Since being appointed General Editor for the 5th edition of Texas Reference Sources at the Executive Board meeting during the TLA Centennial Conference in April 2002, I have managed to accomplish several goals:

1. Using the RRT mailing list for the newsletter, I surveyed via email current RRT members about issues relating to the form and content of the next edition. The survey was sent 6 May 2002 and 84 useable responses were received. The results indicate preferences that the next edition be produced in both print and electronic formats and that prices for currently available items be included.

2. Calls for volunteers were sent out 5 June 2002 via email to all addresses in the RRT newsletter mailing list and via postings to the following TLA distribution lists: CULD, PLD, SLD, RRT, GODORT, ACDRT, ALHRT, TRGCC. As of 19 July 2002, 45 responses had been received. All respondents received an acknowledgement. Of the respondents, 20 were assigned as section reviewers and 20 were assigned as section editors. All appointed section editors have been notified and are already working on their sections. All appointed section reviewers also have been notified of their respective assignments, although their work will commence at a later date. Three additional volunteers are being considered for assignment. One respondent declined participation and one requested more information and subsequently declined to participate. Another call notice has appeared in the current issue of TLACast and has also been linked on the TLA Publications webpage to a webpage created from my announcement by Mary Ann Emerson, TLA Webmaster.

3. Resource materials for participants have been created: a draft introduction to the edition, a list of abbreviations to be used, a general guide to responsibilities, tips for section editors, and sample entries. All resource materials have been distributed to all subject editors currently assigned.

4. A preliminary contents outline has been created for the 5th edition. Several changes in location and TRS classification number have been made to coordinate with the 11th edition of Guide to Reference Books (Balay).

5. A project timetable has been drafted projecting a publication date in 2004.

6. Materials have been shared with the chair of the TLA Publications Committee and I have been placed on the agenda to discuss the project during the committee's meeting scheduled for Monday morning 22 July 2002.

7. A preliminary budget for the project has been drafted. The TLA Headquarters staff assisted with acquiring publication estimates from the TLA printer.

8. I have created email templates for acknowledging volunteers, appointing section editors and reviewers, and notifying about deadlines approaching. A project log has been created for each TRS section to keep track of correspondence and processing progress.

9. Seventeen of the 19 remaining copies of the 4th edition of Texas Reference Sources have been removed from TLA inventory and shipped to me for use as resources for volunteers and processors. Two of the seventeen copies have been set aside for display use in the RRT exhibit booth. The other two remaining inventory copies have been set aside for the TLA Archives. Presently, no copies of the 4th edition remain in TLA inventory. TLA staff notified me that TLA had already removed the 4th edition from the TLA publications catalog a few years ago because it was too out-of-date.

SUMMARY PROGRESS:

As of 19 July 2002, 24 of 42 subject sections have editors and are in progress (many with a deadline of 1 November 2002 for initial drafting). The sections underway are: T-AD (Periodicals); T-AE (Newspapers); T-BA (Humanities General Works); T-BC (Religion); T-BE (Literature); T-BF (Art and Architecture); T-BG (Design and Applied Arts); T-BH (Theater and Performing Arts); T-BJ (Music); T-BK (Sports and Recreation); T-CB (Education); T-CC (Sociology); T-CD (Psychology); T-CE (Anthropology and Ethnology); T-CF (Mythology, Folklore and Popular Culture); T-CG (Statistics and Demography); T-CH (Business and Economics); T-CK (Law); T-CL (Geography); T-DB (Texas History); T-EB (Mathematics); T-EG (Biological Sciences); T-EH (Medical and Health Sciences); T-EK (Engineering).

As of 19 July 2002, 21 of 42 subject sections have reviewers assigned. Eight of the reviewers are assigned to sections which do not yet have editors.

Copyright ©2007, Reference Round Table, TLA
Send comments and suggestions to: Beth Thomsett-Scott, bscott@library.unt.edu
Last Modified: March 2007