Illinois Regional Library Council File, 1971-1999

Description: File from the Illinois Regional Library Council (IRLC) office, including papers, correspondence, memoranda, and reports of executive directors Beth Hamilton (1972-78), Zelda Schiffenbauer (1979-81) and Jack Chitwood (1981), concerning promotion, programs, administration, membership and financial support.  Funded largely through the Library Services and Construction Act (LSCA), the IRLC (1971-81) served as a multi-type, multi-purpose library cooperative for Illinois, especially the Northeastern area. The series includes correspondence, proposals, memoranda, working papers, brochures and publications concerning IRLC programs, including Infopass (to facilitate public access to library collections), Chicago Area Computer Information Center (CACIC) and Datapass (online services), the Northeastern Illinois Delivery Service (NEIDS), Library Job Hotline, referral services, and continuing education opportunities. Publications include the IRLC Newsletter, and directories such as Libraries and Information Centers in the Chicago Metropolitan Area, Union List of Serial Holdings in Illinois Special Libraries, as well as guides to regional documents collections, IRLC member libraries, local history collections, human resources, and handbooks and occasional publications. The series also includes executive board meeting minutes and cassette tapes (1971-81), the IRLC Data Base Tape (1977), an evaluation of the IRLC (1978), the Local Documents Project Manual and minutes of the Metropolitan Chicago Library Assembly.