LIS 505A: Administration and Management of

Libraries and Information Centers

SYLLABUS: Fall, 2010

COURSE DESCRIPTION
Designed to explore the principles that govern how organizations and
institutions work, this course provides a foundation for an introduction to the
theories, practices and procedures involved in the management and
administration of libraries and information centers (GSLIS Catalog).

COURSE DIRECTION
This course will provide a practical/working overview of the major issues
faced by managers in libraries and information centers today. Theory will be
studied, but the emphasis will be on actual management situations and how
to address them. Class sessions will be a combination of lecture and
discussion, and it is expected that students will share their experience and
thoughts. Several guest presenters will share their expertise. Because of the
length of the course, this cannot be totally comprehensive; but it is hoped
that students will receive a working knowledge of library management and
will feel better prepared to undertake a leadership position in today’s library
or information center.

Final grades will be based on one hour exam, the grant paper, several short
assignments, class participation and online discussions through Moodle.

REQUIRED TEXT: The Accidental Library Manager by Rachel Singer Gordon

(Information Today, 2005)

SUPPLEMENTAL TEXT: “Beyond the Basics: The Management Guide for

Library and Information Science Professionals” by Evans and Ward (Neal-
Schumann, 2003). On Reserve.

SUPPLEMENTAL TEXT: Library and Information Center Management by

Stueart and Moran (Libraries Unlimited, 2007) On reserve.

Other readings as appropriate

CONTACTING ME: I am only on campus on Wednesdays. You may leave a

message at the GSLIS office or in my mailbox, but I am most responsive to e-
mail and check it very regularly. Please put Class or LIS 505 in the Subject
line so that I will recognize it and not consider it SPAM. Please use my
gillfill@verizon.net email address rather than my illinois.edu address. I check
the Verizon address a number of times a day. The University address is only
checked sporadically. I do not guarantee that I will receive email from this
account in a timely fashion.
If you need to mail me something, you have my address. I will be happy to
meet with you during office hours or by appointment on Wednesdays.

EVALUATION AND GRADES: Course grades will be determined by your

performance on one hour exam, a major grant assignment, an article
presentation, a variety of small assignments, online discussions and class
participation and attendance.

Exam: 15 points
Grant Paper: 40 points
Online Discussion Question/responses 15 points
Article Presentation: 10 points
Other Assignments and Class Participation 15 points
Other 5 points

TOTAL 100 points

Grade Scale:
97-100 A+
93-96 A
90-92 A-
87-89 B+
83-86 B
80-82 B-
77-79 C+
73-76 C
70-72 C-
60.69 D
0.59 F

Most of the assignments may be sent to me via email or hand delivered in

class. Assignments will be due no later than the end of class on the day
assigned. Failure to meet these deadlines will result in a reduction of your
grade for the assignment. Five (5) points per day will be deducted for late
submissions of the grant proposal. In the case of an unavoidable problem,
consideration of grade reduction will be given on an individual basis and will
be solely at my discretion. Please contact me as soon as possible if
you have questions or are experiencing unexpected difficulties with
an assignment. Failure to contact me about a problem in a timely manner
may reflect negatively on the resolution of the problem. E-mail is
recommended as your first choice for contacting me. Should I not respond at
least to tell you I have received your email within 24 hours, please resend
the message. I would far rather receive duplicates than to receive nothing.

Exams: There will be a single one hour examination in this class. It will be
about two-thirds of the way through the class.
Grant Paper: For your assigned public library, you will write a grant
proposal following the FY2006 Library Services and Technology Act Grant
Offerings process under the Creative Use of Libraries Category. Details for
this assignment will be discussed in class. You will be using the most recent
LSTA form for grant submission, however. This form is used by all types of
libraries. The purpose of the project is to learn fundamentals of grant writing
which apply to all types of libraries and organizations.

Article Presentation: You will find an article that adds information on one
of the topics in the course or pertinent to library management and give a
five minute presentation on the article to the class. Write an outline or
summary of approximately 250 words covering what you want to discuss,
including relevant information from the article. Turn in the paper and a
copy of the article. These presentations will be given throughout the
course. Because of the size of the class, presentations will be timed and
stopped at 5 minutes. Discussion of each article will follow the presentation.
Day of presentations will be determined the first week of class. You will draw
a number for placement.

