Discussion with Terry Moylan, Librarian & Archivist at Na Píobairí Uilleann
Budget & Funding
The budget allocated to the library/archive last year was about €6,000 which went towards acquisitions, maintenance, binding, conservation, recordings, artefacts and pipes.
Funding for Na Píobairí Uilleann (NPU) derives mainly from the Arts Council, but also from membership subscriptions and mail order. They are currently building an online catalogue and it is hoped that the soon-to-be launched website will significantly increase book sales. This would be a timely boost given the expected budget cuts from the Arts Council. There is a steady demand for NPU-published material.
Low-cost means of acquiring reference material
In discussing the cost of reference material, Terry suggested that online sources can be readily utilised in an effort to keep costs down. Several books in NPU's reference library have been downloaded from the internet, printed and professionally bound. The books in question rarely come to market, and, in any case, would far exceed NPU's means. Such books are sometimes made available by the owners, to be scanned by collectors. The best and most substantial example that NPU have in their reference collection is John Rook's Multum in Parvo (or 'A Collection of Old English, Scotch, Irish & Welsh Tunes'). The Rook manuscript, which dates from about 1840, contains well over a thousand tunes collected for the Northumbrian pipes and other instruments. Links for the Rook Manuscript on the Ross Anderson page:
Cover: http://www.cl.cam.ac.uk/~rja14/musicfiles/rook/
Index: http://www.cl.cam.ac.uk/~rja14/musicfiles/rook/rook_pages/index.htm
Thanks to the tireless work of those who scanned this vast work, it can now be printed, bound and added to a reference collection at a comparatively small cost.
Acquisition Policy/Donations/Weeding
Generally, NPU try to acquire anything that comes to market concerning the pipes including photography, artefacts, books, magazines, journals, tapes, vinyl records, CD's and rare sets of pipes.
Donations are occasionally offered, and all formats are accepted – given that a large proportion of pipe music has never been converted to digital format. The question of material being out-of-date is irrelevant, and, as such, there is no weeding policy. Over the years, NPU have received some unusual sets of pipes from as far afield as France.
Means of finding and reviewing resources for the reference collection
The library is in regular communication with publishers, collectors, and musicians regarding new material, conferences and so forth. Terry referred to the following as regular sources of material:
abebooks.com
googlebooks – digitized pdfs
The National Library of Ireland
Essential Reference Material
Terry considers the following titles to be of central importance to a reference collection concerning traditional Irish music:
Breathnach, B., Folk Music & Dance in Ireland
Flood, G., History of Irish Music
Fleishman, A., Sources of Irish Traditional Music c.1600 – 1855
Shields, H., A Bibliography of Irish Music
Also, another excellent title available to download from the Library of Congress is James P. Cassidy's A Treatise on the Theory & Practise of Dancing (1810).
Further to the above, Terry suggested some recordings that he deems essential-listening for the would-be librarian of a traditional Irish music reference collection, e.g. a 1960's recording of Connemara singer Joe Heaney – available on Topic Records – of traditional songs in Irish and English. For a pipes-specific recording, Terry recommends 1950's archival recordings of Leo Rowsome.
Here is a tune performed by the famous piper Willie Clancy. Clancy took up the pipes after seeing them being played by the great Johnny Doran (a travelling piper from Wicklow) at the races in 1936. He went on to play in a quartet with Leo Rowsome:
Monday, October 25, 2010
Carolan
Turlough O'Carolan, or Toirdhealbhach Ó Cearbhalláin, (1670 – 25 March 1738) was the last in a long line of Irish harper-composers. He is generally considered to be the greatest of Irish composers. Since his revival in 1970's, his influence on traditional Irish music has been unparalleled, with innumerable interpretations of his work, from Seán Ó Riada to The Chieftains and Planxty.
Blinded by smallpox at the age of 18, Carolan received instruction in the harp, under the patronage of the MacDermott Roe family for three years. Having been provided with a harp, a horse and a guide, he then set out for a life as an itinerant harper. Some 220 compositions are attributed to Carolan – a significant haul given that only 30 or so tunes known to have been composed by Irish harpers before Carolan have survived, mainly due to the fact that bardic tradition was an oral one.
Carolan's compositions reflect an influence of Italian Baroque music, which was becoming increasingly popular among the Irish gentry at the time. His blindness, however, would have prevented him from studying musical form, and the old Irish harp, being diatonic, could not change key. The Italians were writing pieces of some length in which changes of key and contrapuntal devices could be used. If an Italian influence is discernible in Carolan's music, it has to do with the rhythm and shape of the melodies. We know very little about how Carolan played his own music on his simple diatonic harp, but we can easily realise that he had a vast knowledge of the seventeenth century Italian composers, his own traditional music and the old, now forgotten medieval harp music of an earlier age – as is evident in the rich blend of folk and classical styles. Like much of our folk music existing in collections, Carolan's tunes were printed as unaccompanied single lines of music. Bizarrely, some ultra-purists actually believe that that is the only way his music should ever be played. For these people, harmony is a vexed question, but it is clear to anyone who understands the nature of the harp that its very soul is harmony, the harmony of freely resonating strings.
In his day, Carolan's popularity as a bard was unprecedented, receiving patronage of both planter and papist as the titles of his many planxties (tributes) bear testament to, e.g. Planxty Irwin, Planxty George Brabazon, Hewlett, Lord Inchiquin, Fanny Power, and so forth.
His music survived in the folklore tradition by fiddlers and pipers, as the Irish harp had died out by the early ninteeth century. Neale's A Collection of the Most Celebrated Irish Tunes ... in Dublin, c.1726 was the first publication of Carolan material, but it was not until 1958 that his entire repertoire was collected in one edition by Donal O'Sullivan, and even then few lyrics were given and some of the tunes were edited to make them fit the treble register. His music remained virtually unknown until the late Derek Bell brought it to a wider audience with a radio performance in 1972. Bell initially recorded with the BBC Northern Ireland Orchestra and The Chieftains (who he was to later join as a full member), but his most notable interpretations were solo recordings.
In his lifetime, Carolan's popularity as a bard was unprecedented, receiving patronage of both planter and papist as the titles of his many planxties (tributes) bear testament to, e.g. Planxty Irwin, Planxty George Brabazon, Hewlett, Lord Inchiquin, Fanny Power etc. Considered by many to be Ireland's national composer, he even featured on the Irish £50 bank note from 1972 to 1993. Unfortunately, youtube does not reflect this popularity as I could not find any solo recordings of Derek Bell which I only own on L.P. One of the harps that Bell uses on his solo recordings is a old Irish harp (as oppose to the neo-Irish harp) – a wire-strung harp of thirty-six strings resembling the O'Ffogerty harp of 1650 . The sound of the old Irish harps differs strikingly with the neo-Irish harp; its tonal quality is perhaps very distantly related to that of the harpsichord, but with a haunting bell-like quality that is all its own.
