Gifts Collection Development Policy

Donations of library materials have been, and continue to be, important in developing the library's collection. For this reason, the library encourages members of the local and university communities to consider the library as a possible repository for usable materials they no longer want and deem a potential asset to the existing collection. Librarians may acquire donations either passively or by means of solicitation. Solicitation is the main method used to develop Special Collections; for further details see their collection development policy. All bibliographers have the authority to solicit gifts and to accept unsolicited gifts in their areas of expertise. All donations of a specific subject matter should be referred to the appropriate bibliographer. More general donations should be dealt with by the Collection Management Librarian.

Consideration of gifts is based on the same criteria used to evaluate new books for prospective purchase. Therefore, gifts deserve, and should receive, the same care and processing as other materials. Considerations include, but are not limited to: the physical condition of the materials; whether the materials match the needs of the library's collection; whether the library already owns a copy of the prospective gift; whether the library can gain access to the materials through resource-sharing agreements; whether the materials prove too costly to transport, process, and/or store; and whether the library has enough staff to catalog and process the gift, enough space to store the gift while it is awaiting processing, and an acceptable place to house it after processing is finished. The library will not accept any gift where donation is contingent upon special restrictions, such as limited access or unusual processing or storage of the materials, except in extremely rare circumstances.

All donations to the library are made through the UNO Foundation, of which the Friends of the UNO Library is a constituent part. All donations are acknowledged by a letter of appreciation, along with a count of the materials offered. Bibliographers receiving the gifts will decide whether to recognize the donation with a book plate and/or acknowledgment of the donor in the library's online catalog. Internal Revenue Service rulings prevent the library, as recipient, from providing inventories and appraisals for tax purposes. Appraisal by a qualified appraiser is required when the value of a gift exceeds $5,000.00. All appraisals must be made at the donor's expense. The library will provide access to appropriate IRS publications pertaining to charitable donations. It is the donor's responsibility to consult an accountant or attorney in this regard. Donors are encouraged to transport donated materials to the library. In rare circumstances, library staff may be able to pick up the materials. Such arrangements are made on a case-by-case basis.

The library, of course, reserves the right to refuse to accept any type of donation. If a gift is deemed unsuitable, based on the aforementioned criteria, the library may refer the gifts to other institutions, discard them, or resell the materials at our booksale, which is sponsored and operated by the Friends of the Library. Generally, materials that are sold at the booksale include, but are not limited to: paperback novels; outdated computer manuals; periodicals to which the library does not subscribe; duplicate materials; some textbooks; phonograph records; and collections of photocopied materials. It should be understood that once an item has been donated to the library, it is then property of the library and cannot be returned to the original owner.

Most gifts received by the library are books, including personal copies, books from specific departmental faculty, books from other institutions, complimentary books, or review copies. Also of interest are manuscripts and corporate records, photographs, objects and other types of realia, which may be added to Special Collections. In addition to gifts of materials, the library will also accept money and endowments. Among the library's donors are faculty members, alumni, Friends of the Library, patrons, and elected officials. Although the library welcomes gifts from everyone, we expect most of our offerings will come from members of the University of New Orleans community. When donated books are processed and added to the library's collection, they become part of the permanent collection, housed in the Stacks or Reference areas. If materials seem suitable for a special collection, they will be processed as such and will not circulate. Any donation that is accepted by the library will be openly and easily accessible to all library users. Circulation, however, is limited to patrons within the UNO community.

Gifts are subject to the same content based criteria as are purchased materials. These criteria are more fully elucidated elsewhere in this document. In general, materials acquired by gift must be in accord with the university's mission, with its academic programs, and with the research interests of the faculty.