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I. General Description of the Collection and its Users

Printing materials are purchased to support faculty and student needs in the College of Imaging Arts and Sciences, School of Printing Management and Sciences, and the NTID Printing Production Program. Materials on the history of printing are acquired to supplement those in the Cary Collection only in those cases where circulating copies are deemed desirable. Materials support an AOS, an AAS, a diploma in printing, 3 BS degree programs, and 3 MS degrees.

II. Description of the Programs Served by the Collection

A. Undergraduate Programs

The School of Printing Management and Sciences offers an AAS degree in Printing and 3 BS degree in Printing Systems, Newspaper Operations Management, and Printing and Applied Computer Sciences. In addition, a cert?cate program in Multimedia Publishing has recently been approved.

The National Technical Institute for the Deaf offers an AOS degree in Printing Production.

B. Graduate Programs

The School of Printing Management and Sciences offers an MS in Printing Technology and MS degrees in Graphic Arts Systems and Graphic Arts Publishing. Students in the Graphic Arts Publishing program choose from two options: Design and Typography, and Electronic Publishing.

C. Continuing Education

The College of Continuing Education offers a diploma in Printing.

III. Subject and Language Modifiers

A. Geographic Limits

Emphasis is on technological developments in the U.S., but documentation on developments and techniques from other countries (i.e., U.K., Canada, France, Germany, and Japan) are also acquired.

B. Chronological Limits

Primary emphasis is on current principles and applications. Selective collecting is done, however, in the history of printing and typography, including biographies of important printers and histories of signi?cant presses and publishers. More exhaustive research resources in this area, however, are provided by the Cary Collection.

C. Language Limits

No restrictions. Emphasis is on English language materials. Important information in other languages and not otherwise available is acquired at the request of faculty or as necessary.

IV. Date of Publication

Current or recent publication is the primary emphasis. A retention schedule of 10 to 15 years may be selectively applied to certain materials to provide a historic context for rapid changes in the contemporary printing and graphic arts industry. Retrospective purchasing for the history of printing collection will be carried out only where basis gaps in circulating materials exist. Retrospective acquisition of serials will be extremely limited; patron requests for such material will be referred to document delivery where appropriate.

V. Archives and Special Collections

Theses are retained which have been submitted as a requirement in the School of Printing masters programs.

VI. Treatment of Subject Matter

A. Level of Treatment

Materials are acquired to maintain research-level programs in printing. Though the undergraduate curriculum is still the primary focus, original research is conducted by School of Printing graduate students and faculty, and staff in the Technical & Education Center and requires strong support materials.

B. Textbooks

Monographs intended explicitly as classroom texts are not routinely acquired, except on faculty request. Introductory or general texts, however, are purchased if of high quality and appropriate to the curriculum and needs of the collection.

C. Serials

Serials are the primary vehicle for the dissemination of information in the volatile and rapidly changing graphic arts industry. In addition, indexing and abstracting services are acquired, as well as conference proceedings where information not otherwise available is often published.

D. Multiple Copies

Acquired if use patterns of the discipline warrant, or on faculty request. Additional copies of titles by RIT authors are acquired.

VII. Cooperative Collection Development Agreements

RRLC-CCD program provides funding for some printing materials. However, since the School of Printing's graphic arts programs are unique to the region, there is little opportunity for local resource sharing with other universities. There are, however, informal cooperative contacts with image-based companies in the area, some of which maintain their own libraries.

When faculty and student research needs fall outside the curriculum-based scope of the on-site collection, access to additional information will be provided through traditional as well as commercial document delivery services.

VIII. Publication Formats

A. Microforms

The image-based nature of printing and graphic arts material limits the usefulness of microform media. Acceptable for journals only if title does not contain graphical material or mathematical notations.

B. Newspapers

Selected newsletter-type publications and tabloids are acquired when appropriate to the needs of the curriculum or to employment information needs of students.

C. Government Documents

Purchase selectively when appropriate to the needs of the curriculum or collection. Not maintained as a separate collection.

D. Audio-visual Materials

Acquired on faculty request (sometimes in cooperation with Instructional Media Services).

E. Maps/Atlases

None.

