| New York State Library | Division of Library Development |
III. ACCESSIBILITY OF COLLECTIONS TO THE PUBLIC
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CHECKLIST …*… Hours open …*… Number of patrons …*… Items loaned or used on site …*… Cooperative access programs |
NOT-SO-GOOD EXAMPLE:
III. ACCESSIBILITY OF COLLECTIONS TO THE PUBLIC
Access to microfilmed records will be made available to approximately 35,000 residents of the three municipalities during the normal business day.
COMMENTS:
A straightforward, factual response would be more informative. Reviewers can assume that "the normal business day" is 9:00 to 5:00, but it's just as easy to say "the office is open from 9:00-5:00 Monday through Friday." How many of the 35,000 residents used the collection last year? Are materials loaned to individuals or institutions? Are materials loaned to individuals or institutions? Are bibliographic records available on a regional database?
NOT-SO-GOOD EXAMPLE:
The collection has been held in the second floor boardroom of the Library for over 40 years. The boardroom is not part of the common space of the Library at the present time and patrons and other interested parties have been able to use the collection only with the assistance of a library staff member.
COMMENTS:
This response seems to address only the accessibility of the materials to be preserved (and does not offer an encouraging picture!). While reviewers will want to know that this part of the collection is not easily accessible, they will also want to know some basic information about hours when assistance with the collection is available, how many people actually use it, etc. The information requested in this section is very basic--when are you open, how many people use the collection--but it has not been provided here, not for the library as a whole nor for this particular collection.
GOOD EXAMPLE:
III. ACCESSIBILITY OF COLLECTION TO THE PUBLIC
The Library is open to the public Monday through Friday from 10:00 am to 5:00 pm and at other times by appointment with the librarian. Library patronage has averaged 5,000 a year since 1982 with 5,804 patrons using 6,155 titles in 1986. Library holdings are available on OCLC as materials are cataloged. Serials holdings are on OCLC through the Rochester Regional Library Council union list of serials project.
Access to archival collections is possible through the archivist or library staff. The archivist was added to the staff in December 1986. Archival records will be processed according to the standards delineated by the Society of American Archivists. Updates will be sent to the New York Historical Resources Center, Cornell University, as materials are processed. Records will also be sent to the Local History Committee of the Rochester Regional Library Council for its regional bibliography currently under revision.
The Library participates in interlibrary loan of its collections provided the title can withstand shipping and handling. The Library loaned 63 books in 1986. Rare or hard-to-replace materials are not loaned.
GOOD EXAMPLE:
The library/archives is open to the public 40 hours a week from 9-5, Monday through Friday, and is supervised by Historical Society staff during these hours. Reference service is available by mail and telephone. In 1987, 446 researchers used the library/archives on-site; 285 telephone inquiries were received; and another 205 persons made use of library/archives resources by mail. As noted above, use copies of all photographs are available. The Society operates a non-circulating, non-browsing library; so all material must be used on-site, assisted by the staff. In recent years, the Society has implemented two policies which restrict use of our library/archives collections. In 1986, the Society established a Research Fee Policy which set up a fee schedule for use of our research material by nonmembers of the Society and/or nonstudents. In 1987, The society also implemented a Photoduplication Policy which deals with patrons obtaining print copies of photographs from our collection. The policy established a strict procedure to order and obtain print copies of our photographs, and also a fee schedule for the copy work and a users fee for photograph uses. This policy was a result of previous abuses in crediting and honoring the copyright on these photographs. Collected fees from research and photographs are applied to the care and management of the library/archives collections.
GOOD EXAMPLE:
The Central Library is open to the public for 60 hours per week. In 1987 the System circulated 6,237,516 items, loaned 9,529 items and borrowed 719 items. Few restrictions exist for patrons of the Library. As a rule any book, periodical, or newspaper listed in the catalog is available to the general public. While many of the two million plus volumes in the Central Library circulate, older publications and works of major research value do not. two-thirds of the collection is housed in closed stacks. Manuscripts and other materials that have been identified as rare, valuable, and/or exceptionally fragile are available to the public in a monitored setting in our Rare Book Room.
