*Please excuse cross postings.

How do you coordinate the staff functions within a repository that operates as an archives, museum, and special collections library?  As part of the expansion plan accompanying our move into a new building, I have been asked to research and make suggestions concerning the organization and staffing of the Center of Southwest Studies. The move will include additions of new staff and also changes to current staff duties. Since we will include museum, archives, and library components, I would like to know how other institutions organize these activities and how they divvy up duties. I am particularly interested in how you handle overlapping activities (collection development, accessioning, cataloging, etc.). I would also welcome any literature recommendations that discuss the administration of this multi-faceted type of repository (so far, I’ve only found discussion of museums, archives, and libraries as separate units).

Below is a series of questions that could be answered as an informal survey or just used to stimulate discussion. You may respond to me personally or to the list; I will gladly summarize responses.

1) How do you define "museum artifact", "archival material", and "library book" (how do you decide what goes where)?

2) How are donations/ acquisitions handled? Who handles donor relations, accessioning, registration, etc.?

3) How does a researcher access information about collections? Do you have an integrated catalogue (if yes, how did you reconcile differences in nomenclature, description, etc.)? Who does the cataloguing?

4) Who oversees the reference process? Are all types of items available to researchers in one place? If not, how is research access handled?

5) If a new collection contains items appropriate for more than one department, what happens? (What is the process for this type of collection, how does it progress through the staff?) Archivists, do you include a series of artifacts or books in your finding aids if another department holds them?

6) How do you handle disagreements (if, of course, there are anyJ )?

7) Who is responsible for exhibits, outreach, events?

8) Please describe your institution—type of repository, collections related staff, and how they are organized.

9) What are the advantages and/or disadvantages to this organizational scheme?

10) May I contact you if I have further questions?