Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Inclusive And Anti-Racist Collecting At Unlv: Draft Report And Recommendations, Annette Day, Sarah R. Jones, Amy Tureen, Susan B. Wainscott, Amanda Melilli, Thomas Padilla, Aidy Weeks

Library Faculty Publications

The UNLV University Libraries recognizes that as both a direct and indirect result of colonialism and white supremacy the historical and contemporary scholarly publishing market atypically centers and prioritizes voices that are white, male, Christian, able-bodied, and heterosexual (Muka, 2018; Ray, 2018; Baffoe, Asimeng-Boahene, & Buster, 2014; and Buggs, Sims, & Kramer, 2020). In an attempt to redress this imbalance, the UNLV University Libraries is committed to collecting content by and about people and communities that have historically been excluded. This effort includes but is not limited to the intentional collection of materials about and by groups historically excluded by …

Learning From Las Vegas: Adapting Workflows For Managing Born-Digital Design Records, Tammi Kim, Karla Irwin

Library Faculty Publications

Architecture collections have been a mainstay for Special Collections and Archives at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV SCA), since the late 1970s. Until 2017, most architecture collections in Special Collections and Archives have consisted of physical records. In recent years, curators began acquiring architecture collections with significant born-digital content, which present unique challenges different from other types of born-digital materials. This case study discusses how staff adapted existing workflows for born-digital materials to process and describe two collections comprised of born-digital architecture and design records. The authors also describe how UNLV SCA provides access to proprietary design files …

Successful Management Of An Outsourced Large-Scale Digitization Newspaper Project, Marina Georgieva

Library Faculty Publications

This article uses the case study of the Nevada Digital Newspaper Project (https://nvdnp.wordpress.com/), an extension of the National Digital Newspaper Program (https://www.loc.gov/ndnp/), to introduce proven strategies on how to successfully manage a large-scale digitization project. It provides tips on how to stay within the timeline and deliver products with outstanding quality, leveraging limited human resources, and engaging an external digitization vendor. It discusses practical project management techniques and tools, strategies for establishing collaborative vendor partnerships, and strategies for efficient communication with stakeholders.

Library Subscriptions And Open Access: Highlights From The University Of California Negotiations With Elsevier, Cory Tucker, Andrea Wirth, Annette Day

Library Faculty Publications

On February 28, 2019, the University of California (UC) System announced the cancellation of their $50 million journal subscription deal with Elsevier. The impetus behind the UC decision comes from two issues. Firstly, the increasing costs of journal subscriptions in a landscape where library budgets remain flat. Secondly, the effort to shift the journal publishing model away from subscriptions to a sustainable open access model. The following paper will provide background on issues with the scholarly communication process, academic library budgets and open access initiatives. Additional information will focus on the impact of journal subscription deals with large commercial publishers …

Collections As Data: Implications For Enclosure, Thomas G. Padilla

Library Faculty Publications

In recent years a growing amount of interest has been dedicated to collections as data. A collections as data paradigm seeks to foster an expanded set of research, pedagogical, and artistic potential predicated on the computational use of cultural heritage collections. Collections as data raises the question of what it might mean to treat digitized and born digital collections as data rather than simple surrogates of physical objects or static representations of digital experience.

Book Review: So You Want To Be An Academic Library Director, Pat Hawthorne

Library Faculty Publications

This volume comprises thirteen reflective essays by library leaders offering perspectives on their personal experiences and lessons learned regarding academic library management. Editor Colleen S. Harris notes in the very brief preface: “To complement the formal research on academic library director characteristics, I have recruited library directors to write essays reflecting on various aspects of their work as library directors.” Although she alludes to research studies regarding the knowledge, skills, and characteristics of successful managers and leaders, none of the chapters cite any such studies, and the book unfortunately lacks a substantive introductory chapter to complement and provide context for …

Reorganizing Through Lean Principles, John Novak, Richard J. W. Zwiercan

Library Faculty Publications

In August 2014, the director of the Collections, Acquisitions, and Discovery division within the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) Libraries announced that the division would be reorganized to best use the skills and strengths of existing staff. This division, responsible for acquiring, organizing, maintaining, and making discoverable all needed and relevant materials would be composed of three departments, and the Resource Acquisition, Sharing, and Digital Scholarship department (containing the Resource Acquisition and Sharing Unit) would be one of them. To fulfill the goals of the reorganization, the acquisitions team used Lean principles and tools, specifically the value stream map, …