GOOD EXAMPLE:
The Historical Society is committed to making its collections as accessible as possible. A staff of professionals and trained paraprofessionals works with library patrons to help them locate desired information. The Society Library is open from 10 AM to 4:45 PM , Tuesday through Saturday. Located in Brooklyn Heights near downtown Brooklyn, the Society Library is accessible by virtually every subway route, numerous bus routes, and by car, giving access to a combined metropolitan population of more than 18 million people.
In addition to the 2,265 research visits which were made to the library during the 1987-88 year, 3,269 telephone requests and 595 mail inquiries from individuals throughout the country were answered. The Society's bibliographic records will be increasingly accesible from other libraries through the OCLC database.
Because much of the Society's collection is irreplaceable, certain restrictions are placed upon its use. First of all, the society's collection is a noncirculating one. Persons handling photographic images are required to wear cotton gloves. The use of certain manuscripts are restricted because of their importance and fragility. Researchers must demonstrate serious need in order to use the most endangered items in the collections. Only materials printed since 1900 can be photocopied, and then only if they are in acceptable condition. Only pencils are allowed to be used on the premises.
Because of the unique nature of our collections, the library is unable to participate in interlibrary loans. However, whenever possible the library staff does try to provide other institutions with photocopied reproductions of materials.
III. ACCESSIBILITY OF COLLECTIONS TO THE PUBLIC
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CHECKLIST …*… Type of cataloging or arrangement …*… Use of regional or national databases …*… Use of other standard bibliographic resources |
NOT-SO-GOOD EXAMPLE:
III. ACCESSIBILITY OF COLLECTIONS TO THE PUBLIC
All records will have to be properly indexed to enable location of documents. The documents to be microfilmed are utilized to some degree on a daily basis. Documents have not been surveyed by the New York Historical Document Inventory.
COMMENTS:
This response indicates that documents have not yet been indexed, but not when they will be, nor what type of arrangement will be used. In most cases basic bibliographic controls should be in place before conservation/preservation activities begin. Updating bibliographic records can be part of the grant request provided the amount does not exceed 10 percent of the total grant request.
Since the Historical Document Inventory (HDI) project has not yet reached all areas of the state, reviewers' evaluations will not be negatively affected by the lack of an HDI survey. It would be more informative, however, to state whether or not the applicants' area has been surveyed. If it has, and this collection was not included, a few words of explanation would be required.
NOTE: An HDI survey is not a substitute for arrangement and description of historical document collection.
NOT-SO-GOOD EXAMPLE:
As a new member of our regional state library system, we plan to enter our card catalog records into the system's bibliographic database for interlibrary loan purposes. At this time, our archives have no cataloging; we plan to remedy this when funds become available.
COMMENTS:
When will funds become available and from where? It is normally expected that some level of "cataloging" should be completed before preservation work begins. (In any event, funds for this purpose are not available through the Discretionary Grant Program, except in very limited amounts as described in the guidelines.) The archivist reviewing this proposal would wonder if the author really understands how to make archival collections accessible. Cataloging is an item specific classification applied to books and other printed materials. This is, of course impractical if not impossible with manuscripts. Archives are therefore normally arranged and described according to accepted standards to allow access.
Not all databases have provisions for entering descriptions of archival series. The reviewers would want to know whether or not the one in this library's region does. There would, however, be no penalty in the reviewers' ratings if the regional database did not have this provision.
NOT-SO-GOOD EXAMPLE:
B. Cataloging or other forms of bibliographic control
It is our intent to recatalogue the entire collection uniformly as to subject, title and author so that it will be more accessible and meaningful to patrons, researchers, and the community as a whole.
COMMENTS:
When will this be done? Why is it necessary? What method of cataloging will be used--Dewey, LC, or some other? Are regional databases available? If so, are there plans to take advantage of them? Reviewers learn nothing from this response that will assist them in evaluating the proposal.
NOT-SO-GOOD EXAMPLE:
B. Cataloging or other forms of bibliographic control
All cataloging is done through MARCHIVE, either by readily available cataloging, or by utilizing CIS and new titles are automatically reported to the Library Resource Council.
