Wayne Disher
Crash Course in Collection Development
Workshop
Speaker Bio
Wayne Disher spent over 20 years as a staff member at San Jose Public Library in San Jose, Calif. As Senior Librarian there, he helped managed the system's Adult Services as well as a collection budget of almost $10,000,000. Mr. Disher is currently Library Director for the City of Hemet Public Library in Hemet, Calif. He also teaches courses in Collection Development and Library Management for the San Jose State University's School of Library and Information Science. Recently, Mr. Disher was elected President of the California Library Association Public Libraries Section. Utilizing humor and practical, hands-on experiences, Mr. Disher helps demystify and simplify the Collection Development process for long-time librarians as well as those library staff members who are new to the collection arena.
The Course Book
This entry in the popular "Crash Course Series" explains collection development in terms and concepts approachable and understandable to those with little formal LIS training who may work in small, rural libraries. The guide is also useful for long-time librarians who are new to this area of library service or to those who simply need to brush up on their skills. In a volume covering everything from community analysis through developing collection policies, students and librarians will learn how to use reviews to acquire materials; popular ways to help weed the collection; and, use of statistical analysis to make collection decisions. Traditional issues such as handling challenges and censorship receive attention as do new concepts such as collection merchandizing and marketing.
Crash Course in Collection Development Workshop
Doing more with less, meeting the diverse needs of quickly changing community demographics and selecting the right material at the right time for the right person all seem to be insurmountable challenges in a public library setting. Throw into this mix the fierce competition public libraries battle from such markets as the Internet and big chain bookstores-well, it's understandable that many librarians flounder or surrender when it comes to collection development.
I believe, however, that Collection Development can — AND SHOULD — be a fun, rewarding, and easy job-and one easily learned by most any library staff member. Collection Development does have a few complex, yet important, concepts and processes any individual considering work in this area MUST be familiar with if they hope to be successful, efficient, and organized. While far from being brain surgery, working with a collection can be difficult. Without proper guidance and knowledge, individuals can make costly, embarrassing, and time consuming errors. This "Crash Course" teaches you how to stay clear of pitfalls and how to turn collection lemons into lemonade.
In This Session
The Crash Course in Collection Development Workshop is an opportunity to discover and build-in a non-threatening, non-judgmental forum-the critical skills needed to be a successful collection builder. In a fun, fast-paced, hands-on session attendees will utilize proven collection development techniques, hear "real world" selection success stories (and failures!), and, acquire tools to take back to individual job environments which can be put to immediate use. For the complete novice, or for the librarian who may just need to be reenergized, this workshop will demystify the often scary world of developing a library collection for your community.
Sample of an All Day Collection Development Workshop
Morning Session:
- The Collection Development Process
- Community Analysis - Hands-on class activity
BREAK
- Finding Community Statistics - Web based demonstration
- Speaking of statistics - using collection statistics - Hands-on class activity
- Collection Analysis and Assessments - Web based demonstration
- Questions/answers and discussion
LUNCH
Afternoon Session:
- Reviews and review sources - Hands-on class activity
- Selecting and Acquiring Material - Hands-on class activity
- Weeding and maintaining the collection
BREAK
- The Publishing world
- Collection promotion and marketing - Demonstration and activity
- Questions/answers and discussion
Note: A whole day session includes two short breaks and a one-hour lunch
Contact Information
Sheila Lucier, Workshop Coordinator
Sheila.lucier@greenwood.com
800-225-5800 ext 1353
Debby LaBoon
Workshop Manager
Libraries Unlimited
Debby.laboon@lu.com
803-547-5206
Flyer in PDF
A copy of this info is available for download as a PDF flyer.