Library Policies

Collection Development Policies

Introduction
This policy is intended to serve as a statement of the guidelines used for acquiring and maintaining materials for the library collections at Unity Environmental University. Rising costs, increases in publishing output, and a relentless increase in the demand for information in a wide variety of formats necessitate careful materials selection based on an understanding of the immediate and future goals of the library and the University. The collection must be systematically shaped and developed in order to make the best use of our financial resources.

Objectives
The primary objective of collection development activities at Unity Environmental University is to build and maintain a library collection that supports the curriculum and mission of the college. Library programs and services are designed to promote intellectual and physical access to the collection for the members of the university community.

Allocation of Funds
It is the responsibility of the Director of the Library to allocate the materials budget in order to fulfill the library's collection development objectives. The majority of funds available for the purchase of monographs is divided among disciplines which are broadly defined by academic programs. The amount of money allocated to support the purchase of library material for each discipline reflects such factors as size of the relevant program(s) (i.e.. number of faculty and students), number of courses taught, and the average cost of materials in the department's subject areas. Some funds are maintained to be used at the discretion of the Director.  Faculty and administrators are reminded that library support is an additional cost which must be considered when implementing new programs or courses.

Baccalaureate Student Theses
A thesis is an independent project often completed in the final year of a baccalaureate program. The thesis presents a significant body of original work. The thesis is presented publicly, and a copy deposited in the Library, a release form must accompany each thesis deposited. 

Selection
The objective cited in section II provides the framework for selection. Thus the major responsibility and top priority of the library lies with the support of the teaching programs. The library does endeavor to obtain materials needed for faculty study and research either through purchase or interlibrary loan. Interlibrary loan will usually be the method of choice for materials which do not support the undergraduate curriculum.

The fulfillment of academic curricular needs is the first criterion against which any potential item is evaluated. Specific considerations in choosing individual items include the following:

• Appropriateness of level of treatment (e.g. is the material accessible to students?
• Is it anticipated that the material will be used for term papers, supplementary reading, etc.)
• Strength of present holdings in same or similar subject areas
• Cost
• Suitability of format to content - particularly in the case of AV or digitized products. Does the format of the item effectively convey the desired information, and does the library have any special equipment required to use the material?
• Authoritativeness of the author
• Reputation of publisher
• Lasting value of the content
Other guidelines also observed:
• Textbooks are not normally purchased. The exceptions are those items which have earned reputation as "classics" in their fields, or when a textbook is the only or best source of information on a particular topic.
• Duplicates are purchased only under special circumstances.
• In instances where the cost of an item is high and anticipated demand is low, the holdings of nearby libraries and those libraries will be considered in determining whether or not to purchase the item.
• When there is an option of paper or hardcopy, the choice is based on expected use, lasting value of content, cost differential, and quality of paperback binding.
• Lost or stolen materials will be replaced within one year of the date they are reported missing (or immediately if needed) if they are available. The current book trade and selection criteria will also be considered.
• The library acquires primarily English language materials. Exceptions to this are foreign language dictionaries and literature that are used in the teaching of foreign languages.
• The majority of selections are current publications. The library recognizes the need for retrospective purchases and systematically uses standard bibliographies and other evaluation tools to locate and fill gaps in the collection. However, in view of the difficulty and expense in obtaining out-of- print and reprinted material, it is most important to spend funds for valuable current publications of long-term worth, thus preventing a future need for retrospective buying.

The library staff uses the following as primary selection tools, with additional sources as needed: Choice, Booklist, New York Times Book Review, publishers' catalogs and pre-publication literature, selected subject-specific professional journals, and Books for College Libraries. Approval plans may also be established with vendors to help ensure that the collection develops at the desired level in all appropriate subject areas.

Responsibility for Selection
Ultimate responsibility for the development and maintenance of library collections at Unity Environmental University rests with the Director of the Library. In addition, selections are strongly encouraged from faculty to support their current and planned courses. It is hoped that faculty will monitor their professional literature for appropriate library acquisitions, and that they will make the librarians aware of material most useful for course requirements and for student research needs. Student and staff requests for the acquisition of materials are also welcomed and encouraged and are reviewed by the same standards as are requests from all other sources.

Serials
Serials differ from monographs in that a serial subscription is an ongoing financial commitment. In addition, serials prices have historically increased at a rate that far exceeds such standard economic indicators as the Consumer Price Index and great care must be taken to ensure that the Library's ongoing commitment to serials does not consume a disproportionate share of the total acquisitions budget. Therefore, requests for new serial subscriptions must be considered very carefully. Generally, a new serial subscription will not be entered unless another subscription of similar expense can be canceled. Faculty members who wish to request the addition of a new subscription will be asked to review existing subscriptions in their subject discipline to identify a current title that might be discontinued. Some or all of the following criteria are used in evaluating titles for acquisition or cancellation:

• support of present academic curriculum
• strength of the existing collection in the title's subject area
• present use of other serials in this subject area
• projected future use
• cost
• reputation of journal and the publisher
• inclusion in a reliable indexing source
• number of recent interlibrary loan requests for this serial

Non-print Materials
Requests for non-print materials are evaluated on the same basis as are monographs, with special emphasis on the suitability of the format to the content, on quality, and the Library's ability to provide the equipment and support to required in order to use the material.

Gifts
Gifts of books and other information materials which are in good condition may be accepted with the understanding that the library may dispose of them or add them to the collection at its discretion. As a general rule, decisions to add gift books to the collection will be based on the same criteria as purchased ones. The Library assumes no responsibility for appraisal of gift items, nor can the Library accept gifts under restricted conditions. The Library cannot accept materials which are damaged. All gifts are ultimately subject to the Director's approval.

Collection Maintenance and Evaluation
Weeding is an important component of collection development. Upon arrival of new editions, the reference staff will evaluate previous editions and will withdraw those deemed outdated. The reference collection will be continually monitored for outdated material, which will be replaced and withdrawn if necessary. Individual sections of the general collection will be periodically reviewed and weeded. Academic departments will be encouraged to participate in a weeding of their collections every five years.

Intellectual and Academic Freedom
The Library supports the American Library Association's Bill of Rights, its Intellectual Freedom Statement, and its statement on Challenged Materials. The Library attempts to purchase materials which represent differing opinions on controversial matters. Selection is without partisanship regarding, race, gender, sexual orientation, religion, or moral philosophy.