Here is a performance of Planxty George Brabazon featuring Derek Bell with accompaniment by The Chieftains:
Recommended recordings available on the Claddagh Records label:
Carolan's Receipt - Derek Bell (harp)
Carolan's Favourite - Derek Bell (harp)
Ó Riada's Farewell - Seán Ó Riada (harpsichord)
Wednesday, October 20, 2010
Summary of Peggy Johnson Book - 2nd Installment
Chapter 3 – Policy, Planning, and Budgets
Collection development policy statements
· Libraries without collection development policies (CDPs) are like businesses without business plans.
· Even a library with a written policy statement suffers if the statement is not consulted, reviewed, revised, and updated.
(We should think about incorporating this suggestion into out statement - i.e. a built-in review process).
· CDPs serve as the plan for building and maintaining a collection.
· CDP is a bit like a contract between library users and library staff as to what will be acquired, for whom and at what level.
· A CDP sets out a plan for how a collection will be developed while also defining the rules directing that development.
· Policy statements strike a balance between being overly general and idealistic and being detailed and ponderous.
· For characteristics of a good policy statement:
1 Consistency
2 Flexibility – allow for adaptation to change.
3 They are guides rather than rules, so admit of discretion in their application.
4 They are written
· A policy statement defines a framework and provides parameters, but it never tells how to select or reject a specific title (personal judgment is always required).
· There are two main purposes of CDPs:
a) To inform
b) To protect
Information
· CDPs inform by presenting the libraries mission and then describing current collections in terms of strength and weaknesses and setting future goals.
· A policy “provides a theoretical overview that explains the educational, social, and cultural rationale for the development of the collection” (p. 74).
· CDPs help with budgeting by providing info for external and internal preparation and allocation.
· CDPs should demonstrate accountability by presenting a plan for careful management of fiscal resources.
· CDPs also serve as a vehicle to communicate with the library’s staff, administration and constituencies.
· Because CDPs are used to educate and train librarians responsible for collections, they should not become outdated.
· CDPs serve a particularly important function to the extent that they document and support cooperative collection development: the policy should explicitly identify all current cooperative programs in which the library participates – collection building, resource sharing, regional storage, shared contribution and access to all electronic resources.
· This last point suggests that we should try to mention connections our collection will have with other organisations/libraries (e.g. sharing of bibliographies, joint purchase of databases etc.)
Protection
· CDPs protect the library against external pressures.
· They protect intellectual freedom and prevent censorship.
· I reckon it could be a good idea to articulate a policy for these issues in our statement.
· Many library statements repeat or reference the Library Bill of Rights and other such statements on intellectual freedom.
· The policy may include the procedures for handling a complaint against material held by the library.
· This is akin to rehearsing a response to any challenge launched against the library.
· Policies can also protect by guiding the handling of gifts – the policy specifies the conditions under which the library accepts and rejects gifts.
· Libraries are advised not to appraise gifts but to refer potential donors to one or more external appraisers (good idea).
· In times of decreasing budgets and increased material costs, CDPs can help to protect the weeding, deselection and serials cancellation process. Making clear the operating principles under which these decisions are made protects the library from charges of bias and irresponsible behaviour.
· CDPs should identify issues of confidentiality by specifying the types of information that are private (e.g. donors, budgets, costs and value of materials etc.).
Audience
· CDPs serve many audiences.
· First and foremost, they serve the staff. Copies should be available for all personnel. Many libraries post their policies on the library’s website (or intranet), where they can be easily consulted.
· CDPs serve a wider audience as well. For example, policy statements can be meaningful to users, teachers and parents of students, and external funding and governing bodies.
Writing the CDP Statement
The components necessary for a good CDP:
· Purpose statement
· Background statement
· Responsibility for collection development
· Mission, goals and objectives
· Target audiences
· Budgeting and funding
· Evaluation criteria
· Format
· Governing implications
· Resources sharing
· Services
· Selection aids
· Copyright
· Intellectual freedom
· Acquisitions
· Gifts and exchange
· Collection maintenance
· Weeding
· Collection evaluation
· Policy revision
· Definition of terms and glossary
· Bibliography
· Appendixes
Sunday, October 17, 2010
Donegal Fiddling
Here we have the greatest of all modern Donegal fiddlers, John Doherty. The yawping scratchiness of Donegal fiddling, and its complete eschewal of vibrato, appeals to many traditional musicians in search of a historically authentic Irish style of playing. The singularity of this style of playing derives from the use of the tin fiddle, once endemic to the Northwest.
Doherty himself was a vagrant musician, raconteur and tinsmith who probably would have blended right in in a Jack B. Yeats painting. This gem was recorded in the early 70's and the tune he plays is 'The Hare & The Hound'.
Hope you enjoy it!
John
Saturday, October 16, 2010
Talk with Roy Stanley, Music Librarian of Trinity College Library
- What is the annual budget for the reference collection?
It varies from year to year, with a large cut expected for this year (unsurprisingly, given the times) but last year's was 10,000 euro. Due to being small library and specific, there is not much cross-department appeal and thus the average budget is small. Emphasis on small.
The budget for each library department is decided centrally so we should have the advantage of cutting out the middle man!
- What was the initial set-up budget for the reference collection?
No idea, as it was set up a while back, in 1970.
- What is the definition of reference material rather than material for the general collection that the institution uses?
The music library is divided into three separate sections: music literature, music scores and reference selection. Some books are debatable as to which section they should be in, so it is more a matter of judgement than any rule of thumb but generally, a reference book is one to be consulted rather than read from cover to cover.
Music has always maintained its own reference section due to being so specific. There was a separate general collection but that has been broken up and the books dispersed to their subject areas except for the core reference books.
At the risk of sounding obvious, anything that refers specifically to music comes onto the music shelves. Traditional Irish music would not be a large enough sub-section to get its own department.
- Is there a policy on donations?
Donations are offered frequently. As for whether they are accepted, it depends on the particular donation and questions like whether the library already has it, if it is needed or not, and whether it will enhance the collection.
Not everything is accepted. Vinyl records are turned down due to lack of space and lack of equipment for them. Journal series tend to get turned down as they are usually out of date by the time the donor gets round to getting rid of them.
- How much material do they get from government donation?
Some legal deposit material but in the area of music, virtually nothing.
- How do you find/review resources for the reference collection?
The library receives regular letters or emails from publishers. Otherwise, potential new material is checked for in reviews in music library journals and at music library conferences.
- How much do faculty/staff input into recommendations for reference materials?
