Letter from the President

By Doug Achterman, CCL President

In the wake of tragic fires in both Northern and Southern California and flooding and mudslides compounding an already monumental challenge, I draw comfort and inspiration from family, friends and community who step up to the most difficult circumstances, giving not only resources and time, but also sharing emotional strength and courage with those who need it the most.

I count myself lucky to work alongside so many exceptional community college librarians, folks motivated by the desire to help and support others to improve their lives. I get that some librarians sit at the reference desk and let the world come to them, helping them when they can, but many of the librarians I know and work with are active, sometimes radical, agents of change.

If you have done something to ease the suffering caused by the recent fires, I thank you.

If you have passionately embraced the core values of librarianship, count me as a kindred soul. And if you have exercised those values in pursuit of positive change on your campus and in your community, I am forever in your debt.

Community college librarians are a force, and I am so very proud to be one among many.

I am so very proud to be a community college librarian.

Library Services Platform News

If you’ve been following updates from Amy Beadle at the CCC Technology Center and from me and others on the Council of Chief Librarians, you know that the vanguard colleges have spent the past 12 weeks going through the all the steps that 107 participating colleges will be completing over the course of nearly a year, including assembling project teams, completing Alma Essential trainings, preparing data for migration, completing Primo VE training, and more. In the first week of December, representatives from each vanguard college will attend a three-day training in San Diego as they learn additional functions of Alma and Primo, including inventory, invoicing, manual cataloging, bulk catalog maintenance, and more nuanced operations related to course circulation and course reserves. As we kickoff the effort with all 107 colleges, the vanguard group will continue to test its migration data, work out integrations with other systems (e.g., student information systems, authentications, etc.) and complete certification trainings.

Many librarians and library staff have dedicated a great deal of time not only piloting migration, but reflecting on and documenting their processes, with the goal of identifying what will work best when we scale this to 107 colleges.  Deepest appreciation goes to the library faculty and staff at each of these eleven colleges:

• Allan Hancock College
• City College of San Francisco
• Cypress College
• East Los Angeles College
• Foothill College
• Long Beach City College
• Oxnard College
• Pasadena City College
• Pierce College
• Santa Rosa Junior College
• Shasta College

It’s been a year full of challenges, but also one of opportunities as we embark on the library services platform project. Wishing you all the happiest of holidays, and that you come back to work rejuvenated and full of enthusiasm for our work together.