Academic Branch Libraries in Changing Times

Chandos Information Professional Series

Academic Branch Libraries in Changing Times

Nevenka Zdravkovska

Table of Contents

Cover image

Title page

Copyright

List of figures

List of tables

Acknowledgements

About the author

Preface

Chapter 1: Historical overview of academic branch libraries

Chapter 2: Types of branch libraries

Chapter 3: Most common subject branch libraries

Chapter 4: Assessment/review of viability of branch libraries

Chapter 5: Future of academic branch libraries

Appendix A: National Center for Education Statistics

Appendix B: ARL Academic US Member Libraries/Branch Listing Websites (August 16, 2010)

Appendix C: Engineering Branch Library Example

Selected bibliography

Index

Copyright

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First published in 2011

ISBN: 978 1 84334 630 2

© N. Zdravkovska, 2011

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List of figures

1.1. Branch Subject Libraries in the Central West Colleges (1929 survey) 6

1.2. Number of branches per type, ARL 1983 survey 10

1.3. Number of branches per type, 2010 data from websites 14

1.4. Number of branches/number of libraries, NCES 2008 data: Classification Doctoral/Research Universities – Extensive 16

2.1. Number of branches per type, 2010 data from websites 30

List of tables

1.1. Branch Subject Libraries in the Central West Colleges (1929 survey) 6

1.2. Number of branches per type, ARL 1983 survey 9

1.3. Changes in branches by broad categories, ARL 1999 survey 13

1.4. Number of branches by subject/type, 2010 data from websites 13

1.5. National Center for Education Statistics Academic Libraries Survey Fiscal Year 2008 – Partial Table 15

1.6. University of Maryland, University of Maryland Libraries Timeline 20

2.1. Number of branches by subjects, 2010 data from websites 29

2.2. Number of branches per subject, ARL 1983 survey 30

4.1. ACRL Guidelines/Madison sample criteria 93

Acknowledgements

A long list of colleagues and professionals contributed to this work, some with ideas and suggestions, and others with support and encouragement. I would like to recognize them all, if at all possible. From the University of Maryland Libraries my supervisor Tanner Wray (Director of Public Services), my mentor Jane Williams (Director of Planning and Administrative Services), the staff at the Engineering and Physical Sciences Library who encouraged me and shared their experiences with me for the entire year (Donna Beatley, Pinar Beygo, Pat deLaubenfels, Bob Kackley, Jim Miller, Somesh Sood, Nedelina Tchangalova, Karyna Witoszka-Swistak), and my wonderful and knowledgeable University of Maryland Libraries colleagues, Arlene Klair and Janice Flug (Technical Services), Anne Turkos (Archives), Maggie Saponaro (Social Sciences Team), Pat Herron (Humanities Team), Alan Mattlage (Head, Art and Architecture Libraries), Constance Mayer (Head, Performing Arts Library), Patricia Steele (Dean of UMD Libraries); and from the Priddy Library at the Universities of Shady Grove Irene Münster (Head) and Toni Negro. I received valuable contributions and suggestions from Georgetown University colleagues: Gwen Owens (Head, Blommer Science Library), Shu-chen Tsung (Technical Services) and Jennifer Long (Associate Director at Center for Eurasian, Russian and East European Studies, Georgetown University); Katherine Soehner (Director of Art, Architecture, Science and Engineering Libraries, University of Michigan), Diane Dallis (University of Indiana, Bloomington), and Gretchen Sneff (Temple University).

Finally, I would like to acknowledge my greatly supportive family who backed me every day during this year long process: my understanding husband Naum Panovski, my daughter Frosina Panovska for being caring and giving me valuable editing suggestions, and my son Damjan Panovski who encouraged me in his quiet way during my work. Last but not least, my sister Smilka Zdravkovska, Mathematical Reviews Editor, for believing in me and promoting my work.

About the author

Nevenka Zdravkovska is the Head of the Engineering and Physical Sciences Library (EPSL), University of Maryland, College Park. She has been there since October 2006, managing the largest branch library at the University of Maryland, serving on many teams and committees within the Libraries, the University and the profession.

From 1998 to 2006 Ms. Zdravkovska was the Science Reference Librarian at Blommer Science Library at Georgetown University. One of her major responsibilities there was teaching bibliographic instruction. Her collections responsibilities have been mainly for science disciplines (physics, mathematics, and computer science), but for several years she was also the selector for Slavic languages and literature, at the Center for Eurasian, Russian and East European Studies (CERES) at Georgetown University.

Nevenka received her Bachelor of Science in engineering physics from Cyril and Methodius University in Skopje, Macedonia, and her MLS from Texas Woman’s University.

Prior to moving to the United States, Nevenka was Secretary General at the Macedonian Academy of Sciences and Arts in Skopje, Macedonia where she worked for 15 years. She first started working there as a Librarian in 1977.

The author can be contacted at:

Engineering and Physical Sciences Library

1403 Math Building

University of Maryland

College Park, MD 20742

USA

E-mail: nevenka@umd.edu

Preface

This book is the result of a year long research of the published literature (books and scholarly journal publications) on branch academic libraries by a librarian with 15 years of academic branch library experience. At the beginning of the twentieth century the debate mainly concerned centralized and decentralized libraries. The term branch library, used mainly to identify secondary libraries within public libraries, was embraced in academic settings in the second half of the century. There was no intention to repeat prior research. Extensive reference to previous research is indicated or briefly discussed.

