University of the State of New York Bulletin Entered as second-class matter August 2, 1913, at the Post Office at Albany, N. Y., New York State Library REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR 1915 To the Regents of the University and the Commissioner of Education of the State of New York: I have the honor to submit the following report on the work of the New York State Library for the fiscal year ending September 30, 1915. This report also includes an account of the work of the Educational Extension Division and the School Libraries Division, and summarizes the work of the Library School, though the full report of the last is published separately as Library School bulletin 39. The report thus presents the definitive and most detailed printed account of all the work with and for libraries that is done by the University. Not all the four distinct parts of this work are under the executive supervision of the Director of the State Library, but its essential and obvious integrity, the hearty and sympathetic cooperation among those charged with its policies and administration, added to the fact that it is carried on by one great state department in one building, strongly enforce the propriety and usefulness of a single report. The State Library (using the term as a convenient one to denote all the library work of the University) in centralized supervision and specific service stands in the same relation to all the libraries of the State as does the Education Department to the schools and colleges. The State provides, first of all, a great central reference and lending collection of books and an expert staff to administer it. This central library is for the free use, either in person at the Library or through correspondence, of every person and educational institution in the State. To more than 12,000 registered libraries, schools and study clubs, which are thus in effect branches of the State Library, it stands ready to lend books not in local libraries, thus supplementing the book resources of every library and school in the State and giving to even the smallest and poorest of these a means of meeting more effectively the educational needs of its community. Through the traveling libraries the lending of books is made still more easy, intimate and far-reaching, for not only libraries, schools and study clubs, but remote rural communities and even households are thus benefited. The State further provides for the founding and fostering of free public libraries and school libraries, for the supervision, inspection and official registration of those which meet required standards and, finally, in the State Library School it provides (finding the educational analogy in normal schools) competent professional training for the librarians who administer these libraries. There is thus in operation a thoroughly organized State library system, with provision for expert help in founding libraries legally and maintaining them efficiently, for giving them, through visitation and correspondence, such moderate money aid as is feasible and such help in book selection and counsel in administration as is needed, for providing trained librarians to manage them, and a great central collection available to all libraries in the State for reference and lending. The following pages present such details touching the conduct of this work for a single year as are deemed of public or professional interest. STATISTICAL SUMMARY An introductory statistical statement of some of the most important facts relating to the State Library, public libraries, school libraries, and the Library School may serve to bring out more sharply the nature and magnitude of the different lines of work. Further details are given on later pages. a Estimated. a409 982 a150 000 10 873 b Includes 1264 volumes salvaged or returned to the Educational Extension Division after the fire. 1 388 Institutions on exchange mailing lists September 30, 1915... a16 176 104 582 I 612 49 6 17 34 Appropriations for 1915 (including special book appropriation).. $350 423 59 Expenditures in 1915: Salaries (State Library, Library School, Edu cational Extension and School Libraries).... $III 504 34 a Not including the session laws distributed by the law library, and the bills and miscellaneous publications distributed by the legislative reference section. |