Update on Library Subscription Review (lists updated May 10)

Dear Faculty Colleagues,

We are nearing the end of our year-long review of the journals, magazines, newspapers, and databases to which the Libraries subscribe.

Periodic reviews are extremely useful to ensure that we are spending our money in a way that makes the greatest impact. In addition, the recent economic downturn that has caused reductions in the College budget gives this review even greater significance.

Over the past several months, your consulting librarian has worked with you and your colleagues to review the journal and database subscriptions associated with your department. Most departments have now recommended a list of journal and/or database subscriptions that could be canceled. In addition, departments have recommended journal titles that could move from print format to online-only. These savings will be used to initiate some new subscriptions (based on the recommendations you have made) and/or address a budget reduction for FY2010-2011, if there is one.

Departmental recommendations have been collated into two lists:

* Recommended journal and database subscription cancellations: http://www.lib.grinnell.edu/services/2010JournalandDatabaseCancellationsupdateMay10.pdf.

* Recommended changes to online-only: http://www.lib.grinnell.edu/services/2010journalsmovingonlineonlyupdateMay10.pdf. These titles would remain available as online subscriptions or through a pay-per-view service with the publisher (Elsevier or Wiley). Only the print portion of the subscription would end.

Please review these lists. We understand that many journals and databases are used by multiple departments, and we may have missed a key constituency for one of the titles proposed for cancellation. If you believe, based on your use of a journal or database, that a title should be removed from one of the lists, please send a note to your department's consulting librarian (http://www.lib.grinnell.edu/research/consultinglibs/). You may contact me or your consulting librarian with any questions about the process.

As feedback comes in, we will post updated lists on approximately a weekly basis.

The deadline for your recommendations is Wednesday, May 5.

I want to thank you for your patience, care, and hard work during this process. Our goal is to create a collection of subscriptions that uses our budget to best match your interests and your students’.

-- Richard Fyffe