June 2023
Purpose
The purpose of the Collection Development Plan (“the Plan”) is to establish guidelines and criteria for selectors to identify, select, acquire, and deselect materials primarily for the information needs of the students.
To a lesser extent faculty and administration needs may be addressed here. However, the Library’s Interlibrary Loan (ILL) program is the best way for faculty and administration to acquire books and articles not available through the CUNY Libraries. It is also possible to request books that are available at another CUNY library be delivered to BMCC.
The Plan supports the Library’s second goal – Provide necessary and appropriate collections that contribute to the success of teaching and learning at the College.
The Plan supports the College’s strategic goals:
- Improve retention, transfer, and completion of baccalaureate attainment
- Improve learning through culturally responsive and sustaining pedagogy and support
- Expand career development leading to meaningful work with family-sustaining wages
- Achieve equity in student outcomes in a college community in which all members can thrive
Outcomes
- Materials will be acquired that satisfy the curricular and research needs of students and the pedagogical goals of faculty
- Print and digital collections will be maintained with regular annual weeding/deselection
Selection Policy
The Library’s primary goal is to support undergraduate course work at a community college level. The Library provides the materials needed by students for their courses, by faculty in direct relation to their teaching, and by the administration and staff for the conduct of college business. The Library collects in all major subject fields to stimulate and encourage students to extend their intellectual and cultural interests. Materials that are rare, highly specialized or at the graduate level, or very expensive are out of scope.
- With few exceptions, the Library collects materials in the English language.
- The major emphasis is placed on recent publications in the context of individual disciplines. For example, nursing and health-related books must be weeded when they are five years old.
- The Library does not exclude any materials because of the race, nationality, gender, sexual orientation of the authors, or the political views expressed in his or her works.
Selection Guidelines
The Library acquires and values works that:
- Express diverse viewpoints including racial, ethnic, sexual orientations, gender identities, socioeconomic statuses, and other significant characteristics
- Are created by reputable authors or publishers
- Contain significant subject matters
- Present accuracy information and data
- Represent literary merit or artistic quality
- Balance the total collection
- Are recently published
- Fit within our budget
Weeding/Deselection Guidelines
The Library considers it a point of respect to students that materials are clean, in good condition, and up to date.
Age of materials: Nursing and health related subjects will be weeded after five years. For other subjects, the criteria for age will depend on the content of the book. See Content below for more information.
Condition – Materials in poor condition are prime candidates for replacement. Damaged bindings, brittle pages, soiled covers and pages, missing pages, and heavily marked pages are criteria for removal.
Content – Books may be in excellent physical condition but contain inaccurate information. Superseded editions, outdated language, photographs or illustrations, dated or inaccurate information, or trivial subject matter are criteria for removal.
Use – Based on inventory reports, books that have not circulated for ten years or more should be evaluated for discard. When interest has diminished in a particular title, duplicate copies should also be evaluated.
Sub-Collections Defined
Graphic Novels – this collection includes graphic novels, manga, and comics.
Leisure – To promote an appreciation of reading outside of the curriculum, these are titles recreational in nature in many popular genres.
Textbooks – The last three previous editions of required textbooks and pocket-sized dictionaries and thesauri will be retained. Only the last two previous editions of health, medicine, nursing, and science textbooks are retained.
Reserves – These are books designated as required reading on current syllabi.
Juvenile – Consists of picture books to support the teacher education programs and students working with children.
Borrowing policies (link to page?)
Donations
The Library accepts gifts of books and other materials with the understanding that they will be added to the collection only if they fit the guidelines above. Otherwise, they will be given to students. The Library accepts:
- Materials in good physical condition
- Hardcover and softcover books from the last five years.
- Health, medicine, nursing, and science materials from the last two years
- Fiction and leisure reading from any year and in good condition.
- We only accept textbooks currently being used in BMCC courses. Only the last three previous editions of all textbooks, except those related to health and the sciences, will be accepted. For health, medicine, nursing, and science textbooks only the last two previous editions will be accepted.
Other places to donate include Brooklyn Public Library system, New York Public Library system, Open Library (Internet Archive), Queens Public Library system, and neighborhood based Little Free Libraries.
Please contact us if you have any questions!
