LSU Libraries is still in danger of losing more online databases after midyear budget cuts, but one dictionary subscription has received a temporary reprieve.
LSU Libraries staff announced in June that LOUIS, the Louisiana Library Network, would lose two-thirds of its budget and some of the LSU Libraries’ database subscriptions would not be renewed.
Nancy Colyar, assistant dean of LSU Libraries, said Tuesday she had heard via e-mail and the library’s Facebook page about the disappearance of databases, particularly the Oxford English Dictionary.
Collection Development Coordinator Bill Armstrong contacted the vendor, who extended the subscription to the OED by 30 days for free.
The extended subscription was supposed to expire at the end of September but is still available online.
Colyar said the canceled databases were chosen based on how often they were used. She said the OED received so much attention because there is nothing else like it offered on the LSU Libraries website.
Colyar said it’s possible the library could lose databases in the future if its budget is cut further.
“That’s not [information] we will give out unless it actually happens,” Colyar said.
Colyar said a number of parents say their children may not be able to complete the research necessary to write their papers.
“As that number [of databases] shrinks, it will be harder to do research,” Colyar said. “You might have to hunt harder to find what you’re looking for.”
Amanda Amedee, veterinary medicine freshman, said she’s afraid the canceled databases are a sign of worse things to come.
“More stuff’s going to get cut,” Amedee said. “It’s going to hurt the students.”
Armstrong said in addition to offering the University a free extension, the OED vendor also offered the subscription to the University at a lowered price, but it may still be out of the University’s price range.
“It’s a question of whether or not we can even afford that,” he said.
Armstrong said he’s not at liberty to discuss the exact price of the subscription.
Colyar said it’s possible the University will get the databases back, but that is not likely considering the current budget situation.
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Contact Rachel Warren at [email protected]