LIBRARY

Selection Criteria

Library staff continuously select and deselect materials to provide the most significant and relevant information according to some or all of the following criteria: 

• Relevancy and timeliness of the materials
• Accuracy and validity of the information
• Authority of the author, publisher, or producer
• Application to the instructional and work-related needs of students, faculty, and staff
• Strengths and weaknesses of the existing library collection in the subject area
• Cost 
• Reading or viewing level of the material
• Evaluations of the material from standard or knowledgeable reviewing sources

Priority Criteria

Library staff prioritize materials based upon some or all of the following criteria: 

• Institutional or departmental accreditation
• Course and program requirements
• Student interest and topic choices
• Easy access for all institutional users
• Highly circulated resources
• Faculty, employee, or student request (evaluated on a case-by-case basis)

Textbook Purchasing

The library does not purchase course textbooks. The following guidelines apply in select cases: 

• The subject matter and/or presentation of a particular textbook is such that the information is not available elsewhere
•  A faculty member recommends that a textbook be added to the collection, and the textbook meets the selection criteria
• A course uses a book that is not a textbook (the book is not published by a textbook publisher), and the book fits selection criteria. 
• The book is purchased specifically for open educational resources (OER) purposes. 

Duplicate Items

• The Library does not purchase duplicate items.
•  If heavy use of a particular item indicates a need for more than one copy or an instructor requests duplicate copies of an item to support a particular instructional program, the request will be considered on a case-by-case basis according to selection criteria. 

Replacing Materials

• The Library does not automatically replace items in the collection due to theft, loss, or damage.
• The librarians will consider replacing each item individually on the basis of demand and/or the availability of more recent publications or materials on the subject.

Donated Items

• The Library reserves the right to accept or reject gifts using our selection criteria.
• The Library cannot accept magazines
• We do not provide appraisals of donated items.
• If you want to place a memorial book in the Library as an individual or as a group, please fill out the Gift or Memorial Book Donation form.    
• You may request a specific title or a subject of interest. If you have no preference, the librarians will select an item which would be appropriate for the Library collection. 
• The Dean for the Online College, Center for Teaching and Learning, and Library Services will send a letter to the donor(s) and to the family of the memorialized person notifying them that the item is available in the library. 

Requesting Materials

• The librarians will consider purchasing books based upon the requests of faculty, employees, and students. 
• To request a resource, email the library at library@westmoreland.edu  or complete the Purchase Request Form located at the bottom of the page. 
• The library does not purchase resources that are only available to a select population, such as course-specific databases with limited users. 

Censorship Statement

This collection development policy is intended to meet the information needs of all users, including their interests, abilities, and academic needs. As such, the library does not choose or remove library materials based upon personal prejudice or bias on the part of the librarian, the institution, the institutional user, or the community member.