Books on the Open Shelf, housed in the Reading Room, are largely reference materials of a general or historical nature, as well as guides, handbooks, dictionaries and encyclopedias. The Library Director and Access Services team choose the books best suited for this location. If you encounter a book you believe fits these parameters, consult with the Director or Head of Access Services for guidance on whether to catalog it for the Open Shelf or Stacks.
Catalog as you would any new book. In the Holdings record, change the location to “o” and in the Item record, change the “Item Policy” from “Circulating Books to “Open Shelf”. Place a blue “Open Shelf” flag in the book and place it on the “Open Shelf & Notifies” shelf in the Labeler’s office.
Reference-type books are frequently updated by publishers. If we get in a new edition, check with the Library Director or Head of Access Services; they will likely want the new edition cataloged for the Open Shelf and the previous edition transferred offsite. See Editions and Reprints for more information.
Access Services may identify a book in the Stacks that they would like moved to the Open Shelf. Change the location in the Holdings record to “o” and the “Item Policy” in the Item Record from “Circulating Books” to “Open Shelf” and place the book on the “Open Shelf & Notifies” shelf in the Labeler’s office.
Occasionally they will decide a book is no longer appropriate for the Open Shelf and ask that it be transferred offsite or to the Stacks. Change the location in the Holdings record to the appropriate Stack location (if it’s going offsite, the Access Services team changes the location to “Off-Site” when they prepare a shipment) and the “Item Policy” from “Open Shelf” to “Circulating Books.” Place the book on the ******“LC Relabel”****** shelf in the Labeler’s office.
Use only LC classification for Open Shelf books. Class numbers are often general due to the nature of the types of books we shelve there.
In the unlikely event of the Access Services team requesting that a Stacks book classed in Dewey be transferred to the Open Shelf, do reclass it to LC. Do not also reclass any previous editions we may have in Dewey.