COMMENTS:
It may be that this collection is completely cataloged and easily accessible to users, but reviewers are given very sketchy information. It is never acceptable to use acronyms unless they have been spelled out earlier (these were not). Even so, since reviewers come from all over the country, names of local systems may be meaningless unless a few words of explanation have been given about what systems they are, who they serve, and what they do.
GOOD EXAMPLE:
III. ACCESSIBILITY OF COLLECTIONS TO THE PUBLIC
B. Cataloging or other forms of bibliographic control
Library materials are cataloged according to the Anglo-American Cataloging Rules (AACR2), Library of Congress Classification and Subject Headings. All English alphabet cataloging is done through OCLC. The library maintains card catalogs for bibliographic control. Newly accessioned material is listed in the catalogs so that users may have full access even before materials are fully cataloged. The Library System is currently in correspondence with the Research Libraries Group (RLG) with regard to Special Membership for Hebrew alphabet cataloging in Research Libraries Information Network (RLIN).
Archival materials are arranged and listed according to established principles in the profession. Archives accession forms have been designed according to the MARC format. "MARC:ame" in anticipation of data entry into an automated data base, most likely RLIN.
As archival collections are processed, inventories to these collections are published. Six inventories have appeared since September 1984 and two more will appear shortly. (Copies of the drafts are appended to this application since these deal with the collections to be filmed.) The inventories are distributed free of charge to approximately seventy-five institutions in the United States and abroad and at a nominal fee covering postage and handling to interested individuals. Information regarding Archives holdings and copies of inventories are regularly sent to the National Union Catalog of Manuscript Collections (NUCMC).
The University's Archives and Manuscript Collections have been surveyed by the New York State Historical Documents Inventory (HDI)
GOOD EXAMPLE:
B. Cataloging or other forms of bibliographic control
The Society has card catalog files for our library, manuscript collection, photograph collection, scrapbook collection, Vertical File, and cemetery records. There are in-house, computerized inventory lists of our Vertical and Biographical files available to the public. The County was the first in the State to have its unpublished materials surveyed by the New York State Historical Documents Inventory (HDI). HDI lists the society's archival collection which includes the Ross Marvin material in our Biographical File. The Society is moving toward computerizing, its bibliographic controls. In the fall of 1988, the Society received funding to recatalog our library materials. The cataloging is being performed by the Souther Tier Library system, Corning, NY, and is included on OCLC. In 1987, the society with a computer programmer, developed a computerized collection management system, called "Timeless Collections," which allows for input of all collection records (museum, archives, library, and archaeological) into one program. The library/archives accession records will be entered in 1990-91. We are working toward retrieval of all collection records by 1991-92. At that time, we plan to have a second terminal available for researchers in our library/archives. By 1991, we will implement an optical disc system allowing our photographic images to be available on the computer screen.
GOOD EXAMPLE:
B. Cataloging or other form of bibliographic control
Since 1975, all cataloging, including original cataloging by the staff, is done through OCLC. The Total Online Library Information System (TOLIS), installed by Data Research Associates, is an ongoing project to convert the Library's materials, records and procedures into an automated mode. The TOLIS bibliographic database consists of records loaded into the system from the Library's OCLC archival tapes, augmented by records updated through a retrospective conversion and by tapes purchased from the Cleveland Public Library.
Special catalogs and/or guides exist for a number of our special collections: our James Fraser Gluck Autograph and Manuscript Collection (1899); our Huckleberry Finn Collection (1950); our Shaker Collection (1967); our Pollard and Redgrave and our Wing Collections (1968); and our Evans Collection (1969). A checklist of our Roycroft Press Collection is being prepared. All of the above collections are in the Rare Book Room.
GOOD EXAMPLE:
B. Cataloging or other forms of bibliographic control
Currently, only the most rudimentary bibliographic controls exist for the 155,000 volumes in the collection. Books are shelved by author within broad, and often eccentric categories established during the 19th century. It was not until 1980 that the library began to subscribe to the Library of Congress catalog card program, introducing some standardization to its procedures for the first time.
