The Disappearing Games: How Clue Launched a Coup

Abstract

Every year Oregon State University students vote the Valley Library as the best place to study on campus. Seeking to do more for its multitude of stressed-out students, the Valley Library launched a non-traditional recreational collection to help combat some of this stress. Full of passion - but lacking peer-reviewed research to justify a budget - the Valley Library Circulation department used its lunch money and shameless solicitation to create a core collection of circulating board and card games. From policy decisions to promotion, from cataloging to counting pieces, the Valley Library tried it all on the road to developing a popular board game collection. This session will look at what worked, what didn't, requesting a budget, and planning for the future of your successful game collection. What can a non-traditional recreational collection achieve at a large academic library? Play to find out!