Access Services Interest Group

The ACRL Access Services Interest Group was created to give Access Services librarians and staff a forum to discuss and share access services topics across a wide variety of areas.  Since this group is new, you have an opportunity to help shape what we do and talk about!  Please get the conversation going with your ideas of what you would like to see out of the interest group.  Our only limits are our imagination and creativity.

In the interest of getting the conversation started, would you find it interesting to hold informal regional meetup / meetings outside of the Access Services conference and other national conferences?  If you already know of meetings in your area, please share!

I am not really an Access Services Librarian, but do oversee that service area as part of my portfolio.

While I have a general familiarity with many of the practices and procedures, I am interested in learning more about trends and other developments for this evolving service.

Yes, local meetings would be great.  Once upon a time there was a semi-regular meeting of the Boston Area Access Services Librarians.   Maybe they are meeting without me or perhaps it is time to schedule a meeting! 

I would make an effort to attend a regional meeting, I think it's a great idea.  I am so looking forward to this discussion group!

A regional meeting would be great for staff who aren't always well funded to attend conferences out of state. 

I've always found the content at ACRL conferences to be very interesting and I think it would be great to meet with and hear from Access Services peeps at other Academic Libraries at ACRL conferences. In the past it's been difficult to find a good justification for attending and participating in ACRL without more of an Access Services community there. SO, what I'm hoping to get out of this interest group is an "excuse" to go to ACRL conferences and possibly even more Access Services related programming at ACRL. 

Unfortunately I'm not going to make it to ALA this year, but I can definitely go to ACRL 2017 and would be happy to volunteer there to help kick off some Access Services events or programs.

Michelle - I share the same concern.  Also, it seems that for folks who work in Access Services, there is always some sort of fire that needs to be put out.  Coupling the difficulty for staff to attend national conferences and the desire to not be away from the library for an extended period of time, I can see one-day symposiums within driving distance being helpful to a lot of people.  I know that this happened in New Jersey (see the notes from the 2015 FEAST program at ALA) and wonder if there is an opportunity at state library association conferences.