LIBRARY MATERIALS AND SERVICES

The Eureka, Del Norte, and Mendocino Campus Libraries are the primary resource materials centers of the Redwoods Community College District. Their main purpose is to support the curriculum, the mission, and the goals of the college by providing information resources and research materials as well as instruction, service, and guidance in their use. The libraries are teaching facilities, in contrast to libraries at research institutions; and they are committed to furthering information literacy as an important component of any educational goal, as an appropriate learning outcome in any course or program, and as an essential element for lifelong learning.

This collection development and evaluation policy reflects the mission and institutional goals of the college as stated in Board Policy 1200, "District Mission." Accordingly, the objectives in collection development are, primarily, to provide:

1. rigorous, high-quality educational resources and materials in support of AA degree programs, AS degree programs, and certificate programs;
2. high-quality core-curriculum resources and materials covering lower-division general- education subjects and/or major preparation requirements for transfer to four-year colleges and universities;
3. high-quality professional and technical materials and resources that will support students’ efforts to obtain skills necessary to enter the work force, to advance in the work force, or to be better prepared for further education; and
4. current technological resources, innovative instructional resources, and broad-based research tools;

and, secondarily, to provide:

1. resources that enhance lifelong learning and promote the general welfare of the community;
2. resources and materials that respond to local interests and needs;
3. resources for avocational, recreational, and professional development needs;
4. resources that support cultural and community programs; and
5. resources that foster the economic vitality of the north coast.

To meet these goals, the college will purchase materials and resources:

● that include all appropriate media and formats;
● that enrich and support the curriculum;
● that stimulate growth in factual knowledge;
● that objectively present all reasonable sides of controversial issues;
● that enable students to make intelligent judgments in their daily lives;
● that are representative of religious, ethnic, and cultural diversity; and
● that explain or illustrate opposing sides in order to develop the practice of critical reading and thinking.

The college generally will not purchase for the collections the following materials, which do not support the collection-development objectives:

● extensive materials in subject areas not covered in programs or courses;
● highly specialized technical publications and upper-division or graduate-level research tools, resources, and materials;
● rare and out-of-print materials, first editions, signed editions, and collectibles;
● resources and materials targeted to professional development of faculty;
● textbooks; and
● extensive or specialized resource collections of materials readily available at other local libraries or institutions.

The following criteria will be applied to the selection of materials in the libraries: anticipated use, accuracy, authority, scope, literary merit, level of treatment, format, timeliness of publication, and cost. Students, staff, and faculty are encouraged to suggest materials for acquisition. Faculty may volunteer as or may be appointed to serve as library liaisons, who will assist in collection development. However, the final responsibility for developing and maintaining a balanced collection remains with the librarians and with the administrative supervisor(s) for the libraries.

The college encourages gifts of materials or of funds for purchasing materials. Donated materials may be added to the collections if they conform to this collection development policy, and unwanted gifts may be disposed of in accordance with Board Policy 706, "Disposition Of Personal Property." The college does not appraise gifts for tax purposes. All gifts and donations will be reported in accordance with Board Policy 702, "Gifts, Grants, Donations."

The libraries purchase only those materials that will be catalogued and made a part of the collections for faculty, student, and staff use. Materials required for instructor, departmental, division, administrative, office, or classroom use should be requested through the budget of the appropriate division or office.

The development of effective resources and materials collections must include a systematic evaluation of materials to be withdrawn. The librarians and the library liaisons at each campus are responsible for recommending the resources and materials to be withdrawn. The collections will be evaluated at least once every two years. Review of materials to be withdrawn is a careful one, involving the consideration of the following factors:

● Materials that are outdated, obsolete, or that contain misinformation;
● Early editions that have been superseded by subsequent editions;
● Supplemental texts that have been superseded;
● Materials for which there is insufficient use or demand;
● Materials no longer relevant to the courses or programs; or
● Materials that are damaged or in poor condition.

The college libraries recognize the value of resource sharing through interlibrary loans, reciprocal agreements, resource networks, and cooperatives. Involvement in resource sharing provides access to a more extensive pool of materials and makes available resources that are not within the scope of the various collections. College of the Redwoods is a member of the North State Cooperative Library System (NSCLS), which provides access to materials in collections at academic, public, and private libraries throughout Northern California.

The college is also a member of the Community College Library Consortium, a service of the Community College League of California, which provides the opportunity to purchase discounted online and electronic research tools and resources. Library holdings at all district locations are represented in the online College Library Book Catalog, and circulating items held at any campus library are available for borrowing from any other campus library.

Approved: September 1986
Revised: 12/13/05