A. Authority
Final authority for materials selection rests with the campus Head Librarian for that campus. Selection is the shared responsibility of the public services librarians and other faculty at each individual campus.
The E.P.C.C. libraries will retain control of all resources purchased or placed in their inventories. All such resources will be housed in the E.P.C.C. libraries.
Final authority for the determination of policy in the selection and acquisition of all library material is vested in the Board of Trustees of the El Paso Community College District.
B. Standards
The collection development policy will be guided by national library standards including the A.C.R.L. Standards for Libraries in Higher Education and seeks to keep pace with any changes made to these standards and with other relevant new standards adopted by the library profession.
The collection development policy is further guided by the standards established by our accrediting agency, the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools http://www.sacscoc.org/pdf/2010principlesofacreditation.pdf and by the Texas Education Agency and the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board.
C. Controversial Material
The E.P.C.C. libraries believe that the maintenance of a free society requires free access to different points of view, and a conscientious effort is made to include material concerning all sides of an issue. To this end, the E.P.C.C. libraries affirm their acceptance of the principles enumerated in the Library Bill of Rightshttp://www.ala.org/ala/issuesadvocacy/intfreedom/librarybill/index.cfm as adopted by the American Library Association.
Objections to material and requests for reevaluation must be presented in writing, following the procedures outlined in the Library Resources Operations Manual.
D. Copyright Law
It is the policy of the libraries to support the property and copyrights of the creators and their assigns to the materials contained in the collections, as encompassed in the Copyright Act of 1976, as Amended.
The libraries further recognize the need for the fair use of these materials in the pursuit of the mission of the College.
E. Curriculum Support
The libraries will build and maintain collections that adequately support the curriculum taught at the El Paso Community College. The emphasis of the collection will be on supporting degree and certificate programs. Individual campus libraries will concentrate on the curriculum offered at their campus.
A broad spectrum of materials should be available to support research assignments, classroom reports and self-paced learning.
F. Format
The collection shall include materials and information in diversified formats including print and non-print media.
G. Hardbound/Paperbound
Due to their longer shelf life, hardbound editions will generally be preferred over paperbound editions when there is a choice between the two. Paperback editions may be preferred for titles that are not expected to contribute lasting value to the collection (such as superseded editions with no historic value).
H. Textbooks
E.P.C.C. library collections are designed to supplement and enhance information given in course textbooks. Students are expected to buy their own copies of textbooks for each course. The E.P.C.C. libraries do not purchase textbooks unless they can be shown to fill a need not met by comparable materials in the collection. Such exceptions would be classic textbooks, especially those in scientific, technical and business fields that have become recognized as standard references.
I. Fiction
The E.P.C.C. libraries will provide works of fiction to support Reading and Literature course work. Readers wishing to access a more extensive collection of leisure reading materials are referred to the El Paso Public Library.
J. Highly Specialized, Rare or Highly Costly Materials
Requests from students or faculty members for the purchase of highly specialized, rare or very expensive material should be handled by providing access to the material through Interlibrary Loan/Resource Sharing services or via the Texshare program. Such purchase requests might be justified if the material was intended for repeated, annual use by an entire class.
K. Gifts
Guidelines for the evaluation of gifts are the same as those for selecting purchased materials. Gift titles are accepted only when they impose no significant limitations on housing, handling or the disposition of duplicate or damaged items. If there is any question about adding a gift title to the collection, the final determination will rest with the Head Librarian. (See “Gifts & Donations Procedures” in the Library Resources Operations Manual.)
E.P.C.C. library personnel are not permitted to issue appraisals of gift materials for tax or any other purposes.
L. Professional Review Literature
The E.P.C.C. libraries will develop and maintain bibliographic review resources needed for collection development decisions. Selection tools may include but are not limited to professional bibliographies, notable booklists and professional library review journals such as Choice, Booklist, and Library Journal, as well as leading subject-specific professional journals.
M. Technology
The E.P.C.C. libraries should be prepared to utilize new technologies for accessing information as they are developed. Convenient, effective access to electronic bibliographic and full-text databases, whether on-site or remote, must be provided when necessary to support the academic curriculum.
