ACRL News Issue (B) of College & Research Libraries M ay 1986 / 333 G u id elin es fo r a u d io v isu a l services in a c a d e m ic libraries: A d raft P rep ared by the ACRL A udiovisual Com m ittee M argaret A n n Johnson, Chair This draft will be presented to the A C R L Board and to the library profession at Annual Conference in New York. T hese G uidelines w ere developed by the Audio- visual C om m ittee of th e Association of College and Research Libraries. T hey have been extensively re­ vised and supersede th e G uidelines developed and p u b lish e d by th e sam e c o m m itte e in 1968 (re ­ p rin ted 1969). C o m m itte e m em bers include: M a rg a re t Ann Johnson (chair), U niversity of M innesota, St. Paul; R onald L. Fingerson, School of L ib rary an d In fo r­ m atio n Science, University of M issouri-C olum bia; C h a r le s F o r r e s t, U n iv e r s ity of I llin o is , C h am p aig n -U rb an a; Susan G angl, University of M innesota; Lee D avid Jaffe (editor), University of Southern C alifornia; K ath a Massey, University of G eorgia; R ichard A. M atzek, N azareth College of Rochester; Arline M. Rollins, O hio State U niver­ sity; M ary Jane Scherdin, University of W isconsin- W h itew ater; Janice W oo, C olum bia University. Foreword It is nearly tw en ty years since th e first G uidelines fo r A udio-V isual Services in A ca d em ic Libraries was published. This provides an irresistible o p p o r­ tu n ity to say som ething cogent ab o u t th e state of audiovisual services in academ ic libraries and the changes th a t have taken place in the intervening years. E stablished technologies like 8m m film have b e­ come obsolete and th e u n thought-of, like laser re ­ cording and m icrocom puters, are now com m on­ place. Some form ats have come an d gone an d are already long forgotten. T he ra p id ra te of tech n o ­ logical change prevents lists and definitions from being useful for very long. F or this reason, such lists and definitions w ere avoided. M ore interesting, how ever, is th e change in th e role audiovisual resources play on college an d u n i­ versity cam puses. T he 1968 G uidelines addressed themselves exclusively to th e contributions of a u ­ diovisuals to th e instructional p ro g ram and did so w ith an ap p ro ach ap p ro p ria te to those early days of ed ucational technology on cam pus. T he intervening tim e has been long enough for Hearings on Guidelines fo r Audiovisual Services Audiovisual lib rarian s an d other interested p a rtie s w ill have th e o p p o rtu n ity to a tte n d hearings on these proposed guidelines at ALA A nnual C onference in N ew York. T hey are scheduled for S aturday, June 29, 9:30—11:00 a.m . 334 / C&RL News audiovisual media to become established in aca­ demic instruction and research as an integral p art of the programs of college and university libraries. It has been enough tim e to exceed the expectations and promises m ade in the original Guidelines. The Forew ord to the first edition promised to “offer greater efficiency of presentation, add real­ ism, stim ulate interest, clarify com m unication, and speed com prehension.” W e can now add the ability to perm it repetition and drill, allow stu­ dents to observe and critique themselves, and to perform otherwise difficult or dangerous exercises through models and simulations. The instructional role will continue to grow as audiovisual technol­ ogy provides greater capability, ease of use, access, and integration w ith other powerful learning tech­ nologies, an d as m ore m edia-savvy m en an d women join faculties. Audiovisual m aterials contribute to academic research as well. After all, this is an electronic world. Today’s events are captured by cameras and microphones: tapes, film and discs comprise a significant record of this society. To serve research­ ers, libraries must have strong audiovisual collec­ tions and programs. Consciousness of audiovisual media on campus is driven by the pervasive role they play in our soci­ ety. A second generation of m edia-bred students is already on college and university campuses, and we are well on our way to a media-conscious fac­ ulty. Audiovisual media are fam iliar, established and expected means of getting inform ation. 1. Planning 1.1. F orm ulate long range goals, m easurable short range objectives for achieving the goals incre­ mentally, and alternative strategies for achieving the objectives. 1.2. Establish w ritten policies. 1.3. Employ retrieval means, such as electronic spreadsheets, for quickly recording and accum u­ lating statistics and generating m anagem ent re­ ports. 1.4. C onduct use and user studies and investi­ gate currently available m edia alternatives for meeting the needs of the academic com munity. 1.5. Consult and com m unicate w ith advisors and decision-makers involved in the research and planning process at all levels in the institution. 1.6. Recognize and rew ard individuals who gen­ erate and share ideas and initiatives to enhance the program . 1.7. Encourage receptivity to new technologies via staff education and retraining, such as continu­ in g e d u c a tio n a n d in se rv ic e w o rk sh o p s, an d through release tim e and support for meeting pro ­ fessional expenses. 2. Budget 2.1. Secure adequate, continuing financial sup­ port for an audiovisual resources program before the program is im plem ented. 2.2. Allocate funds for acquisition, processing, preservation and user services for the materials. 2.3. Allocate funds to ensure an appropriate en­ vironm ent, adequate supplies, new and replace­ m ent equipm ent for both public and staff use, and m aintenance of equipm ent. 2.4. Allocate funds to meet staffing needs for ser­ vices, programs and collection organization. 3. Personnel 3.1. E m ploy qualified professional, technical and support personnel to plan, im plem ent, and evaluate audiovisual program s and services in aca­ demic libraries. This requires: a. People w ith the capacity and skills to identify needs and respond to them creatively. b. Sufficient numbers to attain defined goals and objectives. c. Classification, status, and salary scales for au ­ diovisual staff th a t are equivalent to those provided for other library/m edia employees. 