LFA Exec - Annual Report - FY 2024-2025

Library Governance - LFA Executive Committee

Annual Report

Fiscal Year: 2024-2025

Committee Name: LFA Executive Committee (LFA Exec)

Committee Chair: Jon Giullian

Membership

MEMBERS (with terms): https://lfsa.ku.edu/committee-members-fy-2024-2025

Jon Giullian, Chair

Josh Bolick, Vice-Chair/Chair Elect

Kodjo Atiso, Secretary

Adrienne Sanders, Assistant Librarian Representative

Angie Rathmel, Associate Librarian Representative

Brian Rosenblum, Librarian Representative

Standing Charges (excerpted from the KU Libraries Governance Code at https://lfsa.ku.edu/lfsa-code-and-bylaws)

Ensures the orderly and effective operation of the LFA.
Is the first point of contact for any matters referred to the attention of LFA, save those which are specifically assigned to standing committees in the Code; and, where appropriate, assigns such matters to standing or ad hoc committees.
Brings governance issues concerning all faculty and staff to the LFSA Executive Committee.
Designates a liaison to the Organizational Development Unit and an ex officio liaison to LSA to ensure communication and information sharing.
Monitors KU governance issues that may affect LFA, including the Faculty Senate and the University Senate Committee on Libraries.
Takes no action contrary to the desires of the LFA.

Meetings

The LFA Executive Committee (LFA Exec) held monthly meetings, with 11 total meetings from August 24 – June 2025. These meetings were open to all LFA members. Invitations and agendas were sent out to all LFA members via KULIB-L listserv, and minutes of meetings were posted to the Libraries website at https://lfsa.ku.edu/lfa/lfa-minutes. The LFA Executive also convened two General Assembly meetings, the first on November 28, 2024, and the second on April 22, 2025, where pertinent issues were discussed.

The LFA Exec Chair and Vice Chair met monthly with the Libraries Dean, Carol Smith, in their capacity as liaisons between Libraries leadership and Libraries faculty. Jon and Josh shared the content of their discussions with the Dean during LFA Exec monthly meetings. Summaries of these discussions are documented in LFA Exec meeting minutes.

LFA Exec Chair and LSA Exec Chair coordinated monthly LFSA meetings and convened one LFSA General Assembly on November 12, 2024.

LFA Exec Chair served as the ex officio liaison to the LSA and attended LSA Executive Committee meetings.

The LFA Chair attended meetings of the University Senate Committee on Libraries, along with Dean Carol Smith, and provided information to the committee as needed. Minutes of these meetings are available on the Committee’s website.

Progress/Accomplishment Summary

The LFA Exec Chair submitted a revision of the Criteria for Academic Ranks of Library Faculty (which amended degree requirements for Tenure-Track Librarians) to the Office of Faculty Affairs for review and approval. The revised Criteria were approved and deposited into the KU Policy Library on October 11, 2024.
The LFA Exec Chair submitted an amendment to the University Senate Libraries Committee in an effort to resolve the discrepancy between the language on the University Senate Libraries Committee webpage and the LFSA Code of Governance regarding the ex officio member from Libraries Faculty. It was recommended that the word “elected” be replaced with “elected or appointed” in the following text:

“…. The Committee shall also include the following non-voting, ex officio members: The Dean of the Libraries, the Law Librarian, and one each from the following library staff types, elected by their respective library governance body: university support staff, unclassified professional staff, and faculty. Either a faculty member or staff member may be appointed as chair.

The University Senate Libraries Committee approved this amendment, but the text on the website has still not been amended. The LFA Exec Chair (Jon Giullian) wrote to the Chair of the University Senate Libraries Committee (Casey Franklin) in order to get this change implemented by the end of the fiscal year 2024-2025.

At the request of the Dean of Libraries (Carol Smith), LFA Exec formed an Ad hoc Committee to review the Promotion and Tenure Procedures for the Faculty of The University of Kansas Libraries. This Ad hoc committee was formed in the fall of 2024 and commenced its work in January of 2025. The Ad hoc committee will conclude its work and submit recommendations to the Assembly and the Dean of Libraries at the LFA General Assembly meeting in the spring of 2026.

MEMBERS

Brian Rosenblum, Librarian (Chair)

Sara Morris, Librarian

Andi Back, Associate Librarian

Josh Bolick, Associate Librarian

Elspeth Healey, Associate Librarian

John McEwan, Assistant Librarian (replaced Jaime Groetsema Saifi following her resignation the spring of 2025)

Milton Machuca- Galvez, Assistant Librarian

CHARGE

The Ad hoc Committee for Review of P&T Procedures shall review the Promotion and Tenure Procedures for the Faculty of The University of Kansas Libraries (and in particular the Scholarship section) in order to: 1) clarify what constitutes scholarship; 2) clarify and potentially expand examples of scholarly work in the table at the end of the document; 3) make the information contained in the table's footnotes more concise and easier to understand; 4) elaborate on what is meant by a "program of research," 5) and clarify the standard of expectations (both quantity and quality) for promotion and tenure. The ad hoc committee will use a variety of means to solicit input from all LFA members and will deliver a report with progress and/or recommendations to the LFA Executive Committee and the Dean of Libraries no later than two weeks before the spring general meeting of the LFA.

At the request of the Dean of Libraries (Carols Smith) the LFA Exec added to the 2024 Library Faculty Evaluation form a section for the Dean of Libraries to insert comments (per the KU Libraries Code of Governance). The 2024 faculty evaluation calendar was also adjusted to allow time for the Dean of Libraries to insert comments. Although intended to be a straightforward process, the change turned out to be fraught with unanticipated challenges and timeline constraints. LFA members provided valuable feedback on the process through email and discussion during the spring LFA General Assembly meeting on April 22, 2025. The incoming LFA Exec plans to review the Faculty Evaluation Form during FY 25-26. The LFA Chair created a new draft of the form aimed at simplifying the form and reducing redundancies.
The LFA Exec designed a service audit survey and distributed it to all LFA members. The survey was conducted via Qualtrics by Adrienne Sanders and Angie Rathmel and went through several iterations with input from the Dean of Libraries (Carol Smith) as well as from members of LFA Exec. Out of 45 library faculty just over half (24) completed the survey. Results show that, on average, KU Library faculty do, indeed, spend approximately 10% (187 hours per year) of their work time on service. Full librarians by far contribute the most hours of service per year on average (253), followed by associate librarians (194), and assistant librarians (95). The survey also shows average service per year by gender: female (201), male (162).

Potential Charges for Future Committees/Recommendations:

Complete the work of the Ad hoc Committee to review the Promotion and Tenure Procedures for the Faculty of The University of Kansas Libraries and submit recommendations to the Dean of Libraries.

Streamline the Library Faculty Evaluation process, including a simplified evaluation form that reduces redundancy.

Charge an ad hoc committee to revisit past mentoring guidelines and university guidance, consider the needs of pre-tenure faculty, and provide more formalized guidance for library faculty mentors, in order to establish more consistency in mentoring junior colleagues.

Review all committees’ Annual Reports for recommendations.