Like most complex organizations, libraries are composed of various departments or divisions. And while the attempt is to make the library seamless and easy to navigate (really it is), they don't always succeed.
The following is an overview of the departments, arranged by floor, that make up the UIS library, called Norris L Brookens Library. The textbook reading describes typical academic libraries, and we have some links to virtual tours of other university libraries, to contrast and compare how libraries arrange themselves.
Level 1: Archives & Special Collections, Bibliographic Services, Educational Technology, MacDonald Lounge
Level 2: Administration, Circulation, Computer Workstations, Everson Lounge, Indexes & Abstracts, Government Publications, Information Desk, Instructional Services Librarians, Interlibrary Loan, Map Collection, Nonprofit Resource Center, Reference Collection, Reserves
Level 3: Current Newspapers & Periodicals
Level 4: Friedman Lounge, General Book Collection
The MacDonald Lounge is the newest study area in the Library. It offers comfortable seating, Ethernet data ports to plug in your laptop, a couple of PCs that have Microsoft Office software, and a few vending machines. There is a collection of current newspapers and newsmagazines as well.
The library subscribes to 7 daily newspapers: Chicago Sun-Times, Chicago Tribune, New York Times, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, State Journal-Register, Wall Street Journal, and Washington Post. Current issues are next to the vending machines, and are kept there until we receive the microfilm version, except that we do not receive a microfilm version of the Sun-Times nor the Washington Post. (But the Sun-Times is up on Level 3 with the main collection of Periodicals AP2 .C517 -- the tabloid style doesn't fit on the newspaper rack.)
Brookens Library has two other lounges for studying, sleeping, etc. There's the Everson Lounge on Level 2, and the Friedman Lounge on Level 4
Other Libraries...
All libraries have some lounge/study areas. Some are deathly quiet, like the Suzzallo Reading Room at the University of Washington. (It looks like a Gothic cathedral.) Others are more informal, social areas to hang out.
Educational Technology (217-206-6550) is the organization on campus responsible for instructional technology, assisting both students and faculty. They run the computer labs, take care of the computers in all the classrooms, and support the faculty in using technology to teach.
Within the library, Educational Technology has a computer lab with Macintosh and PC computers with lots of multimedia software and hardware for creating webpages, audio, video, etc., as well as word processing. There are tv/vcr machines to watch videos within the library in the lab as well. (The videos themselves are in a closed collection on Level 2.) Most of the computers are equipped with DVD-ROMs, so you can watch a DVD movie on the computer.
They also have microfilm and microfiche readers with printers attached. One of the reader/printers has scanning capability as well, so you can digitize what you are viewing and save it to a disk.
There are a couple of distance education classrooms on Level One, and a multimedia classroom for free workshops on various multimedia software: Photoshop, Dreamweaver, Flash, Acrobat, Illustrator, QuickTime Pro, iMovie, iDVD, Soundedit 16, Pagemaker, and Director.
Behind the scenes, Educational Technology is also responsible for the audio/visual needs of the campus, from having a TV/videoplayer set up in a classroom, to videotaping a conference.
Other Libraries...
Not all libraries have an educational technology component within the building. It depends on how the university has arranged the departments on campus. Usually the videos are housed somewhere in the library, but the computers and audio/visual equipment may fall under another technology department on campus.
The UIS Archives & Special Collections (217-206-6520) houses historical material relating to Sangamon State University (the original name for this university) and UIS, as well as some local history materials and local government records for genealogy. Some unique collections include materials on the Handy Writers Colony and a local Oral History collection on tape and transcribed. Hours are 9 to 5, Monday through Friday, or by appointment.
Other Libraries...
All campuses have their own archives for their own historical documents. However, in smaller colleges, it may be part of the History Department. Each Archives/Special Collections will have unique, tailored collections of personal papers, photographs, and other rare materials.
Springfield, being the state capital, has a wealth of archival libraries. The Lincoln Library downtown has a wonderful local history collection in its Sangamon Valley Collection. And within the state government, there is the State Library, the State Archives, and the State Historical Library (which is now a part of the new Lincoln Presidential Library).
Bibliographic Services is the name given to the department responsible for ordering, receiving, cataloging, and processing all materials for the library: books, periodicals, videos, government publications, etc. This is a "behind the scenes" department, and here at UIS we've put them in the basement, close to the loading dock.
The acquisitions division purchases materials. Most libraries have one main vendor to whom they go to for most materials. (Our vendor is Blackwell.) But the library doesn't limit itself to just the one, and will shop around for better prices on occasion. We use Barnes & Noble and Amazon.com sometimes, just like everyone else.
