Collection Development Policy Statement

Russia, Eastern Europe and Central Asia

Terri Miller, Bibliographer

Original Draft (Russia and Eastern Europe): May 1993

Most recent review and revision: August 2004

I.       PURPOSE AND SCOPE OF COLLECTION

A.     Curricular/Research/Programmatic needs

The Russian, East European and Central Asian collection at MSU supports instructional programs from the undergraduate to the doctoral level, the research of the faculty, and general information needs about the area.

At the undergraduate level students may acquire a Certificate of Specialization in Russian and East European Studies, combining Russian language study with relevant courses in history, geography, political science, sociology, economics and/or philosophy.  Doctoral programs are offered in the Department of History and Political Science.  A Masters program is currently offered in Slavic languages and literatures.  Russian and Polish are the only East European languages regularly taught at MSU, and Polish is not taught regularly.  Overall, the focus of teaching is on Russia, but faculty interests exist and are growing in Poland, Ukraine, and Central Asia.  Study abroad programs in Hungary, Romania, Poland and Russia receive students annually.  The study of the entire region in the context of the current economic, social and political transition is evident in much of the teaching and research.

B.     History of the Collection

The Russian language and literature program at MSU dates back to the end of the 1940s.  Russian history courses have been taught since the early 1950s.  Acquisition of materials related to Russian and East European studies started about the same time.  Approval plans for Russian and other East European publications were initiated with Kubon and Sagner in the late 1960s. 

In 1988 the Russian approval plan with Kubon and Sagner was terminated in favor of firm ordering from Novye knigi.  Orders were placed with Les Libres Etrangers in Paris.  Two years later, in 1990, Les Livres Etrangers went bankrupt and MSU Library's outstanding Russian orders were transferred to Viktor Kamkin.  From 1988 to 1993 the Library had an approval plan for émigré publications from Russica in New York: with the fall of the USSR, the need for this type of plan has ceased to exist. 

In 1995, the Kubon and Sagner East European plan was altered to include only Polish language books and continuations.  In 1999 the Kubon and Sagner approval plan was canceled altogether because of poor coverage and the high cost of items relative to other companies.  Now all items from Eastern Europe are purchased by firm order from a variety of vendors.

In 1995 also a Russian approval plan was established with Russian Press Service that provides good coverage of Russia.  The Russian plan is currently supplemented with materials purchased from EastView Publications in Minnesota, MIPP in Belarus and ATC Books out of Ann Arbor. 

The MSU Libraries received an endowment in 1991 for literature on the Baltic states (the Mira Kuze Endowment).  A collaborative collection development agreement created with the University of Michigan Library in 1998 established that this endowment and other MSU Slavic funds would be used for Baltic materials in both English and the vernacular.  In exchange, UM will collect more heavily in the area of the Balkan countries.  Materials from the Baltic states are acquired in a limited way from the Russian Press Service approval plan: additional items are firm ordered from ATC Books and MIPP. 

C. Existing strengths and emphases

The focus of collecting Russian history has been the 19^th and 20^th centuries.  These periods are well covered by secondary literature, including major scholarly journals in both English and Russian.  Medieval and Early Modern Russian history is covered selectively in Russian but more comprehensively in English.

In Literature, the focus had been on classic 19^th and 20^th century Russian literature and contemporary award-winning authors (particularly since 1995).  Émigré literature and criticism continues to be important.  Literature is collected both in Russian and English (when available).

Social and political sciences are well covered in English; more selectively in the vernacular.  Studies of transitional development are emphasized as are sociological studies.  Special efforts are made to collect relevant statistical data and particularly census data.  Recent political history is well covered in both English and Russian.

The focus of collecting in Eastern European history has been on the Habsburg Empire and the 20^th century in general, particularly the literature of the collapse of the Soviet system.  More recently collection has refocused on major histories of the countries of Eastern Europe and revisions of history published in the most recent years.  An effort is being made to collect all history in English in this area; more selective are the collecting in Polish and Ukrainian. 

