The Macdonald-Kelce Library at The University of Tampa Collection Development Policy
It is the policy of the Macdonald-Kelce Library at The University of Tampa (MKL) to collect information resources that reflect and support the curriculum offered by The University. Library material selections are determined, in the main, by the MKL’s professional staff, but recommendations from students, faculty, staff, and administrators are encouraged.
Purchases are based on annual budget allocations that are used by the library staff, and that are shared with all academic departments. The Faculty Library Committee determines the formula by which the departments’ library material budgets are calculated.
Items added to the MKL’s collections are, in many instances, based on reviews in professional and/or academic journals, as well as recommendations by faculty. Prescriptive bibliographies, such as Resources for College Libraries, or the worldwide OCLC catalog, are often consulted for recommendations. The MKL’s goal is to have the most reliable, authoritative resources at hand for its patrons.
Resources for the MKL are also purchased and obtained through gifts. Gifts of books, audio-visual items, artifacts, and other types are accepted as long as the items’ intellectual content supports UT’s curricular offerings or reflects UT’s history. Other aspects of gift acceptance include, but are not limited to: condition and age of materials; duplication of already-owned items, and format.
The MKL gathers materials in many formats; it is the aim of the MKL to offer these materials in the most widely used (“currently popular”) format possible. For example, paper-and-ink magazines are now accessible in full-text databases via computers; VHS video tapes have been supplanted by DVDs and online, streaming video. As technology changes, the manner in which library resources are manufactured and accessed also changes. The library will endeavor to migrate to the most commonly produced and popularly used formats.
At times, due to space constraints, curriculum alterations, format changes, or other situations, items will be withdrawn. Due diligence is taken by the MKL’s professional staff to make sure a sufficient number of useful items remain in the affected subject area for patron use. Prescriptive resources are consulted to ensure valued resources are not removed from the shelves.
If you have any questions regarding the MKL’s Collection Development Policy, please feel free to contact the Collection Development Librarian or any of the professional staff.
(September 2013)
