Collection Development and Management Commons^™

What Are We Thinking? Collections Decisions In An Academic Library, Tasha Cooper, Linda Galloway, Shannon Pritting

Charleston Library Conference

When faced with multiple competing priorities for investment in library resources, there are many important aspects to consider. From student enrollment to prominence of programs, there are both data‐driven and intangible factors to weigh. In addition, most library collections now focus on the immediate needs of students and researchers instead of collecting for posterity. This just‐in‐time versus just‐in‐case collection development mindset prioritizes different resource attributes and requires an often unfamiliar level of acquisitions flexibility.

Collection development in academic libraries is challenging and complex. Some of the complexity is the result of numerous choices including, but not limited to:

Collection building …

Managing, Marketing, And Measuring Open Resources, Trey Shelton, Steven Carrico, Ann Lindell, Tara T. Cataldo

Charleston Library Conference

Academic libraries face many opportunities and challenges in managing, marketing, and measuring open resources (OR). Many questions arise when incorporating OR into an academic library collection. How do libraries select quality OR for inclusion in the collection? What tools and practices are used to manage electronic access? How can libraries better market OR to faculty? How can libraries measure the use and usefulness of OR? This paper outlines a project launched to improve the management of OR at the University of Florida’s George A. Smathers Libraries; as well as incorporating feedback garnered at the Charleston Conference discussion forum on the …

Multiplying By Division: Mapping The Collection At University Of North Texas Libraries, Karen Harker, Janette Klein, Laurel Crawford

Charleston Library Conference

The University of North Texas (UNT) Libraries has developed a unique collection assessment tool, the Collection Map, to provide support for a new access‐based collection development philosophy. UNT Librarians realized the limitations of traditional assessment methods to gauge the impact of emerging acquisitions models such as demand‐driven acquisitions (DDA) and large interdisciplinary e‐book collections. What was needed was a flexible, nimble assessment system to track access, holdings, and interlibrary loan (ILL) activity for each academic discipline. The Collection Map is a database that links items, and their associated data, to any one of several dozen overlapping subcollections via Library of …

The Unknown Path—Evaluating Electronic Resources For Access‐Based Collection Development, Laurel S. Crawford, Erin Miller, Mark Henley

Charleston Library Conference

In 2015, the University of North Texas Libraries implemented an access‐based collection development policy. This new policy, coupled with the increase of interdisciplinary studies at the University, dictated the necessity for a more exhaustive evaluation of continuing resources such as databases, journals, and standing orders before they are purchased. The collection development department created a rubric of criteria to address all aspects of the evaluation. This article will provide a brief description of access‐based collection development and a detailed discussion of the rubric’s criteria and how it will be implemented.

Preserving The Past For The Future: Moving Toward Best Practices And Tools For Thoughtful Monographic Withdrawal, Mary Miller, Jennifer Teper

Charleston Library Conference

This paper presents significant findings from a 2015 survey of the Association of Research Libraries (ARL) and Oberlin Group Libraries to learn how institutions make decisions to withdraw or retain print monographs. The survey was part of a two‐pronged national study led by preservation and conservation experts to better understand which kinds of data, policies, data sharing mechanisms, and other communication strategies libraries use and need to make informed decisions about monograph withdrawals in their collections. This study reviews how policies are (or aren’t) developed, what kinds of data are (or aren’t) used, and which stakeholders are (or aren’t) consulted. …

Teetering Between Two Systems For Managing E‐Book Records, Stephen Francoeur, Michael Waldman

Charleston Library Conference

Drawing on our experience with the Primo discovery service at Baruch College, we will discuss the extent to which libraries can expect that they can treat e‐book packages in discovery services in the same manner that they treat journal packages. Given that many libraries are still trying to bridge parallel systems for the discovery of e‐books—the catalog and the discovery service—this presentation will help organize the problem so that we can develop a deeper understanding of the challenges and outline a map for charting the way ahead.

A New Kind Of Social Media Strategy: Collecting Zines At The Vassar College Library, Heidy Berthoud

Charleston Library Conference

“Where do we go from here?” One way that the Vassar College Library is answering this question is by making concerted efforts to promote unique or rarely held materials—that is, nurturing collections that will make us stand out from the crowd. With that goal in mind, the Vassar College Library has spent the past year working to create a collection of zines.

