Prebivalci lokalne skupnosti kot uporabniki severnoameriških visokošolskih knjižnic: poskus pridobivanja dodatnih finančnih sredstev

Abstract

ABSTRACTIn 2007 the Ottenheimer Library at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock (UALR), decided to extend library privileges gratis to members of the community as a gesture of good will and a potential tool for fund-raising. Privileges extended include borrowing items from the circulating collection and use of reference materials (paper and electronic) and other non-circulating materials in the library building.Purpose: This paper reports the results of the five-year experiment to extend borrowing privileges to community users.Methodology/Approach: It describes the findings of a Web-based survey conducted to obtain information on demographics and community users’ perception of the value of library privileges (Dole and Hill, 2012) and the results of an appeals letter sent to solicit donations and to study the correlation between community users’ receiving library privileges and donating.Findings: Although these users had said that they value the services the Library extended to them and were more likely to donate money (Dole and Hill 2012), few did donate as a result of the appeals letter.Research Limitations: This paper reports on the responses of community users at one North American academic library and may or may not provide guidance for other libraries contemplating approaching community users for donations. The results of this study may or may not be generalizable to all academic libraries.Originality/Practical Implications: There has been little research that attempts to assess community users’ perception of the value of an academic library’s extending library privileges to them. Previous studies surveyed librarians about their perceptions of the pros and cons of extending privileges.