The Beard Collection serves as a non-circulating reference collection within the Turfgrass Information Center in the Main Library. This generous donation by Harriet and Dr. James B Beard is generally acknowledged as the finest personal compilation of turf-related material in existence. It includes international coverage of the turfgrass research and management literature, including books, periodicals, and technical reports.
The Turfgrass Information Center, a specialized unit at the Michigan State University Libraries, contains the most comprehensive publicly available collection of turfgrass educational materials in the world. The Turfgrass Information Center has over 200,000 records in its primary database, the Turfgrass Information File (TGIF), with 58% linked to the full-text of the item. Serving researchers, practitioners, and students around the world, the Turfgrass Information Center and the TGIF database help to fulfill Michigan State University's world-grant ideal.
Between 1983 and 1992, the USGA supported the development of the TGIF database. Using the Noer Collection as a foundation, TGIF was designed to systematically inventory published turf research and make the bibliographic information available via a computerized database. In 1999, the USGA committed one million dollars to the Turfgrass Information Center Endowment Campaign. Contributions to the Turfgrass Information Center Endowment Campaign have grown to more than $3 million. The annual interest generated by the principle, which will remain untouched, guarantees the ongoing operation of the Turfgrass Information Center, regardless of fluctuations in State and/or University support.
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| A million searches are conducted each year using the using the Turfgrass Information File (TGIF). Fifty-eight percent of the database is linked to full-text articles that can be viewed on the internet, and 10 million PDFs were displayed. More than 20,000 new records are added each year and there are 74 academic subscribers worldwide. |
Additional Information:
Turfgrass Information Center – 2013 Annual Report
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