RBMS 2015 Blog

Quran, Tunisia; Credits to Habib M’henni / Wikimedia Commons

This year we are experimenting again with a handful of sessions for conference attendees to dive deep into timely debates.

One of these in-depth sessions is a reading group Wednesday afternoon at 3:45, and we just announced the topic: library restructuring. How many of us are going through administrative reorganizations? Or have already? Will again soon? Have reorg fatigue?

With that in mind, we picked a brand new article, one that tackles current trends integrating special collections with area studies, global studies, and international studies collections.* “Unique and distinctive collections” may be converging. In some ways, area studies collections have always been “special,” even though many materials circulate. There’s a lot we can learn from our colleagues.

The authors of the article, Lisa Carter and Beth Whittaker (top administrators with expertise in special collections), are among a cohort that is already managing combined departments. The reading group will also prepare you for the seminar “Bridging Borders between Special Collections and Area Studies: Affinities, Collaborations and Integrations,” on Thursday at 2 pm. (We think the article is sufficiently thought-provoking that it should be required reading anyway, whether or not you can come to Oakland.)

Read the article. Sign up for the reading group. Come prepared to engage and critique.

Hurry – there are only 15 spots available. No auditors allowed. We will have a bouncer at the door…seriously.

* Carter, Lisa R., and Beth M. Whittaker.  “Area Studies and Special Collections: Shared Challenges, Shared Strength.” portal: Libraries and the Academy 15.2 (Apr 2015): 353-373.

     Final version (requires Project Muse access)
     Pre-print version (freely accessible)

– Will Hansen, Christina Kasman, Colleen Barrett, Jen Schaffner, Laura Micham