Day: Wednesday, May 6, 10:15 AM to 11:15 AM
Room: TBD
Presenters: Jessica Kirschner, Virginia Commonwealth University; Robert Browder, Virginia Tech; Ellen Dubinsky, University of Arizona; Janet Swatscheno, University of Illinois at Chicago’ Amanda Wentworth, SUNY Geneseo
Description: The Library Publishing Directory provides an overview of the activities, technologies, organizational structure, partnerships, and priorities of library publishers worldwide. In the seven years since the first Directory was released, the library publishing landscape has evolved, with changes to the types of publications produced, services provided, platforms used, and more. In preparing for the most recent edition, the LPC decided to revisit the directory’s data model, asking whether the data we collect reflects the current state of the field and meets the purposes originally outlined for the Directory: introduce readers to library publishing, facilitate collaboration between publishers and other publishing entities, and enable benchmarking. To this end, the LPC formed a task force in the Spring of 2019 to evaluate the current data model and the survey used to collect such information. Led by the LPC Directory Committee, this session aims to continue the work of this task force, turning directly to LPC members for feedback on the directory’s data model and survey. After briefly reviewing the recent changes made to the 2020 Directory as a result of the task force’s work, this interactive session will ask attendees (the focus group) to share thoughts on additional considerations for future Directories, including:
- How to best capture the evolving relationship between university presses and library publishing programs
- How to best capture the full breadth of what we publish, such as emerging publication types and legacy journals
- Identifying a subset of Directory questions that are more broadly applicable than the current in-depth survey
- General feedback on any gaps in data collection or responses to the directory’s purpose.
Feedback from participants will help shape the data model and survey process moving forward.