Re: questions regarding open current periodical stacks Susan Sturgeon 03 May 2007 18:19 UTC

Susan Sturgeon
Serials Librarian
Salem State College Library
352 Lafayette St.
Salem, MA 01970
(978) 542-6765
Fax: (978) 542-6596
email:  susan.sturgeon@salemstate.edu

>>> Mark Hemhauser <mbhhbm@AMERICAN.EDU> 5/3/2007 1:56 PM >>>
We have always had closed current periodical stacks and are planning to
move to open stacks. I would like to get some idea of how other academic
libraries arrange their current periodicals in open stacks. This listserv
seems the ideal way to gather that info from many libraries.

1. Do you keep your current periodicals in a separate place from your bound
periodicals? All current periodicals together? Or do you shelve them mixed
in with the bound volumes?

Issues of current volume kept in separate place.

2. Approximately how many subscriptions to print journals and magazines do
you have?

673

3. Do you eventually bind most of them or toos them?

We bind most because they are not accessible online.  Those that are subscribed to for their browsing value are tossed after a certain amount of time.

4. How do you shelve/display the current issues before they've been bound?
(We currently are using hanging folders for the closed stacks. I don't
think they will work well in open stacks.)

Slant shelving with current issue showing and rest of volumes shelved underneath.

5. Do you restrict the use of the current periodicals to a floor or room?
Or can they be taken anywhere in the library?

Anywhere in the library, except the daily newspapers have had to be restricted to the Periodicals Room.

6. Do you security strip all issues, most issues, random issues, weighted
towards titles that more often disappear?

We strip all issues.

Thank you for your replies.

Mark Hemhauser
American University Library--Serials & E-Resources
Washington, DC  20016