ACRL College & Research Libraries News

College & Research Libraries News

ACRL Board of Directors—Highlights of the 1976 Midwinter Meeting

Freedom to read was identified as a priority of the Association of College and Research Libraries by the ACRL Board of Directors which met in Chicago, January 18-24. The board voted to encourage ACRL members to become personal members of the Freedom to Read Foundation and directed the Budget and Finance Committee to explore the possibility of making an annual cash contribution to the foundation beginning in 1977.

Chapter status in ACRL was granted to the College and University Section of the Tennessee Library Association and the College and University Librarian Section of the Iowa Library Association.

The board approved criteria for the appointments of editors of ACRL publications and established procedures for the search for future editors. Following the decision of the Constitution and Bylaws Committee, which determined that editorial boards are not committees, the board approved general guidelines for the composition of editorial boards and procedures for appointment to the boards. Appointments to editorial boards will be upon recommendation by the respective editors and upon approval by the ACRL Publications Committee. Appointments of editors will be upon recommendation of the ACRL Publications Committee or a special committee appointed to search for an editor, and approval by the ACRL Board of Directors.

Continuing its analysis and assessment of the implications of the ALA dues schedule, the board reaffirmed that Choice was a publication of ACRL and accepted all responsibility for the magazine, including finance. The Budget and Finance Committee and the Choice Editorial Board will continue to work with other ALA units to implement ACRL’s policies and procedures related to Choice.

The Manuscripts Committee of the Rare Books and Manuscripts Section presented several revisions to the “Statement on Access to Original Research Materials in Libraries, Archives, and Manuscript Repositories” and “Statement on the Reproduction of Manuscripts and Archives for Noncommercial Purposes.” The board agreed that the proposed revisions would be published in College & Research Libraries News, comments solicited from the field, and that action would be taken on the revisions at the 1976 Annual Conference.

Toronto was selected as the site of the 1977 annual Rare Books and Manuscripts Section Preconference. The dates of the preconference would be announced as soon as the ALA Executive Board decides the site and dates of the 1977 ALA Annual Conference. (Ed. note: The 1977 Annual Conference will be in Detroit, Michigan, June 19-25.)

ACRL expressed its gratitude for the work of Arline Custer in the development of a national bibliography of manuscript collections and for the encouragement she gave during her lifetime to many younger members of the Rare Books and Manuscripts Section.

The Board of Directors unanimously opposed the selection by the ALA Executive Board of Hay Associates to conduct a classification and compensation study of the ALA Headquarters staff. It requested the ALA Executive Board to move to terminate the contract. (Ed. note: The ALA Executive Board received the ACRL action at its meeting January 23, 1976. On February 12, 1976, ACRL was informed that the contract with Hay Associates was being terminated by mutual agreement.)

The Publications Committee reported progress toward the preparation of editorial guidelines for use by ACRL in the production and distribution of audiovisual materials. The board expressed its concern over the quality of at least one of the programs of the 1975 Annual Conference now being distributed in audiocassette format and urged that quality control be exercised as to matter and manner in any future production and distribution of programs.

Two standing committees were approved, a Membership Committee and a Budget and Finance Committee. The Planning Committee was directed to review the charges of the Publications Committee and the Committee on Cooperation with Educational and Professional Organizations.

Three proposals were approved in principle: to seek support for the preparation of standards for university libraries, for a feasibility study for a publication to review audiovisual materials for college libraries, and for a study of the status and experience of academic librarians with collective bargaining. ■ ■

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