This started out as an assignment, a project for a grade. Its origins do not, however, negate my passion about library web sites. They, on average, just don't seem to be quite 'up-to-snuff', and we should not be content with that!
I was probably going to allow this blog to fade away and die.. until today. Today I read that last year, the Spring Hill College library website (of which I gave a C+) was chosen as ACRL's April library website of the month. http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/acrl/about/sections/cls/websiteofthemonth/index.cfm
Now, I don't know what website they are looking at - but i'm assuming they must simply accept recommendations for websites each month and, if the website isn't absolutely terrible, post it on their own site. The SHC website isn't terrible, but it is (at best) 'acceptable.' Acceptable should not be given praise. We are in a world where we struggle to justify our existence and must constantly work and innovate in order to provide excellent service to our students. I said excellent, not satisfactory. Honestly, nothing short of 'excellent' is even very satisfactory.
An this same note: how can you plan to reward excellent websites with recognition when you choose a new library website each and every single month? They've been going since 2005 and one would imagine they should be running out of good candidates, or perhaps their standards just aren't that high.
One final side note: I would like to applaud the ACRL on the in-depth research that they performed on the Spring Hill College library and its staff. Gentry Lankewicz Holbert is, in fact, the director of that institution - however, she is not a man. However, I suppose that is a simple enough mistake to make...
