I. Introduction

Berea College is a private undergraduate liberal arts college with a particular interest in the Southern Appalachian region. While the College’s curriculum is centered on the liberal arts, Berea also awards Bachelor of Science degrees in the fields of Agriculture & Natural Resources, Nursing, Business Administration, Industrial Arts & Technology, and Education. The College’s extensive General Studies curriculum reinforces the institution’s dedication to a liberal education. Berea College’s “Great Commitments” express belief in an affordable, high quality interracial education; the Christian faith and ethics; servant leadership; the dignity of labor; and service to the Southern Appalachian region. The College is committed to being a residential, undergraduate institution.

Hutchins Library endeavors to support the College’s curriculum and its unique aims by acquiring and maintaining materials fundamental to a liberal arts education, augmented by collections that highlight the Southern Appalachian region, Berea College, and the city of Berea. While the primary focus is supporting student learning, Hutchins Library also seeks to sustain a collection that fosters faculty research.

II. Responsibility and Allocations

Collection development is the ongoing assessment of Hutchins Library resources. The process includes evaluation, selection, acquisition, and culling of resources. The purpose of these activities is to sustain a balanced collection.

The Hutchins Library staff and Berea College’s teaching faculty share in collection development responsibilities. Each librarian acts as the designated collection development liaison to several academic departments or programs. Ideally all academic department/program faculty participate in collection development, especially in their fields of expertise. Most, but not all, academic departments/programs select a representative to be the primary person responsible for collection development.

Each department/program submits its requests to the Acquisitions Department, and items are ordered until funds are exhausted. If additional collection development funds are needed to support curriculum changes, the department/program works with the designated library liaison to develop a budget. The Director of Library Services and the Acquisitions/Serials Librarian review and approve requests for additional funds.

The teaching faculty have primary responsibility for collection evaluation and selection of resources needed to support the curriculum. Individual departments/programs, in consultation with Hutchins Library faculty, select the resources to support faculty research.

Hutchins Library staff are responsible for collection evaluation and selection of resources that contribute to a basic liberal arts education, as well as for building strong general and reference collections. Ultimately, library personnel are responsible for the overall coordination and development of all the collections.

Student recommendations are encouraged. The Acquisition/Serials Librarian reviews student recommendations and makes purchasing decisions.

In both acquisitions and service Hutchins Library opposes censorship and strongly supports the American Library Association Library Bill of Rights.

III. Selection Criteria and Guidelines

Berea College students, faculty and staff are the primary audience for Hutchins Library collections. Materials should support the curriculum and bolster a well-rounded liberal arts education. Furthermore, the collections should support a modest degree of faculty research and development as well as the needs of the College’s administration.

Resources selected for Hutchins Library are chosen in accordance with the following guidelines.

• Hutchins Library collects primarily English-language materials, but purchases some material in other languages to support the curriculum.
  
• The selection process concentrates on current material. Hutchins Library may purchase out-of-print or reprint items to fill identified gaps in the collection or to replace lost, worn, or damaged items.
  
• In most cases, Hutchins Library does not acquire duplicate copies. However, there are some exceptions. Heavy usage of some items may necessitate the acquisition of additional copies. Special Collections and the circulating collection may hold print copies of the same title, and a frequently used e-book may also be purchased for the circulating collection.
  
• Standard lists of material suitable for college libraries may be consulted as guides for selection. Examples include Choice, Booklist, and Library Journal. An item’s inclusion or exclusion by one of these selection aids, however, does not automatically dictate its suitability for Hutchins Library.
  
• Items not usually added to the collections include textbooks, dissertations, theses, working papers, annual reports, workbooks, lab manuals, and scattered issues or single issues of journals.
  
• Interlibrary loan is used to provide occasional-use items and for in-depth faculty or student research.

Policy last amended 1 August 2005.