Collection Development Practice

OUTLINE

1. LRC Mission Statement
2. Definition of Collection Development
3. Collection Development Objectives
4. Selection Responsibilities
5. Materials to Support New Programs
6. Challenge to Censorship
7. Fund Allocation
8. General Priorities and Guidelines
9. Specific Acquisitions Guidelines
10. Books
    1. Reference Books
    2. Electronic Resources
    3. Textbooks
    4. Archives
    5. Serials
    6. Microforms
    7. Vertical File Materials
    8. Reserves
    9. Audiovisual Materials
    10. Professional Materials
    11. Leased Collection
    12. Special Collections/Rare Books
    13. Gifts
11. Collection Preservation and Evaluation
    1. Inventory
    2. Lost Materials
    3. Binding
    4. Deselection
    5. Collection Damage
12. Cooperative Collection Development
13. Intellectual Freedom
14. Collection Access
15. Copyright
16. Collection Development Policy Review

LRC Mission Statement

The purpose of the library and other learning resources is to provide a variety of learning resources, services and facilities to support a diverse community; to encourage academic achievement, student success, lifelong learning, and to enhance teaching excellence.

Definition of Collection Development

The primary purpose of collection development is to meet the informational needs of the learners. Collection development refers to the process of building and maintaining the library’s entire materials collection, print, non-print, electronic and remote formats. The collection development process includes the formulation of policies and procedures, coordination of acquisition activities, budget formulation and allocation, needs assessments, collection evaluations, selection, resource sharing and deselection.

Collection Development Objectives

1. To provide bibliographic control over print and non-print materials using accepted standards and practices
2. To organize print and non-print materials into collections catalogued according to the Library of Congress Classification System
3. To acquire and organize materials for a circulating and reference collection
4. To acquire and organize an audiovisual collection for classroom and research support
5. To acquire and organize serials in their various formats for periodical collections
6. To select materials using faculty recommendations, course assignments, standard lists, publishers’ catalogs, student requests and review journals
7. To obtain faculty input on selection and deselection of materials
8. To schedule evaluations of specific subject areas in the circulating and reference collection as needed to ensure currency
9. To perform on-going deselection of the circulating, reference, audiovisual and serials collections
10. To acquire and maintain adequate equipment for classroom and campus support
11. To strive for a collection that offers diverse viewpoints on all topics and offers materials on levels of difficulty appropriate for the diverse student population
12. To offer materials and displays in conjunction with national, state and local issues and events.
13. To provide resources that promote lifelong learning
14. To provide resources that represent and provide for a diversity of experiences, opinions, social and cultural perspectives.
15. To establish acquisitions and collection management procedures
16. To promote literacy and the enjoyment of reading
17. To evaluate and select new and existing information technologies
18. To provide multiple copies of materials as determined by demand
19. To make faculty aware of new publications in their fields and areas of interest

Selection Responsibilities

The primary responsibility for developing the collections of the Learning Resources Centers rests with the librarians, who base their decisions on their educational background, familiarity with the collections and college programs, standard bibliographical lists, course syllabi, reference inquiries, and faculty, staff and student requests. The campus directors are responsible for establishing the emphasis that is placed on the parts of the collection.

Materials to Support New Programs

In order to respond to collection development needs of existing and newly developed courses and programs of instruction, one campus director on a rotating basis serves as an ex-officio member of the Curriculum Committee. Establishing the need for library materials to support new programs is part of the curriculum approval process. Materials needed to establish collections for new programs and/or courses should be listed on the course or program application form in order that necessary funds can be allocated.

Challenge to Censorship

Patrons with a complaint about an item in the collection should be referred to the campus director who will ask them to submit their concerns in writing. A committee of librarians and faculty members will review the complaint and the materials in question, and make a recommendation to retain or withdraw the item. The patron will receive a written response.

Fund Allocation

Funds are allocated among the campuses to provide for maximum development of all collections. Fund allocation for materials is based on the Statewide Program Review, the Florida Community College Library Assessment Report and the inflation rate. Any special allocation from the state for LRC materials is supplemental to the LRCs’ regular budget.

Fund allocations to the campuses take into consideration the following factors: FTE, standards, collection size, cost of materials and maintenance/replacement costs.

