Sr. Gaona -- 

Glenn Walsh's comments are representative of a large
number of museum libraries in the United States.

While there are professionally-staffed and managed
libraries in the largest (and best-funded) American
museums, the situation is radically different in the
vast number of mid-sized and smaller institutions. 
There one finds collections of rather haphazardly
acquired books and other publications under the charge
of a volunteer or as part of the "other duties as
assigned" of an employee whose training is in another
field entirely.  

The increasing use of the Internet for research and
the availability of electronic resources online have
led some museum administrators to determine museum
libraries and librarians are luxuries best sacrificed
in hopes of keeping some other program alive for
another year. 

Here's a link to the results of a google search for
the terms "museum libraries" and standards:

http://tinyurl.com/5uvxqs

I do not know how helpful the search will be as I am
not aware of any standards for museum libraries. I do
not know what agency could issue a standard that would
have any real applicability. I suspect that any
"standards" are a hodge-podge borrowed from other
organizations which may or may not be applicable to
your situation. 

In the past there were some efforts to establish a
museum librarians group within the American
Association of Museums but none was successful.
Without the support and clout of a national
professional organization, not to mention inclusion in
its accreditation program, the reality was that
standards for museum libraries are just "wishful
thinking."

Museum librarians in the U.S. tend to be involved in a
wide variety of professional organizations - the
American Library Association, the Special Libraries
Association, the Association of College and Research
Libraries, the Society of American Archivists, as well
as numerous regional and local organizations. While
this has benefited individuals by providing continuing
education opportunities and networking, especially for
short-term projects, it has diluted the librarians'
effectiveness within the larger museum community.

Perhaps, if you could make your question a bit more
specific than "experiences on management", someone on
this list could provide you with a better answer or a
more appropriate place to post your query.

Judy Turner
Whitefish Bay, WI

--- "Glenn A. Walsh" <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

> Pittsburgh's original Buhl Planetarium and Institute
> of Popular Science (1939 to 1991) included a small
> library of astronomy and science books (800
> volumes),
> which we permitted researchers and the public to use
> on a by-appointment basis. Although I tried to get
> more public hours for the library, the budget would
> not permit the hiring of a librarian.
> 
> So what was done, from time-to-time we would find a
> retired librarian who would be willing to come in,
> on
> a volunteer basis, to update the collection. This
> was
> in addition to some of our staff (particularly one
> of
> our physics instructors) acquiring new textbooks for
> the library.

[Snip]


--- Oscar Gaona <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

> Hi all
> 
> I am looking for informaton about standards and
> experiences on management of
> Libraries in Museums.
> 
> Thanks in advance for any information.
> 
> 
> 
> Regards,
> 
> Oscar Gaona
> Director Museodata
> Tel.: +571-7037637
> Skype: oscargaona
> 
> 
> Contact online:
> http://www.museodata.com


      

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