Social Work: Core Competencies for Social Work Standards for Academic Libraries

Contents

Equitable Access Principle

Purpose of Standards

Standards

1. Vision and Strategic Planning
2. Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility (DEIA)
3. Personnel
4. Collections & Access
5. Research & Instruction
6. Assessment
7. Financial Support

Appendix 1 : Meeting Library-Related Standards and Other Guidelines, Regulations and Laws
      Library-Related Standards
      Other Standards, Guidelines, Laws, and Regulations:

Appendix 2: History of the Document

Equitable Access Principle

All distance and online members of an institution of higher education are entitled to the library services, resources, and collections of that institution. This founding principle applies to all public, private, profit, and non-profit academic institutions and it is the underlying and uncompromising basis for the Standards of Distance and Online Learning Library Services, hereinafter designated as the Standards. 

Purpose of Standards

This document is intended for any member of an institution who is involved in the provision of services to distance and online learning communities. This document provides a means to foster cross-departmental communication and improve advocacy, and offers a roadmap for strategic planning. 

Standards

1. Vision and Strategic Planning 
Standard: The library maintains a current vision and strategic plan that includes serving distance and online learning communities. 

Benchmarks
The library:

• Incorporates support to distance and online learning communities into the vision and strategic plan of the library.
• Participates in the strategic planning processes of the originating institution, including developing and managing immediate and long-range goals.
• Uses vision and strategic planning as a tool for advocacy for distance and online learning communities.
• Cultivates awareness of current trends in the field of distance and online learning at the institutional administrative level.

2. Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility (DEIA) 
Standard: The library supports diversity and inclusivity through culturally relevant and responsive practices in support of distance and online learning communities.

Benchmarks
The library: 

• Understands and meets all requirements and guidelines set forth by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and Sections 504 and 508 of the Rehabilitation Act.
• Utilizes Universal Design for Learning (UDL) as an approach to instructional design. 
• Provides resources and services in multiple formats to ensure accessibility and choice.
• Regularly participates in DEIA professional development activities.
• Provides equal or equivalent experiences to learners with varying levels of technological access and abilities.

3. Personnel 
Standard: The library maintains sufficient personnel to support the needs of distance and online learning communities.

Benchmarks    
The library:

• Hires either a dedicated distance and online learning librarian, or equivalent title, or maintains personnel distributed across many departments or positions.
• Provides adequate service hours and personal assistance.
• Regularly reviews and augments workloads and capacities to provide and maintain services across departments that provide support, such as:

○  Strategic planning and management
○  Collection development
○  Information literacy
○  Research services
○  Resource access 
○  Marketing and outreach

• Provides adequate and ongoing support for professional development.

4. Collections & Access 
Standard: The library provides necessary resources and services for distance and online learning communities.

Benchmarks
The library:

• Ensures the provision of reliable, rapid, and secure access to online resources.
• Develops policies for delivering hard copy and electronic materials.
• Prepares and updates collection development and acquisitions policies to reflect the needs of the community.
• Regularly reviews library resources and materials to ensure sufficient coverage and appropriateness of format.
• Markets and promotes library collections directly to distance and online learning communities.
• Supports open access and open educational resources initiatives. 

5. Research & Instruction 
Standard: The library provides reference, research support, consultation, and instruction to distance and online learning communities. 

Benchmarks
The library: 

• Ensures instruction methods are supported by the ACRL Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education (Appendix 1).
• Creates appropriate learning outcomes specific to the institution.
• Encourages library instructors to work collaboratively with teaching faculty to include information literacy instruction into distance and online courses and programs.
• Collaborates with faculty and/or learning management system administrator to embed library tools and instructional materials into the online classroom. 
• Provides point-of-need or virtual assistance to include but not limited to, the following:

○ research needs 
○ use of collections and equipment
○ general library services
○ referrals

●   Markets and promotes educational services directly to distance and online learning communities. 

6. Assessment
Standard: The library conducts needs and outcomes assessments at regular intervals to ensure that the needs of distance and online learning communities are being met. These needs include, but are not limited to: resources, collections, personnel, library research and instruction, distance learning facilities, DEIA initiatives, and technology. 

Benchmarks
The library: 

• Identifies useful metrics, ideally aligned with the vision and strategic goals of the institution.
• Utilizes different types of assessment which may include surveys, tests, interviews, student learning, statistics on library use and collections, as well as data on staff and work assignments. Assessment could involve distance and online learning community representatives, including administrators, faculty, and students. 
• Compares the library as a provider of distance and online learning library services with its peers.