Managing Risk With A Virtual Reading Room: Two Born Digital Projects, Michelle Light

Library Faculty Publications

In March 2010, the University of California, Irvine, launched a site to provide online access to papers of Richard Rorty in the form of a virtual reading room.¹ Although we didn’t know it then, we quickly learned that we were one of the first academic repositories in the United States to risk providing remote, online access to born-digital manuscripts. The virtual reading room mitigated the risks involved in providing this kind of access to personal, archival materials with privacy and copyright issues by limiting the number of qualified users and by limiting the discoverability of full-text content on the …

Ebook Lending Platforms, John Novak

Library Faculty Publications

For the purposes of this article, the definition of an eBook lending platform is one that contains eBooks from multiple publishers that patrons may browse and checkout. Though these platforms have eBooks that allow for multiple and simultaneous users, in general they have a one-book, one-user model. Details about the major eBook lending platforms for academic libraries, eBook lending platform characteristics, why and how an academic library would license one, and finally what the future of this rapidly changing environment may hold are explained in this article.

Vendor Of The Month: A Marketing Collaboration, Lateka Grays, J. Cory Tucker

Library Faculty Publications

Marketing library resources remains an important issue despite library reductions in staff and collections budgets. In order to maintain or expand marketing programs, libraries could do well tapping into the expertise available through the vendors supplying resources to libraries. A case study of a library marketing program called, “Vendor of the Month,” at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas explains the collaboration between the library and its vendors to increase awareness and use of selected electronic resources.

Guidelines For Media Resources In Academic Libraries (2012), Mary S. Laskowski, Cyrus Ford Zarganj, Nancy E. Friedland, Jacqueline Fritz, Jim Holmes, Lora Lennertz Jetton, M. Claire Stewart, Joe M. Williams

Library Faculty Publications

Technology used in teaching, learning, and research has created new challenges and opportunities for managers of college and university library media resource collections and services.

Moving images, sounds, and still images have become increasingly important in teaching, learning and research, and academic librarians are working closely with other agencies on campus to support faculty and student information needs. In some institutions, librarians have become true partners in the delivery of instruction, working with faculty, technologists, and instructional developers to create “new learning communities.”

Most academic libraries collect media, and these materials are as vital and diverse as any print collection …

Map Displays And Exhibits, Katherine Rankin

Library Faculty Publications

Many patrons do not even know libraries have map collections, let alone what kinds of maps are in them or how they could use those maps. Map displays and exhibits can help increase interest in map collections. Muriel Strickland wrote an article on casual map displays with the title "Map Displays: a Means of Promoting Map Use" in volume 17, number 3 of the WAML IB (June 1986). One of the purposes of my writing this article is to reprise some of the valuable information in Muriel's article; because it was published so long ago, many of the present WAmL …

Ebook Collection Analysis: Subject And Publisher Trends, J. Cory Tucker

Library Faculty Publications

Purpose – This paper aims to provide an assessment of an ebook collection in an academic library, and attempts to locate usage trends by subject and publisher.

Design/methodology/approach – The research was based on: three years of usage data from two e-book packages: NetLibrary and Ebrary; two methods of purchase: NetLibrary was a one-time purchase; Ebrary is purchased on a subscription basis. The research evaluated usage difference over time between the two packages and analyzed subject and publisher usage.

Findings – The research found that Ebrary showed increased usage over time; NetLibrary demonstrated decreased usage; subject analysis showed ebooks in …

Moving Forward With Electronic Content Procurement, J. Cory Tucker, Emilie Delquie

Library Faculty Publications

Over the last several years, libraries have experienced a myriad of changes that have affected the marketplace and changed the way they purchase electronic resources. With the move from print to electronic, the variety of options available to purchase library materials has increased. Acquisitions in libraries have further been complicated by decreasing budgets, fewer staff, new technology, and user behavior. The issues related to electronic content purchasing will be discussed in this article, including an overview of how academic libraries currently purchase materials, a review of issues facing libraries, and a summary of new business models being introduced in the …

Do Libraries Still Need Book Vendors And Subscription Agents?, Stephen Bosch, Christopher Sugnet, J. Cory Tucker, Lauren Corbett