Choosing reference materials is the responsibility of Roy, so the choices are mostly his. Suggestions from others are more to do with textbooks or music scores from courses. It is sometimes hard getting funding for new subscriptions due to the space and budget needed for current, ongoing commitments.
-Is there a policy on government publications and are they included in the reference collections?
No. There used to be a collection group for government publications but the librarian responsible retired last year.
- What is the weeding policy of the library?
Weeding is done in the summer depending on Roy's time and any prior commitments. When done, it is mostly to make more space on the shelves. Books in poor condition are also taken off the shelves, maybe to be repaired if worthwhile but since since older materials do not make the best sources, they are most likely discarded and replaced with newer editions, assuming they have not already been replaced by new editions as they came out.
Online materials are increasingly superseding other materials, due to space and users' demands.
When it comes to binding the previous year's journal editions, series that are already online are sent to stacks instead of bound. They are bound and stay on the shelves only if they are not already an online source.
Daniel Murray
It varies from year to year, with a large cut expected for this year (unsurprisingly, given the times) but last year's was 10,000 euro. Due to being small library and specific, there is not much cross-department appeal and thus the average budget is small. Emphasis on small.
The budget for each library department is decided centrally so we should have the advantage of cutting out the middle man!
- What was the initial set-up budget for the reference collection?
No idea, as it was set up a while back, in 1970.
- What is the definition of reference material rather than material for the general collection that the institution uses?
The music library is divided into three separate sections: music literature, music scores and reference selection. Some books are debatable as to which section they should be in, so it is more a matter of judgement than any rule of thumb but generally, a reference book is one to be consulted rather than read from cover to cover.
Music has always maintained its own reference section due to being so specific. There was a separate general collection but that has been broken up and the books dispersed to their subject areas except for the core reference books.
At the risk of sounding obvious, anything that refers specifically to music comes onto the music shelves. Traditional Irish music would not be a large enough sub-section to get its own department.
- Is there a policy on donations?
Donations are offered frequently. As for whether they are accepted, it depends on the particular donation and questions like whether the library already has it, if it is needed or not, and whether it will enhance the collection.
Not everything is accepted. Vinyl records are turned down due to lack of space and lack of equipment for them. Journal series tend to get turned down as they are usually out of date by the time the donor gets round to getting rid of them.
- How much material do they get from government donation?
Some legal deposit material but in the area of music, virtually nothing.
- How do you find/review resources for the reference collection?
The library receives regular letters or emails from publishers. Otherwise, potential new material is checked for in reviews in music library journals and at music library conferences.
- How much do faculty/staff input into recommendations for reference materials?
Choosing reference materials is the responsibility of Roy, so the choices are mostly his. Suggestions from others are more to do with textbooks or music scores from courses. It is sometimes hard getting funding for new subscriptions due to the space and budget needed for current, ongoing commitments.
-Is there a policy on government publications and are they included in the reference collections?
No. There used to be a collection group for government publications but the librarian responsible retired last year.
- What is the weeding policy of the library?
Weeding is done in the summer depending on Roy's time and any prior commitments. When done, it is mostly to make more space on the shelves. Books in poor condition are also taken off the shelves, maybe to be repaired if worthwhile but since since older materials do not make the best sources, they are most likely discarded and replaced with newer editions, assuming they have not already been replaced by new editions as they came out.
Online materials are increasingly superseding other materials, due to space and users' demands.
When it comes to binding the previous year's journal editions, series that are already online are sent to stacks instead of bound. They are bound and stay on the shelves only if they are not already an online source.
Daniel Murray
Friday, October 15, 2010
Inserting youtube videos in the wiki
Hi Everybody,
Here are the steps for embedding a youtube video in the wiki (handy if you come across a good video):
1. Click the "embed" icon below the video in youtube.
2. Copy the HTML code that appears in the box underneath the video.
3. Open up the wiki in Blackboard and click "edit wiki content".
4. Click the "toggle HTML source code" icon (i.e. < > )
5. Paste the youtube code wherever you want the video to appear (just be careful to paste it between the existing HTML sentences, not straight into one of them - the sentences start and finish with the '<' and '>'; otherwise the video will end up in the middle of a heading or a paragraph or whatever).
Don't be worried by the code. If anything goes wrong it's easy to fix, and besides, it's good to play around with these things at the start anyway. One trick is to copy the actual standard English text on the main wiki page before making any changes to the underlying HTML code. That way, you can just paste it in again afterwards if the code gets messed up.
If you have any questions give me a shout.
Oh, before I forget, there are loads of page-layout themes on the internet for myspace pages. We might be able to adapt one of them for our wiki page. So if you open up the wiki and see all kinds of weird colours and shapes, don't worry, it's probably just me experimenting with the themes!
Here are the steps for embedding a youtube video in the wiki (handy if you come across a good video):
1. Click the "embed" icon below the video in youtube.
2. Copy the HTML code that appears in the box underneath the video.
3. Open up the wiki in Blackboard and click "edit wiki content".
4. Click the "toggle HTML source code" icon (i.e. < > )
5. Paste the youtube code wherever you want the video to appear (just be careful to paste it between the existing HTML sentences, not straight into one of them - the sentences start and finish with the '<' and '>'; otherwise the video will end up in the middle of a heading or a paragraph or whatever).
Don't be worried by the code. If anything goes wrong it's easy to fix, and besides, it's good to play around with these things at the start anyway. One trick is to copy the actual standard English text on the main wiki page before making any changes to the underlying HTML code. That way, you can just paste it in again afterwards if the code gets messed up.
If you have any questions give me a shout.
Oh, before I forget, there are loads of page-layout themes on the internet for myspace pages. We might be able to adapt one of them for our wiki page. So if you open up the wiki and see all kinds of weird colours and shapes, don't worry, it's probably just me experimenting with the themes!
Thursday, October 14, 2010
Budget Allocation Policy
Budget Allocation and Funding Statements in Policies.
Hi guys, the below is my vey basic surmise of the budgeting policy.
“Although a core feature of collection management the allocation of funds has only recently become a fixture in the policy statement.”(Hoffman & Wood,p37,2005)
“Because process once carried out behind closed doors are now appearing in public documents”. (Hoffman & Wood,p37,2005)
“Procedure once part of manuals attached to policy documents are today more likely to be inserted into the policy proper.” (Hoffman & Wood,p37,2005)
"It’s policy discussion does two things,
1. calls for increase accountability on the part of the public institutions
2. Desire of library administrators for ammunition in budgetary hearings."
"The funding section should focus on the sources for the materials budget whether or not supplementary monies are available, and the basic breakdowns for acquiring library holdings."
"Exactly what kinds of resources are being purchased through mainstream budgetary allotments.
