A Library of Donations

One of the most widely read posts on this blog is one that I wrote right after I arrived in Uganda, in 2011. I had helped sort through a large donation of books and was wrestling with what I saw. It was disheartening to see so many books shipped to Africa with such little use to the library. I wrote about book donations and often during my 18 months in Uganda, I wrestled with what it was like to work in a library made up primarily by donations.

This past summer we also saw the ramifications of book donations to KEST. They had received book donations that included hundreds of copies of the same title. While the titles themselves were not be bad per se, 100 copies were certainly unnecessary for a library. We talked about what the school could do with them: book sale, give to students, give at outreach events, etc. But it just seemed like such a shame that some organization would spend so much money to send/give books that were ultimately not helpful to the library's collection. And ultimately those organizations put the burden on the library and school to figure out what to do with all those books.

Recently, I found this study, which I found fascinating. [It's long! You can read a summary in this newsletter.] The study speaks to the bigger picture of book donations in across Africa. And the importance of supporting local, African publishers as opposed to just shipping in lots of books from Europe and the US. The study describes many of the things I've seen while being on the receiving end of donations. I remember asking myself and others, where can you buy books that have been printed here, in Africa? How can books and reading be made more accessible? Are donations the best way to build a library collection?

Last year, at my job here in Minnesota, we weeded a large number of books from our collection. We were able to offer a number of them to students. And some we were able to send to Better World Books. [I confess, I don't know much about Better World Books but I do know that they take donated books and try to resell them before re-donating them.] But there were also some that we had to recycle. People from campus asked why we were recycling instead of donating the books to another non-profit. For many people, the thought of throwing away books is almost sacrilegious. But the reality is, for many countries in Africa [and probably other developing countries], our time and money would be better spent supporting local publishers and authors, instead of shipping our old books around the world.

The community developer in me thinks about issues like this all the time. How can I be a part of the bigger story of publishing, books, and information access around the world? What can I do with old books [both personally and at work] that builds into sustainable models of literacy development? What things are already happening in publishing around the world that I can support?

I don't have answers yet. I may never have answers. But I hope that by asking the questions I can be a part of the solution.

And I can remind my readers [whoever and wherever you are] to think about where you send your old books. :)

To Keep or Not To Keep

Last year, soon after I started at RTC, I helped weed and sort through a huge collection of donated books. It was an interesting [read: frustrating] process. I wrote a short list to friends in the US about making donations...reminding us all to make relevant donations.

Because almost the entire RTC Library collection is made up of donated books, I've spent a lot of time thinking about donations and how they play into collection development. Like many LIS graduate students, I took a Collection Development (CD) class when I was in grad school. I remember thinking a lot of the class was a bit common sense. But it was helpful to think about a collection of books and think about how you would build, weed or grow a collection in a library.

I know, all you non-librarians are thinking 'Seriously? You take classes in how to pick out books?' Yes. Yes, we do. Since libraries are community-based, collection development is lot more complicated than going to Amazon and picking out bestsellers. It's about picking the best resources for your community of users so that they are connected to the best information for their needs.

At any rate, it's been interesting to approach CD with only donated books. For example, when you make your acquisitions selections from a pile of unknown, donated books you have to be extremely creative. I've discovered that in order to add new books to the collection, I can't think I want book X. Instead, I think: I want subject X. I have to think in broad terms about the types of books needed. What subjects are we lacking in? Of course, since only 2/3 of the collection is cataloged, it can be hard to tell what's still needed, but that's another story.

Also, because new books are hard to come by, weeding takes on a whole new meaning. Every library has [or should have] a policy on when to *gasp* get rid of books. But I honestly struggle to weed here. Because if I weed out one book the chances of it ever being replaced are slim to none.

So my question becomes: Is it better to have mediocre or out-of-date information or no information at all?

And sometimes I just don't know.

