Science and Technology Section | The American Library Association Archives

The Science and Technology Section (STS) represents libraries and specialists in the field of science and technology.  Its committees include Bibliographic Access to Proceedings, Comparison of Science and Engineering Libraries, Legislation, Membership, Nominating, Planning, Publisher Relations, and Subject Access to Science Materials.  STS also has Discussion Groups which are organized to provide a forum for discussion of issues of concern to STS librarians not under the responsibility of any of the standing committees (1).

STS publishes a newsletter, the STS Signal twice a year (starting in 1986) (2).  STS also is responsible for making the Oberly Award for Bibliography in the Agricultural Sciences (3).

The Agricultural Libraries Section of ACRL (then the Association of College and Reference Libraries) was first organized in 1940/41 (4)., and the Engineering School Libraries Section was added in 1942 (5).  These two sections merged into the Pure and Applied Science Section (PASS) in 1951 (6).  In 1958 the PASS merged with the Specialized Libraries Division to form the Subject Specialists Section (SSS) (7).  In 1972, the SSS was dissolved and its subsections, one of which was the Agricultural and Biological Science Subsection, were given full section status (8).  The Agricultural and Biological Science Section changed its name to STS in 1979 (9).

1.  ALA Handbook of Organization and Membership, 1988/89, p. 67-68.

2.  STS Signal, Spring 1986, p. 1-2.

3.  ALA Handbook, 1988/89, p. 68.

4.  ACRL Organization Manual, 1956, p. 16.

5.  ALA Bulletin, December 15, 1942, p. H-43.

6.  ACRL Organization Manual, 1956, p. 16.

7.  College and Research Libraries, March 1958, p. 147-149.

8.  College and Resarch Libraries News, September 1972, p. 213.

9.  College and Research Libraries News, May 1979, p. 146.