How does the library determine its collection priorities?
Assuming essential services are in no way compromised, can funds be saved by substituting one format for another?
Will a cooperative acquisitions program facilitate fiscal savings?
Has the library mad a reasonable attempt to obtain support through grants philanthropy, and other sources?" (Hoffman & Wood,p37,2005)
Extensive line item break downs and thoroughgoing discussions of performance-based budgets are better placed in all encompassing procedures manual.
(Hoffman & Wood,p38,2005)
The most pertinent example for us is I think the Clatsop Community College library policy.
Again because were not going to be that stuck for cash with our budget we needn’t be too concerned with the constraints but the layout it is useful. I’ve included what might be relevant. (Hoffman & Wood,p39,2005)
“Funds are allotted at this time by format : AV materials, Books, and Periodicals. Funds are not allotted by topic or department.” (Hoffman & Wood,p37,2005)
“Classic materials in literature, of high quality and lasting value, and in high demand for the instructional needs will be purchased if available in several formats……. Only certain percent of the budget can be used to that effect, as stated below. The first and primary purchase of an item will be in its primary format……”(Hoffman & Wood,p37,2005)
“Books and AV materials : approximately 40 % of the book budget is allotted to standing orders at this time, mainly for reference books. …”(Hoffman & Wood,p40,2005)
“At this time, the AV budget is focused primarily on requests from instructors, to support their class demonstrations and their teaching..” (Hoffman & Wood,p40,2005)
Hi guys, the below is my vey basic surmise of the budgeting policy.
“Although a core feature of collection management the allocation of funds has only recently become a fixture in the policy statement.”(Hoffman & Wood,p37,2005)
“Because process once carried out behind closed doors are now appearing in public documents”. (Hoffman & Wood,p37,2005)
“Procedure once part of manuals attached to policy documents are today more likely to be inserted into the policy proper.” (Hoffman & Wood,p37,2005)
"It’s policy discussion does two things,
1. calls for increase accountability on the part of the public institutions
2. Desire of library administrators for ammunition in budgetary hearings."
"The funding section should focus on the sources for the materials budget whether or not supplementary monies are available, and the basic breakdowns for acquiring library holdings."
"Exactly what kinds of resources are being purchased through mainstream budgetary allotments.
How does the library determine its collection priorities?
Assuming essential services are in no way compromised, can funds be saved by substituting one format for another?
Will a cooperative acquisitions program facilitate fiscal savings?
Has the library mad a reasonable attempt to obtain support through grants philanthropy, and other sources?" (Hoffman & Wood,p37,2005)
Extensive line item break downs and thoroughgoing discussions of performance-based budgets are better placed in all encompassing procedures manual.
(Hoffman & Wood,p38,2005)
The most pertinent example for us is I think the Clatsop Community College library policy.
Again because were not going to be that stuck for cash with our budget we needn’t be too concerned with the constraints but the layout it is useful. I’ve included what might be relevant. (Hoffman & Wood,p39,2005)
“Funds are allotted at this time by format : AV materials, Books, and Periodicals. Funds are not allotted by topic or department.” (Hoffman & Wood,p37,2005)
“Classic materials in literature, of high quality and lasting value, and in high demand for the instructional needs will be purchased if available in several formats……. Only certain percent of the budget can be used to that effect, as stated below. The first and primary purchase of an item will be in its primary format……”(Hoffman & Wood,p37,2005)
“Books and AV materials : approximately 40 % of the book budget is allotted to standing orders at this time, mainly for reference books. …”(Hoffman & Wood,p40,2005)
“At this time, the AV budget is focused primarily on requests from instructors, to support their class demonstrations and their teaching..” (Hoffman & Wood,p40,2005)
Hoffman & Wood : Target audience policy
Target Audience Identification in Policies.:
“Audience statements can range from broad-based descriptions of clientele to highly focused user groups.”(Hoffman & Hill,p35, 2005)
“ General discussions of patrons-as opposed to demographic breakdowns characertizing community statements –tend to address exactly who is eligible to use the library collection.” .”(Hoffman & Hill,p35, 2005)
“Collection development statements are more likely to mention specific types of clients.” .”(Hoffman & Hill,p35, 2005)
Elizabeth Futas patron categories are included because “library materials specific to their needs are form a special or large segment of their collection, and they wish to bring this particular group to the attention of the readers of the policy.” .”(Hoffman & Hill,p35, 2005)
Hoffman & Richard put out a few interesting examples of Target Audience Statements, segments of which might be useful to us. The Target Audience policy features as a sub section of other policies. In the example given in Dane County Library it appears under the Selection Policy, where as every where else it appears under the general collection development policy.
For example this is taken from the National Art Library , Victoria and Albert Musuem: Collection Development Policy, the whole thing is written more like an narrative than any other of the policies I’ve read. I’ll summarise the and just quote a little bit as there is a bit there.
It begins, “ Anaylsis of a survey of library users in 1985/1986 showed that students , both undergraduate and postgraduate comprised 50% of the readership, the other 50% being made up of artists, designers, academic and private researchers ….”
It goes on to say that although the patterns are probably different now “the NAL is not funded to assume the role implied by the uncontrolled admission of undergraduates. The staffing levels of the NAL oblige it to ensure that only such students are admitted as can show that the materials they require are unobtainable elsewhere.” (Hoffman & Wood, p35, 2005)
This policy or section of policy sounds like their desired audience, more like a new posh night club might have a desire clientele. It’s definitely more informal than other Target Audience policies examples and I think we could write something like this fairly easily into our Collection Development Policy but without the exclusivity.
“Audience statements can range from broad-based descriptions of clientele to highly focused user groups.”(Hoffman & Hill,p35, 2005)
“ General discussions of patrons-as opposed to demographic breakdowns characertizing community statements –tend to address exactly who is eligible to use the library collection.” .”(Hoffman & Hill,p35, 2005)
“Collection development statements are more likely to mention specific types of clients.” .”(Hoffman & Hill,p35, 2005)
Elizabeth Futas patron categories are included because “library materials specific to their needs are form a special or large segment of their collection, and they wish to bring this particular group to the attention of the readers of the policy.” .”(Hoffman & Hill,p35, 2005)
Hoffman & Richard put out a few interesting examples of Target Audience Statements, segments of which might be useful to us. The Target Audience policy features as a sub section of other policies. In the example given in Dane County Library it appears under the Selection Policy, where as every where else it appears under the general collection development policy.
For example this is taken from the National Art Library , Victoria and Albert Musuem: Collection Development Policy, the whole thing is written more like an narrative than any other of the policies I’ve read. I’ll summarise the and just quote a little bit as there is a bit there.