The receiving division checks materials in initially, reviewing shipping lists to make sure we received what we were supposed to receive, as well as checking in materials that already have a record in the online catalog, for instance issues of a magazine.
Those items that do not have a record in the online catalog are then given to the catalogers. Since we have a shared catalog, if we receive a copy of a book someone else has already cataloged, we will simply add our name to the list of libraries that have a copy. If we are the first to purchase an item of the 65 libraries in the online catalog, then the catalogers look for another record for the item, usually one done by the Library of Congress, the unofficial national library of the United States. Very rarely do catalogers at smaller institutions nowadays have to do "original cataloging," or describing an item from scratch.
Then the book winds its way to "end processing," where the call numbers are put on the spine of the book and it is security stripped and stamped.
Other Libraries...
Bibliographic Services, sometimes called Technical Services, vary in size, depending on the size of the collection. Some libraries divvy up the processing between divisions, for instance giving the Serials Department responsibility for checking in magazines and newspapers.
Circulation (217-206-6605 or lib-circ@uis.edu), also called "Access Services" in Libraryland, is the first service desk you see when you walk into Brookens Library. This desk serves several purposes for the public. This is where you check out books. Books circulate for 4 weeks for undergraduate students and 16 weeks for graduate students and faculty. You will need to show your I-Card Student ID to check out materials.
This is also the desk you go to if you need general assistance with the photocopiers, or you need change for the copiers, or if the book you want isn't on the shelf where it's supposed to be. If you request books via PrairieCat or Interlibrary Loan, they will be kept at the circulation desk for you to pick up. (Unless you've made arrangements to have the books mailed to you or sent to another library.) The circulation staff mail out notices telling you that your book has arrived.
The Circulation Desk is also where materials (books, articles, lecture notes, old tests, etc.) placed "on reserve" by professors are kept. Reserve materials can be circulated for 7 days, 3 days, or "library use only," at the discretion of the professor who put them on reserve.
Behind the scenes, the Circulation Department is responsible for maintaining the book collection (shelving, straightening, pulling damaged books, etc.). They are also responsible for maintaining the reserve collection, both in physical and electronic format. The materials that we have on e-reserves were actually put up in Blackboard by circulation staff.
Other Libraries...
Some libraries centralize services by having just one service desk where users can get any kind of help they need, from checking out books to help with finding information. The desk would then usually have more than one person there. This arrangement simplifies things for the user, but makes staffing more complicated for the library with regards to training. And to some extent it becomes a waste of resources if persons with masters degrees end up doing clerical work, rather than utilizing their talents in finding resources or teaching users.
Interlibrary Loan (ILL) is a division within the circulation department responsible for processing loaned materials. The UIS library has a good collection of books and periodicals, but we can't have everything. Instead of trying to acquire everything, we attempt to provide access to knowledge on a subject by having the indexes or databases relevant to that subject. With these indexes and databases, users can find citations to relevant materials, and if we don't own that resource, we will attempt to borrow it from another library.
For UIS students who are never on-campus and live a reasonable distance away, the library will mail books and articles to you. For instructions, go to http://library.uis.edu/findinfo/offcampus/requesting.html.
There are two different ways of getting books outside Brookens Library.
Requests for articles from periodicals not owned by UIS are handled by Interlibrary Loan. Just fill out the online form and allow 1-3 weeks. Photocopies of the articles will be mailed to the address indicated on the form.
Other Libraries...
Most libraries cooperate with each other and provide books and articles by request. Some libraries charge for this service, while others lend freely to libraries that also lend freely. One stumbling block encountered by libraries are copyright restrictions on articles. A library can only request articles from a particular journal 5 times a year, and after that they have to pay the copyright fees. That's 5 times for the library as a whole, not 5 articles per individual student. For speedier turnaround, some libraries outright purchase articles from document delivery services such as Ingenta, which can charge around $20-$30 an article. And some libraries will email articles to their patrons, rather than snail-mailing them. (UIS is still working out the bugs for this service.)
Like any organization, Brookens Library has an administrative arm, responsible for overall management, personnel, and budgetary functions. The director of the UIS Library has two titles, Dean of Library Services and University Librarian, since the library is both an academic and a staff department for the University. Library Administration is located in the suite behind the Circulation Desk on Level 2. The Library Dean/University Librarian is Jane Treadwell.
