ACRL News Issue (B) of College & Research Libraries February 1992 / 85 Fun, friends, and good p.r.: Celebrating National Library Week in an academic library By Candace R. Benefiel Public In form ation C oordinator Texas A & M U niversity Johanne LaGrange Cataloger C olum bia University and Sandra da Conturbia D ocum ents Reference Librarian Texas A & M University How Texas A&M University makes an event out o f National Library Week. W hy should an academ ic library celeb rate N ational Library W eek? F o r th e sam e basic reasons a n academ ic library uses o t relatio n activities: “To w ork tow ard an ev er-g reater aw areness an d use o f th e library by th e cam pus ‘family’ a n d to h elp m ake th e institu tio n ’s library b e tte r know n to those w ho s u p p o rt it.”1 A history of the event N ational L ibrary W eek (N L W ) has b e e n e n th u ­ siastically o b served by p u b lic an d school libraries for o ver 30 years, b u t response to th e annual e vent by academ ic libraries has b e en sporadic. B eginning in 1974, w h en th e A m erican Library Association took sole responsibility for th e N L W p u b lic rela­ tions cam paign from th e N ational Book C o m m it­ te e , th e scope o f th e p ro g ram was expanded, “m ak­ ing it a year-ro u n d p u b lic relations p rogram g er­ m ane to all types o f libraries.”2 R egardless o f th e se good intentions, how ever, in 1989th e A C R L Public Relations in A cadem ic Libraries D iscussion G roup sp o n sored a p resen tatio n on N L W p articipation by h e academ ic libraries in o rd e r to stim ulate in te re st in N L W by this secto r o f th e library com m unity. At trh pius bmliece tin g o f som e 25 a tten d ees, only a handful acknow ledged th a t th e ir respective libraries partici­ p a te d in observing N L W in any way. As th e p re ­ s e n te r a t th a t m eeting, Linda W allace, d ire c to r o f th e ALA Public In form ation Office, p o in te d out, “N ational Library W eek is a ready-m ade p ro m o ­ tional o p p o rtu n ity to su p p o rt and en h an ce your local program s by tying in w ith th e prestig e o f a national ev en t.”3 She also n o te d th a t N L W m ateri­ als can b e a d ap ted for any type o f library.4 O n ce an academ ic library decides th a t som e observance o f N L W is appropriate, th e task rem ains o f d e te rm in in g w hat form th e observance will take, an d th e nu ts a n d bolts aspect o f planning, organiz­ ing, a n d carrying o u t an ev en t o r series o f events to m ark th e occasion. F o r su ch an observance to achieve m axim um effectiveness, direction is n eces­ sary a n d sh o u ld com e from an overall view o f th e library’s n e ed s a n d concerns. T h e S terling C . Evans Library a t Texas A&M U niversity has celeb rated N L W annually since 1975, 8 6 / C& RL News a n d has e sta b lish e d a basic p ro g ram o f events p la n n e d a n d a d m in istered by a c o m m itte e o f library faculty a n d staff. T h e e x p erien ce o f th e Evans Library w ith N L W p ro vides an exam ple o f on e m e th o d for a n acad em ic lib rary to m ake goo d use o f N L W as a p ro m o tio n al op p o rtu n ity . H o w o n lib ra ry c e le b r a te s In 1975 th e Evans L ib rary to o k th e im p o rtan t step o f in stitu tin g N L W celeb ratio n s o n t h e Texas A&M U niversity cam p u s. A th re e -p e rs o n c o m m it­ te e was sele c te d to p lan a n d c o o rd in ate ev en ts for th a t first year, w h ich in c lu d e d an o p e n fo ru m on library co n ce rn s a n d policies, a display o f craft item s m ade by library staff, a n in form al o u td o o r co n cert, a speaker from NASA, and a booksale sponsored by th e Friends o f the Sterling C. Evans Libraiy. T he w eek was busy, and highly successful, on a budget o f about $250. Since th a t first N L W a t th e Evans Library, m o re th an 15 an n u al celeb ratio n s have co m e a n d gone. O ver th e years, various