The Association of College and Research Libraries recently released the 2015 edition of its annual Environmental Scan of Academic Libraries. The report builds on the “Top Trends in Academic Libraries” report that appeared in a 2014 issue of College & Research Libraries News. (That article can be accessed here.) In addition to identifying trends that are having an ongoing impact on academic libraries, the Environmental Scan proposes the best approaches to address these challenges. Broadly, these strategies include collaboration among different departments within a library, cooperation between the library and other departments on campus, and the forming and strengthening of relationships with entities outside of the institution itself, such as consortia and publishers. The report underscores that, in planning for the future and clearly defining their role within an institution, libraries must take into account the challenges facing academia as a whole, especially increasing access to higher education while managing higher costs, in addition to embracing technology and expanding online learning.
Some of the specific trends, and the recommendations for addressing them, are below. I’ll send a summary of the rest of the report later this week or early next. (The full report is available here.)
Library Collections & Acquisitions
E-books
- In order to increase the amount of e-book content that can be shared and preserved, libraries will need to collaborate further with vendors and each other. There are still challenges related to interlibrary loan, in particular, although some of these barriers have been overcome through direct delivery of content by individual publishers or print-on-demand services.
- While “bookless” libraries have been touted as the wave of the future, and collection development has focused on adding e-books, print books are still widely used. As a result, libraries should plan to continue managing collections that are a combination of print and electronic resources. The extent to which a library will move in one direction or the other will depend on the degree of access to e-books, the amount of space available for a print collection, and the preferences and needs of users.
Streaming Media and Video
- Although an increasing number of libraries are subscribing to services for streaming audio and video (in some cases using “patron-driven” acquisitions), there are still issues related to licensing, compatibility with existing servers, and restrictions on re-use of materials for classroom instruction or course reserves. The future of electronic A-V access will be shaped by ongoing conversations and negotiations between libraries and vendors.
Demand-Driven Acquisition (DDA)
- A number of libraries have had data-driven acquisition and patron-driven acquisition programs in place for some time, but tighter budgets and questions about how much use an item must receive to be added to the catalog are leading to a re-evaluation of DDA programs. In particular, libraries will need to collect and review usage statistics in order to evaluate the effectiveness of these programs; evidence-based models provided by publishers are still untested and will need to be evaluated especially carefully.
Textbook/Course-Adopted Readings and Libraries
- Due to rising costs, libraries have been asked to play an increasing role in making textbooks and other course readings available, although the precise nature of that role is still undetermined. To ensure access that is as broad as possible, libraries will need to work with many other parties, particularly within the institution, that have a part in providing textbooks and e-readings.
Curating Collective Collections / Collaborative Print Management
- Print repositories, consisting of shared works, have continued to play a vital role in allowing libraries to administer existing print collections more effectively and increase access to print works, while at the same time freeing up existing space for new uses. Memoranda of Understanding (MOUs) are increasingly being used to guide decisions and establish policies, particularly regarding what materials to retain and how to handle the last copy of a particular item.
- Providing as broad a level of access to shared collections is a continuing challenge, especially since various institutions may belong to different interlibrary loan systems. Some consortia and regional institutions have been working together to ensure cross-system access.
- At the same time that libraries are preserving and sharing their print collections, they will need to consider how to integrate services related to print collections with those affecting digital collections. In some cases, items may need to be made available in both print and electronic format.
Collections Assessment
- Library metrics have long been consulted to determine how useful a collection is, particularly in supporting the academic and research needs of students and faculty, and in aligning with broader institutional or curricular goals. As departmental or institutional priorities shift-especially with an increasing emphasis on digital scholarship and other online initiatives-libraries will need to re-evaluate how the numbers should be viewed.
- Along those lines, libraries will need to broaden the types of items that are included in metrics, in order to reflect the increasing reliance on resources that are not institution-specific, such as repositories. This will be particularly important in regard to shared online resources, such as open-access scholarship, and also “non-traditional” forms of communication, such as social media.