It begins, “ Anaylsis of a survey of library users in 1985/1986 showed that students , both undergraduate and postgraduate comprised 50% of the readership, the other 50% being made up of artists, designers, academic and private researchers ….”
It goes on to say that although the patterns are probably different now “the NAL is not funded to assume the role implied by the uncontrolled admission of undergraduates. The staffing levels of the NAL oblige it to ensure that only such students are admitted as can show that the materials they require are unobtainable elsewhere.” (Hoffman & Wood, p35, 2005)
This policy or section of policy sounds like their desired audience, more like a new posh night club might have a desire clientele. It’s definitely more informal than other Target Audience policies examples and I think we could write something like this fairly easily into our Collection Development Policy but without the exclusivity.
Contemporary music centre collection.
Apologies about the delay with this guys.
Here's a brief outline of the interview I had with the Trish in the Contemporary Irish music centre.
I've listed them in the order I felt was most relevant.
They've had their budget greatly reduced and at the moment their annual budget form the arts council is 300'000 euro.
They rely on grants from other bodies to help stay afloat. An Foras Feasa, the institute for research in Irish historical and cultural traditions.
Their evaluaiton policy for collecting books is non existent as their collection is based around original scores that are contributed to them from the composers.Any books that are published relevant to the field in Ireland are purchased however very few come out, two this year so far. Both on Aloys Fleischman
The library is no longer fully staffed and all of the staff take it turns to cover it.
There day to day running consists of answering between five and ten very general queries, like have you got this composers score or where might I find that particular score.
Then there is about four or five questions which require a bit of research and ringing around to other centres.
So I think you could say the collection caters for a fairly educated clientele.
The libray is essentially the reference collection and it was interesting to hear how a non-government non-institutional reference collection was constantly working to secure the survial of itself and the overarching organisation.
Since funding had been cut so severly all efforts with in the organisation have been to promote and market the centre and thelibrary is used to coordinate the books that are acquired to the book shop. The reference collection here doubles as a library and co-ordinates the bookshops activities.
They use an in house data base system which was desigined by a company called file makers. http://www.filemaker.com/
Trisha advised that the most common search times by customers are instrumentation and duration.
Also their is a pressure for collection to make all its resources available online so that musicians and academics from other countries can access it.
I will be contacting her again.
Here's a brief outline of the interview I had with the Trish in the Contemporary Irish music centre.
I've listed them in the order I felt was most relevant.
They've had their budget greatly reduced and at the moment their annual budget form the arts council is 300'000 euro.
They rely on grants from other bodies to help stay afloat. An Foras Feasa, the institute for research in Irish historical and cultural traditions.
Their evaluaiton policy for collecting books is non existent as their collection is based around original scores that are contributed to them from the composers.Any books that are published relevant to the field in Ireland are purchased however very few come out, two this year so far. Both on Aloys Fleischman
The library is no longer fully staffed and all of the staff take it turns to cover it.
There day to day running consists of answering between five and ten very general queries, like have you got this composers score or where might I find that particular score.
Then there is about four or five questions which require a bit of research and ringing around to other centres.
So I think you could say the collection caters for a fairly educated clientele.
The libray is essentially the reference collection and it was interesting to hear how a non-government non-institutional reference collection was constantly working to secure the survial of itself and the overarching organisation.
Since funding had been cut so severly all efforts with in the organisation have been to promote and market the centre and thelibrary is used to coordinate the books that are acquired to the book shop. The reference collection here doubles as a library and co-ordinates the bookshops activities.
They use an in house data base system which was desigined by a company called file makers. http://www.filemaker.com/
Trisha advised that the most common search times by customers are instrumentation and duration.
Also their is a pressure for collection to make all its resources available online so that musicians and academics from other countries can access it.
I will be contacting her again.
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
Irish Traditional Music Archives
Budget:
As ITMA are an archive, and their entire collection is reference I couldn't really get an idea of budget but Grace reckoned about €4k a year was about right.
Donations:
As an archive they take everything, regardless of duplicates - who's donating, annotations etc can be as important as the material itself.
No real government resources beyond one collection of tunes published in the 1940s and this is still quite relevant. I need to get more detail on this.
Finding resources:
ITMA publish a bibliography and discography every two months on anything related to Irish traditional music. This includes books, sheet music, albums, articles. ITMA bibliography - see ITMA website under 'recent publications'. They find materials via Google Alerts & ABE Books is another important source.
Weeding:
N/A for the archives at the moment.
The ITMA website is quite good for content, providing a definition of Irish Traditional Music - I don't seem to be able to give website addresses here.
Some other points -
Collection is divided into three areas - song, instrumental, dance.
Main aims are collection, preservation, organise and make available.
Some collection to look at for inspiration -
Boston College
Notre Dame/Irish Studies
Scottish National Library - good resource for ballad sheets
Queens
I'm not sure if we'll really ned to delve that deeply after today's class but links are there anyway.
Key Books -
Fintan Vallely's Companion to ITM (new edition due)
Fleischmann's Source of Irish Traditional Music
Encyclopaedia of music in Ireland (not yet released)
Some good free resources -
Steve Roud's folk song index
JSTOR
SMI Music Theses Register
Journalofmusic.com
Finally they've given me a list of audio resources so I'm going to meet the sound archivist, hopefully before our meeting next week and take it from there.
As ITMA are an archive, and their entire collection is reference I couldn't really get an idea of budget but Grace reckoned about €4k a year was about right.
Donations:
As an archive they take everything, regardless of duplicates - who's donating, annotations etc can be as important as the material itself.
No real government resources beyond one collection of tunes published in the 1940s and this is still quite relevant. I need to get more detail on this.
Finding resources:
ITMA publish a bibliography and discography every two months on anything related to Irish traditional music. This includes books, sheet music, albums, articles. ITMA bibliography - see ITMA website under 'recent publications'. They find materials via Google Alerts & ABE Books is another important source.
Weeding:
N/A for the archives at the moment.
The ITMA website is quite good for content, providing a definition of Irish Traditional Music - I don't seem to be able to give website addresses here.
Some other points -
Collection is divided into three areas - song, instrumental, dance.
Main aims are collection, preservation, organise and make available.
Some collection to look at for inspiration -
Boston College
Notre Dame/Irish Studies
Scottish National Library - good resource for ballad sheets
Queens
I'm not sure if we'll really ned to delve that deeply after today's class but links are there anyway.
Key Books -
Fintan Vallely's Companion to ITM (new edition due)
Fleischmann's Source of Irish Traditional Music
Encyclopaedia of music in Ireland (not yet released)
Some good free resources -
Steve Roud's folk song index
JSTOR
SMI Music Theses Register
Journalofmusic.com
Finally they've given me a list of audio resources so I'm going to meet the sound archivist, hopefully before our meeting next week and take it from there.
