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Selection Responsibility
Overall responsibility for the selection, development and maintenance of the collection rests with the librarians, who are familiar with appropriate selection tools and the specific informational needs of library users.

All faculty should recommend material to be purchased for the Library. Purchases are subject to availability, appropriateness and funding restrictions. All Library purchases will be added to the Library collections.


SELECTION GUIDELINES

To meet the needs of the community served by the Library, representative materials in all areas of knowledge will be collected, when possible, but only subject areas relating to The Art Institute of Washington’s academic curriculum will be developed in-depth. The quality of content and fulfillment of academic curricular needs are the first criteria against which any potential purchase is evaluated.

Specific criteria in choosing individual items include some or all of the following:

• Lasting value of the content
• Appropriateness of level of treatment
• Strength of present holdings in same or similar subject areas
• Authoritativeness of the author or reputation of the publisher
• Favorable reviews in reputable sources such as Choice and Library Journal
• Price
• Demand
• Need
• Circulation statistics of similar items
• Availability of funding
  

Normally, the primary language of selected materials is English. Textbooks are not generally sought out, but are not excluded if they provide useful information on a particular topic. Duplicate copies of materials are permitted as long as they prove useful. The need for retrospective items will be considered, however the emphasis is on purchasing current items with perceived long-term worth. Some selections may be made in anticipation of future needs of the curriculum. In recognition of the fact that information comes in diverse formats, the Library will acquire non-print materials which enhance the collections and can be utilized by the clientele. Lost or stolen material will be replaced, if available and deemed to be still pertinent, as funds allow.




Reference
The reference collection consists of books, CD-ROMs and other materials that remain in the Library and provide useful information in an easily accessible format. Emphasis is on primary sources, general encyclopedias, unabridged dictionaries, and full-text CD-ROM (and online) databases will be provided, however, the major focus of the reference collection is the particular subjects of the curriculum.


Periodicals
Periodicals enhance and can substantially contribute to the strength of the collections. Because of the cost involved, acquisition of a periodical requires and receives substantially more consideration than the purchase of a single monograph. The Library subscribes to the local newspaper and to other newspapers if they contribute to the programs of the college.

Some, or all, of the following criteria are used in evaluating periodicals for acquisition or cancellation:

• Support of the present academic curriculum
• Collection balance
• Amount of current use, or projected use, of the title
• Reputation of the periodical, or, if a new title, of the publisher
• Reviews in such sources as Magazines for Libraries
• Subscription price and availability of funds
• Whether or not the title is available in electronic format

RETURN CLAIMS

Claim decisions are made by appropriate library administrative personal and are based on a statement provided by the patron in addition to the patron's library record, previous claims made by the patron, the total amount due on the account, and any other information that is relevant to the claim. Claim return forms are available at the Library Circulation desk.

All reasonable concerns related to library charges will be considered; however, the following are NOT considered legitimate reasons on which to base a claim:

• Lack of understanding of Library Circulation Procedures
• Non receipt of a notice (due date reminders or fine notices are by courtesy only)
• Forgetting due dates
• Disagreement with library fine/fee structure
• Materials loaned to a third party
• Out of town, vacation, exams, academic breaks, etc.

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