General Priorities and Guidelines

A broad spectrum of materials representing a balanced point of view in a variety of formats is acquired to support student informational needs and the curriculum of the college. High priority is given to faculty/staff/student requests and to requests for materials to support specific assignments as identified by faculty members, course syllabi and student requests. Materials required for on-going use kept in faculty or departmental offices are not considered to be library materials and will not be cataloged.

Materials are acquired to support new programs, to assist faculty in preparation for teaching, to support programs undergoing program review, to support faculty development/continuing education, and to assist faculty, administrators, and staff in performance of their duties.

Sources used to support decisions for inclusion in the collections include, but are not limited to:

• Choice
• Booklist
• Library Journal
• Publishers Weekly
• Internet book review sites

Duplicate copies are purchased when need has been established by demand or when justified by anticipated course assignments.

Requests for books, which are determined to be out-of-print, will be ordered from out-of-print sources. A librarian will assist in determining the appropriateness for the collection and a price range for the material.

Rare books are generally not considered to be within the scope of the collection. Gifts of rare books will be referred to the campus director.

Government publications are ordered as needed and are integrated into the book, serial and Vertical File collections.

Materials are purchased primarily in the English language, except as foreign language titles are required to support foreign language courses.

Requests for materials, which a librarian judges to be of unusually high cost, will be referred to the campus director.

Materials frequently requested through Interlibrary Loan will be considered for purchase.

Specific Acquisitions Guidelines

Books

The purpose of the book collection is to provide a permanent collection of print materials to support the study, research, professional and personal development of the students, faculty and staff.

Single copies of hardback books are the preferred choice when a title is available in hard and soft cover formats. When paperback books are acquired they will be bound when usage indicates a need.

Electronic books will be considered as an alternative format.

Reference books

The purpose of the reference collection is to provide research information to students, faculty, staff and community. The emphasis of the reference collection is on materials to support the curriculum of the campus. Reference materials include general reference works, biographical sources, bibliographies, dictionaries, directories, subject encyclopedias, handbooks and indexes.

Standing orders are maintained for reference materials and are evaluated annually.

Electronic Resources

Electronic resources are selected to support the curriculum. The purpose of electronic resources is to provide more efficient access to information. The campuses will work together and with CCLA to provide electronic resources that meet the needs of students, faculty and staff.

Textbooks

Textbooks may be purchased when they are considered classics in their field, when other monographic publications are unavailable or when demand requires purchase. The Student Government Association and faculty/departmental donations usually provide the reserve textbook collection.

Archives

Materials collected for the archival collection include student/faculty and college publications, institutional research reports, newspaper clippings, items of historical interest/value, policy and personnel materials, financial reports, photographs and other items of interest to the institution.

Serials

As a major source of current information in many disciplines, the purpose of the serials collection is to provide up-to-date information and to supplement the book collection. The selection of serial subscriptions is made with great care since they represent an expensive, long-term commitment. Considering the costs of storage, preservation and maintenance, even free or inexpensive subscriptions are selected with care and deliberation. Selection criteria for serials include:

• availability in online databases
• appropriateness to the curriculum
• existing subscriptions within the field
• demonstrated need
• scholarly reputation
• price
• balance

When a new serial title is desired, the faculty member will be asked to submit a periodical request form to assist in the evaluation of the requested serial.

Microforms

Serial backfiles, when needed, are acquired in microform due to cost and storage constraints.

Criteria for selection of microform:

• Availability of shelf/storage space
• Theft potential
• Percent of missing issues in a volume
• Usage
• Cost
• Publication type (professional, technical, popular)
• Content (visual information, photographs)

Vertical File Materials

Pamphlets, government documents, clippings and other non-book materials are collected in subject folders and made available in the Vertical File.

Reserves

The reserve collection consists of professors' personal copies, departmental copies, library materials (print and non-print) and other materials prepared for reserve (i.e. circulating copies of lab materials and videotapes of television courses). Departments and professors provide the materials that are placed on reserve for their courses. The LRC will purchase copies of books and other materials for reserve use if they are suitable for the collections. Usage statistics are analyzed each semester and unused materials are returned to instructors or are removed from reserve in the case of library material. A campus may limit the number of reserves accepted per course due to space and staffing.

Audio-Visual Materials

The following formats are collected for classroom instruction and general library use:

• videos
• compact discs
• videodiscs
• DVDs
• CD-ROMs
• audiocassettes
• slides
• maps

As new formats are introduced, the librarians in conjunction with the teaching faculty and department chairs evaluate their inclusion in the collection.

