collection development policy

Collection Development Policy 

MISSION AND GOALS

The UC Blue Ash College (UCBA) Library is guided by its mission of empowering the UCBA community (UCBA students, faculty and staff) to success in a complex information environment and supports the Mission, Philosophy & Vision of the College.The collection development guidelines are coordinated with the following goals from the Strategic Plan:

• Develop a collection that meets the growing needs and interests of the UCBA community;
• Promote library services and collections to the UCBA community

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• Standards of Accreditation

  • UCBA is accredited by The Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools. Criterions three and four represent overarching goals that the Library strives to meet. Please refer to the Criteria for Accreditation document on the Higher Learning Commission's web site for more information.

  • The Library also endeavors to meet the Standards for Libraries in Higher Education as set forth by the Association of College & Research Libraries. The standard entitled "Resources" addresses collection development. Please refer to the Association of College & Research Libraries website for more information.

• Clientele
  • The UCBA Library supports the educational and research needs of the UCBA community. The students constitute the Library’s primary clientele and their needs are the first consideration for materials selection. The Library also recognizes the important needs of faculty and staff as they share in the goal of serving the student population. The Library therefore provides pedagogical materials that support the scholarship of teaching and learning in a two year college. Consistent with the College’s welcoming attitude towards the community, the Library’s collection is accessible to the public. However, the UCBA Library selection process is not guided by community information needs, which are met by the Public Library of Cincinnati & Hamilton County.
• Collection Development Responsibility

  • The UCBA Library builds its collection with an understanding of its relationship to other University of Cincinnati Libraries as well as to the State of Ohio's collection, as represented in OhioLINK.

     

    The UCBA Library collection is a part of the shared OhioLINK central catalog, the statewide database made up of the library collections of OhioLINK members throughout the State. While developing its own collection, UCBA participates in building the state collection to satisfy state needs. This includes an understanding of the sharing of materials cooperatively in the State. The agreement, of course, allows UC users access to the same collection. Access is available to a broad array of resources purchased centrally and available electronically through OhioLINK.

     

    Faculty and Staff

  • Developing and maintaining a pertinent collection requires input from faculty and administrative staff. Faculty provide subject expertise and promote student use of the collection through research assignments. Staff offer an understanding of students’ nonscholastic needs and also have opportunities to encourage students seeking information to use library resources. The College faculty and administrative staff are encouraged to make recommendations in their respective areas of expertise. These recommendations are subject to the Criteria for Selection of Materials guidelines.

  • Library Faculty

  • The library faculty, including the Director, are responsible for developing, assessing and maintaining collections in their assigned subject areas and serve as liaisons to designated academic departments. Please refer to the Library Liaison Program page for more information.

  • Library Director

  • The Library Director has ultimate responsibility for the management and development of the collection. The Director assigns subject areas to the library faculty, oversees assessment of the collection, and has final approval of purchases.

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• Collection Assessment
  • The library faculty participate in ongoing collection assessment in order to maintain a collection that meets the needs of the UCBA community. Collaborating with faculty is an important component of this process. Please refer to the Collections page for more information.
• Criteria for Selection of Materials

  • The primary consideration for selecting materials in all formats is the relevance of the material to the educational goals of the College. This includes:

  • Relevance to general student needs: Does it support recurrent courses and/or assignments?

  • Relevance to general student needs: Does the subject support student information needs beyond classroom instruction (e.g. financial aid, career resources)

    Relevance to pedagogical needs: Does the material support the scholarship of teaching and learning in a two year college?

    Style and treatment: Is the style and handling of the subject matter appropriate for academic use? Is the treatment scholarly? Technical? Popular?

    Reading and comprehension level: Is the reading and comprehension level appropriate for the students using the material?

    High use: Is frequent use of the resource anticipated? Will it be used by a number of students?

    Quality/Merit: Has the work received favorable reviews? Was it recommended favorably by UCBA faculty or staff?

    Reputable source: What are the qualifications and reputation of the author, editor, or producer? Is the publisher reputable?

    Timeliness or Lasting value: Does the resource provide current information? Will the item have lasting value?

    Availability: Is the item available for delivery through the Library Catalog or OhioLINK? Is the item needed for immediate access in the UCBA Library?

    Scarcity of materials: Is the item needed to strengthen a weak area of the collection? Are materials on this subject matter scarce?

    Objectivity or Viewpoint: Is the content unbiased? Does it contribute towards a balanced collection of a controversial subject?

    Cost: Is the price in line with the cost of similar materials in that subject area? Does the budget allow for purchase of the item?

    Every published work has unique purpose and content. Therefore, the weight of each selection criterion varies according to its applicability to the publication.

  • Criteria Consideration for Special Formats

    
    Serials: In addition to the basic criteria, consideration of serials includes:

    - Content Accessibility: Is the journal available in print or electronic format?

    - Cost: Given the long-term commitment, is the cost in line with the budget?

    Media: In addition to the Basic Criteria for Selection of Materials, consideration of media includes:

    - Language: Materials are collected primarily in the English language, and other languages with English subtitles

    - Date: Priority is given to materials produced within the past 10 years.  Older materials will be purchased only when they are classic titles or when it has been determined that a recent production does not offer the same level of coverage.

    - Replacing Formats:  Current titles owned in VHS format may be replaced by DVD formats.  Replaced VHS formats will be removed from the collection.

    - Closed Captioning will be obtained when available.