Each division has a department head. Farokh Eslahi is the director of Educational Technology. The head of Bibliographic Services is Stephen J. Smith. Kathleen Roegge is the head of Access Services (Circulation/Reserves/Interlibrary Loan). Mollie Freier is the Chair for the Instructional Services Librarians. Tom Wood is the head of Archives & Special Collections.
Other Libraries...
Each library has its own method to organizing and managing itself. Some are very hierarchical, with directors, assistant directors, department heads, and peons. Others are more egalitarian, organizing themselves into "teams" for more cooperative decision-making.
The Information Desk is located in the middle of the floor on Level 2. Here you can get one-on-one help from one of the Instructional Services Librarians or one of the Information Desk's assistants. The Information Desk is open Monday through Thursday from 9am to 10pm, Friday 9am to 5pm, Saturday 10am to 6pm, and Sunday 1pm to 7pm.
The Instructional Services Librarians teach users how to navigate the resources in our library, from using the online catalog to structuring searches in a particular database. And they also will answer factual questions, or they refer users to another source if they are unable to provide an answer.
Other Libraries...
Some libraries call this type of service area the Reference Desk. The librarians working the Reference/Information Desk are always an excellent resource to use, so don't be shy about asking questions! That's what they are there for, even if they look like they are busy doing something else. And there really is no such thing as a stupid question. It does help, however, to have your question formulated out, rather than a vague request. The librarians are trained how to elicit the "real question" from vague requests, but they occasionally get busy, or instinctively take things at face value. If you ask "Where are the law books?" but what you are really interested in is court cases in Illinois dealing with joint custody issues, then you may get pointed to the KF section in Reference, rather than to a subject index to Illinois court cases.
Workstations
Brookens Library has computers for finding information scattered throughout the library, but the bulk of the computers are on Level 2 near the Information Desk. These computers have Internet access for finding books, articles and websites. And most of the computers have word processing and other Microsoft Office software on them.
The Library subscribes to around 90 databases, accessible via the Library's website. For printing, all of the computers on Levels 2, 3 and 4 are networked to 2 print stations on Level 2. It is $.10 a page to print, payable with an I-Card/copy card only.
Other Libraries...
Every library has to grapple with the issue of what software to put on the computers. All universities have computer labs for their students, so most academic libraries see their computers as being specialized for library use, rather than just another computer lab computer. (And they don't want to have to turn a student away from doing an informational search because all the computers are occupied, or at least appear to be occupied.) But students just see a computer and expect to be able to do whatever they want with it. And there lies the dilemma. Some libraries have their computers loaded with everything and treat them as if they were in a computer lab, with time limits placed on usage and/or sign-up sheets, or just as a free-for-all if they feel they have enough computers. Others have set up certain computers to be used for finding information, and others that are for word processing, etc. Public libraries tend to use the sign-up sheet method, simply because they feel it is required for their computers to have standard software packages on them, but they don't have enough computers to fill the demand.
Training staff becomes an issue as well, since the librarians at the service desks need to know how to use whatever software is loaded on the computers in order to be of assistance.
Printing is another issue for libraries. Most libraries network the printers and then they have to decide if they want to charge for printing, and if so, how to implement a "pay for printing" system. If the library allows free printing, because student fees pay for the paper and toner, then invariably lots of paper gets wasted. So some libraries will allow their users to print a certain number of pages free, then charge after that, just to eliminate the reams of wasted paper. If the library wants users to pay for printing, then they either have to purchase software to regulate it (like the UIS copy card system), or they put the printer at a service desk and manually count out the number of pages printed.
And the final computer issue for libraries is filtering the Internet. This is mainly an issue with public libraries, rather than academic, especially with the recent Supreme Court decision upholding legislation requiring filters in public libraries that accept federal grant money for Internet access. This issue could fill up an entire semester, so we'll just skip it, like most academic librarians have done.
Behind the Information Desk, the UIS library has its collection of print indexes and abstracts. (An index gives you citations only, while an abstract gives you citations and summaries, called abstracts, of the articles or books.) The indexes are in Library of Congress call number order, arranged by subject.
Why do we still have print indexes, when we have so many online databases? There are a couple reasons.
Other Libraries...
Most libraries have kept some print indexes for the same reasons listed above, but for budgetary or space reasons, they have discontinued those indexes they have available online.
The Reference Collection is located near the Information Desk. This is where you will find dictionaries, encyclopedias, atlases, statistical works, and other books that cannot be checked out, since you normally only want to read a small section rather than cover to cover. General encyclopedias are in the beginning of the collection. We will discuss the types of information found in reference books in detail during Week 6.