A recent grant from the J.M. Kaplan Fund, however, has enabled the library to join OCLC this fall. Access to this bibliographic database promises to facilitate the adoption of up-to-date cataloging standards of AACR2 with LC classification and subject headings for new acquisitions and cataloging backlog. Additional funding will be sought to hire extra staff so that materials can be properly recataloged.
A list of the Society's manuscript holdings related to Brooklyn was compiled in 1980 by "Brooklyn Rediscover," a project of the Brooklyn Educational and Cultural Alliance. These collections were then entered into the RLIN database by the New York Historical Resources Center at Cornell. A guide to the collections was published by the Historical Documents Inventory (HDI) and reported to the National Union Catalog of Manuscript Collections (NUCMC). Thanks to the NHPRC grant mentioned above on page 3, the Society's manuscript holdings also received professional treatment in 1986. It is hoped that the library can soon add a trained archivist to its permanent staff so that processing and reporting to NUCMC can resume.
III. ACCESSIBILITY OF COLLECTIONS TO THE PUBLIC
C. Ownership of materials
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CHECKLIST …*… Owned by institution …*… Copy of deposit agreement |
NOT-SO-GOOD EXAMPLE:
III. ACCESSIBILITY OF COLLECTIONS TO THE PUBLIC
C. Ownership of materials
The materials we propose to preserve belong to the Village and the Town, and are held permanently for safekeeping by the Library and Historical Society.
COMMENTS:
There is no problem with materials owned by the village and town being deposited at the library or the historical society--they would still be eligible for a Discretionary Grant in most cases. However, it is unclear whether or not there is any formal or legal arrangement regarding deposit of the materials or exactly where they are deposited--at the library or the historical society. Even when things start out simple and friendly, the lack of a "clear, legal understanding between the owner and the institution to insure that they will remain permanently accessible," can sometimes lead to complicated disputes about who owns what and who has the right to use it.
NOT-SO-GOOD EXAMPLE:
C. Ownership of materials
Additions to the collection have been gifts from individuals and estates and the Library becomes the sole owner of same. The lack of appropriate space and means for preservation has kept the Library from much active requests for material. In the new expansion of our building we hope to make this Collection larger and more accessible to the community.
COMMENTS:
The first sentence in this response is the only one that provides any relevant information. The rest should be deleted, or moved to the appropriate section of the application. We are not told how the library becomes the sole owner of donated materials. Is there a legal agreement with the donor? If not, the donor or his/her heirs may later claim that the materials were only on loan, regardless of any previous verbal agreements, and insist on their return. While such disputes are the exception rather than the rule, it only takes one to involve the institution in a nasty and sometime expensive efforts to maintain its collections. It is easy to avoid such disputes by having a simple and legally binding agreement with all donors.
GOOD EXAMPLE:
III. ACCESSIBILITY OF COLLECTIONS TO THE PUBLIC
C. Ownership of materials
Approximately 15 percent of the photographic collection is owned by the Society. The remainder of the materials to be preserved with grant funds are held by the Society under longstanding custodial transfer agreements with the City History Center and XXX Products, Inc. Copies of both legal agreements are attached (Appendix 1), indicating that the materials have been placed in the Society on permanent loan and may be made available to any and all users of the Society. The agreements specify that the Society will maintain, preserve, and service the collection in an appropriate manner.
GOOD EXAMPLE:
C. Ownership of materials
All materials in the Historical Society library/archives are owned outright by the institution, including the materials to be preserved with funds requested in this proposal.
GOOD EXAMPLE:
C. Ownership of materials
With the exception of the manuscripts of one local author, which are on deposit, the Library owns all of its collections. A copy of the deposit agreement is attached.
GOOD EXAMPLE:
C. Ownership of materials
The entire contents of the library collection is owned by the Society. No materials are held on loan or deposit.
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Last modified on January 19, 2000/djr
For questions or comments contact Barbara Lilley
URL: http://www.nysl.nysed.gov/libdev/cp/accesib.htm