This article will discuss the importance of social media in the acquisition of zines, using the Vassar College Library’s experience as an example. Zines are DIY, self‐published materials that are a vibrant and creative way to represent diverse …

Libraries In A Bind: Practical Solutions And Human Responses To A Weeding Mandate, Alex D. Mcallister, Allan Scherlen, Christina Mayberry, Kathy Marks, Carla Caforio

Charleston Library Conference

Many university libraries are currently engaged in major weeding projects as they reduce their print book collections to make room for new space configurations to accommodate emerging library trends such as makerspaces and transitioning toward a predominately e‐book collection.To address such a deselection project effectively requires both practical solutions and tact in dealing with faculty who seriously value their collections of print books. Librarians from two universities will share practical approaches to managing a large weeding project and for dealing diplomatically with book users affected. Representatives for deselection project services will also offer insights into their logistic support for handling …

Leveraging Use‐By‐Publication‐Age Data In Serials Collection Decisions, Matthew J. Jabaily, James R. Rodgers, Steven A. Knowlton

Charleston Library Conference

Traditionally, usage figures for electronic serials have lumped all years of publication together. New tools give librarians information about usage according to the year of publication. They allow us to analyze the usage of current material separately from usage of content published in prior years. The relative value of current subscriptions and backfiles has important collection development implications. For example, many libraries subscribe directly to titles that are offered in aggregated databases, but with embargoes. The relative value of current content distinguished from prior years may be useful in reevaluating such subscription decisions.

This paper discusses tools and techniques for …

Review In Motion: Multi‐Year Electronic Resources Review At Uta Libraries, Peter Zhang, Ashley Zmau

Charleston Library Conference

With a flat budget and ever increasing inflation for serials, UTA Libraries chose to embark on a multi‐year electronic resources review process. Targeting low hanging fruits, the first step was to review subscription journals included in aggregator databases. This initial review process was also a relatively straightforward step to help new liaisons in a newly created Outreach & Scholarship department to get their “feet wet” with collection development. As liaisons became more acclimated, the second step in the following year was to review all single e‐journal subscriptions, distributed amongst all liaisons. Guidelines and metrics were created to facilitate the review …

Dollars And Sense: Examining The Rfp Process, J. Michael Thompson, Arta Kabashi, Carol Seiler, Eileen M. Condon

Charleston Library Conference

While the Request for Proposal (RFP) is not an activity that all librarians encounter continually, it is an endeavor that all library service groups and companies undertake as an essential part of their ongoing operations. This article summarizes the 2015 Charleston session entitled “Dollars and Sense: Examining the RFP Process” which delved into the RFP process from multiple viewpoints, serving both as a review of the process itself and as an investigation of how the process can generate positive results for all parties involved. The panel consisted of a librarian from a large academic library, a librarian from a medium‐sized …

Eeny, Meeny, Miny, Moe: E‐Books Changed Our Workflow, Denise D. Novak, Terry Hurlbert

Charleston Library Conference

As the popularity and sheer number of e‐books increased, it became evident that our existing process or workflow for acquiring and cataloging them would need some modification. This presentation will explain how the Carnegie Mellon University Libraries Technical Services implemented changes in workflow for ordering and cataloging e‐books. Including the topics of technology, user expectations, and getting reference librarians on board, we’ll cover the why of e‐books, what has gone well, and where we go from here.

Reconciling E‐Book Packages At Ncsu Libraries, Christee Pascale, Xiaoyan Song

Charleston Library Conference

As e‐books become an increasingly large part of our collection, the NCSU Libraries acquisition and discovery department created an e‐book reconciliation database to ensure that all of our purchased e‐book package content is available in the ILS and throughout the Libraries discovery layers and to create definitive title lists that associate and articulate e‐book titles with package purchases. This tool compares vendor title lists against ILS metadata in order to identify missing titles and generate reports. The paper will discuss what prompted the development of the database; present the e‐book data flow in NCSU Libraries and e‐book reconciliation workflows designed …

