This paper examines the usefulness of poetry book prizes as a selection tool by evaluating their fairness, meaningfulness, and reliability as an indication of quality. The results of two surveys, one collecting data on poetry book prizes and the other asking librarians about their collecting practices, suggest that selecting on the basis of prizes…

This article describes the roles of librarians in a research library, particularly in the digital era. Librarians' roles vary from the custodian of resources to providers of a diverse nature of activities ranging from collection development, organization of knowledge, information services, preservation and conservation, and management. Librarians…

This paper reports on a study of librarian initiated publications discovery (LIPD) in U.S. state digital depository programs using the OCLC Digital Archive to preserve web-based government publications for permanent public access. This paper describes a model of LIPD processes based on empirical investigations of four OCLC DA-based digital…

Approval plans are used by many libraries as an adjunct to title-by-title selection, and sometimes as a substitute for it. The author examines this approach to purchasing library materials, considering positive and negative effects approval plans may have on collection balance as well as on acquisitions budgets and workflow. The article also…

Twenty-three scholarly papers and eleven abstracts reflect the content of the seventh "Brick and Click Libraries Symposium," held annually at Northwest Missouri State University in Maryville, Missouri. The proceedings, authored by academic librarians and presented at the symposium, portray the contemporary and future face of…

One of the hardest administrative duties for teacher-librarians seems to be collection development. One would think that the selection of books would be effortless, especially with the number of online bookstores offering used book discounts or free shipping for large orders. Deepening budget cuts and limited or untrained staff means collection…

In the down-sized academic library of the twenty-first century, many librarians with little or no formal collection development training or experience are being entrusted with large departmental budgets, occasionally without the collaboration of a department liaison. How do new librarians, or librarians new to a discipline, deal with this…