Colin McCullough, Scientific Assistance Project Program Officer responsible for the day to day running of Sabre's book programs, introduced a brief procedural review session. Designed to highlight the importance of practices already in place, the review was conducted in the light of the largest donation of educational materials in the history of Sabre Foundation, which was finalized at the end of 1995. Approximately 250,000 volumes were selected from lists offered by five separate divisions of McGraw-Hill, Inc., and this substantial donation provided an ideal context in which to address some practical issues with Sabre's partner organizations.

Receipt of Shipments: Partner organizations are reminded to inform Sabre's U.S. office immediately upon shipment arrival. This simple contact is sometimes temporarily neglected in the midst of other pressing tasks (customs clearance, unloading, stamping, etc.) but it is helpful if it can be carried out at once. For example, having this information in a timely way enables Sabre to advise donors of special collections who contact the U.S. office that their materials have arrived in the designated country.

Institutional Holding Form: Partners should continue to pay close attention to the use of Sabre's Institutional Holding Form, in order to show compliance with U.S. Internal Revenue Code Standards. Partners should have on file a signed copy of this form from each recipient institution.

Distribution Reports: Distribution reports should be sent to Sabre's U.S. office upon completion of distribution of each shipment. The format of the report is at the discretion of each individual partner organization, but should enable Sabre to track the donated materials from each shipment.

Follow-up Materials: Follow-up materials are welcomed by Sabre's U.S. office, by donating publishers, and by financial donors. These include: letters of thanks from recipients; photographs and videotapes (e.g., unloading of containers, book displays in recipient libraries, materials being used in classroom setting, etc.); and anecdotal responses to donations. It is worth noting that requests and reactions from recipients are useful in helping to direct Sabre's publisher solicitation campaigns.

Project Director Tania Vitvitsky concluded the session with the distribution of a partner organization questionnaire. The information collected will be incorporated into Sabre Foundation's Internet World Wide Web on-line and inter-active resource site on book donation programs and agencies world-wide. The site will cover subject specialization and geographical focus and will also include contact information.