In December 2006, Booth Library purchased 2,560 new books to add to their extensive collection. In November 2006, 2,911 books were purchased during what the head of collection department, Kathy Whisler, says to be the “heavy buying season.”

Faculty recommend books for the library by sending Whisler catalogs with books circled that they would like for their classes and students are able to submit suggestions online at the Booth Library website. The number of books that are ordered vary each year from department to department.

“The English department sends over two or three bundles a year and emails me suggestions,” Whisler said.

New books tend to mean that older ones, torn and too used, are shipped out. However, the library does not get rid of books so easily.

“We don’t weed aggressively because the older material is useful for historical background,” Whisler said.

Many of the library’s books are ordered through vendors or jobbers that exist to facilitate such large orders. Some of the vendors that are used include Blackwell, Baker and Taylor and Yankee Book Peddler. More than $1 million is spent on books each year. The administration gets money to purchase books from legislature that is divided out into each department.

Along with our salaries and upkeep of the library the money helps us to purchase new books every month, Whisler said.

Once the books arrive at the library they are set on display for a week in the Marvin Foyer in the North side of the building. After the books are shown off, they are moved to the regular shelf where students are able to look for them through the system.

All of the books are sent straight to cataloging to be put online and from there to the circulation desk, put on book trucks and student workers shelve them according to their call number.

“We have about 12-14 students that shelve materials and process books,” said Chris Cougill, library specialist.

There are constantly student workers putting away the newer books almost every hour, Whisler said.

“Shelf maintenance or stack maintenance occupies their free time when there are no books to be put away,” Whisler said. “They dust shelves or straighten out the books. There is always work to be done.”