GRANVILLE - Mary Prophet, deputy director of the Denison library, was recently appointed to the Depository Library Council to the Public Printer, an advisory group to the Government Printing Office (GPO) on issues related to public access to government information products. Prophet will serve a three-year term on the prestigious 15-member Council, beginning with the October 2002 meeting in Washington, D.C.

Mary Prophet

Members of the council advise the GPO on the administration of the Federal Depository Library Program (FDLP) which is a nationwide, geographically-dispersed system comprising more than 1,300 libraries. Acting in partnership with the Government Printing Office, the FDLP provides the general public with local access to federal government information products at no cost.

"Mary has been actively involved with documents for over 20 years," says Ellen Conrad, a catalog specialist and library co-worker. "She is passionate about ensuring continued availability and access to federal information. She is well known and respected at the local, regional, state and national level as an informed, thoughtful, helpful, hardworking and enthusiastic colleague."

There are 53 "regional" depository libraries that have agreed to receive all the materials distributed by the GPO and retain them for permanent public access. The remaining "selective" libraries in the FDLP choose the materials they receive based on the demands of their patrons and have limited retention responsibilities.

The Denison University Library was appointed as a selective depository in 1884. It permanently houses a core collection of federal publications and makes them available to both the college community and the general public. The Denison Library also selects documents in specific subject areas and cooperates with the regional depository, the State Library of Ohio, in collection development, policy development and implementation, sharing of resources and reference help. "Ohio has a strong depository library network," say Conrad, "and is a leader in national policy sharing and depository cooperation."

As part of the ground-breaking consortial library effort known as CONSORT, Denison librarians have been active nationally and have gained the respect of the GPO staff. The CONSORT libraries have been leaders in shaping federal guidelines for electronic record keeping and policies of shared collections.

Prophet, an Alabama native, began her association with Denison as a night circulation supervisor on 1976. She was named assistant reference librarian in 1980 and later reference librarian and head of documents. She served as acting director of the library from 1998 to 2000. Prophet earned a bachelor of science degree in biology at Alabama College and a master's degree in education at Wichita State University (Kan.). She earned her master of library science degree at Kent State University. She has served previously as a high school science teacher and as librarian at the Capitol University law school.

She recently organized a display of posters and publications that mobilized the country during World War II which was an outgrowth of her work and expertise in government documents. Prophet also presented "Poster Art on the Home Front During World War II," at this year's "Alumni College" during Reunion Weekend.

For press inquiries:

Name

Barbara Stambaugh

Position Title

Director, Media Relations

Primary Email

stambaughb@denison.edu

Business Phone

(740) 587-8575