This year's American Association of Law Libraries
(AALL) convention in Seattle, July 12-16, was a resounding success.
Over that five-day period over 2000 librarians attended a variety
of workshops, seminars and special events, many of which either
involved individuals from our law school or were hosted at the
law school.
The opening day Diversity Symposium provided a rousing
debate between our own Professor Hank McGee and Curt Levey, Director
of the Center for Individual Rights, on the implications of the
U.S. Supreme Court's Grutter decision for continuing
racial integration of law school classes. Anyone unsure of what
time the symposium started or where within the convention center
it was being held, could consult the Seattle University Law School-sponsored
plasma screen monitor adjacent to the registration/exhibit area.
Monday
morning Stephanie Wilson and Bob Menanteaux provided formal tours
of the public and non-public areas of the library, as well as
the Sullivan Hall art collection. At the Monday Association Luncheon,
and on behalf of the Library, Kerry Fitz-Gerald accepted the 2003
AALL Excellence in Marketing Award for Best Use of Technology
for the Seattle University Law Library Virtual Tour. The Law Library
tour was featured at the Public Relations Special Interest Section
(PR-SIS) table in the Exhibit Hall, and was the topic of a short
presentation at the Tuesday morning PR Roundtable. At the ALL-SIS
Breakfast, Kristin Cheney received a Recognition of Service certificate
for serving as Chair of the ALL-SIS Local Arrangements Committee.
Tuesday
afternoon was a busy time at the School of Law as we prepared
for the Conference of Newer Academic Law Librarians (CONALL) program
in the 1st floor Courtroom. Adjourning at 6:15, CONALL attendees
joined their more seasoned colleagues in celebrating the highlight
event of the conference--the Academic SIS Awards Reception! Steve
Burnett welcomed the attendees.
Scheduled from 6:30-9:00 p.m., librarians arrived early and stayed
late to enjoy a sumptuous menu of northwest cuisine, tour the
building, see demonstrations of in-house instructional technology,
and visit on the patio, all while listening to the incomparable
Michael Powers jazz trio.
All in all, it was a great week--lots of work, but lots of fun.
Although most of us will readily admit that we're glad that next
year's meeting will be held in Boston.
The Law Library is pleased to announce the New Theo! Our online
research portal received a face lift and new organization this
summer. These changes give the research portal improved functionality
as well as more closely tie the Library web-look with that of
the School of Law. Use the research portal to find materials in
the Library, conduct online research, access specialized databases,
and get research help. Theo is available at http://theo.seattleu.edu
or at http://law.seattleu.edu/library/theo.
On June 19, the library hosted the 8th Annual Bridge the Legal
Research Gap. This free program offered thirteen instructional
sessions taught by librarians from our library and the University
of Washington Gallagher Law Library. Sessions were designed to
reacquaint students with research skills that are useful in summer
legal employment. Topics included legal drafting, administrative
law research and Washington legislative history.
Students working at Seattle law firms were encouraged to attend
this event. Thus, while the majority of attendees were students
from Seattle University and the University of Washington, students
from twenty other law schools also attended. The roster of attendees
included students from Harvard University, Columbia University
and Stanford University.
With the summer closure of the Gallagher Law Library, and the
reorganization of King County Law Library, our law library’s
patron load increased substantially. UW law students were given
free access to our resources (subject to licensing limitations).
The number of attorneys and pro se patrons increased, as did the
number of requests for services, including Reference. We also
loaned more materials to other libraries via interlibrary loan
while the UW and King County collections were inaccessible. The
library membership program welcomed twelve new alumni members
and eleven general attorney members. An Edmonds Community College
paralegal class toured the library, received online instruction
of the library catalog and Shepard’s, and utilized their
new skills to complete an assignment. While these events kept
the library staff quite busy, the increased patron traffic in
the library did not deter them from providing continued assistance
to our current law students and law faculty.
Visitors always enliven the atmosphere around the law school.
This past summer, the librarians were busy serving a number of
visiting instructors here to teach for the summer term and enjoy
a few weeks soaking up Seattle ambiance. Kelly Kunsch was responsible
for Professors Williams and Scales while Stephanie Wilson was
assigned to Andrew Schwarz. Professors Holden-Smith and David
Langum received assistance from Bob Menanteaux. Each faculty member
received a personalized packet of information on library services
prepared by Jane Draney.
Starting this summer, every student taking an independent study
course has been assigned a librarian. The assignment is now a
requirement for taking such a course. The librarian’s function
is to advise the student on research strategies and resources.
During the summer, there were 16 independent study students working
with the four Reference librarians.
In mid-June, a new gaggle of 1Ls arrived at the School of Law.
Reference Librarians participated in several orientation sessions
and library tours. Kelly Kunsch also gave his introduction to
the United States legal system to the ARC students.
Reference Librarian Kerry Fitz-Gerald participated in this summer’s
Faculty Seminar on teaching justice issues in the curriculum.
The intensive seminar, which met periodically over four weeks,
focused on Catholic social teaching, with readings including a
number of papal encyclicals and other important documents tracing
the Catholic Church’s position on the rights and needs of
workers. These documents spurred challenging discussions about
social justice and the appropriate roles for faculty, staff and
the University as a whole in teaching and living social justice.
Monday
morning Stephanie Wilson and Bob Menanteaux provided formal tours
of the public and non-public areas of the library, as well as
the Sullivan Hall art collection. At the Monday Association Luncheon,
and on behalf of the Library, Kerry Fitz-Gerald accepted the 2003
AALL Excellence in Marketing Award for Best Use of Technology
for the Seattle University Law Library Virtual Tour. The Law Library
tour was featured at the Public Relations Special Interest Section
(PR-SIS) table in the Exhibit Hall, and was the topic of a short
presentation at the Tuesday morning PR Roundtable. At the ALL-SIS
Breakfast, Kristin Cheney received a Recognition of Service certificate
for serving as Chair of the ALL-SIS Local Arrangements Committee.
Tuesday
afternoon was a busy time at the School of Law as we prepared
for the Conference of Newer Academic Law Librarians (CONALL) program
in the 1st floor Courtroom. Adjourning at 6:15, CONALL attendees
joined their more seasoned colleagues in celebrating the highlight
event of the conference--the Academic SIS Awards Reception! Steve
Burnett welcomed the attendees.