Discussion Question/Responses: In addition to the articles, the students

of that particular week should together develop 2 well-crafted discussion
questions that will reflect some of the key issues of that week’s scheduled
topics and readings or you may use a topic from the previous week’s
readings. The questions will be posted in Moodle in the weekly discussion
area in order that the rest of the class can respond. The writers of the
questions should show leadership in the discussion forum for that week and
respond to student comments. It is hoped that these will develop into real
discussions of the issues. Details will be arranged through the Help Desk. It is
expected that everyone will respond to each question.

Other readings and assignments will be assigned as appropriate. Several

guest presenters are scheduled during the semester. Guests will depend
upon their availability. Therefore the order of the guest presenters during the
semester, and timing of this syllabus may be subject to some change as we
will work within their availability and flexibility. Also, should pertinent topics
arise that I feel are relevant to the course, the syllabus may also be changed.
Other circumstances such as the size of the class may also cause some
change.

CLASS SCHEDULE;

WEEK 1: August 25, 2010

TOPICS:
Introductions
Class Expectations
 What Is Management

WEEK 2: September 1, 2010

TOPICS:
Your Library
Why Plan?
What Happened to Systems?
Reading: Gordon p. 1-27, 259-285
Evans p. 31-49

WEEK 3: September 8, 2010

Article Presentations #1, 2, 3, 22

TOPICS:
Consider your Library
Working with Boards
Funding
Reading: Gordon p. 29-55

WEEK 4: September 15, 2010

Article Presentations #4, 5, 6, 23

TOPICS:
Grants
Funding Sources
Reading: Gordon p. 215-219

.
WEEK 5: September 22, 2010
Article Presentations #7, 8, 9, 24
1st Group Assignment

TOPICS:
Grants continued
Budgeting
Reading: Gordon p. 203-225

WEEK 6: September 29, 2010

Article Presentations #10, 11, 12, 25

TOPICS: Budgeting continued

WEEK 7: October 6, 2010

Grant Letters of Intent Due
 Article Presentations #13, 14, 15, 26

TOPICS:
Policies and Procedures
Reading: Gordon p. 299-300, 238-240, 154,
Evans p. 211-230

WEEK 8: October 13, 2010

Article Presentations #16, 17, 18
The Real Story about Grants
Guest: Karen Egan, LSTA Grant Consultant, Illinois State

WEEK 9: October 20, 2010

Budget Assignment Due
Article Presentations #19, 20, 21, 27

TOPICS:
Policies and Procedures continued
Consider the Personnel
Hiring/Firing
Evaluation
Reading: Gordon p. 57-87

WEEK 10: October 27, 2010

Consider the Plan
Guest: Beverly Obert, Director, Rolling Prairie Library
System
Reading: Evans p. 109-111, 178-190

WEEK 11: November 3, 2010

Question: Gillfillan
Hour Exam

TOPICS:
Personnel Continued
Reading: Gordon p. 57-87

WEEK 12: November 10, 2010

I’m a Director? Help!
Guest Presenters: Kyla Waltermire, Morris Public Library;
Joanna Kluever,
Stillman Valley Public Library and School District; Jeanne May
Hamilton, Helen
Mattis Public Library, Effingham.

WEEK 13: November 17, 2010

Grants Due
TOPICS:
Personnel Continued
Personnel Policies
Legal Issues
Other Personnel Issues
Reading: Gordon p. 289-300

WEEK 14: November 24, 2010

Thanksgiving Break—No Class

WEEK 15: December 1, 2010

Article Presentations #28, 29, 30

TOPICS:
Legal Issues
CIPA
Open Meetings Act
Freedom of Information Act
Reading: Evans p. 83-88, 157-159, 313-316

WEEK 16: December 8, 2010

Catch Up, Review, Wrap-up

Associations
Professionalism
Strengths and Weaknesses Discussion
Professional Philosophy Discussion
Reading: Evans p. 317-329
Gordon p. 303-328