Collection Development Policy

• Collection Philosophy
• Collecting Criteria
• Guidance for Specific Areas of the Collection
• Gifts to the Collection
• Collection Maintenance

Supplemental Sections

• Area-Specific Collections Guidance
• Acquisitions Model Glossary
• Formats Guidance

Collection Philosophy

The Hope College Library aims to provide the resources, spaces and services that students, faculty, staff and the wider community need for lifelong learning. These resources include physical, digital and special collections that support teaching, learning, scholarship and creative work in the liberal arts. Guided by the library’s mission and values, this policy outlines the philosophy, scope and management of our collecting.

Intellectual Freedom and Representative Collecting

The library aims to curate and provide access to collections of materials representing a diversity of viewpoints. Guided by the American Library Association’s Library Bill of Rights and the Society of American Archivists’ Core Values Statement, the library will maintain and retain a wide range of materials for the education of the campus and larger community, recognizing that the asking and answering of complex questions requires engaging in research conversations that span many voices and disciplines.

The library acknowledges that some items in our collections contain content or language that is harmful or offensive regarding issues of race, gender, sexuality, disability and other aspects of identity (see the Harmful Content and Language Statement). Such content is not reflective of Hope’s mission and Christian Aspirations, yet does hold research value.

Open Access Commitment

Our library affirms the Oberlin Group’s shared belief that “scholarship and data should be universally accessible and equally available to scholars and readers worldwide” (Oberlin Group Strategic Plan, 2020). We view open access as central to the liberal arts tradition, which nurtures the intellectual skills and social awareness that prepare students to engage responsibly and thoughtfully in a global community. Additionally, our support of open access reflects our commitment to modelling generosity. In support of this philosophy, the library commits to investing at least 10% of its annual materials budget in open access resources, initiatives and infrastructure. This includes open access publications, open educational resources and collective models that expand equitable access to scholarly information for our community and for the broader public. Our full open access policy and more information about the models we support are available from our Open Access Policy guide.

Collection Responsibility

Our library collections are dynamic and responsive, reflecting the intellectual life of Hope College. All members of the college community — students, staff and faculty — are encouraged to participate in its development by recommending materials and sharing insights into emerging priorities in scholarship and teaching. Community members may recommend new resources by reaching out to their liaison librarian or by filling out a request form. While the vitality of the collections depend on this broad engagement, librarians and archivists hold final responsibility for selecting, managing and preserving resources. Our professional expertise ensures that the collections develop in alignment with the college’s curriculum, research priorities and commitment to equitable access to information.

Collecting Criteria

The following criteria shape the Hope College Collections:

Clientele

In keeping with the college and library mission, the collection is designed for student curricular and co-curricular learning and will seek to robustly support this work. The library also provides collections for faculty and staff research, supplemented by interlibrary loan services for more comprehensive coverage. Recognizing that different departments have unique resource needs, our library staff collaborate with a range of stakeholders to create a balanced collection that equitably serves all areas of the college. Through guest cards and resource-sharing services, the library makes the collection available to the broader community, including alumni, guests and library patrons throughout the state.

Financial Stewardship

The library seeks to responsibly manage collection development dollars. We do this through careful evaluation of new resources, thoughtful license negotiation and data-driven cancellation of resources based on cost, usage and shifts in curricular needs. In the context of changing acquisition models and dialogue with campus partners, the library will regularly evaluate its budget, striving to generously use funds in ways that positively impact information access for the Hope community and the world. We do this through supporting course material needs electronically when able and through investing in open access initiatives.

Format

The library collects a variety of materials formats, shaped by curricular needs, demand, accessibility and evolution of technologies. We will select the most appropriate formats based on sustainability and accessibility. Archives and Special Collections accepts a wider range of formats if the content meets collection scope. For more information on the formats currently collected, see formats guidance.

Methods of Acquisition

The library utilizes a variety of acquisition models including one-time purchases, subscriptions, single-title and package acquisitions, just-in-time models (e.g., demand driven, evidence-based and token acquisition), open access publishing investment, consortial/state access and donations. The choice of model will be shaped by library mission and values, affordability, demand, availability and intended use. As a safeguard for the sustainability of the collection, the library will employ a variety of acquisition methods and will intentionally diversify the collection and system vendors and publishers that we work with.

Scope and Authority

In keeping with the abovementioned values, the library seeks to develop a collection that contains a diversity of perspectives, experiences, forms of expertise, backgrounds and types of knowledge creation. The library intentionally builds a collection that reflects a breadth of scope while still focusing on the particular needs of a Christian liberal arts undergraduate institution. The collection strives to be representative rather than exhaustive in any given area, with library staff providing more in-depth resources through interlibrary loan.

