Beyond Print: Object Collections in Academic Libraries

Abstract

The academic library clings to its etymological roots; even a term such as “alternative materials” connotes print. Still, because of the recognition of recreational or instructional values, some audiovisual (AV) formats—traditionally, the sight‐sound media of film, recordings, and graphics— have become accepted (if not wholly embraced) in academic collections. Whether these nonprint materials are bibliographically and physically accessible is problematical: AV is often purchased from different budgets, housed separately, and indexed by a system different from that for the print collection. Nonprint also includes three‐dimensional objects (3D), materials equally useful as supplements to the printed page: a model, a simulation, the “real thing” itself. The literature indicates these materials are increasingly important in school and public library collections. We ask then, should objects be part of academic library collections, and what is the present status of these materials in academic libraries?