COLLECTION DEVELOPMENT POLICY FOR MEDIA SERVICES

This document is intended to be used as a guide to direct the Media Librarian in the selection, collection development, acquisition, dissemination, and discarding of audiovisual materials. 6/08/1999

Statement of Philosophy

The mission of the Department of Media Resource Services is to provide multimedia technology for creative instructional support for the faculty and students of High Point University. It is our hope that such support will continue to foster the tradition of academic excellence at the University.

Goals of the Department include:

To provide, maintain, and develop a collection of media materials to support academic curriculum.

To creatively meet the technological needs of instructors and assist them in presenting modern types of learning materials to their students using innovative forms of media.

To facilitate the instruction of difficult concepts through the use of visual and audio images and stimulation, thereby increasing the efficiency of learning

To provide, maintain, and acquire, as technology reasonably dictates, audiovisual equipment as instructional support in the Media lab and Library lecture rooms.

To provide service for the production of instructional materials and duplication of media materials in compliance with licensing agreements and current copyright regulations.

Community Served

The academic community of High Point University receives priority in the nature, focus, and degree of services provided. Guided by its mission to serve as a curriculum support service, Media Services will serve the needs of the faculty and staff with a greater range of borrowing privileges and services than given the student population.

Therefore, all Media Resource services are available to the faculty, staff, and administrators of High Point University; whereas, services available to the student community of High Point University are qualified as follows:

Instructional media materials are available to students for in-lab viewing use only to ensure access and availability to faculty and staff.

Production services available to students include and are qualified as follows: (1) transparency production, digital imaging, color printing, and laminating of materials for classroom presentations and senior projects; and, (2) duplication of audio cassettes and video tapes which can legally be copied according to written licensing agreements or copyright permission and which are related to the student’s current academic study.

Service extended to the students of High Point University does NOT include equipment check out except camcorders, cameras, tripods, VCRs, DVD players, tape recorders, and boom boxes.

Media Resource Services does NOT extend production services or borrowing privileges for loaning media materials or audiovisual equipment to students or faculty from other local colleges and high schools. Anyone else wishing to use Media Services must consult the Library Director.

Selection & Acquisition Processes

Smith Library employs the Media Librarian to coordinate the selection, acquisition, and discarding of AV materials in the Media Collection. Items considered for the collection are based on favorable reviews from reputable written and online sources. Selections are then given to the Technical Services Department of the Library to be cataloged, after which the videos are processed and shelved with the collection located in the Lower Level of Smith Library.

General Selection

Because the diversity of materials is so great, there is no one rule for Media selection. Examples of items that would be considered would include: films with artistic merit, historical documentaries, Public Television productions, informational or recreational materials, items recommended by professional review magazines and books, as well as suggestions provided by the University community. Smith Library Media Services will collect educational materials in such formats as DVDs, VHS video, CDs, CD-ROMs, and streaming media. Formats will change with technology.

A variety of multimedia equipment will also be collected to facilitate instruction as well as to assist students in multimedia presentations for course credit. Selections will be based upon the requests and needs of University faculty and students.

Selection by Subject

The selection of material by subject category will be based on demand for such items, the relationship of the item to the existing collection, and the cost of the item compared to comparable items on the same subject. Video recordings of a cultural, instructional, informational, and recreational nature will be considered. Acquisitions are limited to items for which an acceptable level of quality has been determined by one of the following:

1.       By the recommendation of a qualified reviewer

2.       Through recognition, such as prizes and awards

3.       Materials from public television

4.       In-house review by Media Librarian or other Library Staff

5.       If any materials shall contain explicit content, yet have any of these other qualifications, such content will not be sufficient reason for rejection of the materials.

General Criteria for Selection by Subject:

·         relevance to community needs

·         provides insight into human and social needs

·         accurately presents factual information

·         usefulness for the University community

·         satisfies public demand

·         is produced with technical skill

·         facilitates the learning process

Specific Criteria: Feature Films, Children's Programming

Feature Films.

Feature films will be collected to serve the University community's need for recreational materials. Selection should reflect a broad range of tastes and interests. Classics, long-term popular features, award winners, and musicals will be included; others, such as music videos, cooking videos, and television series will not be collected unless the work has artistic or historical value. The library will consider requests, but will not purchase every movie requested. Criteria for purchasing leisure feature films include, but are not limited to:

• New Releases of top selling Box Office sales of $10 million and higher

• Received Awards and Nominations from Oscars and Golden Globe

• Received Awards and nominations from independent film festivals

• Has Artistic and/or historical value

• Received Favorable reviews

Children's Programming.

Classic and award-winning children's programs and films will be collected for the purpose of evaluation and criticism as may be related to certain aspects of the University Education Department. Other children's films may also be collected for artistic value.

Collection Maintenance

Format Selection and Multiple Copies. Types of formats purchased should change with respect to long-range needs, restricted availability, and improvements made to format quality. Multiple copies will be purchased based on actual or anticipated need as well as availability of funds.

Replacement of Materials. Replacements will be based on 1) demand for the title, 2) number of copies, 3) existing coverage of subject/genre in the collection, and 4) availability of newer or better materials on the subject.

Weeding. Periodically the Audiovisual Collection will be inspected and weeded to maintain accurate, up-to-date information. The weeding of materials will be based on relevance to user needs, selection criteria, lack of use, physical condition, and datedness of information. Discarded items may only be retained for historical significance.

Evaluation. The Media Collection will be continuously evaluated in terms of circulation, content, relevance to the University community's needs, currency, and popularity. Continuous weeding and replacement of lost, stolen, or out-dated materials helps maintain a collection that reflects changing University needs as well as Library goals.

Gifts. Gifts will be gratefully accepted with the understanding that they become property of Smith Library Media Services. Gifts will be evaluated with the same criteria as purchased materials. Donors may not place any special conditions upon the loan or handling of the items.

Reconsideration of Challenged Materials

As part of a community comprised entirely of adults, Smith Library Media Services will limit the actions it takes resulting from complaints about the contents of audiovisual materials. In cases where complaints may be made about items dealing with topics that are sensitive or controversial in nature, every attempt will be made to ensure that the Media Collection also houses those materials reflecting the opposing points of said controversies. Individual complaints will be discussed on a case-by-case basis with the Director of Library Services and the rest of the Library Staff before a decision is made.