Collaborative Collection Development

The library endeavors to develop its collections in cooperation with other libraries to limit duplication of effort and financial resources. Van Wylen Library considers partners for collaborative collection development to expand access for the academic community while being a good steward of the college’s resources. This includes limiting the collecting of materials that are the specialization of a local partner (e.g., Western Theological Seminary, the Holland Museum or Herrick District Library), generously participating in resource-sharing consortia (such as the Michigan eLibrary) and negotiating e-resource licensing through consortial agreements (such as Midwest Collaborative for Library Services) when possible.

Accessibility

The library strives to provide a collection that is accessible to the entire college community, recognizing that accessibility comes in a variety of forms depending on particular need. The library requires that the vendors who provide our resources meet accessibility standards (ADA Title III, Section 504), and we work with the Office of Disability and Accessibility Resources to help provide access to the resources held in limited formats (e.g. print).

Guidance for Specific Areas of the Collection

The library generally organizes its collections according to certain professional norms — for example, Library of Congress guidelines and best practices for special collections — while also designing a flexible collection that meets the unique needs of Hope College. Some of these unique physical collection areas are shaped by particular policies different from the overall collection. They are also regularly evaluated to ensure they continue to meet curricular and co-curricular priorities. The collection will be available to the entire Hope community (with some restrictions for guests) and never limited to a single department or area. Resources may be duplicated in different areas of the collection, if appropriate (including print and digital), but holding multiple copies of the same item is generally avoided for financial stewardship reasons. For more information see Area-Specific Collections Guidelines.

Gifts to the Collection

Van Wylen Library welcomes donations that complement and expand the existing collection.

Gifts for the circulating collection should support the curriculum of the college and generally follow the criteria for selection stated in the Collection Development Policy. Gifts are also welcomed for Special Collections and Archives when they meet its collection priorities.

Please contact the Head of Collections and Access, Jessica Hronchek, about donations to the general collection. For donations of archival or rare book materials, schedule a consultation with the Director of Archives and Special Collections, Sarah Lundy. Larger gifts will also be referred to the Dean of Libraries. All book donations must be accompanied by a donation form (available at Circulation Desk or by contacting the Head of Collections (hronchek@hope.edu).

We generally do not accept for the general collection:

• Print textbooks
• Outdated material, unless relevant to archival collections
• Items in poor condition (including materials that have been marked or underlined)
• Materials already in the collection
• Paperback novels
• Magazines and journals
• Bibles, unless historically unique or rare editions
• Music scores that are in the Public Domain (published earlier than the last 95 years)
• Older media forms such as vinyl records, VHS or cassette tapes, unless content is appropriate for Archives
• Gifts simply for the purpose of resale or other disposal

The library will review all gifts to ensure that they are suitable for the collection and retains the right to refuse gifts that do not meet the needs of the collection or the curriculum. Gifts become the property of Hope College, and the library has the right to determine where they are placed in the collection and if they are disposed of or sold.

Collection Maintenance

The Hope College Library collection continuously evolves to support the college mission, curriculum and student needs. Collections maintenance and reconsideration — including replacement, deaccessioning or deselection — are key parts of the collections lifecycle.

Periodically, items will be removed from the library based on the following criteria: affordability, age, condition, format, online availability, relevance to the curriculum, space allocations and use. Methods of disposal will depend on the type of material under consideration; typical methods include donation to the campus community, recycling, sale, subscription/license cancellation and transfer to another library or cultural heritage organization.

If members of the Hope community have concerns about specific items in the collection, they may contact the library about this through the challenges to library resources process.

The Collection Development Policy will be revised as needed by the Collection Development Team, with the approval of the library dean. Revision dates will be provided within each subsection of the policy as applicable. The whole policy will be updated every five years, with substantial changes reviewed by the Library Committee.

