Book Order Procedures In The Publicly Controlled Colleges and Universities of the Midwest

This study is not concerned with all facets of library order work. The questions are rather focused on several large problems which were of practical concern to the inquirer, who wanted to compare certain phases of the order procedure operative at his institution with those followed at other institutions of higher learning. Before introducing these aspects of library order work, it may be well to state the limits of the study which are determined by form of control of the institutions, by their location, and by their size. It is assumed that privately supported institutions usually are free to shape their acquisition policies in such ways as the various controlling private agencies see fit, while institutions under public control usually are bound by restrictive laws and regulations. Since such differences are presumed to exist, the investigation has been exclusively devoted to institutions under public control. It is further assumed that geographical proximity of states would favor similarity in their governmental machinery, including regulations and practices governing library order work. This consideration has led to the geographical limitation of the study. Since the library with which the author is affiliated is located in the midwest, he was particularly interested in the library acquisition patterns of this region. The study, therefore, includes only the states which form the midwestern region. There is no unanimity as to the exact limits of the Dr. Veit is Director of Libraries, Chicago Teachers College and Wilson Junior College.