A Special Public Relations Opportunity for Academic Libraries

Jon Eldredge use of the billboard shocked a number of librarians, Library Director since up until that time no one had really “adver­ Eastern New Mexico University tised” libraries.2 Clovis Campus During his busy career Dana served as ALA pres­ ident and was one of the principal founders of the Special Library Association. He was a public li­ The Gustavus Adolphus College Library, St. Pe­ brarian during most of his career. His involvement ter, Minnesota, has been selected as one of the win­ with public libraries may in part explain why the ners of the 1982 John Cotton Dana Public Relations number of entries from public libraries in the John Award. Four academic libraries participated in the Cotton Dana Public Relations Award contest contest this year which had a total of 154 entries. In its brief existence the friends group for the library, dwarfs the number of entries from academic li­ the Gustavus Library Associates, raised over braries. Only four academic libraries entered the $400,000 toward building a library endowment of contest in 1982 and only five entered in 1981. In more than $1 million. The endowment was created those same years, there were 76 and 57 entries re­ to build the library’s collection and to help qualify spectively from public libraries. the college for gaining a Phi Beta Kappa chapter on For whatever reason, it seems unfortunate that the library profession perceives the contest to be a campus. The John Cotton Dana Public Relations Award public library activity when all libraries are eligi­ grants recognition to those libraries that have ex­ ble to compete. When they have entered the con­ hibited excellence in their public relations activities test, academic libraries have done well in acquir­ during the past year. All sizes and types of libraries, ing awards—since 1970 twenty-two academic media and information centers are eligible to enter libraries have been recognized by the awards com­ the contest. All entries are reviewed by a commit­ mittee, and five of these were award winners. tee of public relations experts representing many There are two distinct categories of awards different types of libraries.1 Normally the commit­ made by the judging committee: the winners and tee includes at least one academic librarian. Each the special awards. Winners are honored for an year the committee examines approximately 150 overall library public relations program which has entrants, selects the winner, and designates the re­ consistently followed a single theme over the course cipient of special awards. The committee makes its of a calendar year. About four of these awards are decisions on the basis of the public relations activi­ selected from all entries submitted to each contest. ties of participating libraries rather than on the ba­ This category takes into consideration all activities, sis of just the publicity component of these activi­ budget expenditures, and planning connected with ties. The H.W. Wilson Company and ALA’s a year-long public relations effort. Library Administration and Management Associa­ One of the 1981 award winners, the J. Paul tion have jointly sponsored the award since 1946. Leonard Library at San Francisco State Univer­ The contest was established at that time to honor sity, directed its program toward the education of the career of John Cotton Dana (1856-1959), a vig­ library users about a new automated circulation orous advocate of library public relations. system. Focusing on a zebra theme to represent the In recent years academic librarians have become new bar code identification system, the library increasingly aware of the important role played by hung large, colorful banners at the entrance to the public relations in the process of effective library building and carried out a series of carefully management. Many academic librarians would planned activities both inside the library and probably find that Dana’s philosophy on public re­ around campus during the year. The program was lations closely resembles their own views on the very successful in introducing the new system to the subject. Yet in his time, Dana’s philosophy was not campus community. always respected by his peers in the profession. The University of Texas Library won an award Dana was a great innovator in librarianship at the for its comprehensive set of publications intended turn of the century, but his unique contribution to to promote the library in 1977. The preceding year the field was his insistence upon the importance of the University of Utah Library won an award for library promotion. In 1910 he used a billboard to its effective and creatively produced student orien­ encourage use of the Denver Public Library. The tation program. Peggy Barber, “Public Relations,” in the ALA The committee consists of members of the Pub­ World Encyclopedia of Library and Information lic Relations Section of ALA’s Library Administra­ Services (Chicago: American Librarv Association, tion and Management Association (LAMA). 1980), p.460.

188 / C&RL News The Folke Bernadotte Memorial Library, Gustaυus Adolphus College, St. Peter, Minnesota, 1982 John Cotton Dana Public Relations Award winner.

