goals and visions because of the effects of technology and the changing nature of disciplinary research.  The organizers of this breakout session would like to pose to the participants a more fundamental problem - that of libraries' ambiguous position within our culture.  This discussion with the audience will center around the concepts of "High" and "Low" culture, borrowed from debates in art history.  Libraries are either satirized as vessels of minutely classified information with troglodytes servicing the "god of classification", or are seen as elite (and elitist) institutions, too intellectual to be of broad cultural interest, and yet somehow imperceptibly important. 

Presenters: Ruth Wallach, Head, Architecture and Fine Arts Library and  
Sarah McDaniel, Instructional Services Coordinator, University of Southern California

Can a .COM Compete in a .ORG World? 
Sally McCoy and Libraries In Touch offer a wide variety of professional development workshops for librarians and library staff in Southern California-for profit. Is this possible, considering the deep pockets of government agencies offering similar training? What are the strategies Ms. McCoy uses to stay competitive while addressing the training needs of our library community? 

Sheri Irvin is Project Manager at The Eastside Cybrary, an Information Learning Center providing computer training, information literacy education and Internet access to the children and families of the Eastside.

Presenters: Sally McCoy, Owner, Libraries in Touch and Sheri Irvin, Project Manager, Riverside Public Library, Eastside Cybrary

Everything You've Always Wanted To Know About Non-print Media But Were Afraid To Ask
Join two librarians with extensive experience in developing and managing non-print collections as they discuss patron needs, selection, acquisition, cataloging, preservation and maintenance issues.  This session is sure to appeal to seasoned media librarians and novices alike.

Presenters: John Hickok, Audiovisual & Curriculum Materials Center Librarian,California State University Fullerton and Ellen Broidy, Librarian, University of California Irvine