LSSI Announces Samuel Swett Green Award for Exemplary Virtual Reference

[Stephen Coffman]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE	May 1, 2002


FOR MORE INFORMATION: Dr. John Richardson --- johnr at lssi.com



LSSI Announces the Samuel Swett Green Award for the Best Virtual Reference
Transcript


Library Systems and Services LLC announces the establishment of a $500
bimonthly award for the best transcript of a virtual synchronous reference
transaction.  The award will be named in honor of Samuel Swett Green, the
founder of reference services in the United States.  Individual librarians or
their supervisors are encouraged to submit their best electronic transcripts
(with patron identifying information deleted, unless it is accompanied by the
patron's permission).

Steve Coffman, Vice President of LSSI's Product Development, has appointed a
nine-member panel of distinguished practitioners and researchers to review
these electronic submissions.  In addition to Steve Coffman, the panelists
include Marie Radford (Pratt Institute), Marianne Sweet SJRLC), James Rettig
(University of Richmond), Tracy Strobel (Clevenet), Ilene Rockman(Editor,
Reference Services Review), Barbara Quint (Editor, Searcher Magazine), and Amy
VanScoy (NCSU).  John Richardson, LSSI's Presidential
Scholar, will chair this distinguished panel and will maintain the single
blind review status of the award.

In selecting the best electronic transcript of a chat or live and real time
transaction (but not an email transaction), the panel will consider relevant
quality factors such as accuracy of the answer, user as well as librarian
satisfaction, and utility of the answer to the user.  Submitters should review
the panel's checklist ahttp://purl.org/net/checklist and
then submit their transcript to johnr at lssi.com with "LSSI Green" in the
subject heading or enter online using our electronic submission form at 
http://orca.pwl.com/greenaward. 
No matter which method you choose, please be sure to include all information requested in the checklist.  

Candidates may send only one transcript per award period.  The competition is
open to all reference staff using any ‘live’ virtual reference software
that can produce an electronic transcript; in other words, it is not just for
LSSI customers.  The first award deadline will be 15 May and the first
recipient will be announced at the ALA Annual Conference in Atlanta; watch for
specific time and location. The next in the series of award deadlines will be
announced shortly.

The award is named in honor of S. S. Green (1837-1918) of the Worcester Free
Public Library who never mentions a reference desk or counter.  He argued
instead that reference librarians should "mingle freely with users, and help
them in every way."  Furthermore, this roving reference librarian should
exhibit a courteous disposition, sympathy, cheerfulness, patience, and
enthusiasm in working with inquirers wherever they were having an information
problem.  Hence, it seems especially appropriate that this award
for exemplary virtual reference service be named after S. S. Green, the first
proponent of taking reference to the patron.

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Steve Coffman
VP, Product Development
LSSI - Library Systems and Services LLC
20250 Century Blvd.
Germantown, MD  20874
www.lssi.com/virtual
stevec at lssi.com
800-638-8725  x265