TxETDA 2012: Registration Now Open

Registration is now open for the 2012 TxETDA Conference, “Beyond boundaries: Extending the reach of research”. The conference will be held at the University of North Texas on Thursday, February 23 and Friday, February 24, 2012. We have a wonderful line-up of presenters and presentation topics (conference program information coming soon):

• Hear from keynote speaker, Martin Halbert;
• listen to what’s hot off the presses in Copyright;
• examine the ETD policies of another Texas institution;
• learn about more about ETD embargoes;
• and, much more.

Not only will the conference be packed with opportunities to advance your knowledge, you will also have opportunity to network with professionals from around the state facing similar challenges.

Registration will be available from January 2 through early February. Registration fees are $50, which includes dinner on day 1 and breakfast and lunch on day 2. Major credit cards are accepted. To register visit: https://conferences.tdl.org/txetda/2012/schedConf/registration.

For more information about the conference, visit the TxETDA 2012 Conference website.

Don’t wait, register today!

TxETDA Issues Call for Posters and Presentations at TxETDA 2012

The TxETDA Conference Planning Committee invites proposals for oral presentations and posters to be exhibited during the TxETDA conference, which will be held at the University of North Texas on Thursday, February 23 and Friday, February 24, 2012.

Posters will be displayed in the conference presentation room on Thursday afternoon and evening, and Friday morning. All poster presenters must be present at the poster session to answer questions.

We encourage proposals for oral presentations and posters relating to the following program theme: “Beyond Boundaries:  Extending the Reach of Research.”  Note: Strictly commercial presentations and posters will not be accepted.

Please submit a 200-300 word abstract that includes the following information:

• Title of poster or oral presentation
• Author(s), including institutional or corporate identity and email address
• Summaryof content to be included in poster or presentation
  • Well written, clear, logical and well organized
  • Original, timely and relevant to the ETD field
  • Contribute to the advancement ETDs
  • Develop ideas, offer conclusions, and provide useful and practical findings
  • Provide a good visual description of the project (for posters only)

Poster and presentation proposals will be reviewed and selected on the basis of the following criteria:

• Relevance to the focus of the conference
• Significance of content
• Helpfulness/interest to conference attendees

Poster Details:

Posters should be 3′ X 4′in size. Easels may be available at the conference site upon advanced request; however the TxETDA will be unable to provide power for multimedia displays.

DEADLINE FOR POSTER ENTRIES: Tuesday, January 17, 2012. Review of submissions will begin immediately.  Entrants will be notified of their acceptance or denial  no later than: Wednesday, February 1, 2012.

Poster entry information should be submitted via e-mail to: Billie Peterson-Lugo (billie_peterson@baylor.edu). Be sure to include your name, institution, e-mail address, and poster title.

Oral Presentation Details:

Oral presenters should plan for a 45 minute presentation with at least 15 minutes for questions and answers. Exact session times will be assigned following review and acceptance.

DEADLINE FOR ORAL PRESENTATION ENTRIES: Tuesday, January 6, 2012. Review of submissions will begin immediately.  Entrants will be notified of their acceptance or denial no later than: Wednesday, January 25, 2012.

Oral Presentation entry information should be submitted via e-mail to: Ginger Dickens (dickens@uta.edu). Be sure to include your name, institution, e-mail address, and presentation title.

TxETDA Invites Participation in TxETDA 2012

The TxETDA 2012 Organizing Committee has released a formal invitation for participation in the 2012 TxETDA Conference on Thursday, February 23 and Friday, February 24 at the University of North Texas in Denton.

Our theme this year is “Beyond the Boundaries” to celebrate the lively arts community of Denton, Texas, as well as our desire to reach beyond the borders of Texas to ETD colleagues in neighboring states. While TxETDA focuses on the needs of ETD professionals within the state of Texas, we welcome the participation of anyone interested in the field of ETDs from across the nation, whether they are inside or outside academia.

Also, while you are in Denton, be sure to check out local events in the community, taking advantage of the great nightlife and venues.

A tentative program schedule is available online.  If you would like to submit a session proposal to address one or more of these topics, or have a topic idea of your own, please contact Ginger Dickens by January 6, 2012.  She can be reached at dickens@uta.edu. A formal call for presentation and poster sessions will be forthcoming.

Keynote Speaker

Dr. Martin Halbert is Dean of Libraries and Associate Professor at the University of North Texas. He also currently serves as President of the MetaArchive Cooperative, a growing international digital preservation alliance of cultural memory organizations that was one of the founding partners of the US National Digital Preservation Program.

He has served as principal investigator for grants and contracts totaling more than $6 M during the past six years, funding more than a dozen large scale collaborative projects among many educational institutions. His doctoral research and subsequent projects have focused on exploring the future of research library services.