We also have some frequently consulted reference books stashed behind the Information Desk, for instance the World Almanac, the Springfield phone book, a dictionary, APA and MLA style manuals, etc.
Other Libraries...
In virtually all libraries reference books are near Information/Reference Desks. Libraries may arrange the reference books in different ways. Rather than by call number, some libraries pull out resources and put all the general encyclopedias in one area, all the biographical encyclopedias in another, all the statistical works in another, etc.
And most libraries have a small subset of "ready reference" or "quick reference" books right next to the Information/Reference Desks, composing of whatever books are frequently requested or consulted by the librarians.
Brookens Library has several Instructional Services Librarians. Their offices are located on Level 2, near the Reference Collection. The librarians are responsible for staffing the Information Desk, teaching workshops on using library resources for a particular class, purchasing materials for the departments they are responsible for, and teaching the class you're taking right now, UNI 401. The Instructional Services Librarians all have faculty rank and responsibilities. As an Instructional Services Librarian, we are responsible for staffing the Information Desk around 8 hours a week, teaching workshops and purchasing materials, as well as serving on various committees.
Other Libraries...
All libraries have someone who is responsible for assisting the public, and their titles are usually reference librarians or public services librarians or instruction librarians. Their responsibilities depend on the size of the library. The larger the library, the more specialized the librarians roles tend to be. Large academic libraries will have people who are only responsible for English, or chemistry, or only responsible for teaching first year students library research skills. The smaller the library, the more hats the librarians wear.
Government Publications are located on Level 2 behind the print indexes and abstracts. Brookens Library has both State of Illinois publications and ones from the federal government. Instead of being arranged by subject, the publications are arranged by the state or federal agency that issued it. The Library also has some United Nations or International publications, but they are housed in the reference or general collection, rather than separately. We will discuss these resources in detail during Week 11.
The UIS library is not technically a federal depository. (A "depository" receives the publications for free from the federal or state government, in return for housing them and disseminating information to the public.) Instead we have an arrangement with Blackburn College in Carlinville to share their depository status. (You can only have two per Congressional District, and Illinois has lots of federal depositories.) We are an official State of Illinois depository though.
Other Libraries...
Government publications are sometimes called government documents. There are around 1300 federal depositories in the United States, and 26 libraries that are depositories for State of Illinois publications. Most large libraries have government publications housed separately from general collection books or reference books, and sometimes they have their own service desk. But smaller libraries usually house them with the general collection.
The Illinois State Library in downtown Springfield is the largest depository for federal and state publications in Illinois. They receive all of the federal government publications as well as the State of Illinois publications, and they are required to keep all of them forever.
Written by Ron Peddicord
The map collection in Brookens Library is located on Level 2 in the map cases adjacent to the Reference and Illinois Documents collections stacks. The map collection includes over 3,500 map titles, over 50 wall maps, 8 raised relief maps as well as numerous uncataloged maps in vertical file cabinets near the Information Desk and hundreds of folded maps and charts that are shelved in the Government Publications Collection. With a few exceptions, maps do not circulate except to faculty for classroom use. Only about one half of the maps at UIS have been cataloged and most of those being the popular U.S. Geological Survey topographic maps.
Most maps and charts in our collection are publications of state or federal government agencies, such as the US Geological Survey (USGS), Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT), US Bureau of the Census, US Central Intelligence Agency, and NASA. Therefore, our maps are classified by government document call numbers (often called SuDoc numbers) rather than by Library of Congress classification.
The major series in our map collection include the USGS 7.5-minute and 15-minute topographic maps covering Illinois, USGS 1:100,000-scale planimetric quadrangle maps covering Illinois, USGS 1:250,000-scale topographic quadrangle maps covering the United States, IDOT's general highway maps for each of Illinois' 102 counties, CIA maps of foreign countries and regions, Bureau of the Census thematic maps, and lunar charts produced by NASA. Brookens Library also has a large collection of atlases in the Reference Collection, in the atlas cases on Levels 2 and 4, and in the Oversize collection on Level 4.
Other Libraries...
In many major map libraries the maps and charts are assigned a Library of Congress call number and thus arranged by geographic location. Therefore, all maps of Illinois would be filed together in the G 4100s regardless of who published it. The Map Library on the 2cd floor of the Illinois State Library has one of the best collections of maps and aerial photographs in the state with over 185,000 maps, as well as hundreds of atlases, plat books, gazetteers, and electronic resources. Other locations with large map libraries in Illinois include the Map and Geography Library at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, University Library at Western Illinois University, Milner Library at Illinois State University, and Morris Library at Southern Illinois University at Carbondale. The Newberry Library in Chicago has an impressive collection of historical maps, although they do not circulate. Most series are cataloged (although individual maps may not be) and the holdings can be accessed through PrairieCat.
