The purpose of this policy is to serve as a guide to the Libraries/Learning Resource Centers/Educational Resources Support Services staff and Dallas County Community College District personnel for achieving consistent excellence in the choice of materials, in various formats, and as a statement to the public of our purposes and standards in building collections.
The colleges of Dallas County Community College District was established to help students equip themselves for effective living and responsible citizenship in a rapidly changing society. The Libraries/Learning Resource Centers/Educational Resources Support Services programs have been planned to provide support to the institutional programs in achieving its mission.
All materials acquired reflect resource needs of the colleges of Dallas County Community College District. This underlying principle will determine such basic matters as type, format, quantity and scope of resources to be acquired. In general, resource needs reflect one or more of the following:
Ultimate responsibility for selection of materials rests with the Librarians/Directors/Deans who operate within the framework of policies determined by the Board of Trustees. Selection is vested in Librarians who select materials and work with faculty and students to build a collection that reflects resource needs.
The Libraries/Learning Resource Centers/Educational Resources Support Services are committed to the principles supported by the American Library Association's Library Bill of Rights in that it must provide materials:
Anyone may recommend purchase of library materials. The Libraries/Learning Resource Centers/Educational Resources Support Services reserve the right to make all final decisions on purchases. Materials that meet the following criteria may be considered for inclusion in the collection:
Materials that meet the following criteria may not be considered for inclusion in the collection:
Implementation of the concept of academic freedom in the Libraries/Learning Resource Centers/Educational Resources Support Services involves selection of materials that may be considered controversial by some individuals or groups. Reasons often cited for materials considered offensive may include profanity, divergent viewpoints, controversial authors, sexual explicitness, use of nonstandard English and dialects, violence and criminal acts. The acquisition of such materials does not imply approval or endorsement of their contents. These materials are acquired to support the curriculum and to represent different perspectives. The selection criteria must remain broad and flexible in order to provide a collection that supports the wide range of academic and technical programs and diverse backgrounds of its clientele. The Libraries endorse the American Library Association's Library Bill of Rights, and the principles of that document are an integral part of this policy statement.
The Libraries/Learning Resource Centers/Educational Resources Support Services do not add or withdraw materials that have been chosen or excluded on the basis of stated criteria at the request of any individual or group. Any individual or group questioning the appropriateness of materials in the collection should direct questions to the college Librarians/Library Directors/Deans.
The same criteria that applies to selection of materials for the collection applies to gifts/donated materials. The Libraries/Learning Resource Centers/Educational Resources Support Services have the right to reject any material on the basis of our stated selection policy.
The Libraries/Learning Resource Centers/Educational Resources Support Services Librarians will not make appraisals of materials either for resale value or statements of donation on income tax reports. A letter of acknowledgement will be sent to the donor upon request.
Maintenance of the Collection
The Libraries/Learning Resource Centers/Educational Resources Support Services will retain control of all resources purchased through their budgets and/or placed in their inventories.
Need for duplicates at individual colleges will be determined by utilization, importance of materials to the curriculum, budget and/or price.
For lost or damaged material, the same criteria for selection will apply in determining if the material is to be replaced in the collections.
Deselection of library materials is essential for the maintenance of an appropriate collection. The goal of collection assessment is to evaluate the the collection. Systematic withdrawals will be conducted using the following criteria:
Withdrawn material will be forwarded for appropriate disposition. Withdrawn materials will not be forwarded to individuals or groups unless the material will be used for a District or college curricular related activity. Identifying labels will be removed prior to disposal.
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