The John Cotton Dana Public Relations Award award winners and three special awards for aca­ also involves a number of special awards each year. demic libraries. On the average, the judging com­ The judging committee selects 16-24 awards in this mittee receives very few academic entries each category for each contest. The majority of aca­ year. In 1982 only 3 % of the total entries submitted demic libraries receiving awards in the past decade came from academic libraries. have done so in this category. Special awards give In the past, entries to the contest for both catego­ recognition to single public relations projects ries have usually consisted of a scrapbook contain­ which meet with great success in achieving a ing photographs, newspaper clippings, library planned goal. In this category the Gustavus brochures, and other relevant material pertaining Adolphus College Library (also a 1982 award win­ to the library’s public relations project. A growing ner) won a special award for its fund-raising efforts number of entries are supplemented by or made up in 1978 aimed at increasing library acquisitions. In entirely of nonprint materials such as videotape. 1979 the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Darrel Hildebrandt, who has chaired the John Center Library also received a special award for its Cotton Dana Award Committee for the past two technically sophisticated videotape orientation years, estimates that 20% of the entries in recent project that made use of special visual effects. years have included nonprint formats. As a matter Other recipients of special awards in past years of fact, three of the five entries from academic li­ have been the University of Houston Library in braries in 1981 consisted of nonprint materials. 1970 for its high-quality publications which In judging the contest, the committee pays spe­ brought special attention to a collection of rare cial attention to the quality rather than the quan­ books; the University of Denver Library for its fo­ tity of materials submitted. Committee member cus on a library exhibit on Native Americans in Dale Carrison thinks libraries should not be con­ 1975; and the Allegany Community College Li­ cerned about spending large amounts of money on brary, Cumberland, Maryland, for its 1976 pro­ production of programs or projects. The Dyke Col­ motion of a local oral history project. lege Library, Cleveland, won an award in 1971 No guarantee exists that an academic library specifically because it had few financial or person­ will receive either type of award for any particular nel resources available to allocate in what turned year. In both 1969 and 1980, for example, no out to be a very successful public relations pro­ award was presented to an academic library. In gram. In addition to quality, the committee con­ contrast, the 1975 award decisions produced two siders the amount of creativity reflected by entries

June 1983 / 189 to b e an im p ortant facto r in selecting aw ard recip i­ forms is January 3, 1984, and the deadline for ents. scrapbooks and nonprint materials is February 6, The committee looks for specific, measurable 1984. Scrapbooks and nonprint entries for winners outcomes that can be attributed to the success of o f both categories o f th e aw ard are on display in the the participating libraries’ public relations activi­ exhibit area at ALA Annual Conference. The same ties. Libraries need to clearly demonstrate how materials are available for two years after the an­ they evaluated the success of their program in nouncement of award winners via interlibrary reaching goals and objectives. The amount of care loan from ALA Headquarters Library. and time devoted to the planning process also ranks Academic libraries involved with public rela­ as an important consideration. Entries should pos­ tions activities which they believe to be exciting sess an organized, clear presentation of the theme and well managed should certainly consider enter­ of the p ublic relations program or p roject. Fin ally , ing the John Cotton Dana Public Relations Award entries should relate to recent activities. contest. In looking back on the performance of aca­ An information brochure and an application dem ic libraries th at have secured aw ards and com ­ form can be obtained from P atricia Sabosik, D irec­ paring it to the relatively small number of aca­ tor of Marketing Services, H.W . Wilson Company, demic entries submitted, college and university 950 University Avenue, Bronx, NY 10452. The bro­ librarians may well wish to take advantage of this chure outlines some of the basic guidelines for en­ special opportunity for our area of librarian- tering the contest. The next deadline for entry ship. ■ ■

DOUGHERTY NAMED An especially noteworthy accomplishment was LIBRARIAN OF THE YEAR at Berkeley, where he played a leading role in a co­ operative program to make the resources of the re­ Richard M. Dougherty, director of the library at search libraries at UC-Berkeley and Stanford Uni­ the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, has been versity available to the faculty and graduate awarded the ACRL Academic or Research Librar­ students of both institutions. ian of the Year Award Dougherty’s publications include five mono­ for 1983. The Associa­ graphs, two of the most recent being the widely tion of College and Re­ cited Improving Access to Library Resources and a search Libraries and the second edition of Scientific Management of Li­ Baker & Taylor Com­ brary Operations, co-authored with Fred J. pany will present the Heinritz. The wide range of his articles, reports, award to Dougherty on editorials and reviews is indicative of Dougherty’s June 27 at the ACRL re­ intellectual capacity and variety of interests in the ception at Annual Con­ library profession. ference in Los Angeles. The recipient of the Esther J. Piercy Award and The award cites a fellowship from the Council on Library Re­ Dougherty for his in­ sources, Dougherty has also found time to teach fu­ volvement in the editing ture librarians at seven library schools. He has also of professional journals, Richard M. Dougherty served on the American Library Association’s Ex­ especially C o lle g e & ecutive Board, ALA Council, the Board of Direc­ Research Libraries tors of the Association of Research Libraries, and (1969-1974) and the Journal of Academic Librari­ has been an active member of ACRL. anship (since 1975), but also including Library Re­ The ACRL Academic or Research Librarian of sources and Technical Services, th e L ib r a r y - the Year Award was established by ACRL and the College Journal, an d th e Journal of Library Baker & Taylor Company to recognize individual Automation. members of the library profession who have made Dougherty was also cited for his achievements as outstanding national or international contribu­ a library administrator at the University of Michi­ tions to academic or research librarianship and li­ gan, the University of California, Berkeley, and brary development. The award consists of $2,000 the University of Colorado. “In a short span of and a citation. tim e,” the citation reads, “Richard M. Dougherty, Recipients of the award since its inception in library administrator, editor, and educator, has 1978 have been: Keyes D. Metcalf and Robert B. left his mark on academic librarianship and the li­ Downs (1978); Henriette D. Avram and Frederick brary profession through his prolific writings, able G. Kilgour (1979); Evan I. Färber (1980); Beverly administration and committed professional in­ P. Lynch (1981); and William Stone Budington volvements.” (1982). ■ ■

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