THE STATE EDUCATION DEPARTMENT / THE UNIVERSITY OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK / ALBANY, NY 12234

 

TO:	Cultural Education Committee
FROM:	Christine W. Ward, Acting Deputy Commissioner
TITLE OF ITEM:	Saturday Hours for the Research Library and Archives
DATE OF SUBMISSION:	January 25, 2007
STRATEGIC GOAL:	4
AUTHORIZATION(S):

 

SUMMARY:

 

Issue for Decision

 

The Regents will vote on extending access to the New York State Library and State Archives by supporting a Saturday hours pilot project.

 

Reason(s) for Consideration

 

Review of policy.

 

Proposed Handling

 

This issue will come before the Cultural Education Committee at the February meeting.

 

Background Information

 

The New York State Library and the New York State Archives are open to the public Monday through Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. That schedule no longer meets the contemporary needs of government employees or the needs of the broader scope of constituents that are entitled to use, and would benefit from, the collections and services of those institutions. The collections are not accessible to individuals who are unable to visit the Cultural Education Center during the work week, and those who must travel from other parts of the state are especially inconvenienced by lack of weekend access.

 

 

Staffing levels in the State Library and Archives have been based on the existing schedule of 40 hours per week, Monday through Friday. Extending hours to include 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. on Saturdays would require additional staff. A combination of new staff members and a rotating schedule of existing staff would provide the needed quality assistance for users during the extended hours.

 

Reduction of existing weekday hours to compensate for adding Saturday hours is not a viable option. It would reduce service to New York State Legislators and thousands of other government employees who now use the library and depend on the weekday schedule.  The proposal for Saturday hours is intended to add service to those who are not able to use the library, not to reduce service to the library’s increasing number of weekday users.

 

All procedural and labor-related planning has been conducted. Meetings with State Library and Archives staff, Human Resources, labor-union representatives, and Office of Cultural Education management have been positive and productive. Remaining needs include the identification of resources to hire new staff, estimated at $600,000 per year. Publicity, programming, and identification of a specific opening date will depend on resource confirmation.

 

Recommendation

 

Staff recommend that the Regents support the State Library and Archives in their efforts to extend hours to Saturday and to aid in the identification of funds for a pilot project of no less than six months. Upon a positive evaluation of the pilot, a long-term funding source needs to be identified to continue efforts to extend hours appropriately.

 

Timetable for Implementation

 

If resources are identified, adding Saturday hours is feasible as soon as spring 2007.