[This was missing the summary in the first pass. Try, try again. JA]
>> From: Amanda Stevens <AM635296_at_DAL.CA>
>>
>>
>> Below is a compilation of responses I received to the survey I sent
>> out about
>> collecting local content in your libraries. I apologize for not
>> putting this
>> together sooner, but I hope it will be of use to you. It was very
>> useful for
>> my school project, and I thank you for all of your thoughtful
>> responses. Please
>> let me know if you have any questions.
>>
>> Sincerely,
>> Amanda
--
Amanda Stevens, MLIS
Halifax, Nova Scotia
1. Does your library collect local content, and if so, what types and
how do you
define "local"?
I work for a public library. I am the AV selector for our library
system (main
library and 1 branch). We collect local music artists (CDs) and some books by
local authors. We do not collect all books by local authors or artists
because
Indiana University is located in our community and a lot of professors publish
books. The local books we collect must fit within our collection development
policy.
I am at a univ. with an FTE of 9400. We are the only univ. within 50
miles. We
have a Special Collections area that collects local material. Our
History Dept
also teaches Public History and Museum courses. It is a small community of
30,000 or so with a county of about 100,000.
I work at an academic library and am the Archives and Special Collections
Librarian (University Archivist). Yes, we have a collection called the
Marilyn
J. Lass Center for Minnesota Studies. We collect materials about
Minnesota and
by a Minnesota author. The collection website is here:
http://lib.mnsu.edu/collections/lass/intro.html The collection development
policy for the Lass Center is http://lib.mnsu.edu/collections/cd/mncd.pdf
I am the head of acquisitions at Vancouver Public Library. I do not select
as a rule but will initiate purchases where necessary. We have a large
number of selectors for the different subject areas. We collect local content
in all formats. Local is defined as coming from British Columbia. In
addition
we are often asked to support local artists by indicating to funding bodies
what our library would purchase and perceived need in certain
publishing areas.
I am the monograph acquisitions coordinator and assistant collection
development
librarian at Mitchell Memorial Library at Mississippi State University. We
collect Mississippiana; materials published by Mississippi authors, by
Mississippi publishers, or about Mississippi. Our definition is broad; an
author who lived in Mississippi for a few years several decades ago may be
collected for our Mississippiana collection.
We are a small undergraduate state college library located in north central
Idaho in the Pacific Northwest US so for us local content includes any
materials to do with our immediate region as well as Idaho, Washington state
and Oregon. We have a small Pacific Northwest Collection where these materials
are kept and they are identified in our OPAC by the location code PNW for
Pacific Northwest. We mainly collect book materials for our PNW collection.
I'm Head of Public Services at the Alaska State Library. Our Historical
Collections (a non-circulating collection) collects Alaskana for archival
purposes. In our reference and circulating collections, we also collect
Alaskana, but we do so in a much more limited fashion, focusing on items about
topics relating to the community and region (southeast Alaska).
Anything done by local (authors, artists, etc.) and about the country.
2. Why do you think it is important for libraries to have local content
in their
collections?
I think it is important to have local content in a collection for several
reasons:
· People expect it. Genealogists, researchers, students, etc. expect to find
some amount of material about the area in the local library. The
collection we
have at our University is much bigger in scope than people expect, and
they are
often pleasantly surprised at the variety of material we have. Many people
just visit our library without checking to see what we have because of this
expectation.
· It supports local research. Our Minnesota room is adjacent to the
University Archives and Regional Manuscript Repository. The local content in
the Lass Center strongly supports research efforts in the archival
collections.
We have an undergraduate and graduate programs in History, Geography, and
Anthropology that encourage local research. We also have an active group of
History Day researchers from southern Minnesota that utilize our collection.
· Accessibility. Our Minnesota Collection is a significant collection of
material, both historical and contemporary in scope. The State Historical
Society (in St. Paul 1.5 hours away) is fabulous but they generally do
not lend
their books (for good reason) and are far enough away to discourage
people from
going. By having a collection that mostly circulates and is available to
southern Minnesota, I believe we are offering a service to the region.
As the largest library in the area we function as a provincial resource and
thus have an obligation to be a comprehensive source for local material.
We consider part of our mandate is to foster local publishing and support
local businesses.
Local libraries are the most likely to preserve local content. We receive an
amazing number of questions about our area, some from family history buffs and
others from serious scholars. Much of our local content is unique.