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
UCD Library Music Collection
Hi all,
Yesterday I spoke with Lorraine Foster who is the librarian in charge of the music collection in the James Joyce Library.
Annual Budget
There is no particular annual budget for the reference collection. Money is very tight at the moment and if they get some money, Lorraine consults with staff in the School of Music and they collaborate together to decide on what they buy. Currently, they would focus on large volumes or research monographs for additions to the music reference collection. She had no idea of the initial set-up budget as she is only in this position since July.
Definition of Reference Material
They would class things as reference if they were encyclopaedias, dictionaries, handbooks, biographies or large volumes. There is a lot of reference material available digitally now through findit. Sometimes School staff may suggest some books are more suitable for reference than general collection. UCD do not put any audio material (CDs etc) in the reference collection. This is mainly due to the fact that CDs can not be taken out of the library anyway due to their loan type. Lorraine said that CDs could be put into a reserve collection and particularly older material such as LPs may be suitable.
Government Publications
These would be put in the section of the library for official documents and would not be in the music reference collection.
Find/review Resources
The library and the School of Music work collaboratively when there is money available to buy new material. The School has a wish list if items and normally they just work off this list whenever money is available. There is no fixed policy by the library to get as much material it digital format and each item is assessed individually. There has been a big increase in digital material such as ebooks in the collection.
Donations
They do accept donations. Lorraine would assess the material and if there is space available and would also consult with School staff to see if it is material that is useful. If it is not suitable for the music collection, Lorraine would speak to the other librarians to see if it is useful for another section of the library.
Weeding Poicy
The main issue with weeding is space. Books with low usage statistics can be moved to the store downstairs or to the library's other store in Newstead (old Philips building near Richview). They try to keep 1 copy of Irish publications on the shelves. The collection is assessed to see if very old items are moved to the Special Collections section of the library.
Lorraine also said that she was told that University of Limerick have a very good music collection and they got a lot of money recently to develop it. It might be worth talking to them sometime.
Fintan
Yesterday I spoke with Lorraine Foster who is the librarian in charge of the music collection in the James Joyce Library.
Annual Budget
There is no particular annual budget for the reference collection. Money is very tight at the moment and if they get some money, Lorraine consults with staff in the School of Music and they collaborate together to decide on what they buy. Currently, they would focus on large volumes or research monographs for additions to the music reference collection. She had no idea of the initial set-up budget as she is only in this position since July.
Definition of Reference Material
They would class things as reference if they were encyclopaedias, dictionaries, handbooks, biographies or large volumes. There is a lot of reference material available digitally now through findit. Sometimes School staff may suggest some books are more suitable for reference than general collection. UCD do not put any audio material (CDs etc) in the reference collection. This is mainly due to the fact that CDs can not be taken out of the library anyway due to their loan type. Lorraine said that CDs could be put into a reserve collection and particularly older material such as LPs may be suitable.
Government Publications
These would be put in the section of the library for official documents and would not be in the music reference collection.
Find/review Resources
The library and the School of Music work collaboratively when there is money available to buy new material. The School has a wish list if items and normally they just work off this list whenever money is available. There is no fixed policy by the library to get as much material it digital format and each item is assessed individually. There has been a big increase in digital material such as ebooks in the collection.
Donations
They do accept donations. Lorraine would assess the material and if there is space available and would also consult with School staff to see if it is material that is useful. If it is not suitable for the music collection, Lorraine would speak to the other librarians to see if it is useful for another section of the library.
Weeding Poicy
The main issue with weeding is space. Books with low usage statistics can be moved to the store downstairs or to the library's other store in Newstead (old Philips building near Richview). They try to keep 1 copy of Irish publications on the shelves. The collection is assessed to see if very old items are moved to the Special Collections section of the library.
Lorraine also said that she was told that University of Limerick have a very good music collection and they got a lot of money recently to develop it. It might be worth talking to them sometime.
Fintan
Monday, October 11, 2010
Hi All.
Here's the information I got from Pauline from the Music Library in the Ilac today:
Budget: She was unable to give me budget information as these issues are coordinated centrally in their Pearse Street head office. To be honest she seemed a little reluctant to even give me a ball park figure so I didn't press her.
Policy on Donations: They do not take any donations at the moment regardless of quality or condition because of lack of space.
Government Donations: this doesn't apply to their particular organisation.
Find/review resources for the reference collection: they actually take recommendations from the public on quite a regular basis. What is actually bought is again decided centrally in "Reader Services". If a staff member wishes to order a particular item they fill out details on a "request form" and send it into Pearse Street. It is there that the decision to buy or not is ultimately made. They buy their stock either from Hodges/Figgis or McCullough/Picketts.
Weeding Policy: They have to constantly weed their collection. The criteria for getting rid of an item is a) length of time since it was last borrowed b) general condition and c) value. Their reference collection is quite limited and is only weeded if it is particularly outdated.
Thats about it folks. I hope this can help us a bit even though the information I got wasn't very detailed. I am going to try and get in touch with Pearse Street headquarters to get some budget information. I also got a MusicPal card which lets us use any Music Library collection in Ireland. Might come in handy.
Wednesday, October 6, 2010
Meeting 2
Hi All,
From yesterday's meeting we have all been assigned a music library to visit and a list of questions to be asked before next week's meeting which will be held in Group Study Room A (GSR-A) on level 2 of the library from 12 to 1pm next Tuesday.
Please contact your library before your visit to ensure that there will be someone available to answer the questions.
The list of questions are as follows:
- What is the annual budget for the reference collection?
- What was the initial set-up budget for the reference collection?
- What is the definition of reference material rather than material for the general collection that the institution uses?
- Is there a policy on donations?
- How much do material do they get from government donations?
- How do you find/review resources for the reference collection?
- How much do faculty/staff input into recommendations for reference materials?
- Is there a policy on government publications and are they included in the reference collections (e.g. publications from the Department of Tourism, Culture and Sport and the Department of Community, Equality and Gaeltacht Affairs.)
- What is the weeding policy of the library/collection?
I would suspect that not every library will have answers or be prepared to answer all of the questions on this list.
Please feel free to amend these questions and distribute the updated list of questions to everyone vis email or the blog.
Below is the list of which person is assigned to visit which library:
Fintan - UCD music collection
Daniel Murray - Trinity
Peter & Lindsay - Irish Traditional Music Archives
Daniel Earls - Contemporary Music Centre
John - Na Piobairi Uilleann
Justin - Ilac Music Library
John - Comhaltas Ceoltairi Eireann
Fintan
From yesterday's meeting we have all been assigned a music library to visit and a list of questions to be asked before next week's meeting which will be held in Group Study Room A (GSR-A) on level 2 of the library from 12 to 1pm next Tuesday.
