What is a special library?
Libraries are categorized by type—public, like the Indianapolis Marion County Library; academic, such as the IUPUI University Library; school, an elementary, mid¬dle school or high school media center; and, special, like the NCAA Library. Yes, the NCAA does have a library. We’re tucked away in 2,500 square feet on the first floor of the National Headquarters building. Our collection is focused, or specialized, on a specific subject. In our case, college athletics is our primary focus; hence, the classifi¬cation is special. We function just like any other library, complete with a cir¬culation desk, shelves of books and a periodicals section. As a special library, the staff serves 350 of our fellow NCAA colleagues, the membership, media, students, researchers, authors and the general public. Since 1994, over 10,000 items have been cataloged and two major manuscript collections have been indexed. In 2002 alone, the library added 4,000 items to our collection and online catalog. We process
