Skipping a century. One library, 50 collections, three centuries, ten years

Abstract

At Ghent University (Belgium), for many decades the various departmental libraries of the faculty of arts and philosophy were archaic 19th century relics. Throughout the 20th century most of the advantages of the old department libraries had vanished, with only the many drawbacks remaining. Fifty library collections were scattered over 222 locations in Ghent, administration on the collections lacked and many patrons felt left out in the cold. Following a scathing screening report, the decision was made to break radically with the past. Over a period of 10 years those 50 outdated small libraries were incorporated into one large 21st century-proof faculty library. It was a mammoth undertaking which had a huge impact both on research and education in the faculty. Our poster will not only focus on the crucial change that the library organization underwent, it will also discuss the different aspects of change management that were necessary to get the faculty members on board. Finally, it will highlight how the organizational and infrastructural transformation also changed the role of the library in the educational and research activities at the faculty.