[Sca-librarians] Interlibrary Loan rant

[Sally Burnell]

> I can't believe how upset I am about this! I figured
> people on this list would understand my frustration
> and possibly provide answers. 

Your Tax Dollars At Work (said with tongue planted firmly in cheek!)

Yes, I totally understand your frustration. It's the expense of doing 
ILL's that is causing more and more libraries to refuse to do them. 
Libraries are facing hard times in this new Millenium due to deep cuts 
in federal and state support, and so they have made cuts where they 
deem it necessary. 

You mentioned joining your college's Alumni Association to have access 
to that school's library and ILL services. That's really the best idea 
right now. This is why I maintain an active membership in my Alma 
Mater's Alumni Association (Kent State University Alumni Association) - 
that I might access their library. 'Course, I work in a library and we 
DO ILL services for our patrons. But this past winter when our 
operating levy failed and we were forced to make cutbacks, we had to 
charge a rather steep fee to our patrons who requested ILL's. 

It's still not free, but when our levy passed in the second try on the 
March ballots, we lowered the cost again when the administration went 
ahead and borrowed $2 million on the value of the levy monies that we 
will begin to collect next year. 

Such is life in the library these days. I don't know what else to tell 
you. These are not good times for libraries and librarians. 

~Saradwen
lowly (and very stressed out right now) library assistant