In Eastern European Literature, The MSU Library has pockets of depth in Polish literature and historical collections of Hungarian and Romanian literature.     East European literature has seen a revival in the past decade that is reflected in this collection.  Emphasis is now being placed on acquiring major authors of Poland and Ukraine in the vernacular as well as in English.  For other countries, the emphasis at this time is on works in translation or parallel texts. 

Electronic resources for this area have been collected only recently and in small numbers due to lack of continuing resources.  The most important indexes to Slavic publications are now held electronically.  Recently the Library began a subscription to a Russian online newspaper database, which provides improved access to many more titles and a searchable archive.  Most newspaper print subscriptions have been cancelled since this acquisition, but a few particularly important titles and titles that are not available online are still retained.

II.       FACTORS INFLUENCING COLLECTION POLICY

A.     Anticipated future trends

The current political and economic instability in the region has caused a dramatic drop in enrollments in Slavic studies in the past decade.  For the near future it appears that Russian language and literature teaching will continue the downward trend.  At the same time, the opening of the societies and economies in these countries has also expanded the areas of interest: more study of the transition to democracy and the economic transformation is evident.

The area of Central Asian studies, conversely, has seen a tremendous growth in interest in the past few years among both faculty and students: some faculty members have done research in the region and a several dissertations are in process in various departments.  At the current time, those interested in the region read only Russian and English, so the need to collect in the Central Asian vernacular languages is not strong at this time.

The Kuze endowment and collaborative collection development agreements both within Michigan and within the Midwest put the MSU Libraries in a position to develop a regionally dominant collection of materials from the Baltic countries of Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia.  Because there are few Baltic language programs in the country and Slavic collections tend to focus on the larger countries of Russia, Poland, and Ukraine, many libraries that collected Baltic materials when the countries were a part of the Soviet Union no longer do so due to budgetary restraints.  MSU is currently one of the few libraries collecting materials in the vernacular for these countries in any significant way. 

The need for collaborative collection development will intensify as budgets see few gains and inflation rises steadily.  MSU Libraries no longer collects any materials from several countries because of these economic pressures.  In addition, MSU's Library must join consortial agreements in order to be able to afford access to the more expensive Slavic databases and microfilm collections now available.  In some cases, even consortial deals do not make these products affordable enough for the MSU Library Slavic budget.  These challenges make a collection focused on curricular needs and a few selected areas of emphasis a necessity.

B. Relationship to Other Resources

1. On campus collections

2.      Regional resources

·         The University of Michigan has a very large Slavic collection, including extensive serial and newspaper holdings.  Its Slavic collection is strongest in the area of Russian studies, but the literature and history of the Balkans is also a very strong collection.  University of Michigan collects Georgian and Armenian language materials and Central Asian vernacular materials to a limited extent.

·         The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign has the third largest Slavic collection in the U.S. with nearly 700,000 volumes and over 4000 current journal and newspaper subscriptions.  It also buys most important microfilm and microfiche sets.  The strengths of the collection are in Russian, Polish and Ukrainian materials.

·         Indiana University library has a strong Slavic collection, particularly in Polish, Czech, and Slovak. Bulgarian and Hungarian holdings are fairly large also.  The library supports language programs in some Central Asian languages as well.

·         Ohio State University has special collections in East European medieval history and literature as well as peasant studies in late imperial Russian history.

·         CRL is used as a resource for expensive microfilm sets and newspapers.

C.      Relationships to resources treated in other policy statements

·         Jewish studies: covers English-language materials on the Holocaust in Eastern Europe, including memoirs.  Slavic covers Holocaust studies in Russian, Polish and the Baltic languages.  Studies that are primarily about the history of Jews in Eastern Europe are covered by Jewish studies, although if a work is about the Jews in the larger context of the political, social or economic history of a single country, Slavic will cover in English and the vernacular.

·         Religion: covers Eastern Orthodoxy in the context of its historical relationship to other religions and studies of doctrine and religious thought.  Slavic covers the history and socio-economic relationship of the Church to the state and its people in the countries of Eastern Europe.

