Daily Egyptian Spring 05
16 more books found in library discard bin
Julie Engler Daily Egyptian
Two weeks after two Library Affairs committee members found four rare, 19th century books in Morris Library's discard bin, the number of mistakenly tossed books has jumped to 20. These new discoveries in the discard bin have left faculty in the College of Liberal Arts even more skeptical about the library's removal policy. COLA Dean Shirley Clay Scott had a meeting Wednesday where 12 faculty members gathered to address their concerns to library administrators. "I've received letters and e-mails from scholars at other universities who are worried about what's happening here," Scott said. The Library Affairs committee has been working to clarify the removal policy since December, but the recent discards have pushed the revision work into the spotlight across campus.
The removal of the discarded books has been suspended since Oct. 25 and will last until Morris Library's staff can resolve the issue. The current policy states that items considered for removal must be checked for certain criteria, including the condition of the book and the number of copies at other universities in the state. According to the policy, library subject specialists, also known as liaisons, must check the book in question with faculty in the subject area to see if the book could be of any use. Once the book has been checked, it moves to the discard bin. Then records are deleted, and the book waits to be recycled. The liaisons, or those whose primary responsibility is to consult faculty before taking a book out of circulation, must have a master's degree in library sciences to be hired. David Carlson, dean of Library Affairs, said he thinks it is appropriate to rely on them.
Committee member George Boulukos said he is concerned about the number of books that had been previously discarded. Since finding that 8 percent of the books in the bin are mistakes, Boulukos was concerned that the percentage may also reflect the number of books removed in the last several years. "It seems the system is not working," said Boulukos, who is also an English professor. Carlson said he expects the withdrawal policy draft to be completed in the next few weeks. The policy has been the center of heated discussion since a December committee meeting.
Carlson said that along with the formal draft of the policy, which will be more strongly enforced, the liaisons and other workers involved in the discarding process are working on drafting a complimentary procedures document to ensure the policy will be followed. Although the policy has been in effect for the last 30 years, committee members are concerned that the policy might not have been clear for these liaisons and other library workers.
"We need to do our job better," Carlson said. "We're putting an emphasis on finding the right process. That work should be done before the books ever hit the withdrawal shelf." The Library Affairs committee has been asking for a way for faculty to double-check the books before they are recycled and erased from the library's history. Lamb, who is also an English professor, suggested there be a shelf where discarded books can be placed for faculty to consult.
At the meeting, the faculty agreed they would like to have a system for faculty consultation to reduce the amount of mistakes made, but Carlson said he did not think it would work. Carlson said he had seen a similar system in progress at another university, and that after some time faculty stopped checking the shelf. "I'm not saying it would happen here," Carlson said. "I'd rather implement a system that's more effective." Carlson said he is still working on the issue of a faculty consultation process, and he needs to think about the comments and concerns made at the meeting.
Last update: Thursday, March 10, 2005 at 2:41:55 PM
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