Last Copy Project Overview

The Last Copy Project assists members who own the last copy of library material in Illinois and are interested in donating the materials to an institution where they could continue to be made available for use. The Last Copy Project uses the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) as the initial recipient of these last copies. Materials that the UIUC does not want or cannot house will be offered to other interested Illinois research libraries.

Small and mid-sized libraries in CARLI are experiencing growing pressure to reallocate their space, funds and other resources to materials and electronic resources that serve their more immediate needs. Over the years many institutions have accumulated print materials that are no longer relevant to their curriculum or to the research interests of their respective communities, but which they are reluctant to de-accession. While limited space and the maintenance of aging library collections are urgent concerns of all CARLI libraries, some institutions are particularly pressed.

This project focuses on the preservation of last copies within the Illinois academic and research library community. We acknowledge that there may be items that are no longer needed to support teaching, learning, or research at any of the CARLI member institutions and are not likely to be needed in the future. When items are not accepted by a library participating in this project, the owning library may choose to keep or discard the items that they have offered for donation.

For the Last Copy Project, libraries interested in offering materials will complete a simple web form to initiate the process.

Eligible Materials

Each item offered for donation must meet the following criteria:

Must be the last copy in Illinois, as confirmed through I-Share and through WorldCat
Must be bibliographically complete, with no missing volumes
Must be cataloged at least at the core (M) level
Must be completely free of mold, mildew, and insects
Materials may not include theses or dissertations filmed by ProQuest, retail catalogs, VHS tapes, ERIC fiche, or government documents. Libraries interested in donating Illinois state government documents should contact the Illinois State Library.

Offering Materials for Donation

For each item that meets all the eligibility requirements noted above, libraries should complete the Last Copy web form. Libraries will need to provide the following information:

Donor library
Contact name
Contact email
Item title, author and ISBN
I-Share control number (if available)
Number of copies in Illinois, as confirmed through I-Share and through WorldCat
OCLC number (if available)
Total number of copies in OCLC WorldCat

Upon submission of the web form

Staff at the University of Illinois and CARLI will be notified via email when a library has offered to donate a last copy. The contact person designated on the Last Copy web form will receive an email confirmation with an attached book slip for the item. Please save this email. The UIUC staff will review the information submitted and determine whether they are able to accept the material.

If UIUC is willing to accept the materials, the donor library will be notified via email and may proceed with shipping. Materials that the UIUC does not want or cannot house will be offered to other interested Illinois research libraries. The donor library will be notified of the next steps in the process.

Upon acceptance by UIUC

The donor library will complete the following steps:

Place a copy of the book slip with the material.
Withdraw record / holdings from donor's local catalog and OCLC.
Ship the materials to UIUC via ILDS (UIU) or via other shipping methods at the donor’s own expense, using the following address:

Last Copy
24B Main Library
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
1408 W. Gregory Dr.
Urbana, IL 61801

Upon shipment to UIUC

All donated material becomes the property of UIUC upon shipment to them. Unless the donated item meets criteria for addition to the Rare Book Library, UIUC will add item to circulating collections with a note in the record indicating that they are part of the “CARLI Last Copy Program.” Items will be available for borrowing. The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign may also choose to keep the materials in long-term storage, add the materials to the regular collection, digitize the materials, etc. Donated materials that must be removed from the UIUC collection will be offered to other research libraries, and to the original donor library before being destroyed.

If you have questions about the pilot, contact support@carli.illinois.edu.

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February 2012

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