F. Software and CD-ROM Storage Devices

Indexing and abstracting services and other specialized sources will be acquired in these formats where they meet subject collection criteria, as well as the Electronic Resource Policy criteria (in process).

G. Standards/Specifications

Acquired selectively as needed. Not maintained as a separate collection. Some type specimen catalogs acquired, though uncommon or rare materials of this nature may more appropriately be consulted in the Cary Collection.

IX. Collection Maintenance

Continuous maintenance of the collection is carried out based upon systematic evaluation of the collection in light of curriculum shifts, use statistics, core bibliographies, physical space limitations, and alternative availability of information. Periodical titles will be reviewed annually prior to their renewal. All other areas of the collection should be reviewed every three to ?ve years to remove materials no longer relevant to the curriculum in this discipline. Included in the process is weeding of materials no longer relevant to curriculum needs, elimination of super?uous titles where information is duplicate in more current or authoritative sources, and the ordering of replacement copies of damaged or heavily used items still relevant to curriculum needs.

A. Weeding

1. Duplicates Only Weeded
At least one copy in good condition of standard and classic titles listed in major general bibliographies and special subject lists should be retained in the collection.
2. Selective Weeding
   a. Monographs
   In general, printing and graphic arts materials should be reviewed every three to five years to remove materials no longer relevant to the curriculum, older materials where sufficient coverage is provided by more contemporary titles, and multiple copies of materials where high use is no longer a factor.
   b. Serials
   1. Indexing and Abstracting Services
      Indexing and abstracting publications need to be available to cover all curriculum-based topics and periods of study. Publications should only be discarded when equivalent or improved coverage is available through new sources, printed or electronic.
   2. Scholarly Publications
      Long runs of key scholarly journals documenting all aspects of the printing and graphic arts industry and that meet the criteria given in the introduction to this section should be retained inde?nitely. Priority for retention should be given to titles accessible through indexing and abstracting services available at RIT Library and titles not available in any other Rochester-area library. Short runs and broken runs should be scrutinized more carefully and retention decisions should be based on the collecting levels assigned in Section X: Subject Divisions, usages statistics, importance of title to discipline, and alternative availability.
   3. Trade Journals
      Retention of trade journals should be carefully scrutinized. Those that provide timely information (industry and organization news, new products, etc.) should be discarded after a period of one to five years. Those that include article of more lasting value should be considered for longer retention, particularly if they are accessible through indexing and abstracting services available at RIT Library.
   4. Annuals
      These provide useful chronological overview of current and historical developments and are therefore kept indefinitely.
   5. Directories
      Current editions are kept in reference or reserve; for directories that change very little, one copy of the previous issue is kept in the circulating collection for users to circulate or to use if the latest edition is temporarily misplaced. Older editions are discarded.
3. Current Edition/Year Only Retained
   a. Monographs
   1. Textbooks
   2. Manuals of Practice
   3. Career guidance and professional information
   4. Standard and policy guidelines
   b. Serials
   1. Newsletters, calendars, and other current awareness services providing timely information about events and activities of organizations and institutions, and employment opportunities.
   2. Membership directories.

B. Replacement of Materials

1. Lost or Mutilated

Every effort should be made to replace lost or heavily mutilated titles if they are judged to be of continuing relevance to the collection. When mutilation is confined to a few pages, replacement copies of these pages should be requested through the Information Delivery Service. (See Bindery Policy/Procedure-Periodicals and Monographs).

2. Gifts

Gifts which duplicate existing holdings should be used to upgrade the condition of the collection by replacing worn circulating copies with more sound gift copies.

C. Stacks Maintenance

Printing and graphic arts materials are found throughout the circulating collection but are concentrated in the "Z" area. This area should be shelf-read frequently and the condition of items shelved here should be monitored to ensure that those in need of repair or rebinding are attended to before irreparable damage occurs.

X. Subject Divisions

The printing and graphic arts collection is interdisciplinary and draws on a number of subject areas. The subject divisions include the following:

 

A. Design and typography (including traditional and desktop)	C-1
B. Prepress (including composition, reproduction theory, image manipulation, and output)	B
C. Printing processes (including traditional as well as non-ink based, e.g. electrostatic methods)	B
D. Paper and ink (including manufacture and recycling issues	B
E. Bindery and finishing	C-1

Maintained by Sheila Smokey