Library of Congress

Program for Cooperative Cataloging

The Library of Congress > Cataloging, Acquisitions > PCC > NACO > Training

The PCC affords participants a full course of specialized NACO training and review leading to institutional independence in name authority work. This training is currently offered sequentially in segments that amount to a five-day workshop. During the training, guidelines are discussed and expanded upon with an emphasis on building a consistent and predictable file in a collaborative environment.

The underlying principle of NACO is that participants agree to follow a common set of standards and guidelines when creating or changing authority records in order to maintain the integrity of a large shared authority file. During the week of NACO training these guidelines are discussed and built upon with a view to streamlining processes while building a consistent and predictable file that will reduce the duplication of efforts of the global library community and maximize its resources.

NACO Classes

There are no regularly scheduled NACO classes. NACO training is scheduled "on demand" for new participating libraries. Once the PCC application is approved, the PCC Secretariat at LC will assess the training schedule, the availability of a trainer, and then contact the new participant to schedule the training.

Twelve staff members is the optimum size of a NACO class. However, special arrangements or exceptions can be made on a case by case basis. Please contact the PCC Secretariat to discuss these special arrangements.

Training Options

Often an institution has a smaller number of trainees requiring NACO training. There are options to consider in this case—1) to maximize training resources at LC, a NACO workshop may be scheduled for a group of institutions if each institution is sending only one or two staff members. Note that each institution sending NACO trainees is responsible for the travel and lodging expenses of its own staff; 2) A NACO funnel may be a viable option. Please see below for more information on NACO funnels.

More Information

For additional information on NACO training, see

NACO Funnels

A NACO funnel project is a group of libraries that have joined together to contribute name authority records to the national authority file. Frequently, funnel members create records in modest numbers and consolidate their efforts to make a more significant contribution in terms of quantity.

Read more about NACO funnels

PCC Series

PCC Series Training is self-instructional. Please see the Catalogers Learning Workshop web site for more information.

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