activities have b e e n trie d an d e ith e r c o n tin u e d o r d iscard ed . T h e N L W C o m ­ m itte e is now a m ajor su b co m m itte e o f th e C o m ­ m itte e o n L ib rary P la n n in g a n d Pro g ram s, a n d has eight ap p o in ted m em bers, a n d last y ear expenditures were about $1,700. Expenses are paid with money generated by th e booksale from th e previous year. T h e p o s s ib le a c tiv itie s a r e e n d le s s Som e o f th e activities th a t have b e e n u s e d a t th e Evans L ib rary as a p a rt o f N L W c eleb ratio n s are: p o e try readings, usually o f s tu d e n t work; video/ m ovie showings (d isco n tin u ed d u e to copyright co n sid erations); p a n e l discussions, fe a tu rin g in ­ v ite d speakers; auctions by sealed b id o f m ajor item s d o n a te d fo r th e booksale; aw ards by th e library to faculty m e m b e rs displaying o u tsta n d in g su p p o rt o f th e library; d ram atic p re sen ta tio n s b y s tu d e n t th e ­ a te r g roups; folk dan cers; a n d re c ep tio n s h o n o rin g lib rary b e n efac to rs a n d n e w collections. C u rre n t activities fo r N L W a t th e Evans L ibrary in clude: p re s e n ta tio n o f lib raiy em p lo y ee longevity aw ards, a n N L W tra d itio n since 1985; p re sen ta tio n o f th e D avis L ibrary O p p o rtu n ity Scholarships, b e g u n in 1987; a fe a tu re d sp eaker; a n d th e F rien d s o f th e L ib rary Booksale, w h ich provides fu nds for th e o th e r activities. H o w t o p lan In 1991, as for previous years, a m e m b e r e lected to th e C o m m itte e on Library Planning a n d Program s serv ed as ch air o f th e N L W C o m m ittee, an d selected a n d re c ru ite d a co m m ittee o f seven library faculty a n d staff. T ho se seven are responsible for: prom otion a n d pu b lic relations, scholarships, booksale, speak­ ers, graphics, receptions, an d displays. As w ell as individual duties, th e com m ittee m em b ers as a group are responsible for selecting a n d approving a th em e, usually w ith in p u t from th e library director. In a ddition, th e c u rre n t ch air o f th e C o m m itte e o n L ib rary P lan n in g a n d P rogram s h an d les a r­ ra n g e m e n ts fo r th e L ib rary Longevity A wards. T h e Longevity Aw ards c erem o n y has b e e n , since 1987, The F riends o f th e S terling C. E va n s L ib ra ry Booksale a t Texas A & M U niversity a n n u a lly attracts readers f r o m across c a m p u s a n d b eyond. February 1992 / 87 co m bined with th e stu d en t w orker scholarship p re ­ sentation. Em ployees w ho have b e en a t th e library for ten , 15, 20, 25 (and so on) years are p re sen te d w ith a fram ed certificate an d a gift. A fter th e p resen ­ tations, on e o f th e longevity award recipients makes a short, frequently hum orous, statem e n t o f accep­ tan ce on b e h alf o f all th e longevity awardees. This speech often takes th e form o f rem iniscences on how things have changed o r strange occurrences w itnessed in th e library over th e years. H ow to p rom ote T h e responsibility for coordinating p rom otion o f N L W is deleg ated to th e library’s public inform a­ tion coordinator. T h e public inform ation coordina­ to r works w ith th e com m ittee, and especially with th e com ­ m ittee m em b er in charge of graphics, to develop the them e for NLW , if th e ALA th em e is not adopted. T h e public infor­ m ation coordinator com m ittee is done in concert with th e p u b ­ lic inform ation coordinator and involves graphic design o f fly­ e rs , p o s te r s , p ro g ra m s fo r events, and o th er materials. The graphics coordinator for 1991, a m em b er o f th e classified staff, designed a logo, planned graph­ ics for program s to accompany th e week’s events, and also cre­ The ated o th e r designs to be used on flyers prom oting NLW. Displays, b o th inside an d Ame outside th e library, are another