When you visit the Aurora Public Library District, you see thousands of items on our shelves waiting patiently to be taken home. What you don’t see is the work that went into getting them there. Every single item (over 330,000) had to be ordered, received, labeled, barcoded, cataloged, and shelved before it could be checked out by you. That work is done by the talented team in our Collection Services Department (CSD), led by Department manager, Miranda, and assistant manager, Melissa. We chatted about their department responsibilities, how the recent shutdown of a major retailer affected their work, and about the positive effect we’re having on the community.
Though CSD lives mainly behind the scenes, the work they do impacts everyone who uses the library. “A lot of people outside of libraries don’t know what I mean when I say I work for the Collection Services Department, but that just gives me an excuse to talk about the work we do and how proud I am to be a part of it!” said Melissa. These are the folks who research trends, read reviews, and use feedback from the community to build a balanced and diverse collection at each of our locations. “We strive to have a collection that reflects the community we serve, with diverse materials that represent a variety of viewpoints, languages, and experiences,” said Miranda. To do this, we purchase from multiple vendors all over the world, but one vendor’s recent bankruptcy impacted workflows at APLD and thousands of libraries across the country.
It made mainstream headlines six months ago, when Baker & Taylor, the largest distributor of print and digital materials to public libraries, announced it would be shutting down after nearly 200 years in business. “We had been using B&T for so long for so many of our materials that their sudden closure really shook things up,” said Miranda. “As soon as B&T announced their closure, I immediately put together a list of all our outstanding orders. I wanted to make sure our Selectors had a complete list of everything we had ordered but not yet received so we could start ordering those titles from other vendors.” Not only did APLD order most of our items from B&T, but most of those items arrived shelf-ready with barcodes, labels, and dust jacket covers already applied. “We worked hard to receive, process, and catalog items quickly when they arrived from new vendors,” added Melissa. “Our catalogers have been phenomenal; they adjusted their workflows and adapted to change to ensure items are ready to go as soon as possible.”
Aside from our primary book vendor suddenly closing, CSD is also planning both the reopening collection for Eola Road Branch and the collection for West Branch’s upcoming renovation. To do so, staff analyze usage statistics to balance the number of items staying on the shelves, going into storage, or moving temporarily to other locations. One of the best examples of this in action is the World Language Collection at the Eola Road Branch. “During the second phase of renovations, we knew Eola Express wasn’t going to have the shelf space to hold the entire World Language Collection, but we didn’t want to put it in storage because Eola owns languages the other locations don’t,” said Miranda. “We decided to temporarily move adult materials to the Santori Library and juvenile materials to the West Branch. After just eight months, there was a 914% increase in World Language checkouts at West Branch!” This data will be used to make informed decisions about the collection across locations in the future months.
So, the next time you grab a book, movie, or World Language title that makes your day (in-person or from our digital collection), give a mental high‑five to the Collection Services Department. Their enthusiasm, curiosity, and hard work make sure our shelves stay exciting, and thanks to them, every visit to APLD is an invitation to discover something new! If you have a purchase suggestion for Miranda and her team, visit www.aurorapubliclibrary.org/CollectionSuggestion or contact the library at 630-264-4117.
Andrea Tiberi is the communications coordinator for the Aurora Public Library District.