7. Financial Support 
Standard: The library and the institution provides funding to support distance and online learning communities. Financial support is an underlying and essential principle for the success of all the standards listed in this document. 

Benchmarks:
The library:

• Advocates for continued financial support from the institution for existing programs.
• Advocates for additional financial support for any expansions or increased enrollment.

Appendix 1: Meeting Library-Related Standards and Other Guidelines, Regulations and Laws

Library-Related Standards

Library services offered to the distance and online learning communities are designed to meet a wide range of informational, instructional, and user needs, and facilitate some form of direct access between library users and personnel. The exact combination of service delivery methods will differ from institution to institution. Specific professional standards and guidelines which may be utilized in providing these services include, but are not limited to:

Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education. Association of College & Research Libraries (ACRL), American Library Association, 2016.

Standards for Libraries in Higher Education. Association of College & Research Libraries (ACRL), American Library Association, 2011.

Professional Competencies for Reference and User Services Librarians. Reference and User Services Association (RUSA), American Library Association, 2003.

Guidelines for Implementing and Maintaining Virtual Reference Services. Reference and User Services Association (RUSA), American Library Association, 2004.

Guidelines for Behavioral Performance of Reference and Information Service Providers. Reference and User Services Association (RUSA), American Library Association, 2013.

Code of Best Practices in Fair Use for Academic and Research Libraries, Association of Research Libraries, 2012.

American Library Association Code of Ethics, 2021.

Other Standards, Guidelines, Laws, and Regulations

Additionally, libraries must ensure that its distance and online learning library programs meet or exceed national and regional guidelines, laws, and regulations. There may be local or national statutes, rules, requirements, or other considerations to bear in mind and include in any procedures or approaches to Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility work.

●    Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) homepage

○    ADA Design Standards

●    Section 508 (Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act) 

○    Section 508 Design and Develop guidelines

●    Section 504, Rehabilitation Act of 1973

○    Section 504 FAQ

●    Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG)  

Appendix 2: History of the Document

Today’s Standards are the culmination of the expansion and revision of the following series of documents, the first of which originated in processes initiated in 1963: ACRL Guidelines for Library Services to Extension Students, 1967; ACRL Guidelines for Extended Campus Library Services, 1981; ACRL Guidelines for Extended Campus Library Services, 1990; ACRL Guidelines for Distance Learning Library Services, 1998; ACRL Guidelines for Distance Learning Library Services, 2000; Guidelines for Distance Learning Library Services, 2004; Standards for Distance Learning Library Services, 2008, and finally Standards for Distance Learning Library Services, 2016.

2023 Standards

The 2023 Standards include major edits which were written over the course of three years. For the 2019-2020 year, the co-chairs were Theresa Mastrodonato, Washington State University in St. Louis, and Elaine Thorton, University of Arkansas, and members included Jack Fritts, Benedictine University, Natalie Haber, University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, Danielle Apfelbaum, Farmingdale State College, Rachel E. Cannady, University of Texas at San Antonio, Paul Graham, Yorkville University, and Sherry Tinerella, Arkansas Tech University. The 2019-2020 committee conducted a close reading of the standards, identified necessary changes, conducted a guidelines and standards review, and began a draft.

For the 2020-2021 committee, the chairs were Natalie Haber, University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, and Janna Mattson, George Mason University, and members included Jack Fritts, Benedictine University, Paul Graham, Yorkville University, Rachel Isaac-Menard, Adelphi University, Marcia Keyser, Drake University, and Kelly Diamond, West Virginia University. The 2020-2021 committee decided to conduct a membership survey regarding the Standards before continuing the draft. They asked questions regarding Standards usage, which parts members find most useful, and which parts are frustrating or difficult to use. The survey had 49 respondents and gave the committee more direction for their next steps. This committee also reviewed language and structure of other educational and library related guidelines and standards to gain ideas. From there, the committee identified seven Standards: Collections & Access, Personnel, Research & Instruction, Assessment, Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility, Financial Support, and Vision and Strategic Planning. From there, the committee worked to fit all the tenants of the 2016 Standards under these Standards. 

The 2021-2022 committee included chairs, Janna Mattson, George Mason University and Rachel Isaac-Menard, Adelphi University, and members Natalie Haber, University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, Kelly Diamond, West Virginia University, Marcia Keyser, Drake University, Joelle E. Pitts, Carnegie Mellon University and Sarah Lynn Simms, Louisiana State University. Jack Fritts attended several meetings as an ex-officio member. This committee finalized the draft and shared it with the DOLS Executive Committee.