Location: Loden-Daniel Library
Freed-Hardemann University

Present : Steve Baker, Scott Cohen, Harold Kelly, Mary Roby, Hope Shull, Joel Stowers, Connie White, and Ann Reever as a substitute for Robert Lhota.

The minutes from the March 1998 meeting were approved.

Connie White was elected secretary.

Scott Cohen handed out copies of the WETALC DIRECTORY and a questionnaire for each member library which would provide information concerning the electronic databases available at each institution. He requested that these questionnaires be returned to him by Nov 1, 1998. There was a discussion that followed concerning the cooperative use of these databases. Questions raised included:

• How did cooperative use would affect contract license agreements?
• Could students attending member colleges/universities utilize databases at any member library?
• How did this affect ILL possibilities?
• It was suggested that each respondent indicate on the questionnaire whether outside users were permitted in their libraries.

The president, Steve Baker, reported that the University of Tennessee Health Sciences Library had applied for membership in the West Tennessee Academic Library Consortium. Hope Shull moved that we accept their membership request. The motion was seconded by Joel Stowers. The motion past unanimously.

Steve also reported that the Christian Brothers University was seriously considering membership. He also reported that he had reissued the invitation to the other academic libraries in our area.

UT Health Sciences Library's membership into WETALC opened a discussion concerning the need to take a close look at the organization's constitution in order to make it more effective for today's membership. Steve pointed that some of the membership procedures as they are currently defined are becoming burdensome. The constitution presently requires that the librarian and president of each institution must sign the memorandum agreements with the acceptance of each new member. Joel Stowers moved that the president and the officers revise the constitution and present it at the March meeting for approval. This was seconded by Hope Shull and confirmed by the other members.

Harold Kelly also brought the problem of regular self evaluation of the consortium's institutional effectiveness to the discussion. He suggested that this might be included in the constitutional changes as it has become an important factor for SACS.

Other topics discussed were:

• Steve Baker encouraged continued cooperative collection development
• Several members stressed the importance of sharing of effectiveness plans and benchmarking helps as the IPEDS reports
• IPEDS 1996 report is now available online.
• Reports of other Tennessee academic library collaboratives
• Possible Union Catalog of all state related academic libraries
• TennShare meeting on 23 Nov. 1998
• Hope Shull requested information concerning classification of library positions. Scott Cohen stated that there was an article on this topic in this months Library Journal.
• Steve Baker requested that the directors schedule another meeting which would not be in conjunction with a general meeting, preferability in the summer.

Connie White
Secretary

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