Collecting Mexican Imprints:
Collaboration among University Libraries
in California
Barbara J. Robinson
Librarian for Latin American & Iberian Studies
University of Southern California (USC)
brobinso@usc.edu
March 13, 2008
IFLA Collection Development Workshop
Guadalajara, Mexico
Introduction & Objectives
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Steps to Collaboration
Principal Participants
CALAFIA’s Activities
Northern Mexican States Agreement
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Why Mexico & the Northern States?
Agreement Requirements
Benefits & Risks
Lessons Learned
Sources of Mexican Publications - Booksellers
Selected Sources on Mexican Publications
March 2008
Collecting Mexican Imprints -- Barbara Robinson, USC Libraries
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Steps to Collaboration among
California Latin American Library Specialists
1976
 UC Libraries: A Plan for Development –“ONE LIBRARY” concept.
1989
 Brief Guidelines for Collaborative Collection Development and
Management among University of California and Stanford University
Libraries, by the UC Collection Development Committee.
1993
 Creation of CALAFIA, UC’s California Cooperative Latin American
Collection Development Group, joined by Stanford University
Libraries and the USC Libraries
March 2008
Collecting Mexican Imprints -- Barbara Robinson, USC Libraries
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The Principal CALAFIA Participants
Latin American Library Specialists/
Bibliographers/Selectors from:
 University of California (UC)
Library System – 8 of 10
campuses
 Stanford University Libraries
 University of Southern California
(USC Libraries)
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Collecting Mexican Imprints -- Barbara Robinson, USC Libraries
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CALAFIA’s Collaborative Activities:
 CD agreements related to
current Mexican imprints
 List of Latin American
microfilm sets on Web
 Latin American journal
subscriptions
 On-going information
exchange
 Sharing duplicates
March 2008
Collecting Mexican Imprints -- Barbara Robinson, USC Libraries
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CALAFIA’s Successful CD Agreements
Related to Mexico
1982
 Berkeley-Stanford Cooperative Project: broad based
collecting of Latin Americana; includes Mexican imprints.
1997
 Northern Mexican States Agreement—5 libraries cover 6
states
 Southern Mexican States Agreement—3 libraries cover 5
states
March 2008
Collecting Mexican Imprints -- Barbara Robinson, USC Libraries
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Other Types of Mexican Materials Collected
by CALAFIA Libraries:
Materials not covered by the agreements:
 Mexican fine press & artists’ books
 Mexican cinema—videos/DVD, posters, etc.
 Election materials—ephemera
 Government documents
 Journal subscriptions
 Antiquarian & out-of-print publications
March 2008
Collecting Mexican Imprints -- Barbara Robinson, USC Libraries
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Why Collect Mexican Imprints and
Specifically Northern Mexican States?
 Mexico is a top source of Spanish language publishing
and has high quality publications
 80% of publishing in Mexico is centered in D.F. – easier
to collect and identify
 Northern Mexico is among the most difficult areas to
collect and not as well represented in our libraries
 Northern borderlands area is of interest to students and
scholars
March 2008
Collecting Mexican Imprints -- Barbara Robinson, USC Libraries
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Northern Mexican States Agreement:
Basic Requirements
 Geographical assignment – states on the northern
border w/ United States
 Minimum allocation per year/per state = $1500
 Collection development profile to guide selection
March 2008
Collecting Mexican Imprints -- Barbara Robinson, USC Libraries
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Geographical Assignments –
Northern Mexican States
March 2008
State
(from west to east)
Library
Baja Calif. Norte
UCLA
Sonora
UC Riverside
Chihuahua
UC San Diego
Coahuila
UC Riverside
Nuevo Leon
UC Santa Barbara
Tamaulipas
USC
Collecting Mexican Imprints -- Barbara Robinson, USC Libraries
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Expenditures & Titles Purchased
FY 2006/2007 by State
State
Expenditure (USD)
Titles Rec’d
Baja Calif. Norte
$1,307
48
Sonora
$1,495
77
Chihuahua
$2,000+
N/A
Coahuila
$613
27
Nuevo Leon
$1,641
83
Tamaulipas
$734
33
March 2008
Collecting Mexican Imprints -- Barbara Robinson, USC Libraries
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Other Requirements of the Northern
Mexican States Agreement
 Collection profile – see CALAFIA Home Page
http://library.stanford.edu/depts/hasrg/latinam/calafia/
 Collecting methods – approval plan and/or firm orders
 Priority cataloging & records in each OPAC
 Inter-library loan access
 Signature page for ULs and CD Officers
 Annual review & monitoring
March 2008
Collecting Mexican Imprints -- Barbara Robinson, USC Libraries
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Benefits of Collaboration:
Northern Mexican States Agreement
 Optimize resources & effort
 Assure adequate collecting coverage of a region
 Present & future-oriented – preserve materials for
current & future generations of scholars
 Provide a unique identifiable collecting focus for each
participating library
 Share physical materials & bibliographic information
 Reduce duplication
March 2008
Collecting Mexican Imprints -- Barbara Robinson, USC Libraries
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Risks of Collaboration:
Northern Mexican States Agreement
 Change in institutional CD priorities
 Book fund reduced
 Buying power reduced -- currency fluctuation and rising
book prices
 Unequal commitments/ effort by participants
 Larger institutions less motivated to participate
 Acquisition/bookseller issues
March 2008
Collecting Mexican Imprints -- Barbara Robinson, USC Libraries
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Lessons Learned:
Northern Mexican States Agreement
Success requires:
 Leadership & Support from participating Universities, ULs & CD
Officers
 Buy-in from subject specialist librarians
 CD collection profile crafted by participating librarians
 History & culture of collaboration
 Communication
 Time Commitment
 Trust in each other to uphold the agreement
 Reliable & knowledgeable book dealers
 Monitoring & Reporting of results
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Collecting Mexican Imprints -- Barbara Robinson, USC Libraries
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Sources of Mexican Publications:
Booksellers/Exporters in Mexico & U.S.
In Mexico:
 Martin de Jesus Sanchez Espinosa: Libros Mexicanos (formerly
Mexico Norte)—principal approval plan vendor for the CALAFIA
Northern Mexican States Agreement
Other booksellers for Mexican imprints (approvals/firm
orders):
 Libros Latinos (California)
 Howard Karno Books (California)
 Books From Mexico (Mexico DF)
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Collecting Mexican Imprints -- Barbara Robinson, USC Libraries
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Selected Sources on Mexican Publications
Publications
 Libros de Mexico & Boletin Bibliografico Colegio de Mexico
Book Fairs
 Mexico – FIL Guadalajara and Palacio de la Mineria
 California – Los Angeles and San Francisco Antiquarian Book Fairs
Websites
 Portal del Libro Mexicano – began 2004; 36,000 titles
 Fondo de Cultura Economica (FCE)
Conferences
 SALALM & LASA panels and book exhibits
Individual contacts
 Faculty, graduate students & colleagues
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Collecting Mexican Imprints -- Barbara Robinson, USC Libraries
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¡Muchas Gracias!
March 2008
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