One basis for the award was the development of the Ask a Librarian virtual reference service. This service, which is like a humanoid version of “Ask Jeeves,” links the libraries of 24 federal agencies together into one program via the Internet. If you have a research question, are looking for a periodical, or need a particular book just click the Ask a Librarian icon on the Department of Homeland Security intranet website and call the number or send an e-mail and get what you are looking for. The service is also accessible through the Customs and Border Protection intranet.

Photo Credit: James Tourtellotte

Hoyt Galloway, CBP HQ Library Director, who was recently recognized by the Library of Congress for his outstanding service

Knowledge is still power
Some people may think that in this technological age libraries have outlived their usefulness. But the old adage that, “Knowledge is power,” has never been truer than it is today - and libraries are repositories of that knowledge. Data, intelligence, information, statistics, records - we have many terms for knowledge - but it all boils down to the same thing. Access to information, not just random data, but catalogued, structured, and organized information is still the hallmark of an advanced civilization. To keep pace libraries have had to adapt new methods and techniques, and CBP’s library is a prime example.

While the Ask a Librarian campaign is innovative, it isn’t the only way that you can access the resources of the CBP library. Whether you are in Duluth, Minn., or Falcon Dam, Texas the majority of the library’s 100,000 plus items is accessible through the web. CBP’s library contains more than 5,000 full text magazines, 200-300 newspapers, 500 plus text books, and more than 40 databases. From remote locations e-content allows you to access the latest copy of the periodical Machine Design or read an e-book like, Biotechnology Research in an Age of Terrorism, or use LEXUS/NEXUS to look up the latest case law on personal searches.

A bit of history
When DHS was created, 10 libraries came to DHS, but they served only four organizations within the organization. The result was that the Department of Homeland Security, one of the largest departments formed in the history of government, lacked library services for more than half of its employees.

Galloway, who became the Library Director in 2001, found this situation untenable and sought help from the Library of Congress. A DHS library committee made up of representatives from 22 federal libraries was formed to develop a plan for library services. A cooperative effort of this scope was unprecedented in the library community and out of it came the innovative Ask a Librarian program.

Comprehensive source on homeland security
Under Galloway’s direction, the CPB HQ library has become the premier DHS library site in the Washington D.C. metropolitan area. The library is the only one within DHS with a collection extensive enough to sustain the entire Department. It provides state-of-the-art access to a wide array of open source information, extensive legal and archival collections, as well as comprehensive research services.

CBP’s library is currently located in a beautifully designed space on the seventh floor of CBP ‘s headquarters in the Ronald Reagan Building. There are plans to relocate it. However, the virtual library can be reached at the Department of Homeland Security intranet web page (https://dhsonline.dhs.gov/portal/jhtml/community.jhtml) or at the CBP Information Resources Center web page (http://cbpnet.cbp.dhs.gov/xp/cbpnet/oit/irc/.)