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About HCL

• About the Harvard College Library
• Office of the Librarian
• Administrative Services
• Development Office
• HCL Committees
• Mission and Values Statements
• HCL's Relationship to the University Library System

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About the Harvard College Library

Founded in 1638, Harvard has a rich legacy of libraries that continues into the 21st century.  In total there are over 80 libraries at Harvard that comprise the Harvard library system, with combined holdings of over 15 million items. More than 10 million of those items are part of the collection of a centrally administered unit within the Faculty of Arts and Sciences that is referred to as the Harvard College Library (HCL). It is comprised of Cabot Science, Fine Arts (including the Harvard Film Archive), Harvard-Yenching, Houghton (including Harvard Theatre Collection and Woodberry Poetry Room), Lamont, Loeb Music, Tozzer and Widener libraries;and the Social Science Program that includes Harvard Map Collection, Fung Library, Environmental Information Services, Government Information Services, and Numeric Data Services. 

At present HCL employs over 600 staff members including nearly 250 professional librarians and administrators and over 300 library support staff.  We also employ over 500 Harvard students. 

HCL includes major collections in the sciences, fine arts, music, humanities, film, maps, theatre, government documents, and rare books and manuscripts.  The collection also includes materials in over 100 languages.  We provide library services to the faculty and students of Harvard as well as the world-wide community of scholars and researchers.

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Office of the Librarian

Nancy M. Cline, Roy E. Larsen Librarian of Harvard College, is responsible for the leadership and administration of the major libraries and numerous departmental and specialized libraries within the Faculty of Arts and Sciences (FAS). The Librarian is assisted by Susan Fliss, Associate Librarian for Research and Instruction; Rebecca Graham, Associate Librarian for Administrative Services; Dan Hazen, Associate Librarian for Collection Development; and Marilyn Wood, Associate Librarian for Collection Management. In addition to their organization-wide responsibilities, the HCL Administration also oversees and coordinates the departmental activities of Widener Library, including Access Services, Collection Development, Research Services, and Harvard College Library Technical Services.

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HCL Administrative Services

HCL administrative services, which serve all units of the College Library, are also housed in the Widener building and include Communications, Financial Services, Human Resource Services, Information Technology Services, Operations, and Preservation & Imaging (Conservation, Imaging Services).

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Communications

Communications manages all internal and external communications efforts of Harvard College Library in a fashion that consistently reflects the identity of the Library and supports its mission.

External communications efforts target constituencies outside HCL with the goal of raising awareness of library services, programs, achievements, needs, and staff. Work includes production and management of web sites, editorial oversight of printed collateral (brochures, invitations, fliers, logo items, etc.), building signage, renovation/construction communication, photography, media relations, directories, and special presentations and projects that reflect the "public face" of HCL.

Internal communications efforts target HCL staff with the goal of keeping all employees well-informed about the business of the Library, the individual units, and fellow staff members; and of facilitating the exchange of information among all units and the HCL Administration. Work includes support of HCL Administration initiatives, production and management of the library Intranet, administration of listservs and HCL News Boards, renovation/construction communications, printing/stationery projects, photography, and a variety of miscellaneous projects.

Beth Brainard, Director of Communications
E-mail
617-495-8415

• News
• Photography and Filming in HCL
• Communications Staff Directory
  

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Financial Services

HCL Financial Services processes all financial transactions, provides training and support for financial management functions at all levels of the organization, and serves as an intermediary between HCL units and the central financial administrations of both the FAS and the University as a whole. Additionally, Financial Services is responsible for preparing operating and capital budgets and generating financial reports for a variety of constituencies within the University.

Ellen Cohen, Director of Financial Services
617-495-2400

• Financial Services Staff Directory
• Where Do You Go to ... $

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Human Resource Services

The mission of Human Resource Services is to attract, develop, and retain the talent necessary to fulfill HCL's mission of supporting the teaching and research activities of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences, the University and the larger scholarly community. Additionally, we strive to anticipate HR issues and offer solutions that impact the success of HCL through analysis of data and trends and implementation of effective strategies and cost efficient action plans.

Our vision is to provide professional counsel and direction to HCL employees and managers in the areas of employment practices, organizational effectiveness, employee development, employee and labor relations, compensation, performance management, and employee data management—resulting in an engaged, knowledgeable, adaptable, ethical, responsible, and diverse team of employees who are motivated to contribute to HCL's success.

Steve Marley, Director of Human Resource Services
617-495-3721

• Employment
• Human Resource Services Staff Directory

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Information Technology Services

In cooperation with other IT units on campus, Information Technology Services (ITS) provides innovative solutions and timely service to support the technology needs of the Harvard College Library. ITS develops systems and services to sustain the technical infrastructure required for HCL to accomplish its mission of supporting the teaching and research activities of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences, the University, and the larger scholarly community. The HCL ITS department is organized into three functional groups: Computer Support Services, Network & Systems Management, and Systems Analysis & Development.

