ACRL News Issue (B) of College & Research Libraries


5 2 8 /C&RL News

In th e N ew s
W e’ve all had rough starts with a new  year, 

a new  class, a new  job. But imagine com plet­
ing the first w eek in a new  job as library direc­
tor w hen disaster strikes. That’s w hat happened 
to Camila Alire w hen floodwaters ravaged the 
collections at Colorado State University (CSU) 
w hen she had been director there a mere seven 
days (page 529).

While talking with Alire just a few days after 
the flood, she stressed how  important it was 
for libraries to have disaster recovery plans and 
urged any library without one to begin devel­
oping a plan. Having such a plan in place at 
CSU has really enabled the library to take quick 
actions toward salvaging the materials.

Though one always hopes disaster w on’t hit, 
it pays to be prepared. In “Preservation News” 
this month, Jane H edberg reports on a handy 
w heel device developed by the National Task 
Force o n  Emergency Response. The device 
offers advice for dealing with disasters and tips 
on salvaging materials (page 573).

While I’m on the topic of disaster prepared­
ness, let me venture into the related field of

preservation and direct your attention to Gary 
Albright’s article “Care of Photographs” (page 
561). Originally prepared as a technical leaflet 
for the Northeast Document Conservation Cen­
ter, the article gives practical advice on the proper 
environment and storage of photos.

This issue also includes reports of ACRL’s 
activities at the ALA Annual Conference in San 
Francisco: actions of the ACRL Board o f Direc­
tors are reported on page 548; summaries of 
many ACRL programs are given on page 537; 
an d  rep o rts o f ACRL’s University Libraries 
Section’s activities (prepared in lieu o f a sepa­
rate section newsletter) may be found on page 
544. For other items o f ACRL business, please 
see the official election results printed on page 
568 and the call for award nominations/appli- 
cations on page 567. Remember, ACRL offers 
more than $15,000 in awards and prizes, so 
take a few minutes to consider applying or 
nominating a deserving colleague.

—Mary Ellen K. Davis 
Editor & Publisher 
medavis@ala.org

mailto:medavis@ala.org