Category: Budget

Library Budget Reductions Lead to the Cancellation of Resources

Posted on by Sue Polanka

The University Libraries’ budget has been reduced by 15% for fiscal year 2021.

The Libraries cannot absorb a cut of this magnitude without reductions in the materials budget. In making these reductions, our priorities are to maintain our OhioLINK commitments and to preserve resources that are geared toward student learning and instructional support. With those priorities in mind, we plan to make the reductions outlined below:

  • Reduce the funds allocated for books and audiovisual materials and buying books and AV materials only on faculty request
  • Reduce the funds allocated for binding, materials preparation, and postage
  • Cancel selected journal and database subscriptions

Unfortunately, database subscriptions must be cancelled immediately because the subscriptions typically run on a fiscal year and providers require a thirty day notice of cancellation.  We have cancelled or will cancel the following databases:

  • Access Medicine
  • ATLA Religion Index
  • BCC Research
  • Birds of North America
  • Cochrane Library
  • CRSP
  • GeoRef
  • Mental Measurements Yearbook
  • OECD iLibrary
  • Refworks
  • RILM
  • UlrichsWeb

Journal cancellation decisions will be made later in August and September. We will attempt to consult with faculty on the journals to be cancelled; however, the magnitude of the cuts to be made this year when combined with the drastic cuts that have already been made due to earlier budget cuts gives us very little room for negotiation. We will increase funding for ILL to help us handle increased requests for articles from cancelled journals.

Changes to Kanopy Access Beginning December 13

Posted on by Sue Polanka

The use of streaming video from Kanopy continues to grow and has outpaced the University Libraries’ ability to meet the demand. Since July 1, the Libraries have spent $19,950 on Kanopy videos, exceeding our projected budget for streaming videos by 31%. In order to continue providing videos for academic use and remain within our budget, we will be implementing changes in how the videos are accessed. This change will also provide us a better understanding of the need for streaming videos, providing data that we can take into consideration for future budget cycles.

Beginning on December 13, we will begin mediated access to Kanopy. You will continue to have access to videos that are already licensed for the term of the existing license, but if you try to view a video that has not been licensed, you will see a request form like the one below:

Kanopy form to request a video

If you complete the form to request the film, Kanopy will forward your request to the University Libraries. If the Libraries decide to license the film, it should be available within one or two business days.

You can always see a list of videos that are currently licensed, along with the license expiration date, here.

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University Libraries 2018 Annual Report

Posted on by University Libraries

The University Libraries 2018 Annual Report is now available on CORE Scholar.  Highlights from our report include:

  • State Capital Funds Improvements
  • Online Research Toolkit Workshops
  • Digitizing the Bishop Milton Wright Diaries
  • Conserving the Wright Brothers Bent End Propeller

We hope you will enjoy reading about our accomplishments, challenges, and outstanding staff.

What Happens When a Journal Title is Cancelled?

Posted on by andrew

It’s complicated.

The University Libraries’ have finished the journal cancellation process and sent the resulting cancellations to our vendors. Although cancellations are difficult, we appreciate the input that we received from faculty members as we identified titles to cancel. The Libraries cancelled about 285 titles costing over $500,000. Cancellations were spread across disciplines. A complete list of the cancelled titles can be found here.

When the library cancels an online journal subscription, we lose access to new content published after the cancellation. Most of the University Libraries’ subscriptions run on a calendar year, so our access to new content ends on December 31. However, with few exceptions, our licenses guarantee us continued access to content published during the years we had a subscription.

Example:

The Libraries subscribed to the online version of International Journal of Plant Sciences from 2007-2018. Beginning in 2019, we will still have access to content published between 2007 and 2018, but we will not have access to new content from 2019 forward.

Short Backfiles:

It is common for publishers to give libraries complementary access to short backfiles of titles to which they have current online subscriptions. In those cases, when the library cancels subscriptions, it loses access to the short backfiles as well.

Example:

Using International Journal of Plant Sciences again, the publisher gave complementary access to content back to 1998 with the library’s current subscription. After cancellation, the library will retain access to the subscribed years (2007-2018), but will lose access to the years 1998-2006.

Full-Text Content in Aggregator Databases:

Journal content is often available in aggregated databases such as Ebsco’s Academic Search Complete, although new content may be subject to an embargo. While this access is not guaranteed (publishers can stop providing their content or the library could cancel the database subscription), this access can reduce the impact of losing access to short backfiles and allow ongoing access to new content, albeit with a delay.

Example:

International Journal of Plant Sciences has full-text coverage in Academic Search Complete from the year 1993 forward with a 1-year embargo on new content.  Now, post-cancellation, the loss of the short backfile is not an issue and new content will become available with a one-year delay.

Full-Text Content in JSTOR Archives:

Unlike content in aggregator databases, JSTOR is a permanent archive of journal content. It also provides coverage for all of the titles included back to the first volume and issue.

Example:

International Journal of Plant Sciences is included in JSTOR’s Life Sciences Archive Collection. There is a four-year embargo on new content, but content under the current title and the previous titles (Botanical Bulletin and Botanical Gazette) is available back to volume 1 published in 1875 with a four-year embargo.

What’s the Bottom Line?

For International Journal of Plant Sciences, after cancellation we will continue to have access to all content with a one-year embargo on new content.

For current content of this journal and for access to content from all of the journals the Libraries have been forced to cancel, interlibrary loan services will be available. For more information on interlibrary loan, see the Libraries’ website and our earlier blog post.

Have Questions?

Our librarians are available to help you navigate journal access.  Please direct other comments and questions to Karen Wilhoit ([email protected]; 775-3039).