4. Facilities 4.1. Integrate library audiovisual facilities de­ sign w ith the media program of the entire institu­ tion. a. Consider cam pus-wide needs of individual us­ ers and groups of users in planning listening and viewing space. b. C oordinate facilities planning w ith people re­ sponsible for non-library media services on campus to avoid unnecessary duplication of expensive facil­ ities while providing for optim al access to services and materials by members of the learning com m u­ nity. 4.2. Design facilities to adequately support the library’s audiovisual program . a. Provide adequate space, w iring, and environ­ m ental conditions for all present technologies and services. b. The design should emphasize user ease of ac­ cess to m aterials and equipm ent, ready availability of support staff, adequate lighting, heating, venti­ lation, air conditioning, and noise control, and ap­ propriate placem ent in the building. c. A full-service library m edia center requires far greater physical space th an does a library w ith a more limited audiovisual mission, such as lending materials only. 4.3. The specific responsibilities of the library media center will dictate the need for specialized room s an d areas, such as p ro d u c tio n , stu d io , graphics facilities, and related staff accom m oda­ tions. a. Individual stations and group facilities should have special regard for the comfort of the user and provide o p tim al conditions for p ro jectio n and broadcast. b. Include satisfactory shelving and storage fa­ cilities for the protection of m aterials and equip­ ment. May 1986 / 335 c. Facilities for equipm ent m aintenance and re­ pair are an essential p art of library audiovisual fa­ cilities design and planning. 4.4. Consider the possibility of changes in these specific responsibilities; flexibility in design is highly desirable. 4.5. A well-designed sign system is im portant in audiovisual service areas. 5. Equipment and Supplies 5.1. Provide equipm ent and supplies required for the types of audiovisual materials collected and supported and for the services offered. a. Full-service facilities may supply equipm ent for formats not held in the collection and for ser­ vices not provided in-house. b. N on-circulating collections should be sup­ ported w ith sufficient suitable playback equip­ ment for each form at held. c. Facilities w ith a production role should have equipm ent required for quality work. d. All services must have storage facilities, m ain­ tenance equipm ent and supplies appropriate to the materials in the collection. 5.2. Select durable, institutional quality equip­ ment and supplies. 6. Collection development 6.1. Assign responsibility for selection of audio­ visual resources to the designated librarian(s). 6.2. W rite a clear collection development state­ m ent enum erating the types of materials to be ac­ quired and supported. Specify formats appropriate to the institu tio n ’s goals and resources, the in ­ tended users, the subjects covered and the design of the facilities. 6.3. Apply the following criteria in selecting m a­ terial: a. nature of the curriculum ; b. faculty and graduate research needs; c. quality of the item, in both content and form; d. life expectancy; e. intended use. 6.4. W hen ap p ro p riate, preview audiovisual materials or consult reviewing sources before p u r­ chase. 6.5. Evaluate the existing collection frequently in order to determ ine subject areas th a t need to be strengthened or deemphasized. Collection devel­ opment (both acquisition and weeding) should oc­ cur in the context of institutional objectives. 7. Acquisition 7.1. Acquire audiovisual materials through the same channels—approval plans, direct orders, gifts and exchanges—as other library materials. 7.2. Pursue alternative sources such as indepen­ dent producers, broadcast agencies, and other in­ stitutions and collections as well. 7.3. Give special consideration to m aterials w h ich can only be o b ta in e d or best o b ta in e d through tem porary acquisition or loan. 8. Cataloging 8.1. M ake au d io v isu al m a te ria ls accessible through the same retrieval mechanisms available for other library materials. 8.2. Catalog audiovisual materials in accord­ ance w ith current national standards and prac­ tices. 8.3. Provide full subject access in addition to de­ scriptive cataloging. 8.4. Classify audiovisual m aterials like other types of materials but assign location or accession designations as determ ined by organizational and functional considerations. 9. Collection maintenance 9.1. Develop circulation policies and procedures appropriate to the care and handling requirements of the medium. 9.2. Instruct staff and patrons in the proper h an ­ dling of materials and operation of equipm ent. 9.3. T rain staff to perform routine preventive m aintenance for materials and equipment. 9.4. Provide environm ental conditions and use storage containers and shelving appropriate for the type of medium. 9.5. Secure materials and equipm ent against loss and damage. 9.6. Develop a program for regular evaluation of the condition of materials and equipm ent. 10. Service 10.1. Provide ready access to audiovisual equip­ ment, materials and services by the best available means. 10.2. Publicize the availability of the collection and services supporting its use. 10.3. Develop a user guide to the audiovisual center’s policies, procedures and rules for using au­ diovisual materials and equipm ent. 10.4. Provide clear and concise equipm ent in­ structions. 10.5. Conduct educational sessions on use of au ­ diovisual resources. ■ ■ Baltimore Conference Update N a tio n a l C o n fe re n c e r e g is tra tio n as of Thursday morning, April 10, stood at 1,407 (in­ cluding 408 exhibitors), w ith attendees arriving from 48 states and 19 foreign countries. Also at the conference were eight local M ary­ land authors, including Carl Bode (Maryland: A Bicentennial History), E dw ard Papenfuse Jr. (Pursuit o f Profit), and Sallie Kravetz (Ethel Ennis: The Reluctant Jazz Star). A full report on ACRL’s National Confer­ ence will appear in the June issue. DISCOVER the Science Citation Index® 1980-1984 Cumulation... Uncover Great Savings! Special Pre-Publication Price Order Before June 30, 1986 and Save $1,000! 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