Library Faculty Publications

Digital content blurs the lines of traditional library acquisition workflows and organization. For example: link resolvers and the loading of order confirmation record files may be handled by systems staff in one organization and by technical services staff in another. Lines are being crossed between acquisitions and interlibrary loan functions, notably with electronic versions of theses and dissertations. Regardless of this blurring of lines, library staff use vendors still in acquiring content for the library collection. The reasons for using vendors have stood for decades, but are changes in the information industry having an impact? In the current environment, what …

Developing A Library Value Indicator For A Disciplinary Population, Jeanne M. Brown

Library Faculty Publications

Three different ways of documenting library value were presented to fourth year landscape architecture students in the UNLV School of Architecture: a contingent valuation survey, a library calculator, and a survey to rate importance and impact of library services and features. Students used the three approaches, then discussed their experiences with the author. Their input suggested improvements in the instruments and provided feedback on possible positive and negative consequences of inviting this kind of valuing. Working with a focused collection and population provided a relatively safe environment to explore concerns about negative consequences.

Unlv Special Collections In The Twenty-First Century, Tom D. Sommer

Library Faculty Publications

University of Nevada Las Vegas (UNLV) Special Collections is consistently striving to provide several avenues of discovery to its diverse range of patrons. Specifically, UNLV Special Collections has planned and implemented several online tools to facilitate unearthing treasures in the collections. These online tools incorporate Web 2.0 features as well as searchable interfaces to collections.

Collection Assessment Of Monograph Purchases At The University Of Nevada, Las Vegas Libraries, J. Cory Tucker

Library Faculty Publications

The purpose of this article is to describe an assessment project of the monograph collection at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) Lied Library. The circulation statistics and in-house use of all monographs for the nine colleges at UNLV were assessed analyzing the last five years of data. The analysis included an assessment of the circulation statistics and in-house use of books purchased on an approval plan compared with books purchased by individual liaison librarians. The findings illustrated the fact that overall use of the monograph collection has declined over the past five years. The findings also showed that …

Using Link Resolver Reports For Collection Management, Eva Stowers, J. Cory Tucker

Library Faculty Publications

In 2007–2008, the University of Nevada, Las Vegas Libraries conducted a large collection assessment project. The Collection Assessment Committee identified several possible ways to conduct the review, one of which was using reports from the link resolver SFX. The committee used several link resolver reports in conjunction with statistics from the Libraries' document delivery department to identify trends in journal usage among disciplines. The link resolver reports can help identify new journals for purchase and are useful for providing information on user behavior.

Benchmarking Usage Statistics In Collection Management Decisions For Serials, J. Cory Tucker

Library Faculty Publications

Starting in 2007, the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) Libraries began a collection assessment project to examine the usage of library resources and analyze user behavior of library patrons. To complete the project, a collection assessment committee was organized, and a subgroup of the committee was selected to gather and analyze data including usage statistics, collection specific information, and other data as needed. Once the data had been gathered and analyzed, the collection management department began using the statistics in decision making and changed the collection development policy for electronic resources to incorporate benchmarking of usage statistics.

Talkin' 'Bout My Generation: Exploring Age-Related Resources, Susie Skarl, Sidney Lowe

Library Faculty Publications

In the past few years, as technology has radically changed how we find and use information resources, library staff have begun to notice significant generational differences in the information-seeking behavior of library patrons. These frequent observations at the reference desk and in library instruction classes planted the first small seeds of our interest in this topic. Internet sites and online articles about generational differences are plentiful and focus on a wide range of subjects, such as learning styles, social behaviors, moral values, technological skills, marketing, communication, and workplace performance.

Moving From Book To E-Book, J. Cory Tucker, Reeta Sinha

Library Faculty Publications

This article discusses the impact electronic books have had on collection management in academic libraries. Using the experience at University of Nevada at Las Vegas (UNLV), the authors describe how the library incorporated e-books into its print book collection. The article also discusses the impact of e-books on areas such as selection and acquisitions, as well as the role of vendors in this emerging field of collection development. Finally, the authors compare and contrast collection assessment methods for print and electronic books. The article concludes with some observations regarding what comes next for libraries and e-book collections.