The truth is a lot of what's in the library would probably never pass a weeding inspection in a similar, American library. But I'm not in America. I'm in Uganda. And my options are much more limited. It's an interesting dilemma and has stretched me in a lot of ways to think about collections in new ways. I don't have an answer. Maybe we need to revise our policies so we can make things more clear about what to keep or not.

But being the big-picture thinker that I am, the issue is not just about policies. The issue is about donations from other countries and how goods travel across the globe. It's about educating the administration on the importance of getting new books. It's about soliciting for books and materials we actually need. It's about how to get relevant materials to developing countries cheaper.

And, I guess it really just gets back to the basic question:

How do you build and maintain a library's collection so that it remains relevant to its users?

Never Underestimate the Power of Zero

I have a lot of librarian friends on Facebook. I also get various updates from the American Library Association. Plus, I'm a librarian so I like finding information on what fellow librarians are up to. Thanks to the availability of information and news on the internet I can keep updated on what's going on in the library world outside of Uganda. As far as I can tell, libraries in the US are continuing to struggle with budget cuts and how to do more with less.

I'm no expert on budgets, but I was the Acquisitions Coordinator at the North Park University Library before I attended graduate school. I was responsible for ordering all the books for the library and I learned a lot about budgets, at the least the collection development part. Currently, I work in a very small college without a budget for the library. Trust me, you learn a lot about budgets when you don't have one. And, admittedly, sometimes when I see status updates about library budget cuts on Facebook I want to say: At least you still have a budget!

I can ask for some office supplies from the college but that's about it. No budget for new books. No budget for other supplies. Just a few things here or there. (And obviously there is a budget to pay staff.)

But, anyway, today I'm using this space to share my thoughts on how to run a library without a budget. Because, let's face it, a blog post gives a lot more space for ranting than a Facebook status. :)

Here are some tips and things I've learned:

• Never say no. Friends from the US have mailed me things like pens, pencils, post-it notes, and even a white board. Little things help so much!
• Be willing to do anything. With few staff members, I have to do whatever has to be done (processing books, cleaning, moving tables, shelving books, shelf reading, etc.). I'm a firm believer that I can't take myself so seriously that I think: "I'm a librarian so I can't do that".
• Use everything. For example, we are in the processing of transitioning from manual check-out to computerized checkout. We use left-over pages in the manual check-out book for pages where students can sign up for a computer time. A small piece of paper used for making a to-do list is filled completely before it's thrown away.
• Be creative. Admittedly, this is a hard area for me. But I'm learning to try new things. For example, I don't have a printer so I create simple signs and then print them in the main office. We don't have a laminator so to protect the signs from the loads of dust here I put them in plastic sleeves designed for three-ring binders. (Yes, I bought the sleeves with my own money.) Then I tape them up! Not as flashy as what I would do in the US but it works.
• Take advantage of free software. I spend time researching good theological study tools that are free. I've found some great websites, organizations, and software!
• Network. I'm trying to reach out more to other librarians in Uganda. I want to learn from them...where they get their supplies, how they do their jobs, etc. 
• Ask the main question: What do we really need?
• Remember the goal. Along with the previous point, this seems the most important. The goal (for me) is always to educate students and help connect them to information. So I ask: Do I need a budget/money/etc to do ____? Often the answer is no. And the follow up question becomes: Ok, so how do I do ____?

So, there you have it. For those of you facing budget cuts, I know that none of this is rocket science. You can read plenty of similar tips online, I'm sure. This is just my two shillings (ahem, cents). But know that, really, you can do more with less than you think you can.

New Books!

Remember that book sale I told you about in September?

I'm happy to announce that from the proceeds we were able to buy new books for the library. I think these are possibly the only new books that have ever been purchased specifically for the library. The first batch of books arrived a week or two ago and we are expecting more next week.