Please contact your library before your visit to ensure that there will be someone available to answer the questions.
The list of questions are as follows:
- What is the annual budget for the reference collection?
- What was the initial set-up budget for the reference collection?
- What is the definition of reference material rather than material for the general collection that the institution uses?
- Is there a policy on donations?
- How much do material do they get from government donations?
- How do you find/review resources for the reference collection?
- How much do faculty/staff input into recommendations for reference materials?
- Is there a policy on government publications and are they included in the reference collections (e.g. publications from the Department of Tourism, Culture and Sport and the Department of Community, Equality and Gaeltacht Affairs.)
- What is the weeding policy of the library/collection?
I would suspect that not every library will have answers or be prepared to answer all of the questions on this list.
Please feel free to amend these questions and distribute the updated list of questions to everyone vis email or the blog.
Below is the list of which person is assigned to visit which library:
Fintan - UCD music collection
Daniel Murray - Trinity
Peter & Lindsay - Irish Traditional Music Archives
Daniel Earls - Contemporary Music Centre
John - Na Piobairi Uilleann
Justin - Ilac Music Library
John - Comhaltas Ceoltairi Eireann
Fintan
Tuesday, October 5, 2010
Introduction to virtual management.
Hey folks, I jumped the gun a bit with this particular avenue but its so relevant now I just thought I’d throw some of it up. Again the points that the authors seem almost cast in stone so there’s very little input from me.
Introduction to Virtual Management. ((Hoffman & Wood, 2005, p218)
“the virtual collection consists of those materials that the library provides access to without physical ownership.”
“Librarians are writing a new information resources policy, supplementing the traditional collection development policy, to reflect the increased emphasis on access to materials rather than ownership and a place on the shelf. These policies recognize that the virtual collection needs to be developed in a way that is compatible with the print collection”
Do we have to do a separate print policy, how far exactly do we imagine in terms of what we have to have?
Benefits of having a distinct collection policy:(Hoffman & Wood, 2005, p218-219)
“It will serve as guide for choosing one format over another.”
“Help the selector make the best use of limited resources, an can be used to justify selections.”
“when access is provided in a more systematic way then the library is, in effect, saying that it stands behind these resources and they should, therefore, be subject to collection policies.”
“The policy also is used to justify the selection of certain resources, particularly those which have ongoing costs are available in multiple formats.”
“ Because there different implications for free internet resources and those that have a cost, the specific collection development issues will be considered separately.”
Electronic resources acquired through license purchase of subscription. (Hoffman & Wood, 2005, P219)
“Among the selection criteria, the policy should included cost, including the cost difference between different formats, the compatibility of the resource with existing hardware, and predictability of future costs. “
“In the future, delivery of information and licensing/access fees may constitute a major part of the library’s non-personal budget”
“The library is paying for the right to access them electronically. The hardware and software to access the electronic resources must also be planned for. Another component may be fees for commercial document delivery.”
The policy may include specifics on funding these items. There often financial benefits of consortial licensing of virtual resources such as substantial discounts, centralized negotiation and billing, and broader access.
* The virtual collection development policy could define the terms of participation and division of costs, and should describe a procedure for re-evaluating resources that may be dropped from a consortial agreement.
* Whether the organization enters the into a license individually or through a consortium, no license should be signed without scrutiny and most likely some form of negotiation. The policy should define the library user population, because this will be very important when the pricing formula is examined.
* Will the cost be determined by actual users, potential users, number of workstations?
* Who are the users?
No matter how fees are based, the user population may have to be defined and method of delivery specified when negotiating a license for online resources (Hoffman & Wood, 2005, P220)
Here is an a link to the consortium that the national university colleges of Ireland and a few other notables are involved in:
http://www.irelibrary.ie/about.aspx
Considerations for negotiators checklist:(Hoffman & Wood, 2005, p221)
General
* Is this a recommendation or request from patrons?
* Do we have other subscriptions with this vendor?
* Is the Vendor reliable/the product stable?
* Is there a trial period?
* Are terms of license clearly stated?
Content:
* Are the subjects covered wholly or part by existing subscriptions to electronic services?
* Is the product full text? Image database? Numeric? Other?
* Does the library have a print subscription ?
* Are there specific value- added features in electronic version?
* Is the material timely?
* How frequently is the product updated?
IS the database from the public domain?
Have selection tools been consulted for reviews?
For electronic journals, is there a peer review process? Can you identify an editor?
Format:(Hoffman & Wood, 2005, p223)
Here there are so many points it’s not worth mentioning them all. The ones that stand out for me are
* Is the interface easy to use?
* Boolean search capabilities?
* Proximity search capabilities?
* Can search results be downloaded, printed ,e-mailed.
Access:
* Does the license cover expected modes of access? ( i.e. in library, remote log in etc?)
* What kind of authentication is required?
* Are inter library loans permitted?
* Is cataloguing of this exercise recommended ?
* Is document delivery permitted?
* Can material be linked library’s catalogue?
* Does vendor provide usage data?
Archiving
* Will the library need archival rights to this material?
* Are archives and back files available?
* Is it covered by a document delivery service?
Duplication of Existing Print Resources
* Does the resource have significant historical value?
* Is one format unstable?
* Is there a cost benefit for purchasing multiple formats?
* Pricing?
* Are back files available at a one time cost, ongoing cost, or pay-per-use?
* Is consortial pricing available?
* Does the contract include an indemnity from the vendors regarding the intellectual property rights?
Introduction to Virtual Management. ((Hoffman & Wood, 2005, p218)
“the virtual collection consists of those materials that the library provides access to without physical ownership.”
“Librarians are writing a new information resources policy, supplementing the traditional collection development policy, to reflect the increased emphasis on access to materials rather than ownership and a place on the shelf. These policies recognize that the virtual collection needs to be developed in a way that is compatible with the print collection”
Do we have to do a separate print policy, how far exactly do we imagine in terms of what we have to have?
Benefits of having a distinct collection policy:(Hoffman & Wood, 2005, p218-219)
“It will serve as guide for choosing one format over another.”
“Help the selector make the best use of limited resources, an can be used to justify selections.”
“when access is provided in a more systematic way then the library is, in effect, saying that it stands behind these resources and they should, therefore, be subject to collection policies.”
“The policy also is used to justify the selection of certain resources, particularly those which have ongoing costs are available in multiple formats.”
“ Because there different implications for free internet resources and those that have a cost, the specific collection development issues will be considered separately.”