For further conference details see the TxETDA 2012 webpage.

What is the future of the traditional dissertation?

Discussions have been had in a number of contexts (e.g., the Modern Language Association) about the value of the traditional dissertation in lieue of more innovative and useful formats. NDLTD encourages innovative use of technology in ETDs through student annual awards. A recent editorial from the Brown Daily Herald continues this discussion, moving the conversation to the Undergraduate thesis, “Editorial: Turning down the traditional thesis“

Proceedings Available from the 14th International Symposium on Electronic Theses and Dissertations

If you were unable to attend the ETD2011 Symposium in Cape Town, South Africa, then you may be interested in reviewing the proceedings from the conference, now available from: http://dl.cs.uct.ac.za/conferences/etd2011/proceedings. There were a number of fantastic sessions, including a report of recent research on whether or not ETDs deter publishers. I was fortunate to be able to attend this year’s symposium, and it was an incredible week!

–Laura Hammons

Save the Date: TxETDA 2012 scheduled for Feb 23-24 at UNT

Make plans now to attend the Texas ETD Association annual conference to be held at the University North Texas on February 23-24, 2012. The committee is working now to organize a program packed with helpful and practical information to advance the knowledge of ETD professionals, as well as to provide opportunities for networking with graduate school and library colleagues. This year’s conference includes several changes:

• A 2-day format (1 pm Thursday through noon, Friday) to enable additional opportunities for networking between sessions and during evening programs
• A poster session to increase information sharing and participation
• Targeted invitations to neighboring states of Louisiana, Arkansas, and Oklahoma to capitalize on this year’s location

The call for presentation and poster proposals will be forthcoming. Start thinking now about information you might share with colleagues in a poster or presentation format. More details will follow in the coming months!

TxETDA Steering Committee

US Copyright Office – Recently reviewed circular

The US copyright office recently reviewed their Copyright Basics circular available at http://www.copyright.gov/circs/circ01.pdf.  We all know students, in general, do not take the time to research topics at length but many have questions about what copyright is and is not.  This circular is only 12 pages long and is clearly broken down into easily digestible information.

USETDA 2012: Dates Announced

The USETDA has announced its 2nd annual conference for June 13-15, 2012, in Boston, Massachusetts.

USETDA 2012 is for ETD professionals from graduate schools, libraries, academic computing and others who work with ETDs. Our goal is to offer relevant, practice-oriented content to support ETD productivity improvement, ETD professionals, advance ETD operations, and encourage the formation of state-wide ETD associations in the United States.

More Information Coming Soon!

Check the USETDA 2012 Conference Website for updates!

Institutional Repository and ETD Bibliography 2011 Released

Digital Scholarship has released the Institutional Repository and ETD Bibliography 2011.  A 96-page book that presents over 600 articles, books, technical reports, and other works useful in understanding institutional repositories and ETDs.  It covers

• institutional repository (IR) country and regional surveys
• multiple-institution repositories
• specific IRs
• IR digital preservation issues
• IR library issues,
• IR metadata strategies,
• institutional open access mandates and policies
• IR R&D projects
• IR research studies
• IR open source software
• electronic theses and dissertations.

Most sources published between 2000 and June 30, 2011.

http://digital-scholarship.org/iretd/iretd2011.htm

For further information about Digital Scholarship publications, see the “Digital Scholarship Publications Overview” and “Reviews of Digital Scholarship Publications.”

http://digital-scholarship.org/about/overview.htm

USETDA 2011 Concludes

The USETDA 2011 conference, held in the Orlando area, concluded today at noon. It was a tremendous experience for me, as an organizer, and the feedback from participants was overwhelmingly positive.  We had several representatives from Texas who were present and engaged at various levels: Ryan Steans (TDL), Gail Clement (TAMU), Ginger Dickens (UTA), Jill Kleister (UNT), and Daniel Alemneh (UNT).  The sessions were practical, informed and engaging. I was particularly pleased with the variety of presentations on issues of copyright and intellectual property, as well as the opportunity to learn about the various workflows, policies and approaches of other institutions.  The TxETDA members were also provided with an opportunity to hold a 45 minute session on Friday morning, where we discussed the Texas Digital Library, the upcoming conference, and other ETD issues.

If you were unable to attend, I encourage you to review the materials which have been posted online at the USETD 2011 conference proceedings page. The organization encouraged everyone to make plans in their budget to attend next year’s conference (location and date to be announced), and to be part of the new USETDA initiatives. They are seeking volunteers to assist with various committees: communications, resources, serving as a state representative, and conference planning. The USETDA board has a lot of great plans for USETDA in the coming years, but won’t be able to accomplish their goals without your involvement. If you want to learn more about USETDA, and/or become a member, visit their webpage at http://www.usetda.org/.

—Laura Hammons (Texas A&M University)