Minutes from ALISS open meetings, 4/18 (evening) and 4/19/2001 (day)
Officers present were: 4/18 Ranger, Trent Hill, Regina Clift, and Eric Riley (GPSS senator); 4/19 Jill Seidenstein, Trent Hill, and Eric Riley. 4/18 meeting was called to order at 7:30 by Ranger; 4/19 meeting, at 1:30 by Jill.
Announcements:
1. Representatives from DISC discussed their potluck, which was held on 4/27.
2. Regina announced the formation of the iClean committee and went over the respective responsibilities of Housekeeping and the iSchool student body for keeping the iSalon clean. The Housekeeping staff is responsible for collecting trash, recycling and for keeping the floor clean; the iSchool is responsible for all other surfaces. The iClean committee will take the lead in keeping the iSalon free of obvious biohazards and rat breeding grounds.
3. Representatives from the Information Industries Associates Program (IIAP) gave an update on their plans for fostering a semi-formal partnering arrangement with businesses. Thus far, Microsoft, Washington Research Foundation, and Deloitte & Touche have signed up as partners. IIAP is planning a day for informal presentations from partners and students, tentatively scheduled for May 14.
4. Students discussed some of the topics from the open meeting with Mike Eisenberg:
a. Mike would like to get a list of the best courses outside the iSchool curriculum taken by iSchool students to use as a guide for student advising in the future.
b. He would also like to increase the interaction between the program in Technical Communication and the iSchool.
c. While the iSchool is planning on hosting an IT "boot camp" for incoming students, he stressed the continuing need for students to take advantage of and learn from the technological competencies of other students in the iSchool, including the Informatics students.
d. He went over the continuing progress of the Distance Learning program, currently slated to begin in Fall of 2002.
e. He also went over the possibility of extending the iSchool computer lab hours Friday night and Saturday.
5. Eric Riley (GPSS senator) discussed the tuition increases currently under consideration. GPSS is seeking input on the dramatic increase in the tuition formula for nonresident summer students. While one student doubted whether it would have much impact on matriculated students, there was some disagreement on this point. Several other students questioned the legality and ethics of changing the tuition rates on such short notice, since many nonresident and international students have already made summer plans based on the old rates.
Topics from open forum:
1. One student asked about the possibility of a course in Web essentials such as HTML, XML, and scripting. While there are instructional resources available (such as courses with community colleges and the Experimental College), it would be good to have it available as part of the program.
2. Another student suggested that there is strong interest in children’s librarianship and suggested that the iSchool consider offering more courses in the area.
3. There is some dissatisfaction with the policy of not counting UW Continuing Education and extension courses towards graduation, especially as regards the school media certification program.
4. Some of the information on the iSchool website, especially the homepage, seems out-of-date, with old course numbers and descriptions.
5. Several students expressed dissatisfaction with advisement procedures, complaining of uninformed and apparently uninterested advisors.
6. Some questions were raised as to whether the iSchool is overlooking the "core constituency" of MLIS students. Tech skills are being taught to undergraduates; however, they aren’t really offered to MLIS students, and as a result, while the iSchool has impressive hardware capabilities, very few MLIS students are taught the skills necessary to use it, and some of the cutting-edge faculty don’t teach MLIS courses. Ultimately, not all students are confident that they are learning the skills necessary for professional viability.
7. A few students wondered about the ALA conference in San Francisco, who was going, how people were getting there, etc.
8. Students suggested that professors post their office hours.
Respectfully submitted,
Trent Hill
ALISS secretary