Area-Specific Collections Guidance

1. Archives and Special Collections
   1. Archival Collections – Hope College collects personal manuscript papers with enduring historical value from members of the campus (students, faculty, staff, alumni) and local communities. These primary source materials should broaden understanding of the history of these communities as well as support the college’s educational and research activities. The Archives commits to making these collections as accessible as possible via digitization, integration into course curriculum, and regular programming.
   2. Heritage Collection – The Heritage Collection is a non-circulating monographic collection that complements archival and special collections holdings. When appropriate, the library will acquire copies of titles for both the Heritage Collection and the General Collection. The Heritage Collection is accessible when the Archives is open for research.
   3. Institutional Records – All records created or received as part of official business by college offices and employees are college records, managed by the Archives and Special Collections department under the records management policy. The Archives works with campus recordkeepers to assess records for their historical value and then destroys or preserves those records as appropriate. Permanent records are available for research unless otherwise restricted.
   4. Rare Books – The Rare Book Collection preserves unique and irreplaceable historical texts for the benefit of Hope College students and the wider community. Rare books join the collections almost entirely through gifts to the library following evaluation by staff. Archivists will consider a book’s age, artistry, condition, monetary value, and relevance to the curriculum before accepting it into the Rare Book Collection. Ownership by notable persons, signatures, and early editions do not necessarily mean a book is rare.
      1. Like all collections at Van Wylen Library, rare books follow the library’s mission to support teaching and learning at Hope College. Key areas of interest for the Rare Book Collection include the history of the book, the history of printing and printmaking, art history, the history of Christianity and the Bible, and the history of science.
2. Curriculum Library – The Curriculum Library collection contains selectively chosen resources appropriate for teaching subjects in grades K–12. The primary purpose of this collection is to support the undergraduate teacher-training program of the education department. Materials are chosen by both the education department faculty and the library staff. The Curriculum Library includes educational resources like textbooks, published lesson plans, puppets, juvenile literature, and teaching kits. Books about education and pedagogy are placed in the main stacks.
3. Reference Collection – Reference sources serve as important tools for introductory research in disciplinary topics. The library maintains a limited print reference collection of sources such as handbooks, encyclopedias, dictionaries, and directories, but prioritizes electronic reference sources when they are available and affordable. The library prefers one-time purchase reference sources over subscription sources for financial sustainability but will commit to some when there is curricular demand and they are affordable. The library also prioritizes purchases of reference titles on centralized reference-friendly platforms that are indexed in the library’s discovery system.
4. Lending Technology – Library technology is a cross-disciplinary resource for technology exploration and curricular and co-curricular learning. The circulating collection includes laptops, cameras, microphones, calculators, and other accessories, and the library will regularly evaluate new technology that could facilitate assignment design or student technology exploration. Whether new technology is appropriate for the lending collection will be dependent on price, durability, a lendable format, and ability to be used without additional purchased or subscription software.
5. Faculty Publication Collection – The library seeks to obtain and keep any book by any Hope author (active and emeriti) including textbooks, edited works, novels, collected works of essays, poems, stories, etc., collected works with more than one Hope author; laboratory manuals, guides, computer programs, translations, bibliographies published separately, multi-media shows, video recordings, audio recordings, etc. The library will not normally purchase books or issues of a journal where the faculty member’s work is a single part of a larger publication. A second copy of a faculty publication may be purchased and added to the general collection if appropriate under general collection criteria; however, Archives and Special Collections does not collect duplicate faculty publications as part of its collections.
6. Showcase Collections – The library highlights certain print materials through short and long-term featured collections, such as displays and topical collections. Items may be purchased particularly to align with the topic/theme of a temporary featured collection as long as these items also fit within general collection policies. Showcase Collections include
   1. Browsing – The Browsing Collection contains materials of current popular interest, which complement our regular collection. This collection supports the general interest and recreational reading of the college community, in complement to popular resources available through Herrick District Library. The browsing collection is evaluated annually, and staff determine whether or not they will remain in browsing, be transferred to the stacks, or be withdrawn from the library collection.
   2. Displays – Located on the 1st, 2nd, and lower levels, displays highlight resources in the General Collection or Archives and Special Collections for shorter periods of time. They are topical and often created collaboratively with student groups, faculty and staff, and interns.
   3. Center for Teaching and Learning – This 2nd floor collection of resources on pedagogy and technology in higher education is selected by the CTL staff to highlight resources they would like to easily share with faculty. Some of these texts may be duplicated as ebooks for wider distribution.
   4. 21st Century US Plays – This 1st floor pullout collection contains monologue anthologies and playscripts written by late 20th and 21st century US playwrights, arranged by author last name. This collection is designed to support browsing research by theatre courses.

Acquisitions Model Glossary

One-time purchases – A model where the library permanently purchases an item or collection. Some of this content may be under a perpetual license rather than “ownership.”

Subscriptions – The library licenses content on an annual or multi-year basis. Subscriptions often include a discounted rate on a larger collection of materials (the “Big Deal”), but the library may or may not retain previously subscribed content if the contract is cancelled.

Single title purchase – The library acquires an individual book or serial by itself. Package Acquisition – The library acquires a group of resources in a single purchase/subscription

Approval Plan – The library automatically purchases materials (print or digital) if they meet certain criteria. Van Wylen Library has historically not participated in Approval Plans.

