It is the primary purpose of Special Collections & Archives to collect, preserve, and organize printed, archival, manuscript, and sound materials related to Berea College, the Southern Appalachian region, and the community of Berea.
Special Collections has limited hours and is NOT open during all of the same hours as the rest of the library. The hours change often. Here is a link to up-to-date hours for Special Collections: http://libraryguides.berea.edu/libraryhours
It can be difficult to know when to refer patrons to Special Collections for research assistance. Here are some general rules of thumb which will help you determine when to refer them and whom to refer them to:
Refer the patron to Harry Rice when they have questions about:
Sound and Media Archives related inquiries, access to SC&A Sound and Media resources
Appalachian topics, especially Traditional Music, oral histories
Sound Preservation inquiries
Questions related to the Appalachian Sound Fellowship Program
Acquisitions of Sound or Media related collections
Refer the patron to Sharyn Mitchell when they have questions about:
All general information inquiries related to SC&A resources
Arranging regular research visits or pre-arranged appointments
Reading Room use and procedures
Book reserve requests
Photocopies or scan requests
Genealogy related requests
General research requests for all SC&A resources and collections
Refer the patron to Tim Binkley when:
The only time you would refer a patron to Tim is if the patron is one of Berea College's teaching faculty who wants to arrange for their entire class to come over to Special Collections for an instruction session.
Someone wants to donate materials specifically to our Special Collections, not the library in general (because remember, general donations are directed to Calvin Gross)
