MATERIALS SELECTION POLICY

Introduction

The purpose of this policy is to serve as a guide to the Learning Resources Center staff and Dallas County Community College District personnel for achieving consistent excellence in the choice of materials, and as a statement to the public of our purposes and standards in building collections.

Philosophy of Selection

Dallas County Community College District was established to help students equip themselves for effective living and responsible citizenship in rapidly changing society. The Learning Resources program has been planned to provide support to the total college program in achieving its mission.

All materials acquired by the Learning Resources Centers should reflect resource needs of the Dallas County Community College District. This underlying principle will determine such basic matters as type, quantity, and scope of resources to be acquired. In general, the resource needs of the College should reflect one or more of the following:

• curriculum support
• general information
• general or special professional growth
• cultural enrichment
• extracurricular interests

Responsibilities for Selection

Ultimate responsibility for selection of materials rests with the Deans of Educational Resources, who operate within the framework of policies determined by the Board of Trustees. Selection is vested in the staff of the Learning Resources Center , which has the obligation of working closely with both faculty and students in coordinating the selection of materials and helping to build a collection that truly reflects resource needs of the Colleges.

Principles of Resource Selection

The Learning Resources Center is committed to the principles supported by the American Library Association's Library Bill of Rights in that it must provide:

• materials that will enrich and support the curriculum, taking
• into consideration the varied interests, abilities, and maturity level of the users served;
• materials that will stimulate growth in factual knowledge, literacy appreciation, aesthetic values, and ethical standards;
• materials that supply a background of information which will enable users to make intelligent judgments in their daily lives;
• materials on opposing sides of controversial issues, so that students may develop under guidance the practice of critical reading and thinking;
• material representative of the many religious, ethnic, and cultural groups and their contributions to the American heritage;
• and, materials on various learning and interest levels necessary to complement the open door policy of the community college.

Print materials that meet one or more of the following evaluative criteria may be considered for inclusion in the collection:

• importance of subject matter to curriculum
• permanent or timely value
• competent and qualified author, editor or compiler
• accuracy of information
• readability
• reputation and professional standing of publisher
• price
• format
• availability of material elsewhere in community
• scarcity of material available
• interest by student or faculty
• historical value

Serial publications that meet one or more of the following criteria may be considered for inclusion in the collection:

• importance of title to the curriculum
• scarcity of materials in other formats
• access through standard indexes
• presentation on the community college students' reading and interest level
• availability of back issues on microfilm
• number of journals received in the subject area
• price

Non-print materials that meet one or more of the following evaluative criteria may be considered for inclusion in the collection:

• enrichment and support to curriculum
• appropriateness of age, intelligence, abilities, and interests of students
• technical and artistic quality
• authority of producer
• contribution of uniqueness or significance by the presentation or content
• price
• availability of material in other formats
• scarcity of material available
• interest by student or faculty

Questioned Materials

The Learning Resources Center does not add or withdraw materials which have been chosen or excluded on the basis of stated selection criteria at the request of any individual or group. Any individual or group questioning the appropriateness of materials in the collection should direct its question to the Dean of Educational Resources. A standard form and procedures for handling questioned materials exists at each college (refer to "Procedures for Handling Questioned Materials").

Statement of Gifts

The Dallas County Community College District will consider gifts of books and other materials on the individual merit of each item. The same criteria which applies to selection of materials for the collection applies to gifts. We reserve the right to reject any material on the basis of our stated selection policy.

The Learning Resources Center staff 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. (Refer to Section 14 of the DCCCD Business Office Procedures Manual for specific procedures).

Maintenance of the Collection

The Learning Resources Center will retain control of all resources purchased through its budget and/or placed in its inventory.

Multiple Copies

Duplicate copies of materials will be held to a minimum at all times. Need for duplicates at individual colleges will be determined by utilization, importance of materials to the curriculum, budget, and price.

Replacement of Lost or Damaged Material

For lost or damaged material the same general and specific criteria for selection will apply in determining if the material is to be replaced in the Learning Resources Center collection.

Weeding

Systematic withdrawals will be conducted of outdated, damaged, and worn materials no longer useful. Withdrawn material will be forwarded to the Technical Services Center for appropriate disposition. The following criteria are considered when discarding materials:

• obsolescence
• physical condition
• insufficient use or basic value
• changing curricular needs

Policy Review

The Educational Resources Council should review this Materials Selection Policy periodically and make recommended changes through appropriate channels to the Chancellor's Cabinet.

Approved by the Chancellor's Cabinet, Material Selection Policy September 28, 1992.

Revisions recommended by the Collection Development Committee, October 10, 2005

Approved by the Dallas County Community College District Library Directors' Council, October 12, 2005

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