UC Libraries > Heads of Special Collections (HOSC) > HOSC Annual Report – 2007-2008

HOSC Annual Report – 2007-2008

Submitted by Christine Bunting, incoming HOSC Chair 2008-2009, and Head of Special Collections and Archives, UCSC

Statement of Purpose

The principal goal of HOSC is to ensure the continued excellence of UC systemwide special collections holdings, striving to avoid unnecessary overlap among collections and to make effective use of limited resources.

To accomplish this, we collaborate and coordinate efforts in acquiring, managing, preserving, and providing access to special collections materials in the UC system.

Our objectives include:

  1. Collection development: Develop collaborative collection development and collection management strategies, based on collection strengths and programmatic needs of the individual campuses.
  2. Resource sharing: Develop guidelines and procedures for sharing special collections resources among campuses.
  3. Access: Coordinate efforts to enhance access to special collections materials.
  4. Administration: Share information about policies and procedures in day-to-day operations, including areas such as patron registration, reading room service, acquisition of in-kind gifts, confidentiality issues regarding use of certain materials, and fee structures for use and reproduction of materials.
  5. Preservation: Identify preservation needs and coordinate preservation efforts relating to materials of various formats in special collections.
  6. Security: Share concerns and information about security issues, including access of staff and patrons to special collections materials, security features in facilities design and maintenance, and rapid communication among UC campuses regarding security alerts.

2007-2008 Goals and Objectives:

  1. Continue to communicate and work collaboratively with other UC groups such as UCAC, PAG, OAC committees, as well as national groups/organizations such as ARL and RBMS on issues of common interest.
  2. Continue to work with CDL on digitizing projects involving special collections materials.
  3. Create a policy of Guidelines for Mass Digitization of Rare Materials.
  4. Create a UC-wide Best Practice Guidelines for the Use of Digital Cameras in Special Collections Reading Rooms.
  5. Create a Conflict-of-Interest Policy Statement for Special Collections employees.
  6. Maintain and expand content of HOSC web site.
  7. Continue to meet regularly (in person or otherwise) to discuss UC-wide Special Collections issues, as addressed in the HOSC Charge and Statement of Purpose, and explore ways to address them.

Goals and Objectives accomplished in 2007-2008:

HOSC convened two times during this year (November 13, 2007 and June 2, 2008.) Both meetings were held as conference calls as the group decided in the current budgetary climate to utilize a less expensive method of communication. In doing so HOSC adhered to one aspect of its official statement of purpose to:  “make effective use of limited resources.” Melissa Conway chaired each meeting and UCR supported the cost of the calls.

Progress on the goals set for the year is outlined below.  In addition, HOSC members compared local policies on registration records retention, and on the fee structure for photo duplication and licensing agreements. The group shared comments on the implementation of the Archivists’ Toolkit and use at campuses where this open source tool has been adopted. Members also discussed the impact of campus budgetary reductions on special collections departments.  Through campus round-robins we gained updates on campus projects, the receipt and progress of grants, attendance and sponsorship of conferences and workshops, personnel updates, and new acquisitions. Information was shared on the renovation and construction of physical facilities.

UCSF’s Lisa Mix is thanked for the continual maintenance and expansion of the HOSC web site.

• Towards the goal to continue to communicate and work collaboratively with other UC and other national groups and organizations:

HOSC invited CDL Director of Digital Special Collections, Rosalie Lack to speak on the OAC redesign at its June 2008 meeting.  Discussion was held on the possibility of forming a Special Collections Digital Steering Committee to consult on the selection and building of digital collections, and methodologies and mechanics of contributing such collections to Calisphere and OAC.

HOSC meeting minutes and documents were shared with UCAC and CDC.

In response to the UC-wide public release of the Next Generation Melvyl Pilot and the many problems encountered with the MARC content display and the services offered to online users relevant to special collections materials, a letter was written on behalf of HOSC by David de Lorenzo (UCB) and submitted to Ellen Meltzer, CDL Information Services Manger. The letter was accompanied with a survey of archival collection catalog records prepared by UCSB delineating problems revealed in testing the pilot. HOSC is concerned that implementation of Worldcat Local will be very problematic for the special collections and archives communities if these core OPAC and access issues are not resolved.

HOSC members serve on several ACRL/RBMS committees and task forces  including, the RBMS Conference Development Committee, Core Competencies Task Force, Transfer Guidelines for General Collections Material Task Force, and the Task Force to develop Guidelines for Digitization of Special Collections Materials. Melissa Conway (UCR) serves as member-at-large of the RBMS Executive Committee. Several members were active in organizing and teaching at the California Rare Book School, and UCLA hosted the American Printing History Association’s 2007 Conference.

• Towards the goal to work with CDL on digitizing projects, no collective HOSC activity was undertaken this year. Individual campus departments however, continue to contribute to OAC and Calisphere. For example, UC Merced in 2007 posted 655 digital objects as part of the Ruth & Sherman Lee Institute for Japanese Art Collection OAC Finding Aid, and Calisphere now hosts UCSF’s Japanese Woodblock Print Collection which was digitized with funds from CDL.

• Towards the goal to create a policy of Guidelines for Mass Digitization of Rare Materials HOSC members discussed the issues at length, reviewed CLIR’s Preservation in the Age of Large Scale Digitization, A White Paper, RLG’s commissioned report Good Terms-Improving Commercial-Noncommercial Partnerships for Mass Digitization, and examined reports from UCLA and Berkeley before outlining 13 potential topics for a HOSC manifesto. In 2007 an ACRL/RBMS Guidelines for the Digitization of Special Collections Task Force (with Jackie Dooley of UCI as a member) was charged to ”explore the feasibility of developing guidelines or other resources to aid those setting policies and procedures for the digitization of special collections and to consider whether a standing committee, discussion, or interest group ought to be formed to provide an ongoing form to address issues related to digital special collections.” Given the national recognition that ACRL guidelines would receive HOSC members decided to await the Task Force’s work and discuss adopting such guidelines for UC’s special collections. 

• Towards the goal to create a UC-wide Best Practice Guidelines for the Use of Digital Cameras in Special Collections Reading Rooms members shared local policies and practices with the group and discussion ensued on the need to create a uniform policy. Given that several campuses were not willing to allow such use in their reading rooms, it was agreed that each campus should determine its own policy. 

• Towards the goal to create a Conflict-of-Interest Statement for Special Collections employees, HOSC members discussed whether a separate UC statement was needed. Given that ACRL’s 2003 approved Code of Ethics for Special Collections Librarians covers professional conflict of interest, it was determined that HOSC did not need to draft its own statement. 

2008-2009 Goals and Objectives:

  1. Continue to communicate and work collaboratively with other UC groups such as UCAC, PAG, OAC committees, as well as national groups/organizations such as ARL and RBMS on issues of common interest.
  2. Maintain and expand content of the HOSC web site.
  3. Continue to meet regularly (in person or otherwise) to discuss UC-wide Special Collections issues, as addressed in the HOSC Charge and Statement of Purpose, and explore ways to address them.
  4. Explore with CDL’s Director of Digital Special Collections the formation of a Special Collections Digital Steering Committee, and assist in developing its charge to guide the building of digital special collections.
  5. Continue to comment and provide end user assessment to CDL and OCLC on the Next Generation Melvyl Pilot.