way o f effectively prom oting Read NLW . Display cases may be A prom otional used to illustrate library collec­ Sterling C. Ev tions and services, and to adver­ encourage pa tise specific N LW activities. Use N ational L i o f display areas in th e student union building may appeal to students who do not use the library regularly. T he display coordinator is responsible for reserving display cases, contacting library staff to p repare displays, an d in som e cases designing displays an d assisting in th e ir preparation. T h e scholarship coordinator oversees th e adm in­ istration o f aw ardingthe Davis Library O pportunity Scholarships, an endow ed fu n d w hich provides several scholarships for eligible s tu d e n t library w orkers, a n d for library staff w ho plan to p u rsu e a caree r in librarianship. A dm inistration o ft h e schol­ arship program includes such duties as prep arin g a n d distributing application forms, selecting judges an d coordinating th e judging, an d p rep arin g and fram ing certificates for th e aw ard recipients. T h e com m ittee m em b er in charge o f th e booksale recruits a subcommittee o f assistants, which usually includes members o f the Friends o f the Libraiy. Mate­ rials for th e booksale are selected from gifts to the library which have not been added to the collection and are evaluated on a year-round basis. The booksale chan- coordinates the actual sale, including sign-up and train­ ing of approximately 50 helpers, and physical set-up for the sale. Suzanne D. Gyeszly, in “Book Sale Preparation for National Libraiy Week,” details the procedures used at the Texas A&M University booksale.5 U sin g fea tu re d sp eakers A fe a tu re d speaker has o ften b e en th e center- piece o f t h e Evans Library’s N L W observances, and on e co m m ittee m em b er is d etailed to oversee se­ lection o f a speaker based on input from th e rest o ft h e com­ m ittee, th e library director, an d o th e r in terested parties. After th e list is narrow ed to two o r th re e to p choices, the speaker coordinator an d the N L W c hair correspond with an d make arrangem ents for th e speaker. A lthough th e Evans Library has n o t b een able to o ffer a large hono­ rariu m , c o m m ittees in the p ast have found speakers o f reat regional in te re st w ho w ere pleased to b e asked to p artici­ ican p a te in p rom oting libraries. Speakers have ran g ed from novelists and journalists to sci­ loud entists and co n su m er advo­ cates. In addition, as p art o f N LW ece used b y the 1991, th e Evans Libraiy chose ns L ib rary to to p articipate in th e G reat ticipation in Am erican Read Aloud. This rary Week. special event, staged on a na­ tionwide scale, created th e op­ po rtu n ity for each participating library to b e a p art o f a larger com m unity. T o join in this ev ent the Evans Library invited guests to read aloud. T hese w ere th e featu red speaker, local artist an d w riter Sunny Nash, cam pus volunteers, an d several library staff m em bers. A fter each m ajor activity, such as th e speaker o r th e aw ard cerem ony, th e N LW com m ittee hosts an inform al reception. T h e receptions are usually of th e pun ch an d cookies variety. T he receptions coordinator is in charge o f m enus; arrangem ents, including flowers a n d decorations; a n d purchasing food an d setting u p th e reception area. Since the b u d g e t for receptions is lim ited, this is a task which req úires creativity a n d energy. (Cont. on page 89) G r A pi a r b February 1 992 / 89 to th e stu d en t new spaper an d faculty publications. Provide radio and television public service advertise­ m ents available through th e ALA Graphics Catalog. Ed. note: T he artw ork on th e cover o f this m o n th ’s C L R L N ew s is available as a p o ster from ALA G raphics. T h e p o ster is available separately o r as (N L W cont. f r o m page 87) P lanning is th e k ey to su ccess A