25 May 2006
Deanna Marcum
Associate Librarian for Library Services
Library of Congress
101 Independence Avenue SE
Room 642
Washington DC 20540
Dear Deanna:
I write to inform you, officially, that the Association of Research Libraries endorses the decision by the Library of Congress to discontinue providing controlled series access in the bibliographic records that LC catalogers produce and to stop creating series authority records. This endorsement was forthcoming during the ARL Business Meeting held on 19 May in Ottawa, Ontario, following your report on the issue.
Because many of our member institutions are also engaged in rethinking the provision of bibliographic services in an increasingly digital environment, ARL supports the Library of Congress’ efforts to redesign its services in order to focus better on the needs of the end-user—the individual researcher—and to streamline processes in order to make information accessible more conveniently and more quickly.
As we have worked together for many years now, ARL looks forward to working with the Library of Congress, the staffs of our libraries, and others to consider changes in bibliographic services that would best serve our users. I was pleased to learn at the Business Meeting last week in Ottawa that you plan to proceed with constituting an Advisory Committee to work with you and your LC colleagues in developing your bibliographic services strategy. I’m happy to identify ARL Directors to participate in that Committee, and shall call you next week to discuss possibilities.
Sincerely,
Brian E. C. Schottlaender
President, Association of Research Libraries
cc: James Billington, Librarian of Congress
Michael Gorman, President, American Library Association
Keith Fiels, Executive Director, American Library Association
Duane Webster, Executive Director, Association of Research Libraries
ARL Directors
