College and Research Libraries By R I C H A R D H. LOGSDON National Library W e e k , 1959 DU R I N G T H E W E E K of April 12 through April 18, 1959, librarians of college and research libraries will have an op- portunity to join in a nationwide effort to promote reading and the use of li- braries. The achievements in 1958, the first year of the observance of National Library Week, were many and varied. National magazines alone carried twenty- two articles reaching a potential sixty- eight million readers. Newspapers pub- lished more than eleven thousand major stories within a three-week period. Radio and television coverage was similarly broad. At the state and local level, plan- ning committees involved more than six thousand persons. Even though there were many re- ported instances of participation by col- lege and research libraries, the general feeling has persisted that these libraries as a group were somewhat under-repre- sented among activities enjoying public notice in the 1958 celebration. None of the twenty-two articles in national maga- zines, for example, centered on academic libraries. There are, of course, times for caution, but it would seem that the over- all objectives of National Library Week are so closely related to what college and research libraries are out to accomplish that we might safely venture, in larger numbers, to give it active support. The celebration of National Library Dr. Logsdon, Director of the Colum- bia University Libraries, is Chairman of the Association of College and Research Libraries Committee on National Li- brary Week and a member of the Steer- ing Committee for National Library Week. Week is under the sponsorship of the National Book Committee in coopera- tion with the American Library Associa- tion. A central steering committee of nineteen persons carries responsibility for general planning, securing the nec- essary financial support, and guidance of a small headquarters staff. Committee members have been drawn from various types of libraries, from the publishing industry, from the field of communica- tion, and from business and industry. John S. Robling, who headed the staff during the first year, continues as di- rector for 1959. A distinctive feature of National Library Week is that it brings together into one program essentially all of the major agencies concerned with reading for information and education. The organization for National Library Week is relatively simple, with the head- quarters staff concentrating on the prep- aration of suitable poster and printed material; developing newspaper, maga- zine, radio, and television coverage of a national character; and advice and as- sistance to state committees. A key fea- ture of the organization is the state di- rectors and state committees appointed by the various state library associations. The real success of the program will depend largely upon what is done by individual, public, school, and research libraries. Some two pages of ideas for colleges and universities are presented in the Organization Handbook for Na- tional Library Week, reprints of which have been widely distributed. Copies may be secured from the New York office.1 T w o distinct objectives are rec- ognized for colleges and universities. 1 National Library Week, 24 West 40th Street, New York 18, N . Y . One is "to make the institution's library and its resources better known to those who support it and to achieve a wider public understanding of its needs; the other is to encourage students' use of the library and reading beyond the for- mal requirements of the curriculum with the aim of developing lifetime reading habits." It is suggested that as a first step, the college librarian discuss the institution's participation in the state and local N L W program with the administration and the director of pub- lic relations as well as with the state director and any local committee. Co- operation with such other agencies as the college bookstore, the university press, and the college newspaper is rec- ommended. T h e main idea, however, is to en- courage local initiative in developing whatever program will contribute most to the three principal objectives of Na- tional Library Week: (1) a more under- standing and effective support of li- braries—school, college, and public; (2) a heightened sense of the importance of reading in national life; and (3) a more active enjoyment by people generally of the rich rewards of reading. Surely these are worthy of special attention by col- lege and research libraries in concert with others during the week of April 12, 1959. Rare Book Meeting at Charlottesville A pre-conference meeting of rare book specialists is planned in connection with ALA's Washington Conference by A C R L ' s Rare Book Section. T h e meeting will be held at the University of Virginia, Charlottesville, June 18-20. T h e program for the rare books conference is being planned by J. Terry Bend- er, chairman of the Rare Books Section; John Cook Wyllie, librarian of the Uni- versity of Virginia; and William H. Runge, keeper of rare books in the Univer- sity of Virginia Library. It will include a double series of programs emphasizing simultaneously procedures and problems of rare books, manuscripts, and special collections and a series emphasizing content values to be found in subjects relating to rare books and bibliographies. There will be a minimum of set speeches, and entertainment value is high on the list of criteria used in scheduling them. Guided tours of the University's grounds will be available during the registra- tion period on the afternoon of June 18, and a special tour to Monticello, the Jefferson home, is planned for the afternoon of June 20. T h e registration fee for the entire session will be $30. This sum includes board and lodging. Registrants will meet and eat in the University's new student union, Newcomb Hall. They will be housed in single rooms in a dormitory convenient to Newcomb Hall and to the Alderman Library. Librarians wishing to make their own living arrangements in Charlottesville will be charged $25 as a regis- tration fee. Plans for the meeting are already well developed. It may be necessary, how- ever, to cancel them unless there is a sufficient number of registrants for it. De- tails concerning registration and a deadline for it will be printed in the next CRL. A postcard now marked simply "Charlottesville" and giving your name and ad- dress will be taken as a tentative, but not binding, reservation and will help the committee in its planning. Address "Rare Books, A C R L , 50 East Huron Street, Chicago 11, Illinois." 8 COLLEGE AND RESEARCH LIBRARIES