Lovejoy Library Embraces Digital Transition in the U.S. Government Publishing Office’s Federal Depository Library Program
Posted December 7, 2023
Southern Illinois University Edwardsville's Lovejoy Library is proud to announce its transition to a digital-only member of the U.S. Government Publishing Office's (GPO) Federal Depository Library Program (FDLP). This strategic move aligns with the evolving landscape of information dissemination, allowing Lovejoy Library to provide enhanced access to a vast online collection of Federal Government documents for the benefit of the public, faculty, and students.
In response to the changing dynamics of information consumption, in early 2022, U.S. GPO Director Hugh Nathanial Halpern appointed a Task Force on a Digital Federal Depository Library Program. The Task Force, after thorough analysis, reached a consensus that the FDLP "can and should move to a digital platform."
Key benefits of this digital transition include:
- Enhanced Accessibility: The move to digital resources enables Lovejoy Library to improve the description and access of publications that are exclusively available online. This enhancement ensures that users can efficiently locate and access valuable resources while preserving them for the benefit of future researchers.
- Operational Flexibility: The digital platform empowers Lovejoy Library to serve more users with greater flexibility and efficiency, even with reduced staffing. This flexibility enhances the library's capacity to meet the evolving needs of its students and faculty and will allow the library to repurpose some of its physical space to support growing, high-impact university programs.
SIUE's Lovejoy Library is excited to contribute to this transformative shift in the FDLP. Over the next few months, the library will remove the outdated, redundant, and superseded U.S. Government Documents Print Collection on the third floor of Lovejoy Library to align its collections with GPO’s recommended FDLP digital transition. The electronic government documents collection at Lovejoy boasts over 60,000 titles, with regular monthly updates, providing an ever-expanding repository of invaluable resources.
As the library embraces this digital future, Lovejoy Library invites the community, scholars, and the public to explore the enriched online collection of Federal Government documents, including prominent titles such as the Budget of the United States Government, Code of Federal Regulations, and the Compilation of Presidential Documents.
