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Research Information:FOCUS ON THE MIDDLE EAST


‘A synthesis of tradition and modernism’


ProQuest’s Nicola Bacon presents a case study of the Holy Spirit University of Kaslik, Lebanon


T


here are 46 universities in Lebanon, all bar one being privately-held institutions, a tradition that is now more than 150 years old. Eight of the universities make


up the Lebanese Academic Library Consortia (LALC) founded in 2002 ‘to cooperate in the selection, pricing, negotiations and access methods of electronic resources for the best interests of the universities and their library users’.


One of the private universities and a member of LALC is The Holy Spirit University of Kaslik (USEK)), which was founded by The Lebanese Maronite Order (OLM) in 1962. A Catholic higher education institution, it is located in the heart of Lebanon and is a trilingual institution, with the majority of users speaking French. The university has 11 faculties, which include 15 academic units serving the 7,500 students that enroll each year. Its library is spread across three floors with two reading rooms, and two floors dedicated to closed stacks. A key area for the university is the preservation of the local Maronite cultural heritage, a mission that began in 2003 with one collection – the manuscripts of the OLM. The library contains two vaults that house the manuscripts, rare books and archives. Randa Al Chidiac, executive director, Library USEK, explained: ‘The USEK Library, as well as fulfilling its educational mission, aims to achieve a synthesis of tradition and modernism, preserving the old for the young and future generations.’


For many years, the country has gone through times of internal conflict and war. Previous problems concerning supply have abated and the university is finding that it’s fuelling a shift towards electronic. Al Chidiac said: ‘There have


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been major changes in user behaviour, especially in the STM fields. These users tend to go more for the online version for immediate and timely access. Undergraduates, particularly first-year students, are feeling more and more comfortable with online access with the discovery tools.’ Due to this shift – as with many countries – the collections within the library now have a budget that is close to 75 per cent electronic and 25 per cent print. This move towards becoming more electronic was what first led the university to work with ProQuest, with the university’s purchase of ABI/Inform.


The working relationship with ProQuest has since continued to grow. Al Chidiac believes that, ‘with the availability of ProQuest products and solutions, the research patterns of students, teaching faculty and researchers has changed dramatically’.


She states: ‘Our users use e-resources to carry out their search and another tool to create their bibliographic citations. Summon alone is truly appreciated by undergraduate students who refer to it as their first step. The impact is also felt with our staff. The acquisitions department use major ProQuest products to work on developing collections.’


Providing resources to the students and researchers is a continuing challenge


The Summon discovery service serves as a front door to the library and enables powerful discovery across its collections. So much more than a single search box, the Summon service delivers streamlined navigation and contextual guidance for researchers, and empowers information professionals to impact the discovery experience directly, in order to lead users to better research outcomes.


The provision of resources to the students and researchers is a continuing challenge with patrons wanting convenient and swift availability of the resources. The library is competing for user attention with the likes of the internet and


Scanning and preserving the local Maronite Cultural heritage documents


search engines. Shifts in the institution itself, and the demands placed on students, faculty and researchers, have an impact on libraries such as USEK in terms of expectations for the development of collections and the delivery of those collections and services. As a multilingual university, a key focus is the availability and access of local language content. With the university’s primary language being French, they require more French content and indexing of local databases such as Annahar and Multidata online. However, there is a transition to more fields of study focusing on English. There is also an ever increasing challenge to balance between budget and needs.


On where the future is going for libraries within Lebanon, Al Chidiac says: ‘The future of Lebanon depends on the library and type of the library (academic, school, public, government) and the institution it refers to. The major universities in Lebanon are high up the ladder, competing in line with many of the regional libraries, if not international ones. The school libraries are developing but at a slower pace. ‘The major difference can be seen with public libraries, which are greatly affected by the economic, social and political situation in Lebanon. However, several successful initiatives are leading the way and widening their networks. The future, I hope, is bright – as long as there are librarians with will and determination to support their libraries and profession.’


FEBRUARY/MARCH 2016 Research Information 23


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