PCC membership is open to institutions that pledge to support the program activities of training, review, and direct contributions of authority and bibliographic records to appropriate databases using program standards.
PCC membership levels
Institutional membership: The institution administers its own program activities and contributes records according to the levels defined for each program. The PCC Steering Committee considers each institution’s application on its own merits.
Funnel membership: The institution joins with other libraries under the supervision of a Funnel Coordinator. A Funnel project and its members must contribute records to maintain active status. The contribution levels for each funnel institution are undefined. The PCC Steering Committee reviews the proposal for the Funnel project, but does not necessarily examine the application from each Funnel member.
Expedited PCC institutional membership:
Expedited PCC Institutional Membership allows an institution that hires an experienced PCC cataloger to obtain PCC membership on an expedited basis. This includes obtaining NACO, BIBCO, and CONSER authorizations as long as the cataloger was independent in these areas at a previous PCC institution. The cataloger and new institutions must agree to the terms of the Expedited PCC Institutional Membership Guidelines [Word 42 KB; 2 p.] Please contact the individual programs BIBCO, CONSER, or NACO for further information on Expedited PCC Institutional Membership.
Requirements
- Please see Expedited PCC Institutional Membership Guidelines [Word 42 KB; 2 p.] for requirements of the institution and the cataloger.
Membership applications
Prospective members may submit an online application form found on each program web page and should indicate the preferred type of membership. The Cooperative Programs Section (Coop) forwards applications to the PCC Steering Committee for approval.
Voting rights in PCC Elections
The PCC Policy Committee includes representatives for NACO, SACO, BIBCO, and CONSER. In yearly elections, the Cooperative Programs Section e-mails ballots to members according to these categories:
- Institutional members receive ballots addressed to their directors, with candidate names for each program in which the institution participates actively.
- Funnel institutions do not cast a vote for the program’s representative candidate in a PCC election. The Funnel Coordinator casts a vote to represent the interests of all members in the funnel.
Program contacts
Institutional members name a contact person for each program and send the name with e-mail, etc. to Coop for posting to the Web roster of program contacts. The Funnel Coordinator and/or program contact of a funnel member library serve these functions for Funnel projects. This person:
- Helps coordinate training plans for the local participants.
- Serves as the primary communication link for program news to and from local participants.
- Subscribes to the PCC discussion list and any additional program-specific discussion lists. The contact may submit other names for discussion list privileges.
- Maintains current cataloging policy documentation for use of contributing staff, and keeps colleagues informed.
- Maintains contribution levels to keep local skills strong and to meet PCC contribution goals.
- Screens local records before submitting them for review to reduce simple errors and to develop reviewing skills.
- Serves as quality control agent for the institution’s records after the institution is judged independent of further review, and resolves questions about records created by the institution. The Contact may consult training manuals, documentation, online help pages, other colleagues, and appropriate PCC listservs for some questions. The Contact may ask questions of LC Coop staff if necessary.
- Trains new staff if possible or arranges for their training. If independent in a certain type of record, reviews the contributions of new recruits/trainees.
- Monitors online contact data about the institution and informs Coop of changes or corrections and checks the MARC code listings and the OCLC Find a Library page for accurate listings.
- Monitors online displays of PCC stats for accuracy, and reports data if appropriate.
- Keeps the PCC member institution's director informed when PCC Elections are being run to encourage voting.
Participation in PCC activities:
Beyond record contribution, there are many ways in which individuals may be involved:
- Training and/or reviewing records of other participants, after attending train-the-trainer sessions.
- Development of training and other documentation.
- Leading and serving on committees and task groups.
- Attending PCC programs at ALA and other professional events.
- Promoting the PCC through presentations or written articles.
Discussion lists for PCC members:
PCCLIST—general news and exchanges about program events and policy
BIBCO—news and exchanges about BIBCO program events and policy
SACO—news and exchanges about SACO program events and policy
CONSRLST—news and exchanges about CONSER program events and policy