successful N L W celebration does n o t ju st happen. As w ith so m any o th e r library activities, careful advance p lanning is a necessity. A t th e Evans Library, p lanning for N LW begins w ith th e a p p o in tm en t o f a new N L W C hair in M ay an d com m ittee selection follows as soon as possible. Planning m eetings usually begin in late sum m er and continue, with increasing frequency, until th e event. Although th e N L W C om m ittee does n o t w ork from a set o f guidelines, rep o rts o f form er co m m it­ tees p rovide a body o f tradition to guide planning, an d o th e r advice an d suggestions are passed on orally from com m ittee to com m ittee. N L W cel­ ebrations, however, should n o t be allowed to b e ­ com e static. Each year should bring new ideas and new approaches; each year should be a new experience. Every library’s observance o f N LW is u n iq u e, as it should be, b u t th e experiences o f o th e r libraries can offer ideas. C elebrating N L W takes tim e an d effort, an d req uires a com m itm en t on th e p art o f th e library as a whole. T h e rew ards, however, can m ore th an equal th e effort. A successful N LW observance should h eighten aw areness o f th e libraiy for b oth stu dents an d faculty, an d can attract users from th e non-university local com m unity. N L W c eleb ra­ tions enhance th e library’s im age an d raise m orale o f C&RL News staff member has a win Reggie Prim , C &R L N ew s editorial assistant, has a way w ith words. W hen ALA staff w ere asked by th e C om ­ m u n ic a tio n s D e p a r t m e n t to think o f slogans th a t conveyed ALA’s pu rp o se to th e general public, th e A C R L staff w ent into action. A t A C R L ’s w e e k ly s ta f f brainstorm ing session, th e staff g en erated a n u m b e r o f possible slogans. O ne o f th e m was Reggie’s suggestion, “T he m ore you read th e b e tte r w e feel.” T hese w ere forw arded to ALA’s C om ­ p a rt o f th e N ational Library W eek th e m e kit th at includes 3 posters, 200 bookm arks, an d a cam paign book including clip art. T h e kit sells for $25 a n d may be o rd e re d from ALA G raphics, 50 E. H u ro n St., Chicago, IL 60611; (800) 545-2433, press 8. ■ ■ th e library staff. Activities which involve university faculty stren g th en ties b e tw ee n th e library an d th e faculty. An active an d dynam ic library will appear m ore attractive to potential donors o f b oth funds and collections, an d N L W activities can highlight th e library’s needs as w ell as its strengths. In addition, N L W activities can b e s tru c tu re d to em phasize new library services. Finally, once th e direction has b e en d ecided, th e planning com pleted, an d th e last-m inute details tak en c are of, N L W celebrations can, an d should, be fun for th e library staff an d patrons alike. NOTES 1T he National Library W eek Program, Local Orga- nizntionHandbookforthe\NationalLibraryWeekProgram. (N ew York: T h e N ational Library W eek Program , 1967), 48. 2 Special & Academ ic Library N L W Participa­ tion Sought,” L ib rary J ournal 102 (N ovem ber 1, 1977): 2200. 3Linda K. W allace, “National L ibrary W eek: Are you kidding?” College & Research Libraries N ews 50 (April 1989): 311-13. 4Ibid. 5Suzanne D . Gyeszly, “Book sale p rep aratio n for National Library W eek,” College 6- Research L i­ braries N ew s 51 (April 1990): 331-33. ■ ■ ing idea m unications D ep artm en t. W hile a final slogan has n o t b een selected, Reggie’s pro p o sed slogan was so good that ALA’s G ra p h ic s D e p a r tm e n t could n o t pass u p the o p p o rtu ­ nity to p ro d u ce a button. W h ite text on a g reen back­ ground, th e b u tto n s are avail­ able in b undles o f 10 for $4.00 plus $2.00 for shipping a n d han ­ dling. O rd ers totalling less than $30 m ust b e prepaid. Sen d o rd er to: ALA’s G raphics D ep artm en t, 50 E. H u ro n St., Chicago, IL 60611; fax (312) 440-9374. n