Deb Morley, Director of Information Technology Services
E-mail
617-496-6067

• HCL Computing Environment
• Computers, Scanners, Copiers, etc.
• ITS Staff Directory

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Operations

HCL Operations manages all aspects of building maintenance, security, renovations, mail, shipping and receiving, and construction for the Harvard College Library buildings, with the goal of supporting the entire Harvard College Library community with the highest quality service, dedication, professionalism, teamwork, and respect.

Paul Bellenoit, Director of Operations and Security
E-mail
617-496-3654

• Operations Staff Directory

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Preservation & Imaging

The Preservation & Imaging (P&I) unit in the Harvard College Library works in partnership with the Weissman Preservation Center in the Harvard University Library (HUL) to provide a broad range of preservation, conservation, reformatting, metadata creation, and advisory services for the libraries and other entities at Harvard. Collectively, P&I and the Weissman work to protect, preserve, and disseminate the vast collections held at Harvard in support of research, teaching, and scholarship.

HCL's Preservation & Imaging programs include state-of-the-art collections conservation, commercial binding preparation, and shelf preparation services for the College Library; and high-quality reformatting and associated metadata creation programs for all libraries and other entities at Harvard. Two divisions, Conservation Services and Imaging Services, make up the Preservation & Imaging unit.

HUL's Weissman Preservation Center programs include state-of-the-art special collections conservation for all libraries at Harvard; metadata creation programs that complement those in HCL Preservation & Imaging and that support reformatting university-wide; and analog and digital preservation advisory, policy development, and support services for libraries and other entities at Harvard.

Harvard's preservation program is directed by Jan Merrill-Oldham, Malloy-Rabinowitz Preservation Librarian in the Harvard University and the Harvard College Library. For information about the Weissman Preservation Center, visit Library Preservation at Harvard and see Preservation & Imaging/Weissman Center Staff Directory for a complete listing of the department's staff.

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Conservation Services

Conservation Services, an HCL division based in Widener, consists of two groups: the Collections Conservation Lab and the Binding and Shelf Preparation group. Each provides a full range of services to HCL libraries, as well as training and consulting services to other libraries at Harvard. For information about how HCL Conservation Services fits into the University-wide library preservation program see Library Preservation at Harvard.

Collections Conservation Lab

Work is done in the HCL Collections Conservation Lab, a state-of-the-art facility occupying 3,400 square feet in Widener Library. It includes areas devoted to preservation review, collections care, conservation treatment, reformatting preparation, and construction of protective enclosures. It houses and makes available a reference library of bookbinding manuals and videotapes, supply catalogs, and materials on library preservation.

The lab handles all phases of conservation treatment for Widener Library collections. Its staff also performs intermediate and advanced conservation treatment and makes enclosures for other HCL units. Conservators provide conservation training, surveys, environmental monitoring, and consulting services to HCL units.

More information about the HCL Collections Conservation Lab is available on the Library Preservation at Harvard website.

Binding and Shelf Preparation

The Binding and Shelf Preparation Group purchases a wide range of commercial library binding services and prepares newly cataloged, newly bound, repaired, and rebound materials for library use. It is committed to ensuring that items entering the collections are protected by sound bindings or archival quality enclosures, and that they are clearly, accurately, and thoughtfully marked.

While its primary focus is the Widener Library collection, the unit provides advice, training, and support for other HCL units on issues involving library binding and shelf preparation.

More information about the Binding and Shelf Preparation group is available on the Library Preservation at Harvard website.

Heather Caldwell Kaufman, Head, Conservation Services
E-mail
617-495-8871

• Conservation Staff Directory

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Imaging Services

Imaging Services, an HCL division based in Widener and a component of Harvard's Preservation Program, provides a broad range of services designed to protect at-risk library materials and to extend scholarly access to Harvard's collections beyond the University. Imaging Services does this by providing microfilm and paper reproductions of our collections for research purposes, participating in digitization projects, and improving bibliographic access to at-risk, damaged, or rare materials. Offices are located on D-level and the public service point is located in room G-81, Widener Library.

William Comstock, Head, Imaging Services
E-mail
617-496-5241

• Imaging Services
• Imaging Services Staff Directory

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Development Office

Working out of the Office of the Librarian, the Development Office directs the fundraising and external relations programs in the Harvard College Library and the Harvard University Library in support of the library's mission of serving scholarship at Harvard. This work is achieved through careful coordination with the University Development Office and encompasses identification, cultivation, and solicitation of donors, acknowledgements, ongoing stewardship, including reports on purchases and other activities of each fund, and the donor listing in the annual report.

In addition to ongoing work with donors and other University development staff, Development also works with librarians and bibliographers to find funding for all types of library needs, organizes development events, gives donor tours, and processes gifts, pledges, and paperwork for gifts of tangible property.

Peggy Molander, Director of Development
E-mail
617-495-8062

• Giving to the Library
• Development Staff Directory

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