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- Description
- Table of Contents
- About the authors
There are a growing number of college closures and mergers in the United States. The reasons vary—sharply declining enrollment numbers, unsustainable endowment drawdowns, accreditation issues—as does the amount of notice stakeholders receive before the closure and the fate of the campus and its resources.
Closing a College Library offers firsthand accounts of closing a library from different institutions of higher education, with practical tips, checklists, and sample documents, questions to ask yourself as you move through the process, and lessons learned. It provides effective practices for the immediate needs that arise when a library is facing closure, from preparing the building to rehoming special collections and archives to transferring electronic resources.
There is much unfamiliar work that comes with a closure or merger, work that can happen concurrently with your regular duties and while you’re handling the emotions of your team, students, alumni, faculty, and staff. Closing a College Library offers tools and support in making difficult decisions.
Introduction
Chapter 1. A Tale of Two Libraries
Nancy Hoover
Chapter 2. Closing the Library That Never Closed
Amber Hunt, Elizabeth Ruane, and Stephanie Sopka
Chapter 3. “If You Can Keep Your Head When All about You”: Marlboro College Archives and Special Collections
Megan O’Loughlin
Chapter 4. Supporting Special Collections and Archives Work in a College Closure
Chris Burns and Prudence Doherty
Chapter 5. A Closure, A Merger, and A Pandemic
Estevan Montaño and Samantha Sundquist
Conclusion
Appendices
Appendix A: To-Do List for Closures
Appendix B: Sample Deed of Gift
Appendix C: Sample Partnership Memorandum
Appendix D: Weeding a Merging Library Checklist
About the Authors