Rapid Collections Surveying With Book Traces @ Uva, Kristin Jensen, Carla H. Lee

Charleston Library Conference

Many donated books in circulating collections have value as historical artifacts due to unique interventions by their former owners, such as marginalia, inscriptions, and insertions. These interventions can potentially offer a trove of evidence of how books have been consumed across time and what they meant to past cultures, but are generally undocumented and therefore undiscoverable through library catalogs. Moreover, as circulating copies, these books may be vulnerable to damage, loss, and withdrawal. Book Traces @ UVa is a two‐year effort to survey pre‐1923 books in the University of Virginia Library circulating collection for uniquely modified volumes and enhance our …

Keep Those Booktrucks Rolling: Strategies For A Major Move Of The Library Collection, Edward F. Lener, Leslie O'Brien, Ladd Brown

Charleston Library Conference

The University Libraries at Virginia Tech recently completed an extensive move of the physical collection and reduction of the stacks footprint in our main facility. This session relates key elements of what we learned during this multi‐year process and share tips and strategies for an effective and efficient large‐scale move. We cover ways to address such issues as project management, communications, staffing, identifying materials for storage or deselection, and processing of materials as well as how the process we used may be applied elsewhere.

Evaluated, Removed, And Recycled—The Tale Of Two Deaccession Projects Across The Disciplines, Martha E. Higgins, Lauren Goode, Mary Jordan, John Abbott

Charleston Library Conference

How have two midsized public university libraries approached large‐scale weeding projects in their monograph and bound periodical collections? Space is at a premium in academic libraries as new roles combine and compete with traditional ones. How can the collection be refreshed to promote more use? Where will more collaboration and creative spaces be housed? How does a midsized library refine the collection to bring better campus alignment? How should the project begin? Who should be involved in planning? How can campus faculty be included in the deaccessioning process? How is the campus perception of the project handled? What should be …

Does Format Matter? Reader Preferences In An Academic Library Context, Jennifer L. Robertson, Weijing Yuan, Marlene Van Ballegooie

Charleston Library Conference

Although many academic libraries have dramatically increased their e‐book acquisitions in recent years, questions linger about format preference. When a scholarly monograph is made available in both print and electronic formats, which format will users prefer? Does format even matter? At the University of Toronto Libraries, we analyzed usage data for scholarly monographs from three key university presses, covering thousands of titles over several years of publication. By comparing print and e‐book usage patterns of identical titles, our goal was to examine format preferences and determine if there are differences in usage across subject disciplines or publishers. Through this analysis, …

The New Collection Development: Planning And Assessment To Promote Innovation, Daniel C. Mack

Charleston Library Conference

Library collections are in the midst of a radical transformation. Rapidly evolving technology, innovations in distributing and accessing content, new models of pricing, repurposing of library spaces, and shrinking collections budgets create a new environment for collection development. This new environment requires that librarians participate in a variety of new collection development activities beyond just selecting content.

In the emerging library collection development landscape librarians must engage with the disciplinary content of collections as well as a range of other areas. New areas of responsibility might include: information technology, including issues of personal data curation; copyright, open access, and scholarly …

Do-It-Yourself Title Overlap Comparisons, Melissa Belvadi

Charleston Library Conference

Discovery service indexing content can be highly customizable, which makes traditional title overlap analysis published by third parties less meaningful for a library making new subscription or cancellation decisions. This article presents a method for conducting basic title overlap analyses in‐house at minimal cost, tailored to the specific configuration of the library.

Acquisitions In A Nutshell, Linda Creibaum, Jeff Bailey, Star Holloway

Charleston Library Conference

Designed specifically for librarians new to the field of acquisitions, this session featured an informal introduction to the basics of acquisitions librarianship from three standpoints: a veteran acquisitions and serials librarian, a library director with a background in acquisitions, and a librarian who began her first professional appointment in 2013.

The session covered a variety of issues related to the acquisition of both monographs and serials in various formats, plus database and backfile purchases. Discussions included definitions, ordering considerations, avoiding purchase of duplicate resources, negotiating prices and access options, licensing, selecting vendors and jobbers, and various services that vendors’ representatives …