Intellectual Property in Library Schools: A Proposal

Intellectual property (IP) topics such as copyright, licensure, and fair use have become critical to today's information professional. This study proposes to explore and analyze the current state of IP education within Library and Information Science graduate programs accredited by the American Library Association (ALA). Despite the importance of IP issues to information professionals, we propose that ALA-accredited MLS/MLIS programs do not require courses focusing on IP issues. IP issues include, but are not limited to, questions of copyright, interlibrary loan procedures, and electronic database licenses. This study will help identify the extent to which IP training in U.S. ALA-accredited programs is available. Through a brief, preliminary questionnaire, e-mailed to all U.S. ALA-accredited LIS graduate programs, we will identify which schools offer courses focusing on IP issues. Follow up interviews will determine the nature of IP courses in accredited programs. The findings will be published on a website accessible by the public. Future researchers will be able to use this information to design studies that can assess the quality of the content of such courses.