Spring Break
University students relying more on electronic research than ever before
Lindsay Lorenz
Issue date: 4/11/08 Section: News
Although checking out books may seem old-fashioned, Erin Creighton, an information service technician who works at the circulation desk, said there's no question that students still use books.
Out of the library's $2,938,595 appropriated for resources like books, periodicals and media materials, $400,000 of that went to books last year.
She estimated that she personally checks out about 200 books a day. With finals just around the corner and term paper deadlines approaching quickly, books are not overlooked. "Especially this time of the year, circulation is pretty busy," Creighton said.
But with budget constraints, the library was forced to scale back on periodical subscriptions, mostly due to inflation costs.
"Yes, we've had to reduce the number of paper resources this year, but we do this very, very carefully so were always sure we have the right materials," Creighton said.
However, it's not a complete loss. Since 1984, The Higher Education Library Information Network Library Consortium (HELIN) has allowed students to borrow resources from 11 other Rhode Island educational institutions and hospitals, giving them access to 5.3 million shared resources. HELIN includes more than $600,000 worth of electronic resources, and makes it possible for students to access materials beyond URI's fiscal grasp.
Last year, URI students borrowed more 8,200 books, and lent about 7,500 to other institutions. Materials can be swapped from library to library in a matter of days.
Bob Aspri, the consortium's executive director, said being in a consortium saves the university money and still gives students access to a myriad of resources.
According to Aspri, having a consortium allows librarians to spend less money than they need because information is already accessible at other institutions.
Aspri works with vendors who give the consortium members better deals for buying information in bulk.
"People are using online resources quite heavily," he said. "We're buying information in bulk. This saves the libraries a lot of money."
Library statistics suggest that the subscriptions are a valuable investment. In 2005, there were more than one million searches on the university's 83 databases, and by 2006 inquiries had increased by 50,000 searches in the university's 86 databases.
Out of the library's $2,938,595 appropriated for resources like books, periodicals and media materials, $400,000 of that went to books last year.
She estimated that she personally checks out about 200 books a day. With finals just around the corner and term paper deadlines approaching quickly, books are not overlooked. "Especially this time of the year, circulation is pretty busy," Creighton said.
But with budget constraints, the library was forced to scale back on periodical subscriptions, mostly due to inflation costs.
"Yes, we've had to reduce the number of paper resources this year, but we do this very, very carefully so were always sure we have the right materials," Creighton said.
However, it's not a complete loss. Since 1984, The Higher Education Library Information Network Library Consortium (HELIN) has allowed students to borrow resources from 11 other Rhode Island educational institutions and hospitals, giving them access to 5.3 million shared resources. HELIN includes more than $600,000 worth of electronic resources, and makes it possible for students to access materials beyond URI's fiscal grasp.
Last year, URI students borrowed more 8,200 books, and lent about 7,500 to other institutions. Materials can be swapped from library to library in a matter of days.
Bob Aspri, the consortium's executive director, said being in a consortium saves the university money and still gives students access to a myriad of resources.
According to Aspri, having a consortium allows librarians to spend less money than they need because information is already accessible at other institutions.
Aspri works with vendors who give the consortium members better deals for buying information in bulk.
"People are using online resources quite heavily," he said. "We're buying information in bulk. This saves the libraries a lot of money."
Library statistics suggest that the subscriptions are a valuable investment. In 2005, there were more than one million searches on the university's 83 databases, and by 2006 inquiries had increased by 50,000 searches in the university's 86 databases.