·         Art: purchases the majority of the books on Russian art in English; Eastern Europe to a lesser extent.  Slavic purchases art books in the vernacular or multilingual editions.

·         Music: purchases scores of choral music from Eastern Europe in the vernacular, studies in English on Russian/Slavic musicians or composers.

·         Military science: covers studies of Russian/E. European military and history in English only.

·         Political science: covers works on communism and socialism in E. Europe, in English only.

III.       ANALYSIS OF THE SUBJECT FIELD

A.     Chronology of the Subject: Emphases/Restrictions

·         In Literature, chronology emphasizes 19^th and 20^th century for all countries.  Some selective coverage of medieval/early modern Russian literature.

·         In History, chronology for Russia emphasizes 19^th and 20^th century. English language coverage back to 800AD (formation of the Kievan State); selective Russian language coverage for 12^th-18^th centuries. 

·         Polish history: In English, coverage is back to approx. 1400AD (formation of Polish-Lithuanian state); emphasis is on 19^th and 20^th century.  Polish language materials are purchased for 19^th and 20^th century history only.

·         For the rest of Eastern Europe, emphasis is on 19^th and 20^th century; selective English language materials from earlier periods.

B.     Languages of Resources collected: Exclusions/Emphases/Translations

·         Emphasis is on comprehensive collection of English-language materials.  Russian is next preferred language.  Vernaculars of Eastern Europe are collected selectively: Serbian, Croatian, Bulgarian, Slovenian, Romanian and Hungarian are largely not collected (see exceptions below).  Central Asian languages are not collected: Russian language materials on Central Asia are.  Armenian, Azeri, and Georgian are not collected. 

·         In literature, the emphasis is on vernacular and English translations of works by well-known authors.  This includes especially the literature of Russia, Poland, and Ukraine.  Other countries' literatures are collected in translation when possible, in the vernacular as budgetary limitations allow.  Of special interest is the literature of Estonia, Lithuania and Latvia (due to collaborative collection development agreement with U. Michigan)

C.     Geography of the Subject: Emphases/Restrictions

Materials are purchased from and dealing with Russia, Central Asia, and the countries of Eastern Europe, including the Baltic states.  Emphasis is on Russia and Poland; Ukraine and Baltic states to a lesser extent. Least emphasis is placed on the countries of the Balkans (former Yugoslavia, Croatia, Slovenia, Romania, Bulgaria and Albania) because of collaborative collection development with University of Michigan.  Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Georgia are covered very selectively.

D.     Format of the Resources Collected: Restrictions

Emphasis is on print materials.  Microforms are acquired when print is not available. Newspapers and general periodicals are acquired very selectively.  CD-Rom, software, and audio products are occasionally purchased for reference purposes or language learning aids.  Electronic database subscriptions are selectively obtained via consortial agreements only and as budgetary limits allow.   Films are not generally purchased since the Center for European and Russian Studies has a large collection and a budget line for film purchases.

E.     Date of Publication of Resources Collected: Restrictions

Mostly current materials are acquired.  Out-of-print titles are purchased to fill in runs of serials, monographic sets, and replace lost or stolen materials.  Older, in print materials are acquired to fill in monographic sets or in the areas of special faculty interest.

IV.              LEVELS OF COLLECTING INTENSITY

* Indicates that current collecting level is lower than existing collection strength

V.     COLLECTION MANAGEMENT ISSUES

A.     Replacement: Lost or stolen materials replaced based on use or reference value. Other than lost or stolen materials, replacement of heavily used literature and history only.

B.      Weeding: Done when space limitations require.  Only duplicate copies of monographs are weeded, and consideration is made based on circulation.  Duplicate copies less than ten years old are not weeded.

C.      Out of Print acquisition: To fill in runs of serials, monographic sets, and replace lost materials.  Important, core works may be acquired as they become available

D.      Preservation: Items will be sent as needed for rebinding, repair.  Special attention will be paid to preserving existing bindings in 19^th c. books.  Brittle books will be recommended for preservations digitization/microfilming