From Digital Library To Institutional Repository: A Brief Look At One Library’S Path, Marianne A. Buehler, Marcia Trauernicht

Library Faculty Publications

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to give an overview of the initial transformation of one academic library’s digital media library into the institutional repository (IR) of its entire academic organization. Design/methodology/approach – Description of an academic digital library’s evolution into an institutional repository, accompanied by both practical and philosophical analyses. Findings – Materials supporting an academic institution’s scholarship (from colleges and from supporting organizations on campus) can play an important part in the success of an institutional repository. Standards for metadata content, data structures and hierarchies of collections must be followed consistently, and adequate storage for digital …

Taking Care Of Business: Selecting The Best Periodical Database For Your Business Patrons, J. Cory Tucker

Library Faculty Publications

This study compares ABI/INFORM and Business Source Premier, the two major periodical databases in the business field, to determine which database is covering the major scholarly journals most thoroughly. The comparison was made by compiling a list of major journals based on scholars' choice in the fields of accounting, finance, MIS, and marketing. In the field of management, the journals studied are based on ISI's Journal of Citation Reports. The list was compared with the title lists of journals indexed in each database. The results indicate that the two databases are very similar. ABI/INFORM is more comprehensive in the number …

Government Information Research, Susie Skarl

Library Faculty Publications

Prior to the mid-1990s, much government information lay outside the mainstream of library catalogs and core indexes and, consequently, was greatly underutilized. Finding government information required negotiating cumbersome search tools, specialized indexes, and separate call number systems. By the end of the 1990s, government information had become more accessible on the World Wide Web. Although the Internet has made searching and finding government information less taxing for patrons, most still require instruction from library staff in order to satisfy their needs in the best possible manner.

Database Support For Research In Public Administration, J. Cory Tucker

Library Faculty Publications

This study examines the extent to which databases support student and faculty research in the area of public administration. A list of journals in public administration, public policy, political science, public budgeting and finance, and other related areas was compared to the journal content list of six business databases. These databases included ABI/INFORM, Business Source Premier, General Business File, Academic Search Premier, Expanded Academic Index, and International Academic Research Library. The results show that Expanded Academic Index, Business Source Premier, and International Academic Research Library have the most comprehensive holdings of public administration journals.

The Balance Point: Finding The Delicate Balance: Serials Assessment At The University Of Nevada, Las Vegas, Reeta Sinha, J. Cory Tucker

Library Faculty Publications

In the spring of 2003 the University Libraries at University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV), conducted a Serials Assessment Project which combined technology with effective communication between library users and subject librarians to successfully identify journals that could be cancelled, should cancellations be necessary due to budgetary constraints. Although the library had conducted similar assessments in 1998 and 2000, a fresh look at past assessments resulted in an innovative approach. The project and experience proved to be tremendously positive for both the library and its users. This article describes the planning and process by which the UNLV libraries designed and …

The Evolving Impact Of Institutional Repositories On Reference Librarians, Marianne A. Buehler, Adwoa Boateng

Library Faculty Publications

Purpose – The paper's purpose is to share the insights that the staff of the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) Libraries (Wallace Library, RIT Archives, and the Cary Collection) gained into the role of reference librarians in establishing and operating an institutional repository (IR). Design/methodology/approach – The paper conducts a literature review on a range of published (1999-2005) works to research the background of IRs and to incorporate it with the authors' own experiences. Findings – The research findings, involving implementing IRs and specifically the effect on the role of the reference librarian in academic libraries, were found to be …

New Program Growth And Its Impact On Collection Assessment At The Unlv Libraries, Reeta Sinha, J. Cory Tucker

Library Faculty Publications

Purpose – Seeks to describe how Lied Library has responded to a rapid increase in the number of new academic programs and degrees at UNLV resulting from new strategic initiatives and tremendous growth of the university's student population during the past four years. Design/methodology/approach – The authors focus on the role of the Collection Development (CD) department in the university's approval process for new academic programs and the role of subject librarians in assessing how well the Libraries' collection meets the demands of new programs proposed by faculty. Findings – Detailed descriptions are provided of the process used by subject …

Use And Satisfaction Of Library Resources And Services By Hospitality Patrons: An Exploratory Study, Faye Hall Jackson, Heidi Sung, Lateka Grays, Joyce K. Thornton

Library Faculty Publications

A great challenge for present day libraries is to move from the thought process of being a destination location with a captive audience to positioning its services to meet the needs of its users. This paper explores the frequency of library use and satisfaction of library resources and/or services by hospitality education patrons. Using data collected with patrons (N=368) of five Hospitality Management programs across the country, the study found significant differences in library access, use, and satisfaction based on gender, academic status, and international versus non-international patrons.