Electronic resources acquired through license purchase of subscription. (Hoffman & Wood, 2005, P219)
“Among the selection criteria, the policy should included cost, including the cost difference between different formats, the compatibility of the resource with existing hardware, and predictability of future costs. “
“In the future, delivery of information and licensing/access fees may constitute a major part of the library’s non-personal budget”
“The library is paying for the right to access them electronically. The hardware and software to access the electronic resources must also be planned for. Another component may be fees for commercial document delivery.”
The policy may include specifics on funding these items. There often financial benefits of consortial licensing of virtual resources such as substantial discounts, centralized negotiation and billing, and broader access.
* The virtual collection development policy could define the terms of participation and division of costs, and should describe a procedure for re-evaluating resources that may be dropped from a consortial agreement.
* Whether the organization enters the into a license individually or through a consortium, no license should be signed without scrutiny and most likely some form of negotiation. The policy should define the library user population, because this will be very important when the pricing formula is examined.
* Will the cost be determined by actual users, potential users, number of workstations?
* Who are the users?
No matter how fees are based, the user population may have to be defined and method of delivery specified when negotiating a license for online resources (Hoffman & Wood, 2005, P220)
Here is an a link to the consortium that the national university colleges of Ireland and a few other notables are involved in:
http://www.irelibrary.ie/about.aspx
Considerations for negotiators checklist:(Hoffman & Wood, 2005, p221)
General
* Is this a recommendation or request from patrons?
* Do we have other subscriptions with this vendor?
* Is the Vendor reliable/the product stable?
* Is there a trial period?
* Are terms of license clearly stated?
Content:
* Are the subjects covered wholly or part by existing subscriptions to electronic services?
* Is the product full text? Image database? Numeric? Other?
* Does the library have a print subscription ?
* Are there specific value- added features in electronic version?
* Is the material timely?
* How frequently is the product updated?
IS the database from the public domain?
Have selection tools been consulted for reviews?
For electronic journals, is there a peer review process? Can you identify an editor?
Format:(Hoffman & Wood, 2005, p223)
Here there are so many points it’s not worth mentioning them all. The ones that stand out for me are
* Is the interface easy to use?
* Boolean search capabilities?
* Proximity search capabilities?
* Can search results be downloaded, printed ,e-mailed.
Access:
* Does the license cover expected modes of access? ( i.e. in library, remote log in etc?)
* What kind of authentication is required?
* Are inter library loans permitted?
* Is cataloguing of this exercise recommended ?
* Is document delivery permitted?
* Can material be linked library’s catalogue?
* Does vendor provide usage data?
Archiving
* Will the library need archival rights to this material?
* Are archives and back files available?
* Is it covered by a document delivery service?
Duplication of Existing Print Resources
* Does the resource have significant historical value?
* Is one format unstable?
* Is there a cost benefit for purchasing multiple formats?
* Pricing?
* Are back files available at a one time cost, ongoing cost, or pay-per-use?
* Is consortial pricing available?
* Does the contract include an indemnity from the vendors regarding the intellectual property rights?
Monday, October 4, 2010
Hoffman & Woods Library collection
Apologies for the delay with post, it took me a while to realise I wasn't added as an author, just thought the site was being "off" me.
I’m going to give the Hoffman Woods’ Library Collection Development Policies text a peruse and like Lindsey comment on what might perhaps might be most relevant for our purposes. I’ll be following Lindsey’s template of summary the text in normal font and italicizing my own commentary. Also there mightn’t actually be to much of my own commentary as the points mention in the text seem like precepts.
Introduction to collection development policy components. (Hoffman & Wood,2005, p 2-3)
“Considering the diversity of libraries by size, type and service philosophy, it follows that the architecture of collection development policies should vary
considerably from one institution to another. The general character of a given policy is determined by a number of factors, most notably the sections comprising the document; the arrangement of these sections; the style of writing; the degree of reliance upon outside guidelines, forms, procedures, etc,; and mode of presentation ( i.e. a traditional lay out as opposed to mounting on an institutions website, complete with hyperlinks to individual sections)” (Hoffman & Wood, 2005, p2)
The authors consider the following components necessary for good policies.
- Purpose statement.
- Background statement
- Responsibility for collection development.
- Missions, goals and objective statements
- Target Audiences
- Budget and funding
- Evaluative criteria
- Format statement
- Government publications
- Treatment of specific resource groups
- Special collections
- Resource sharing
- Services statement
- Selection aids
- Copyright statement
- Intellectual freedom statement
- Acquisitions
- Gifts and exchange statement
- Collection maintenance statement
- Weeding statement
- Collection evaluation section
- Policy revision statement
- Definition of terms and glossary
- Bibliography
- Appendixes. (Hoffman & Wood,2005,p3)
As you can see it’s a pretty comprehensive list. At this particular moment in time I think the most relevant components for our needs our :
Ø Purpose statement itself,
Ø missions, goals and objectives statements,
Ø target audiences,
Ø budget and funding,
Ø collection maintenance statement.
Perhaps later, when were are more definite on the actual content we’ll be compiling in our collection we can look more closely at:
Ø resource sharing,
Ø collection exchange statement
Ø evaluation statement.
Purpose statements in Policies. (Hoffman & Wood, 2005, p.4-8)
“…the volume , complexity, flux ad blurring of boundaries characterizing information in the present day has spurred most of the world’s great libraries…. to formulate their own written, publicly available policy statements.” (Hoffman & Wood,2005, p.4 )
I chose what I felt were the most salient points of this policy in regards to our potential reference collection:
- It forces staff to think through library goals and to think through library goals and to commit to them.
- Setting a standard for selection and weeding of material.
- Inform users, administrators and other libraries of collection scope ,facilitating coordination of collection development among institutions.
- Assures continuity by providing pattern and framework to ease transition from one librarian to the next.
- Helps to demonstrate that the library is running a business-like operation
- Providing information to assist in budget allocations. ( Hoffman & Wood,2005,p.4-5)
It seems like this will serve as the main template for the shape our collection will eventually take. It’s literally a double sided billboard of what we are collecting and , why and how we are doing it. I think the third point is interesting in that it can point the way towards resource sharing and planning with other collections . Either already existing web resources or it might also be worth finding out if anyone else in the class is doing any topics similar to ourselves? Also, it’ll be invaluable for planning our budget and maintaining that business like feel which seems absolutely essential nowadays.
I’ve taken a couple of examples of collection policies that may be useful in terms of their diversity and layout and form. I really wanted to get the special collections purpose statement but it’s yet to be finalised.
This link is from the UCD archives service website, it’s titled Nature and function of service, it seems like a fairly informal purpose statement
Compare this with the more formal national folklore collection visitors policy in ucd :
http://www.ucd.ie/irishfolklore/en/t4cms/nfc_policies_guidelines_2009.pdf
or the The Founding Constitution of Na Píobairí Uilleann :
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