Just-in-Time Acquisition/Access – Rather than pre-purchasing library materials in anticipation of campus need, the library responds to resource requests as the arise (DDA, EBA, Tokens and Interlibrary Loan are examples of this form)

Demand Driven Acquisition – A vendor provides digital records for a variety of resources that are linked to Primo, but the library is only charged for the resource if a community member uses them.

Evidence-Based Acquisition – A vendor provides digital records for a variety of resources that are linked to Primo. At the end of a year the library receives usage data and selects some of these resources for perpetual license up to a pre-committed amount of funds.

Token acquisition/Pay Per Article – The library engages with single article purchases on a limited basis through “pay by token” systems where the library receives substantial discounts on the sticker-price of articles. Science Direct is our only current token provider.

Open Access publishing investment – The library uses budget dollars to financially support publishing models that will be fully Open Access without charging authors for publishing. Sometimes this support may also include other benefits to the collection such as electronic access to past years of publications.

Read and Publish/Transformative Agreements – These are a version of a publisher-based package subscription agreement where the license includes both access to the content (read) and the waving of Article Processing Charges (APCs) for Open Access publishing by Hope authors.

Consortial Licenses – A broader organization, such as MCLS, negotiates an eResources contract on behalf of its members. Hope Library generally receives better prices and terms through a consortial license.

Donations – physical materials gifted to the library by members of the community or monetary donations earmarked for collection purchases or subscriptions.

Formats Guidance

Books

The library currently invests in both print and electronic monographs. Many factors inform format choice, including availability, price, platform, accessibility, DRM status, number of users and intended use. The library will try to purchase unlimited user eBook monographs needed as course materials but avoids purchasing print textbooks unless they are a supplemental research source. Library staff may purchase other books as print, eBook, through subscriptions, packages, or in just-in time methods such as DDA and EBA. Faculty, staff, and student preference will guide book format choice, but we will also be guided by usage data in print circulation and e-resource statistics. A book may be duplicated in both print and electronic formats when affordable and appropriate for the need.

Journals, Magazines and Newspapers

The library collects serials primarily in digital format. We maintain a limited print browsing collection of popular magazines and journals. Serials that are either individual subscriptions or included in packages will be regularly evaluated based on cost, usage, and match to curricular needs. Because each serial title involves a prospective long-term commitment of funds, and because of the increasing cost of these subscriptions, library staff will evaluate the acquisition of new titles with care. Development of the serials collection is a cooperative activity involving faculty and librarians, with final selection responsibility belonging to the librarians.

Databases

The library subscribes to a range of full-text and indexing databases and seeks to representatively support the curriculum in this manner. When there is an affordable and available option, the library will purchase tools that meet long-term curricular needs. We regularly evaluate subscription databases based on cost, usage, interface, accessibility, and match to curricular needs. Requests for new database subscriptions will be evaluated on the same basis.

Video

The library currently collects DVDs, Region 1 preferred but will collect international Regions when it is the only format available. Blu-ray format is generally not purchased except when accompanied by a DVD. The library subscribes to some streaming video content, and will work with faculty to acquire short-term or life-of-file licenses for specific films needed in courses through its Streaming Video Request process.

Audio

The library invests in audio primarily through subscription databases, but will purchase some CDs on a limited scope if the content fills a gap and is not readily available in a streaming product.

Scores

The library primarily purchases print scores that support undergraduate performance and research, but will purchase electronic scores when they are available in flexible, downloadable formats conducive to performance in an educational setting.

Technology

The library provides technology through the Digital Media Lab, a circulating technology collection, campus supported general computer labs, a digitization station in Archives and Special Collections, and partnership with the co-located Center for Teaching and Learning. Library technology is a cross-disciplinary resource for technology exploration and curricular and co-curricular learning. The circulating collection provides laptops, cameras, microphones, calculators, and other accessories, and we will regularly consider new technology that could facilitate assignment design or student technology exploration. Certain hands-on technology such as specialty printing and creativity tools are provided and regularly updated in the Digital Media Lab. Library technology is not intended to duplicate or replace the resources provided by department labs for major courses, or technology needed by employees and students for long-term use (ex. personal laptops).

Formats Generally Excluded from the Collection

Certain formats will only be collected by Archives and Special Collections and not be added to the circulating collection. This includes legacy formats where projection/listening devices are not readily available, for example, 16 mm films, laserdiscs, filmstrips, cassettes and VHS tapes. Software limitations may also prevent acquisition of specific resources.

Other formats usually not included in the general collections, but which may be included in Archives and Special Collections include:

1. College-level textbooks, workbooks, answer sheets or standardized tests.
2. Ephemera, such as pamphlets, posters, press releases, leaflets, newspaper clippings and transcripts.
3. Photographs, illustrations and artworks.