Libraries and E-government: Building the Future through Collaboration and Education

1. Libraries and E-government: Building the Future through Collaboration and Education John Carlo Bertot Center for Library & Information Innovation College of Information Studies University of Maryland jbertot@umd.edu clii.umd.edu

2. Libraries and E-government • Broad in scope • E-participation/democratization • Open Government/transparency • Digital government information • Services • Hands on to resources • Broad in participants • Individuals • Libraries • Agencies • Governments • NGOs

3. Libraries and E-government • What we know (www.plinternetsurvey.org) • Technology access • Libraries offer free access to workstations, broadband, and Wi-Fi • Training • Libraries offer a wide range of free computer and Internet use training • Expertise • Libraries offer expertise that helps people understand government and government services • Information • Libraries help people find and use government information • Assistance • Libraries help people understand and use government websites and services • Complete Forms • Libraries help people complete immigration and citizenship, social service, emergency benefit, and other online forms

4. E-government in Public Libraries • 88.8% help people understand and use government websites • 78.7% help people apply for E-government services • 66.3% help people complete E-government forms

5. Libraries and E-government • Key issues • What are the community needs regarding E-government? • Expertise • Assistance • Language • Public access technology and broadband • “Collections” • More • What are library roles in E-government? • What does this mean in terms of education, practice, and service? • Not just for libraries, but those in the E-government space

6. Changing Education • E-government Librarianship • clii.umd.edu/libegov • Funded by IMLS 21st Century grant • Program starts Fall 2010 • Online, with f-2-f at the 2010 and 2011 Fall Depository Council meetings • Premise • E-government is different, but builds on, the government documents tradition

7. Changing Education • Partners • Government Printing Office (GPO) • Government Information Online (GIO) • www.govtinfo.org/ • Program • Online, part of the UMD MLS program’s E-government concentration • www.clii.umd.edu/libegov

8. Changing Education • Program • Coursework • Coursework serves as the intellectual and conceptual basis for the evolving government information environment • Information policy, E-government librarianship, E-government, and more • Practice • Through internships with the GIO program participants, students will develop applied government information skills. • Professional • By bringing students together annually to attend the Fall Federal Depository Library meeting, students will become integrated into the larger government information community and engage key issues in government information • Scholarship • Through inclusion in the review process of Government Information Quarterly, students will publish government resource reviews, contribute to furthering scholarship in government information, and learn the publication process

9. Changing Practice • Partnerships • IMLS proposal with ALA and • Agencies • IRS • USCIS • GPO • State libraries • CT, FL, MD, NJ, and TX • Library consortia • Middlesex (NJ; 28 public libraries and a community college) • Libraries • Alachua County (FL); Austin Public Library (TX); Baltimore County (MD); Caroline County (MD); Cobb County (GA); Montgomery County (MD); Newark (NJ); Pasco County (FL) • Government Information Online

10. Changing Practice • Goals and objectives • To create a collaborative delivery model for e-government services and resources that ensures access to e-government services, resources, and information • To provide libraries, agencies, and the public access to government information and e-government resource specialists • To clarify and implement different types of library e-government services roles and suggest which service roles may be most successful for different types of libraries • To provide libraries with resources, guides, tutorials, and other useful materials in order to better serve as critical e-government access points in their communities • To build on a century of librarian information service expertise through the use of social networking tools and other community building advantages inherent in digital tools • To assist agencies and libraries in deliver e-government services to underserved populations and persons with disabilities

11. Changing Practice • Initial focus on • Taxes (IRS) • Citizenship and Immigration (USCIS) • Avoid wheel reinvention • Web resource for libraries and agencies, not direct public access

12. Key Issues and Challenges • Time • Changing educational programs and practice takes time • Collaborations • Many levels of government, agencies • Starting nationally, but there are significant state and local components • Roles • Where do libraries and agencies collaborate and leave off? • Not all roles are appropriate • Liability • Evolving technology • Social media; mobile

13. Some Concluding Comments • Status quo Fewer agency staff, locations, operating hours, and no public access technology = more people coming to libraries • Libraries responding individually to meet needs, while simultaneously enduring cuts • Libraries don’t have the expertise in all areas of E-government • This is not sustainable