This March 7, 2013, webcast presented by ARL and Ithaka S+R provides an overview of the recent report of the same name as well as community responses to the findings. Speakers include Judy Ruttenberg (ARL), Nancy Maron (Ithaka S+R), Lisa Carter (Ohio State University), Anne Kenney (Cornell University), Ann Thornton (New York Public Library), and Sarah Pickle (Ithaka S+R).
SPEC Kit 329 explores the tools, workflow, and policies special collections and archives staff use to process, manage, and provide access to born-digital materials they collect. It also looks at which staff process and manage born-digital materials and how they acquire the skills they need for these activities, and how libraries have responded to the challenges that managing born-digital materials present. It includes documentation from respondents that describe digital specialists’ job responsibilities, collection policies, gift/purchase agreements, format policies, and workflows.
This publication is available for purchase in both online and print versions. Download the spec-kit-purchase-options-2013.pdf for complete pricing and purchase options information.
Link to the online SPEC Kit 329on the ARL Digital Publications website.
SPEC Kit 314 examines the current policies and practices for processing manuscript and archival collections in Special Collections. It is organized around four general areas: personnel, job responsibilities and training; processing policies, procedures, and priorities; impacts on processing decisions; and management tools. It includes documentation from respondents in the form of processing policies and procedures, processing worksheets, statistics, and job descriptions.
This publication is available for purchase in both online and print versions. Download the spec-kit-purchase-options-2013.pdf for complete pricing and purchase options information.
Link to the online SPEC Kit 314on the ARL Digital Publications website.
While many research libraries have begun to digitize their collections and share best practices around the steps required to create digital content, much less is known about what happens post-launch. Building on previous research by Ithaka S+R that defined key aspects of sustainable digital content, Appraising our Digital Investment: Sustainability of Digitized Special Collections in ARL Libraries offers a first look at the practices, attitudes, costs, and revenues associated with caring for digitized special collections. The report shares results from a survey conducted on the sustainability of digitized special collections at ARL member institutions.
Philip N. Cronenwett, Kevin Osborn, Samuel A. Streit, eds. • 2007 • ISBN 978-1-59407-769-2 • 312 pp., 402 illus., index
This compendium includes 118 special collection profiles, each from a different ARL member library. Each profile is illustrated with color photographs and tells a story of a single collection, recounting how the resources were acquired and developed. Also included is an introductory essay by British rare book expert Nicolas Barker and an appendix that provides a broad description of each library's special collection holdings and pertinent contact information. The book contains a detailed index; the companion Web site provides a search engine.
Print copies are also available for $135 ($115 ARL members) plus shipping & handling.
SPEC Kit 317 examines exhibits, events, instruction, and other activities that are targeted to engage students, faculty, and other scholars/researchers with special collections for research and education. It investigates who coordinates these activities, where they are held, how they are promoted, and how they are evaluated. It includes documentation from respondents in the form of policies and procedures, class request procedures, descriptions of class assignments and resources, job descriptions, and exhibit and event promotional methods.
This publication is available for purchase in both online and print versions. Download the spec-kit-purchase-options-2013.pdf for complete pricing and purchase options information.
Link to the online SPEC Kit 317on the ARL Digital Publications website.
Until this 1998 survey, no systematic data had been collected on special collections in ARL libraries for nearly 20 years. The results of this survey provide a snapshot of these collections at the end of the twentieth century and identify areas for further investigation.
digitizing-special-collections-report-21feb13.pdf