The exciting thing is we still have a bit of book sale money left to buy even more books. :)

Holding the first round of new books! [And, yes,
I realize how 'librarian' I look here. :)]

Resources

Librarians love information. At least at it's core that's how I see librarianship: connecting people and information. Obviously, this takes a lot of different forms, from researching to helping patrons at a reference desk (i.e. answering questions) to cataloging information (making it easier to find). As for me, I enjoy all of it. I sometimes have trouble focusing because I'm thinking of all the ways to make the RTC library better. :) 

But lately I am enjoying researching the variety of resources available to African libraries, especially those with small or non-existent budgets. Books and electronic resources are expensive. Especially the resources that are scholarly. Remember, we're not buying more copies of Chicken Soup for the Soul. And, trust me, I used to work in Acquisitions, I know how much things cost. How do small colleges and small libraries in Africa afford to get materials for their students?

Here are a few things I've found so far:

Theological Book Network
Someone working at a library in Rwanda told me about this organization. I love that they only want books from scholarly presses!

Langham Library Grants
A lecturer at RTC told me about this. I plan to get the application printed and filled out. I would love to be able to get even a few new books for the library. The same lecturer told me (while looking at some of the books) that what he sees now are the same books he saw as a student at RTC 10 years ago.

Free Online Religion Resources
This website comes from Yale University. A great collection of websites and resources that are FREE. The principal at RTC keeps asking me about resources for students. I hope we can make use of some of these to help begin teaching students about research. Granted, we'll need to get internet in the library first but at least we have somewhere to start.

e-Sword
One of my professors from graduate school told me about this site. Lots of Bible commentaries, translations, and dictionaries. Not all are free but some are. And once downloaded they don't have to use the internet. I downloaded some to a flash drive so once we have computers I can just install the resources. Again, just a great way to introduce students to using computers for research.

So, we'll see. Obviously, I need to first focus on cataloging the materials we already have. But once a few more things (computers, catalog, internet) are in place, I want to be ready. I love finding ways to help the library that won't cost them a lot of money. What can I say? I love a good bargain, even here in Uganda.

When Donating Books...

After spending my first week at Reformed Theological College (RTC) orienting myself to the school and and the library, this past week I jumped into starting some projects. Let me tell you, it feels good to be needed. After talking with staff members, lecturers, and students, I found there are plenty of things for me to work on this year, from training to outreach to instruction. I am going to be busy. And I'm excited about the work I'll be doing. Excited to be a part of this library. I have made a general outline and plan for myself and the library for the upcoming year but the past few days we focused on sorting donated books. And, it broke my heart.

Let me tell you why:

1.  If you are donating books somewhere, please, please don’t donate books that are falling apart. I know you think people in Africa are eager for knowledge and will want books no matter what. You are wrong. If you don’t want it, chances are no one else will either.

2. If you are donating to a theological college that does not mean you need to donate books about missionaries from the 1960s or biography/memoirs of random Christians we have never heard of.

3. It also means you don’t need to donate boxes worth of Chicken Soup for the Soul or the Left Behind series.

4. We especially do not need boxes that are simply full of 100 copies of one book. Especially if that book is a US History textbook from 1990.

5. Theological colleges do not necessarily need bibles and hymnals either. These students are not just reading the bible and singing songs. They are trying to study: Greek, Hebrew, homiletics, systematic theology.

6. Again, if it is outdated to you, it is outdated to others as well.

7. You have a good heart, I know. I admire your willingness to recycle and help others. I am also thankful that RTC has been given so many books. Just please, please know where your donated books are going and think before you send off all your Christian self-help books to a college. Colleges are looking for scholarly information and research. Even here in Africa.

Ok, I’ll put away my soap-box for now. Or rather my box full of “I’ll Hold You in Heaven” copies. I'm just passionate about creating a library that is relevant to its users. And helping people understand that a library is not just a collection of random books.

And, don’t worry. The books we aren’t keeping will get used in some way. Just not by the library.

Books before we sorted

The boxes of books we decided to keep