  • The Library does not maintain a popular films browsing collection; however, popular films will be included in the collection as required to support the curriculum.  Instructors are encouraged to provide personal copies of popular films or other media on reserve for their students when use is expected to be low or short-term. In addition, Langsam Library, OhioLINK and Interlibrary Loan are all available options to acquire media not owned or purchased by the Library.

• Formats and Types of Materials
  • Formats and Types of Materials Collected by the Library:
    
      - Books

     - Serials (print, electronic, microform)

     - Newspapers

     - Media (DVD, CD, CD-ROM)

     - Textbooks

  • Textbooks

    In general, textbooks and other materials that students are required to buy for class use are not purchased for the collection. Textbooks may be included in the collection when they are the most suitable format for the material, (e.g. when other materials in that subject area are too specialized or when the textbook is considered a classic work). Instructors may request that textbooks be placed on reserve for their students, in which case instructors are encouraged to provide a copy of the text.  Please refer to the Textbook Access and Availability page for more information.

  • Electronic Resources
    The UCBA Library is a jurisdiction of the UC Libraries. Electronic resources such as electronic books and databases are shared collections between all UC Libraries and thus not specific to the UCBA Library. Please refer to the Electronic Resources Committee for details regarding the selection, purchase, and review of electronic resources.

  • The Electronic Resources Committee (ERC)
    Within the libraries of the University of Cincinnati is the Electronic Resources Committee.  This committee, chaired by the Associate Dean for Collections and Technical Services, deliberates on the purchase of electronic resources deemed to be broad in coverage for the whole university community.  The ERC advises the advises the Policy and Planning Group, the group of library directors of the four jurisdictions of the libraries of the University of Cincinnati.  The committee considers recommendations from subject selectors, as well as options presented by OhioLINK to its community.  [From the University of Cincinnati Libraries Subject Policies].

  • Duplicates
    Multiple copies will not be purchased except in cases of extremely high demand. 

  • Resources for Faculty Research
    In general, items which support faculty research are not purchased unless the materials are of a pedagogical nature that support the scholarship of teaching and learning in a two year college. Materials needed for faculty research will be acquired through OhioLINK, Interlibrary Loan and other UC Libraries.

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• Gifts

  • The Library will accept donations on a limited basis.

     

    To determine if your donated material is appropriate for the curriculum, please refer to the list of the UCBA Academic Departments & Programs listed on the UCBA website.  Then, provide a list of the donated items to the Library and the library faculty will determine what will be accepted.

     

    Materials Accepted
    Materials related to the history of Cincinnati, UC Blue Ash College, and the City of Blue Ash

  • Materials Not Accepted
     - Textbooks
     - Damaged materials
     - Periodicals and serials (e.g. journals, magazines, newspapers)
     - Media (e.g. music CDs, DVDs, VHS tapes, audio books)

  • Monetary Donations & Special Placement of Materials

    Monetary donations may be made to the UC Foundation for the benefit of the UCBA Library.  We are not able to honor requests that donated materials be placed in a special collection or area of the Library.

  • Ownership

    All materials donated to the UCBA Library become the property of the Library. Materials that meet the stated Criteria for Selection of Materials guidelines will be added to the collection. The UCBA Library reserves the right to dispose of these materials.

  • Acknowledgement of Gifts

    A brief letter of acknowledgement will be provided as a receipt, although we will not individually list the donated materials. We are not able to provide tax information or appraisals. Please refer to the Internal Revenue Service for publications and forms.

• Deselection of Materials

  • As part of an ongoing collection maintenance and assessment process, library faculty identify materials to remove from the collection based on content, currency, access and condition. During this process, library faculty may consult departmental Liaisons or other faculty to make a final determination.

  • Print Resources Deselection

    Items are deselected as part of a large scale ongoing assessment process as well as on an individual basis.

     

    Serials Deselection

    The library faculty participate in an annual process to review serials for content, currency and accessibility.

     

    Electronic Resources Deselection

    This is a shared collection of resources between all UC Libraries. The ERC annually reviews select databases and provides recommendations to the Policy and Planning Group.

     

    Media Deselection

    Items are deselected as part of a large scale ongoing assessment process as well as on an individual basis.

     

    Replacement Copies

    The replacement of outdated, damaged, or missing items will be considered on an individual basis in accordance with the stated Criteria for Selection of Materials guidelines.

• Intellectual Freedom

  • Free inquiry and free access to ideas are fundamental rights upon which the educational process is established. In support of intellectual and academic freedom, the Library endorses the American Library Association’s Library Bill of Rights, Freedom to Read Statement, Freedom to View Statement and Code of Ethics.

    
    Individuals or groups wishing to challenge the inclusion of material in the UCBA Library are asked to follow the outlined procedure:
    
    

    1. The complainant shall submit their complaint in writing and include the following information: name, contact information, title and author of resource, and nature of concern. This request should be submitted to the UCBA Library Director.
    
    

    Library Director
    UC Blue Ash College
    9555 Plainfield Road
    Cincinnati, Ohio 45236

    Telephone: 513-745-5710 
    

    
    2. The UCBA Library Director shall make a written response to the complainant indicating the action to be taken.

• Copyright
  • The UCBA Library complies with all of the provisions of the U.S. Copyright Law (17 U.S.C.) and its amendments. The Library supports the Fair Use section of Copyright Law (17 U.S.C. § 107), which permits and protects citizens’ rights to reproduce and make other uses of copyrighted works for the purposes of teaching, scholarship, and research.
• This page was last updated on 05/02/2012 by Stephena Harmony.