The collection development policy provides consistency among those who have responsibility for developing the collection and in communicating the library's policy to faculty, staff, students, and the college community. It also serves to inform patrons and administrators of the criteria used to select materials and aid in the budget allocation process.
Vision:
Southwest Tennessee Community
College Information Network Library will provide direct and equal access
to diverse resources and opportunities for life-long use of information;
will support academic and instructional programs; and will meet
traditional and emerging technological needs of our users. We will strive
for excellence in all endeavors.
Mission:
To support the College's academic
programs and community development, the Southwest Tennessee
Community College Library:
INTELLECTUAL FREEDOM:|
The Library is committed to achieving the
goals of the college by maintaining a collection of the highest quality.
In an attempt to fulfill the curriculum needs of STCC, materials are
purchased to reflect a wide variety of viewpoints to satisfy the social,
cultural and recreational needs of the users.
The library must protect the freedom of all its users to choose their own information style in which it is presented. The library endorses the American Library Association's Library Bill of Rights, The Freedom to Read and the Freedom to View Statements which are appended to this document. No censorship of any kind will be practiced by the Library.
Objection/Reconsideration of Library
Material:
Library users have the right to
question the selection of materials in the collection. Any requests for
the removal of material from the library should be submitted to the
Library Administrator.
Copyright:
The Library will adhere to the
provisions of the Copyright Act Title 17 of the United States Code.
SELECTION:
Librarians will function as
liaisons to work with Department Chairs to evaluate the library's holdings
and to enhance the collection by making suggestions to add, replace, or
de-select titles. The level of selection will be based on four components:
comprehensive, study, basic, and minimal. Consideration of selections is
based on requests by the users, current resources, subject areas and new
programs.
Criteria:
Objective guidelines are used to
select and acquire materials. Acceptance or rejection may be based upon
the purpose, scope, audience, curriculum support, and subject matter.
Formats:
The Library will only purchase ½
inch VHS tapes. Compact discs are purchased to support the
college's music courses and to meet popular demand. Books with diskettes
will be purchased if no copyright
restrictions exist. Audiocassettes are limited to spoken word only and
microforms are purchased to conserve space, and out of print or hard to
find materials. Computer software will be selected based upon educational
and professional purposes.
Gifts:
The Library welcomes and encourages
gifts that are in compliance with the guidelines set by
the Tennessee Board of Regents (TBR Policy Number 4: 01:04:00 and 4:
01:07:02). Gifts must meet the same criteria as purchased material and
meet the curriculum needs
of the College's programs. Upon receipt, the
material becomes the property of the College Foundation and, as such, the
Library reserves the right to determine its retention, location,
cataloging treatment, and other considerations related to its use,
maintenance, or
removal. The Library is not responsible for the appraisal
of any gift donated to the collection.
MAINTENANCE
Electronic Materials:
Apart from the use of traditional
materials, the library acquires videos, microforms, periodicals, sound
recordings (audio and music), and software and maintains an electronic
environment such as the online public access catalog (OPAC), web based
resources, and CD-ROMS to meet the users informational needs.
Preservation:
The library maintains the physical
integrity of materials in the collection through conservation measures
such temperature, humidity, and dust control. Where preservation of
content is more important than the integrity of the physical format,
materials are preserved by reinforcing existing bindings, adding covers,
or by microform.
Replacing Materials:
Materials missing, lost, or
withdrawn due to wear are not automatically replaced.
A search for missing material is conducted and declared lost at a later date. The decision to replace materials will be based on the importance of the item, demand for the material, and availability. Lost items will be replaced with the latest edition if they still meet selection criteria.
De-selection of Materials:
The removal of items is essential
to maintain a viable collection. Easy access to a well-maintained
collection expedites responses to information requests for assistance
and
contributes to improved circulation. De-selection will be made by library
staff and in conjunction with faculty recommendations. Criteria for
de-selection of material include: obsolete information, superseded
editions, duplicate copies, frequency of circulation and damaged material.
Items which have been permanently removed from the library collections are
considered surplus.
COOPERATIVE RESOURCE SHARING:
Resource sharing allows access to
additional resources. Formal agreements have been established with the
following institutions: Christian Brothers University, Crichton College, LeMoyne Owen College, Memphis Theological
Seminary, Mid America Baptist
Theological Seminary,
University of Memphis, and University of Tennessee-Memphis. Borrowing
privileges are available to faculty, staff and students in good standing
upon presenting a valid school identification card.
BUDGETARY CONSIDERATIONS:
The Library Administrator
determines how funds will be allocated within the budget. The material
budget allocation is used to purchase print and non-print material.
Enrollment, cost of materials, and
usage patterns are also used as determining factors. Funds are allocated
for reference and general materials, processing and binding of materials,
as well as for the various subject areas taught by the college. Department
allocations are determined with the assistance of a formula that takes
into account credit hours produced, number of courses, and full time
equivalent (FTE) faculty. Adjustments to the formula figures may be made
for special considerations that are not adequately measured by the
formula.
Available funds are used to shape a stronger collection to meet present needs, anticipate future needs and changes in programs. Realistic time lines are established to balance, maintain and enhance subject areas.
The Library Administrator is responsible for the overall operation of the library. The Administrator will make the final decision on recommendations.
REVISION OF COLLECTION DEVELOPMENT POLICY:
The collection development policy
is reviewed annually to ensure that the library
continues to provide
quality service to the college community, and comply with the
policies and procedures of Southwest and the Tennessee Board of Regents. The review is
conducted by the appropriate library staff and Learning Resource Committee
and the results presented to the Library Administrator.
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