1. Conference Proceedings Theses/Dissertations
Scanning for Success Oregon State University Libraries’ Digitization Program
OSU Gray Literature
State/Federal Docs
Journals
Conference Proceedings
Theses/Dissertations
Realizing a critical mass of content was essential for the success of our IR and understanding that, without a mandate, we couldn’t count on faculty to provide that content we initiated a digitization program. We gathered a few scanners, a few students, and a few staff to work, part-time in a newly formed Digital Production Unit. We were also fortunate to have two very interested subject librarians who had been with their departments for a number of years who were willing to lead our efforts with those departments.
Those two librarians selected data reports, technical bulletins, and other departmental gray literature for digitization, and then shared our progress with the deans and faculty. Our own DPU staff also suggested titles for digitization, including seminal reports from the State of Oregon and the federal government, which are highly used by researchers on campus. Again, the subject librarians touted these online resources within their departments.
Gradually, people began to sit up and take notice. We contracted with several faculty members’ associations to digitize their journals and conference proceedings (earning us a little money in the process and a whole lot of gratitude), we digitized collections for the Agricultural Extension Service and Experiment Station, and we digitized materials that would eventually populate Oregon Explorer, our online natural resources portal.
This year, in addition to our now mandated Electronic Theses and Dissertation collection, we began digitizing any OSU thesis that is requested through ILL or regional consortia. We now have researchers throughout the world accessing this research and contacting authors and OSU colleges and departments for further information. We’ve even had OSU alumni contacting us about getting their thesis or dissertation put online.
With close to 10,000 items in our IR, it’s beginning to feel like we’re reaching a tipping point. With more subject librarians and our archives department trumpeting our collections, campus units have agreed to supplement our efforts with future publications and although we’ve only captured the attention of a very few faculty members we’re also making tiny inroads there. Just a month or so ago, the dean of the College of Oceanic and Atmospheric Sciences placed his most recent publication in our IR – after using a SPARC addendum, of course. So we’re pretty pleased about where we’re headed and are excited about the future possibilities.
Our success has not gone unnoticed; this willingness to digitize OSU and OSU-related collections helped propel ScholarsArchive to the number 8 spot among all U.S. IRs.[1]