This semester, the Folsom Library underwent a few changes in the electronic resources offered to students. With the prices for maintaining these resources increasing at a rate that exceeds the library’s ability to continue subscriptions, the library was forced to make some cutbacks.
The list of cancelled databases, which can be found on the RensSearch website, includes such resources as the American Humanities Index, the MLA Bibliography, and the Accunet/AP Photo Archives. According to John Kolb, RPI’s chief information officer, and Loretta Ebert, director of Rensselaer research libraries, methods and criteria were employed to determine which resources would be eliminated.
Kolb stated that “the librarians have gone back and looked at usage statistics” to determine the usage of the various e-journals at the library. Kolb said that, although the decision was a hard one to make, it was decided to cut the lesser-used journals.
According to Ebert, three criteria were used in determining which journals would be cancelled: usage statistics and cost per use, program impact, and availability of alternatives. The main pressures the library is dealing with, according to Kolb, are external. Many publishers are only selling e-journals in packages. “This new business model makes it more difficult than it had been with the print model,” stated Ebert.
Though the emphasis right now is on the cutbacks in resources, Ebert stated that “converting to online journals has really expanded access to information.” Before electronic journals were implemented, the library could only afford 3,000 titles. With electronic journals, however, over 38,000 titles are available, many of which are multi-disciplinary.
The impact that the cancellation of some of these journals will have on students and professors has not gone unnoticed by the rest of the academic community. Ellen Esrock, professor of language, literature, and communication, relied heavily on the MLA Bibliography for her research and teaching. According to Esrock, “[the MLA Bibliography journal is] pertinent to EMAC and LLC students.” She continued, “Graduate students are being disadvantaged [by these substitutions].” Esrock also expressed concern for undergraduates completing capstone projects as well. “Having the resources is the difference between doing a thorough, professional job, and not doing it,” she stated.
Although one of the criteria used when determining which resources to cut was the availability of alternative resources, Esrock stated that they were either not as complete, do not contain information that goes back as far as the original sources, or do not index the articles as well as the others.
This issue will eventually be brought before the Faculty Senate as a draft of a resolution. When it first reached the Humanities and Social Sciences Department, Esrock said, “They were all horrified.” She said that not only are these cutbacks being perceived as detrimental to current students and faculty, but also as having a negative effect on faculty recruitment and school ranking. Esrock pointed out that one of the criteria that affects the Institute’s national rank is the availability of resources in the library.
Students are not immune to the effects of these cancellations. “I think it’s a shame that the library has to cut educational resources,” Nicole Taravella ’07, a psychology and communications major, stated. “When they’re trying to build EMPAC and trying to place more emphasis on humanities, it doesn’t make sense that they would cut resources that are used by these majors.” Taravella first heard about the cancellations from a professor who had suggested that her class use MLA. When she discovered that she could no longer access MLA, she was able to use ProQuest as an alternative. When asked what her initial reaction to the cancellations was, Taravella said, “It makes me feel like I’m not an important student.”
According to John Dojka, the Institiute archivist, head of special collections Folsom Library, H&SS bibliographer, and collection development coordinator, “The cuts that were proposed this year were proportionate to areas of focus.” The advantage of electronic journals, according to Dojka, allows for the ability to see how often articles are used. Statistics have shown that there were only 1,100 searches for the American Humanities Index, 185 searches for the MLA Bibliography, and 800 searches for the History e-book Project, to name a few.
If the monetary requirements for electronic journal subscriptions continue to increase at a faster rate than the library’s budget, more cutbacks will likely follow, according to a document prepared by Esrock. Members of the faculty have been fast to respond to this issue by preparing a draft of a resolution to place before the Faculty Senate. According to Kolb, “We tend to be a community of problem solvers.” Kolb added that he would be willing to look into a challenge of the methods chosen for deciding which e-journals were cancelled. He stated that it is “fair to get people involved in the process, [but it’s] not fair to say we can’t do it.”