For current data, in addition to information gathered from personal contacts, relevant published listservs, blogs and RSS feeds, an extensive environmental scan and analysis of the web presence of the United States Academic Research Libraries (ARL) institutions was conducted. A general observation is that there is a lack of literature on branch academic libraries. Although there is a brief historical overview, this book is more about the current situation, with an eye toward the future of branch academic libraries at ARL institutions. It is written for practicing branch librarians, and for administrators of large academic libraries.

Book organization

This book is divided into five chapters. In Chapter One we give a brief historical overview. This area is very well covered in the published literature, and there was no intention of repeating past published works. The largest sections are Chapters Two (Types of Branch Libraries) and Three (Most Common Subject Branch Libraries). Chapter Two discusses the different types of branch libraries, and gives some unique branch examples and partnerships with academic departments on campuses. A section in this chapter is dedicated to the current Undergraduate Libraries at ARL libraries – branches that are in decline but do still exist and thrive. Chapter Three discusses the evolvement of the most common subject branch libraries: chemistry, science and engineering, and music. Chapter Four, Assessment/Review of viability of branch libraries, gives practical ideas for administrators on closing and/or consolidating branches – a trend that currently exists – and adding branches – not widely in use right now. Examples are given of institutions that have done so in the past decade. We close the book with Chapter Five, The Future of Academic Branch Libraries. Notable published reports and studies on the future of academic libraries in general, with a look at implications for branch libraries, are discussed. Examples of innovative services and use of branch library space are covered. The examples given in each chapter could easily have been used in other chapters as well. In Chapter 5 we include information about the Priddy Library at the Universities at Shady Grove, exclusively written for this book by Irene Münster.

Three appendices and a selected bibliography are also included. Appendix C gives an example of a branch library, including sample job descriptions for staff.

Most of the examples are related to the University of Maryland. The reason is twofold: first, the University of Maryland Libraries will be considered a ‘typical’ ARL institution with its seven branch libraries (the average number of branches for the 150 extensive research libraries as collected by the National Center for Education Statistics institutions for 2008 was seven – see Appendix B) and second, the author has been working in one of the branches for five years. To that end, the author spent countless hours in the Maryland Room researching the University of Maryland Libraries’ history as recorded in the UMD Archives.

1

Historical overview of academic branch libraries

Abstract:

This chapter briefly discusses the beginnings of branch libraries. First known as collegiate or departmental libraries, branch libraries are distinctive libraries separate from the main library building, but managed either independently (decentralized) or by the main library (centralized). A short overview of the two Academic Research Libraries (ARL) surveys on branch libraries (1983 and 1999) is provided and discussed. A summary of the current situation using the National Center for Educational Statistics (NCES) web comparison tool and an analysis of the ARL academic libraries web pages is presented. The University of Maryland Libraries, with its seven branches, represents the average academic university library in the US as far as branch library presence is concerned. A history of branch development at the University of Maryland (UM) Libraries, and the current state of the UM Libraries close the chapter.

Key words

branch libraries

departmental libraries

collegiate libraries

Academic Research Libraries (ARL)

The beginnings

There are multiple brief studies of the history of academic branch libraries. The most notable are the papers published by:

 Louis T. Ibbotson (‘Departmental Libraries’ in 1925),

 Laurence Thompson (‘The Historical Background of Departmental and Collegiate Libraries’ in 1942),

 Arthur T. Hamlin (The University Library in the United States; Its Origins and Development – more specifically the chapter ‘The Problem of the Departmental Library’ in 1981), and

 Robert A. Seal (‘Academic Branch Libraries’ in 1986).

There is no need to repeat these well-known and highly cited works. Some of their key observations, however, will be highlighted. This book will look at the status of branch libraries since these works were published. Also, as Shkolnik would say: ‘A small college has less need for branches than does a large university. The debate, therefore, really pertains only to the largest and most research-oriented academic communities’ (Shkolnik, 1991: 345). The emphasis of this book will be on large research libraries, more specifically ARL Academic Libraries in the US. See Appendix B for a list of ARL Academic Libraries in the US.

At the beginning of the twentieth century Mary C. Venn, in Libraries in 1929, argued:

Department libraries are the natural outgrowth of the days when libraries were mere prisons for books. These books were largely given to the library, because their usefulness was gone for their original owner. The librarians were held so strictly accountable for their care that they were afraid to lose control of them, let alone allowing one to go out of their sight

Venn continues:

[M]ore modern professors, about the Civil War days, kept his books in his office. He liberally loaned the books to his students, who came to him for reading – he was more approachable than the librarian who guarded his books as a lioness her cubs.

She concludes: ‘Thus the departmental or professorial libraries became the more alive collection and grew, while the main library didn’t grow so fast’ (Venn, 1929: 193).

A few years before, Louis T. Ibbotson, reference librarian at Duke University, Durham, NC, in the Library Journal, in 1925, states the following:

Departmental libraries started as a protest. Nothing much was said, but now we can see that at a certain juncture in American education, books were