College and Research Libraries Guidelines for Establishing Junior College Libraries IN VIEW of the many junior colleges being established in the United States, the Standards and Criteria Committee, JCLS, felt that administrators and citizen groups involved in planning these schools would benefit from the experience of junior college librarians who have al- ready established new libraries. Only the library which from the be- ginning has been carefully planned and judiciously administered will be a real asset to its college. In fact, no junior col- lege curriculum, no matter how well planned and executed, can be effective without an adequate library to support it. Gargantuan efforts in later years can- not wipe out the early mistakes and omissions made in those libraries where weak collections and ineffective admin- istrative policies have hampered the de- velopment of the library. Therefore, these guidelines have been developed in order to aid junior college officials in planning new libraries more effectively by acquainting them with the steps that must be taken before an ade- quate library can be established. The li- brarians and junior college administra- tors who worked on this project or gave advice at one time or another have spent many years gaining the seasoned experi- ence which is reflected in this report. While each junior college may think its difficulties unique, careful reading of reports and comp~risons in the junior college field will usually reveal many similarities to the problems faced by other institutions which have established new libraries. Thus, a review of some guideposts found useful in the past will be an asset to those involved in planning new junior college libraries. Obviously, these guidelines do not pre- tend to be immutable, or unresponsive to NOVEMBER 1963 These guidelines were prepared by the Standards and Criteria Committee of ACRL's junior College Libraries Section. Committee members are William G. Chambers, Dwight L. Chapman, George B. Davis, Frank D. Hankins, Thelma V. Taylor, and Norman E. Tanis, chairman. ]ames Pirie, Donald Pelkey, and ]ames 0. Wallace served as consultants to the Committee. new demands and new research discov- eries; the junior college is rapidly evolv- ing and becoming more complex, and its library is bound to reflect these new de- mands. Moreover, the junior college li- brary field remains largely unexplored and cries out for more investigation. It is our hope, therefore, that as junior col- leges change and grow and as future re- search yields new discoveries and insights, these guidelines will be revised and im- proved accordingly. Further, we hope that this bare outline will someday be ex- panded into a comprehensive, systematic monograph which will give junior col- lege personnel a better understanding of library problems and point out their best possible solution.-The Committee I. Steps to be taken before a librarian is appointed A. Funds for library materials, building, equipment, and for the projected cost of processing new books should be provided in the capital funds for the new college campus so that the minimum ALA Standards for Junior College Libraries can be met very soon. B. The temporary library quarters located on the new campus must be large enough to furnish work and storage areas, as well as office space for the librarians. C. As one of his first tasks, the chief ad- ministrative officer of the junior college should begin looking for a librarian, for or- 501 ganizing and processing a large book collec- tion requires a great deal of time and effort. I. For guidance in selecting a librarian, the chief administrator may find it advis- able to consult a director of libraries at a neighboring junior college or uni- versity. 2. He should also consult the ALA Standards for Junior College Libraries for the qualifications that a librarian should possess. 3. It is very important that the librarian be carefully chosen, for he will have a long- lasting influence upon the library which eventually attains maturity and full use- fulness. 4. Active participation in professional li- brary associations is also desirable in the person chosen as librarian. D. The chief administrative officer should carefully study the ALA Standards for Junior College Libraries. These Standards, which are primarily qualitative, are modest in their requirements, and they provide an excellent set of guidelines to follow .l E. Further, the chief administrative officer should acquaint himself with the require- ments of his regional accrediting association which pertain to the library. "F. The chief administrative officer should also seek out junior colleges which are well established and possess mature libraries; in this way, he and his staff can more easily vis- ualize and more effectively plan the kind of library their own college will need. II. Steps to be taken after a librarian has been appointed to the staff of the new • junior college A. The chief administrative officer should utilize a well qualified library consultant (1) to assist the new librarian m formulating educational specifications for the library building, (2) to help him in recommending a site, and (3) to advise the architect who is designing the library building. Obviously, such a consultant must be fully acquainted with junior college problems. A list of junior college library consultants is available from the American Association of Junior Colleges, 1777 Massachusetts Ave- nue, N.W., Washington 6, D. C. 1 Association of College and Research Libraries Com- mittee on Standards, "Standards for Junior College Libraries." In CRL, XXI (May 19 60), 201-202. B. It is important that the chief adminis- trative officer appoint several faculty mem- bers to the committee which is planning the new library so that they may assist the librar- ian in interpreting the needs of the faculty and students. C. The chief administrative officer should use the newly appointed. librarian as a con- sultant in developing the college curriculum. Because the librarian will be in frequent contact with administrators, department chairmen, teachers, and consultants working on the curriculum, he must be selected with great care. A junior college librariim hired to head a new library should have the kind of education that will enable him to under- stand and be conversant with many kinds of educational specialists. He ought to be able to show throughout the curriculum planning, and later as a member of the permanent cur- _riculum committee, how the library can as- sist in furthering the educational goals of the college and how much the books and other materials needed to advance these goals will cost. D. With the assistance and recommenda- tion of the librarian, a code of library policy should be developed which will include: 1. An outline of the functions, objectives, government, and control of the library. 2-. The method of appointment as well as the duties and the responsibilities of the librarian and his staff. _3. A careful delineation of the relationships between the librarian and the president, deans, instructors, faculty library com- mittee, and the student advisory com- mittee. 4. A detailed policy governing the purchase of library materials, such as books, peri- odicals, pamphlets, microfilm, audio- visual materials, out-of-print items, and government documents.2 Further, in setting up a system of book purchasing, a library consultant could be of great assistance to the li- brarian. It should also be remembered that policies and procedures which facil- itate library purchasing for high schools may not be applicable and may even hamper the proper development of the junior college library. 2 Robert Jones, "Administrative Relation ships of the Library and the Junior College." Junior College Jo?tr- nal, XXIX (February 1959), 324-28. 502 COLLEGE AND RESEARCH LIBRARIES Ill. The development of the library collection before the junior college begins instruction A. It is urgent that the new library reach the minimum number of volumes recom- mended by the ALA Standards for Junior College Libraries as soon as possible. B. Out of the basic collection, a substantial part should be processed and available when the library opens. First priority should be given to reference works and materials sup- porting the curriculum. The number 01 stu- dents' imbally enrolled in the college has little bearing upon the need for this core collection; this collection is needed if the library is to support adequately the curricu- lum and to participate fully in the educa- tion of the students. Whereas a large student body creates the need primarily for dupli- cates of heavily used reserve books, it is the number and variety of courses offered and the quality of the teaching which govern the breadth of the library collection. C. Junior college officials will find it neces- sary to spend five or six dollars, on the aver- age, for each ~ in the core collection. They will find it he~pful to consult the re- port produced by the California Library As- sociation, entitled "Estimated Library Costs in California Institutions of Higher Educa- tion."3 The cost of processing a book must be added to the original purchase price to de- termine the cost per volume.4 D. Unless there is a large staff available to order and process the new books, or unless commercial processing services are used, a neighboring university or public library may be contracted to catalog and process the basic collection. E. The library should build a collection of two hundre_