The Nonprofit Resource Center (NRC) is a collection geared to finding private foundation grants, in cooperation with The Foundation Center in New York City. The Library offers a database (on campus only access) to private grantmaking organizations, as well as a collection of print materials on grantseeking and grantwriting.
Other Libraries...
There are around 200 Foundation Center Cooperating Collections. To find one, consult the Foundation Center's Cooperating Collections website. There are 4 in Illinois, but ours is the only one located in downstate Illinois.
This lounge, located in the southwest corner of the Level 2, offers comfortable seating and CD players with headphones. The library's CD music collection is housed here. There is a large selection of classical and jazz music, and some popular and world music as well. You may check out the CDs, just like books.
Other Libraries...
Music, like videos, can be housed in a variety of places in libraries, and the collection size will vary greatly, depending on the constituency of the library. Large universities with music programs will usually have a separate area just for music, while smaller libraries will lump them with other "non-book" materials. In public libraries, CDs, videos, and books on tape are some of the most popular materials, so circulation periods may be shorter than for books.
In Brookens Library, virtually all of the periodicals: the magazines and journals, are on Level 3. (The exceptions are the ones in the Government Publications area, and a few titles in the Reference Collection and the Lounges.) The library subscribes to around 2,000 periodicals, and they are arranged by subject and given Library of Congress call numbers, rather than alphabetically by title. Current issues are located in the blue boxes at the end of the bound volumes of a title. If you see a plastic red flag where your volume would be shelved, that means those issues are at the bindery. (You may request an Interlibrary Loan for the article you wanted -- just indicate on the form that the issue is being bound.) The periodicals in microfilm are housed on Level 3 as well, in the gray filing cabinets along the wall near the entrance. Take the microfilm down to Educational Technology on Level 1 to view and print the articles.
There is a selection of the current issues of magazines we subscribe to near the stairwell on Level 3, for leisure reading. (Current newspapers and newsmagazines are on Level 1.)
To find out if the Library subscribes to a particular periodical in physical print form, you may use the Journals @ UIS (which also lists what we have full text access to in our databases), or the online catalog and type in the title just as if you were looking for a book title. Or you may use our yellow, spiral bound Periodical Holdings books, which are scattered throughout the library. You will need to note the call number, as well as what format the year you need is in.
Other Libraries...
Libraries arrange periodicals in a variety of ways. Some libraries separate the current, loose issues from the bound volumes, and they may even have recent issues in "closed stacks" and you have to request a particular issue be pulled for you. Some libraries have the periodicals in alphabetical order, while others may have the bound periodicals in alphabetical order, yet arrange current issues by subject. (The thinking is that the user would want to browse the current journals in their field, but would have a citation to an older article and so would readily know the title of the journal.)
The Friedman Lounge offers comfortable seating and a browsing collection of books and a few magazines. The books are mainly popular nonfiction and some literary fiction. The books are fully cataloged, so if you do a search in the online catalog, it may say location "Friedman."
The bulk of the book collection is on Level 4, called the General Collection. Virtually all of these books, over 500,000 volumes, may be checked out. (There are a few legal reference sets up on Level 4 that don't circulate.) These are arranged by subject in Library of Congress (LC) call number order. Call number ranges are on the end panels of the rows, at the top of the end panel and at eye level.
If the location of the book says oversized, then the book will be found in the shelves along the wall, near the particular call number area. Oversized books don't fit on the regular shelves, so rather than turn the book on it's side, we provide larger shelving units.
If you go up to find your book and it's not on the shelf, talk to the Circulation Department. If the book was published quite recently, it's possible that it is still in the New Books shelf, right next to the Circulation Desk on Level 2. (The books are only kept there for 1-2 weeks, so we don't note that location specifically in the book catalog.)
Other Libraries...
Most public and academic libraries have "open stacks" similar to Brookens Library, where the user can browse and pull their own books. But some libraries, mainly large research libraries, have "closed stacks," where materials are pulled for the user. This is usually done when the library has severe space problems, and they are forced to squeeze the books in too small a space for the public to comfortably browse. With "closed stacks" some libraries then don't bother with shelving the books by subject, and they can then do it by size or in whatever format works best for getting as many books as possible on a shelf.
Created by Denise D. Green & Ielleen Miller
Last revised August 16, 2005