I think that it is important for libraries to collect and have local
content in
their collections because often times these resources and materials are not
available elsewhere. It's also useful for people in the local community to
have a place to access and use these materials.
Each library may have different reasons for this. As a State Library, we
collect Alaskana to make sure that someone has a copy that is available for
researchers, now and in the future. We collect local content for our
reference
and circulating collections because it is in demand, both by our primary
clientele of State employees and by our secondary clientele of community
users.
If not for now, they are important for later.
3. How do you go about finding and acquiring local content? Are there
specific
publications or websites that you look to?
I mainly rely upon the local newspaper and local bookstores.
I hear about materials primarily through the local paper. The local
bookstore usually sells items by local authors and we have an account with
them. We purchase items compiled by the local historical society. The
History Dept has done CDs of local musical groups, etc. It's not systematic
gathering but it works for us.
· Identify local publishers ? I have identified the local publishers and am
on their mailing lists for new catalogs and new titles. This is probably the
most significant source.
· Newspapers ? The local and statewide (Minneapolis/St. Paul) newspapers have
regular sections on Minnesota books and authors. I watch these for possible
collection additions.
· Conferences ? The Minnesota Library Association annual meeting has a vendor
fair that helps keep me current on local publications. The community I
live in
also sponsors an annual book fair. I get a lot of information on potential
additions from this event as well. Many self published items.
· Colleagues ? I have many colleagues who keep their eyes open for Minnesota
titles. I get e-mails, newsclippings, catalogs, etc. about potential
additions.
· Gifts ? We get a significant number of gift books to our Minnesota room.
Many are self published fiction, genealogies, etc. We usually add them to our
collection if they fit our collecting scope.
· Choice ? I do have a profile set up in Choice for Minnesota material. I
don?t often get new titles, but sometimes I do.
We never have a problem finding out. Most authors and publishers are
proactive
at approaching us. Once a source is identified our subject selectors
will keep
the information on file. There is a BC publishers association but there is a
close relationship established already with it. Individuals contact
us. There
really is nothing formal on the individual level.
We review several dozen small town newspapers for items about local content,
have signed up for emails from several independent bookstores, route certain
catalogs to the librarian who collects local content, etc. When processing
gifts, we set aside anything that looks remotely appropriate for further
review.
We primarily rely on information received from local authors and
publishers for
locating this type of information.
We find it in many ways. We are often contacted by authors or by publishers
small and large with Alaskan content. We hear about some items from our
patrons, and others (such as hiking guides, local berry picking guides,
community histories and much more) by being involved in the community and
noticing things that crop up. We also have good relationships with local
bookstores. We contact them and they sometimes contact us with items
that they
think we might be interested in.
Local newspapers, exhibits, word of mouth.
4. Are there any key issues you would identify around collecting local content
or challenges you've encountered?
The hardest part is to identify the items.
I think the biggest challenge is balancing content that is acquired.
We do have
a nice budget, but I have to buy two copies of each title (one for reference
and one to circulate) so the money doesn?t go as far as I like. It would be
very easy to spend the entire budget on Fiction so I try to be careful in how
much is spent on fiction vs nonfiction. I also need to make sure I hunt for
some topics and that is easy to put aside for the easy buy.
Key issue is quality. As every author thinks they are marvelous we don't keep
material that is really bad though I would say the bias is to be more flexible
with local material in the interests of good public relations. However we do
have a collections policy and will adhere to that normally. We have a very
experienced librarian who does most of selecting, but it's sometimes
challenging to acquire her selections. We collect self-published local
content,
which often means explaining concepts like tax identification numbers.
I think that you have to be clear about what you will define as local content
and be firm about what will and will not be included in that collection. Such
information should be included in your library's collection development
policy.
I think you also have to decide on your weeding practices for that collection
and whether it will be the same as or different from the weeding practices of
other collections in your library.
We have to use a lot more creativity to find things. Also, it's important how
you define local content. We define it as pertaining to the area, NOT
as being
written by a local author. Others might choose differently about that
distinction. Also, it's sometimes more difficult to ascertain quality, as
there are often no reviews, or at least no unbiased ones, available. Also,
often self-publishing is a red flag for regular collections, but with local
collections, self-published items may be fine. They may lack the polish of
professionally chosen and edited material, but may still be acceptable if they
have really good local information.
Many are hard to acquire, since they do not sell them in all bookstores.
Received on Wed May 14 2008 - 01:40:26 EDT