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LB.05.01
April 25, 2005

UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS
URBANA-CHAMPAIGN SENATE
Committee on the Library
(Final;Information) LB.05.01 2004-2005 Annual Report

The Committee on the Library has met six times during the 2004-2005 academic year as of the drafting of this report; an additional meeting is scheduled for May 9. The main items of business have been the Library Budget and Scholarly Communication.

Guests are regularly invited from the Library to give presentations on specific issues. During the period of this report these have included Karen Schmidt, Associate University Librarian for Collection and Preservation; Tina Chrzastowski, Chemistry Librarian; Tom Ward, Chair, Senate Committee on Information Technology; Katie Clark, Virtual Biotechnology Librarian; and Bill Mischo, Grainger Engineering Librarian.

Librarian’s Report and Budget Overview Paula Kaufman

Ms. Kaufman has kept the Committee informed about the operations and concerns of the Library; a few are listed below.

The Library recently received one million dollars in recurring funds and $600,000 in one-time funds with a promise to renew in the future. The previous year’s budget had taken a four percent cut; the Library did not lay off any staff but did not fill many positions.

The Library is still in the process of canceling subscriptions to serials and looking closely at the cost of both print and electronic journals in the sciences. The cost of science journals has risen significantly over the past fifteen years, whereas, the cost of journals in the humanities has just recently begun to rise in price.

The Library has had a Development campaign in progress, a partnership with the Division of Intercollegiate Athletics. During Foundation Weekend, orange wristbands were sold at the football game expressing the sentiment “Loyalty, Pride and Tradition.” They are tailored after the “Livestrong” wristbands being sold for charity by the Lance Armstrong Foundation. Also, the Library has prepared a DVD about the Library to distribute for Development purposes.

The Library is rethinking how it provides service. The new “Camels” team formed to “get you over the hump” consists of four people and provides emergency services to the individual libraries when needed. There is also a new Access Services team considering the ability to search more than one database at a time, how we might unearth hidden collections, accessing the new newspaper database, and how we might bring them all together. Kaufman pointed out that the UIUC Library is the third largest academic library and the largest public university library.

The Campus will remodel room 66 of the Main Library; there are also plans to install a new sprinkler system, rewire the electrical system, and make repairs resulting from water leakage. There is a proposal through the J. Paul Getty Institute solely to restore the Hemisphere paintings up the grand staircase.

Kaufman distributed copies of the University Library Annual Report dated January 28, 2005 that was forwarded to the Provost and the CBOC (Campus Budget Oversight Committee). Serving as a budget request, this report covers the Overall State of the Library, Salary Needs, and Opportunities.

There have been discussions recently with Shepley Bulfinch (Architects) at a cost of $40,000 to plan renovations to the Main Library estimated to cost around $250,000 to be financed by both state and private funds. Speakers for 2004-2005:

“The Acquisitions Budget” Karen Schmidt, Associate University Librarian for Collections

Karen Schmidt distributed copies of “FY05 Budget, with additional $200,000” and gave an overview. She mentioned that Alex Scheeline and the Budget Allocation Steering Committee began looking at allocating money in a permanent way about five years ago. This year the Library will be receiving absolutely no new money which leaves no other choice but to re-allocate; she described this process as a “reshuffling of the same deck of cards.” This course of action must reassess the situation and recognize new programs. Canceling scientific journals is a painful process; the Library must rely more and more on endowment dollars. As a result, the Library is sharing more information with its sister colleges.

“Budget Allocation” Karen Schmidt, Associate University Librarian for Collections

Karen Schmidt distributed copies of the Library’s Budget Allocation comparisons by department/division from FY 2000 through FY 2005 and reviewed the handout with committee members discussing the increases/decreases in different areas. Committee members Andrea Goulet and Jordana Mendelson participated in the budget allocation discussions for FY 2006.

Tina Chrzastowski Chemistry Library Virtual Tour

Chrzastowski reported that the Chemistry Library has been on campus since 1891; located at its present location since 1917 (in third location). As part of the Noyes Laboratory Organic Chemistry Laboratory rehabilitation project, the Chemistry Library is being moved to a new site within Noyes Laboratory (first floor NE area) sometime in 2006.

The present library can not keep up with print journals in chemistry. The “new model” library will rely on electronic access; ninety per cent of the journal collection, 1995 to present, will be available electronically. The dramatic decline in print use has reduced the need for student workers as there is not as much re-shelving. This electronic collection is not only available 24/7 but is not prone to wear and tear, mutilation or theft. Costs are reduced since unbound journals do not need to be checked in, claimed, bound and continuously re-shelved. However, the new model does mean that more instruction will be necessary.

Update on the Senate Committee on Information Technology Tom Ward, Committee Chair

Ward reported that the work of the Senate Committee on Information Technology overlaps with that of other committees. He touched briefly on the Campus Network Upgrade Project, a 5-year plan to upgrade the network infrastructure for higher speed connections. Kaufman pointed out that $100,000 has been set aside for an upgrade of three network closets in the Library. Ward noted that another concern is security, the need to reduce unwanted e-mail (requiring new software to identify spam), and reduce network break-ins.

Oak Street Storage Facility Tour Daleann Stark, Training Coordinator

Stark provided committee members with a tour of the high-density storage facility, the recent new home of more than 170,000 books relocated to ease the over-crowding that has plagued University libraries for years. High-density refers to the type of shelving and arrangement that is used; materials are stored in bins on 40-foot-high, industrial-type warehouse shelving. Books are stored according to size, and bar codes are used instead of call numbers to track the material. Volumes are chosen for storage if they are low-use and have not been circulated in at least 20 years, or serials and journals that the University has electronic equivalents. The facility’s book vault is kept at 50 degrees and at 35 percent humidity for preservation. Members watched as students cleaned volumes prior to entering the warehouse; they vacuumed the pages of the books and then sized them to the right bin. For more information, go to www.library.uiuc.edu/cir/oak/oak.htm.

“Virtual Biotechnology Library” Katie Clark, Biotechnology Librarian & Associate Professor, Library

Clark distributed handouts (PowerPoint Presentation: Why a Biotechnology Information Center?; A Quick Reference Guide to Online Bio-Ag Resources at UIUC; and Selected Journal indexes for Molecular Biology & Biotechnology Topics) and proceeded with her PowerPoint presentation. A virtual library, the Biotechnology Information Center received one-time start-up funds of $50,000 for the purchase of a collection of electronic resources (http://www.library.uiuc.edu/biotech/). Clark focuses on teaching students how to use electronic resources; she makes presentations in laboratory groups.

Progress on the Scholarly Communication Web Site Katie Clark

Clark reported that the new Scholarly Communication Web Site (http://www.library.uiuc.edu/scholcomm/prototype/index.htm) will be operational by the end of the semester if not sooner. This site is a result of recent concerns over the high cost of journals. Low-cost academic publishing alternatives, both traditional and innovative, do exist, many of which are non-profit. These alternatives serve the public good by enhancing wide distribution of knowledge, while simultaneously reducing the strain on library budgets.

Tour of Grainger Engineering Library Bill Mischo

Mischo presented an overview of the history of the Grainger Engineering Library and explained to the committee members how to access journals on the Web, provided information regarding commercial Web search engines and how to access the “hidden” Web, licensing agreements, and the electronic resource registry. Senate Committee on the Library


Michael Loui, Chair
William Hammack
Jordana Mendelson
S. Balachandar
Paula Kaufman, ex officio*
Daniel J. Nugent
Mark DressmanAndrea GouletUriel KitronMichael MadonickAmanda So*Denotes non-voting status