Professional Materials

Books and other monographic publications relating to higher education, educational theory and/or community colleges are purchased to support the professional growth and development of the faculty staff and administration. However, priority is given to materials needed to support the curriculum. Since a comprehensive collection of professional materials is not possible, faculty, staff and administrators should expect to rely on Interlibrary Loan for materials not available in the collection.

Leased Collection

Popular, current books and audiobooks are leased by contract with the McNaughton Plan (Brodart). Materials that receive substantial use are purchased from the vendor at a discount for addition to the reference or circulating collection. Participation in this plan is dependent on the overall funding for materials and priority may be given to materials needed to support the curriculum.

Special Collections

Since collections of rare, valuable and historical materials require special storage and care, they are generally considered to be outside the scope of materials included in the college collections. Likewise, since separate collections of special interest materials require special storage and procedures and are by nature exclusionary, they are integrated into the existing collections when accepted.

Gifts

All gifts are accepted with the understanding that there be no limiting conditions or restrictions regarding the classification, distribution, retention or use of such gifts. Generally, no item valued at $500 or more will be accepted. Donations of such items should be referred to the campus director.

A letter will be issued on request for the number and description of the materials donated. No value will be assigned to any item(s).

The decision to add a gift item to the collection will be based on the same criteria as purchased materials. The library staff retains the right to dispose of duplicates or any other materials. Disposal may be by direct sale, discard, a gift to other libraries or by any other appropriate means.

Collection Preservation and Evaluation

The following procedures are employed to maintain the physical and intellectual integrity of the various collections:

Inventory

An inventory of the books, serials, LRC websites, audiovisuals and equipment is conducted annually. Each campus assumes responsibility for the inventory of its campus collections.

Lost Materials

The user is responsible for lost or missing materials. Criteria for replacement of lost material include the importance of the material to the collection, demand for the material and availability of the material.

Binding

Serials, which are to be bound, are sent to the bindery as soon as the volume is complete in order to preserve the integrity of the volume. Every effort is made to replace missing issues before a volume is bound; however, if usage warrants, the volume may be bound incomplete. If substantial portions of the volume are missing, it should be replaced by microfilm

Books are bound or rebound when usage, currency and relevance indicate a need.

Deselection

The purpose of deselection is to remove unneeded materials from the collections. Unneeded materials include, but are not limited to, multiple copies, damaged items, dated, unused and obsolete materials or materials for discontinued programs. A general guideline is to deselect 3-5% of the collection annually.

The responsibility for deselection of the collections rests with the librarians in cooperation with the faculty. The decision to withdraw an item is based on the following criteria:

• circulation records
• completeness of holdings
• availability of replacement or new edition
• importance of the item to the collection
• date of publication

Deselection should not bias the collection in favor of one viewpoint or negatively affect the amount of material in a subject area. Methods for disposal of deselected materials are determined by the campus director.

Collection Damage

Depending on the extent of the damage, most situations are handled with the assistance of the facilities, property or insurance offices of the college.

Cooperative Collection Development

The campus libraries participate as a unit in the following resource sharing arrangements:

These arrangements provide the libraries' users with access to additional materials through Interlibrary Loan, on-site access and reciprocal borrowing privileges.

Participation in cooperative resource sharing does not release any campus from its responsibility to provide adequate resources to its faculty, staff and students. Participation in cooperative sharing is intended to supplement the resources available on a campus.

The location of a course or program on a campus carries with it the responsibility to provide the materials necessary to support the information/research needs of the students in that course or program.

Students, faculty and staff have access to materials throughout the system, regardless of campus location.

Intellectual Freedom

The staff of the Learning Resources Centers supports the American Library Association's Bill of Rights, its Intellectual Freedom Statement and its statement on challenged materials. The staff strives to develop a balanced collection, which presents differing points of view. Materials are selected without prejudice in matters of race, sex, nationality, religion or moral philosophy.

Collection Access

Access to the collections of the learning resources centers meets the American with Disabilities Act standards. Remote access to the collections and research sources is available through electronic technologies.

Copyrights

The staff of the Learning Resources Centers supports the application of the 1976 Copyright Act and the Digital Millennium Copyright Act of 1998 in the provision of all services.

Collection Development Policy Review

In order to reflect changes in curriculum, information technology and other needs of the collection, the directors of the campus learning resources centers will review the Collection Development Policy annually.

Revisions will be subject to approval by the LRC Committee and the College Learning Council.