Gifts to the University Library
Information Guide
(Collection Development Policy & Procedure Manual, Appendix Q)
revised 12/09/04

Gifts to the University Library of scholarly books and other materials, as well as gifts of money designated for the purchase of these information resources, can be a significant factor in the enhancement of the library's collections.  Because of the costs of handling, storing, and processing library materials of all kinds, however, it has become necessary to evaluate and approve potential gifts before they can be accepted and, in most cases, before they are brought to the library.

1. Gifts of Money

The library welcomes gifts of money designated for the purchase of library materials.  A donor may contribute to the Library Book Endowment, a large fund whose interest is used for new book purchases, or he/she may request that the gift be spent in a particular way: for the support of the Masback Science Fiction Collection, for example, or to buy books in British Colonial History.  Memorial donations ("in honor of," "in memory of") are welcome and can be acknowledged through a bookplate placed in the items purchased.  Checks should be made payable to "CSULB Foundation."   Gifts of money designated for the purchase of information resources may grow out of a relationship between an alumnus/alumna or other benefactor and an academic department or program.  Development credit for a cash gift accrues jointly and equally to the college which contacted or cultivated the donor and to the library.  The library has sole discretion regarding the disposition of the funds donated, however, whenever the donor has stipulated that they are to be used to purchase library materials. 

It also is possible to make money donations by credit card, using the CSULB Foundation’s online form for this purpose:  http://www.csulb.edu/divisions/urad/development/wheretogive/library/

Be sure to designate the University Library as the recipient of the donation.

2. Donation Procedures 

• Those offering books or other materials (maps, videos, periodicals, etc.) should contact the Collection Development Officer at (562) 985-8880 to describe the proposed gift and determine whether it may be consistent with the library�s needs and its mission of curricular support.
• The best way for the library to assess a prospective gift, particularly when it contains more than a few items, is through an inventory which identifies basic information (author, title, publisher, date).  Such a list is required; it can be faxed to the library (562/985-8131), e-mailed (hdubois@csulb.edu) or sent by post (University Library, CSULB, 1250 Bellflower Blvd., Long Beach, CA 90840-1901), attention: Collection Development, gift review.
• Proposed gifts of information materials are reviewed by the Collection Development Officer and by the appropriate subject specialist librarian(s) who together determine, in consultation with faculty, whether a particular item or collection should be accepted or declined.
   

3. General Guidelines

In general, the following types of materials are not considered for review and will not be accepted as gifts to the library:

Textbooks
Mass market paperbacks
Outdated editions
Professional libraries (e.g., superseded legal or medical materials)
Popular periodicals
Items with little or no relevance to the CSULB curriculum
Foreign language publications in languages not included in the CSULB curriculum (except dictionaries)
Books and journals in quantities out of proportion to student enrollment and circulation within the discipline

Most unbound periodicals cannot be accepted because of the inherent added costs of shelf space and binding. 
 

4.      Acknowledgement of Gifts 

Donors must realize that the library is obligated by IRS regulations to adhere to strict guidelines with regard to donations of information resources to its collections:

• The library can acknowledge only those items which it will catalog and retain in its collection for a minimum of two years.  If a collection is donated, and only a portion of that collection is needed by the library, only those items which are needed will be cataloged and acknowledged.
• Acknowledgement of a gift normally will be limited to a numerical count and very general description of materials received, e.g. "twelve volumes of U.S. History."
• Gift value is established by the donor; no formal or informal valuation can be provided by the library; in accord with IRS regulations, gifts valued at $5000 and above should be independently appraised.
• Eventual resale, exchange, donation, or recycling of unneeded materials (after the two year minimum retention period) is at the library's discretion.
• There will be no acknowledgement of donations which are brought to the library without prior arrangements; such items will be disposed of in the most cost-effective manner possible.
   

5. Coordination with University Departments and Programs

When gifts of information resources (books, periodicals, non-print media, etc.) are intended to be housed in and cataloged by the library, the library must have the opportunity to fully review and evaluate the proposed items prior to acceptance.   Any comments/recommendations from instructional faculty or others who may have been instrumental in negotiating with the proposed donor are welcome and will be given consideration.  However, no one may accept a gift on behalf of the library without being authorized to do so.

When books, videos, and other materials that may be offered to the library are in languages other than English, additional requirements apply.  To aid the subject librarian in her/his evaluation prospective donors must include a description of each item; this annotation will contain basic bibliographic data (in English): author, title, publisher, date of publication, a summary of content, and, if applicable, the CSULB course(s) the item will support; the benefit to the library in terms of curricular support must be evident.  Substantial gifts of foreign language items will be accepted only if there is sufficient space to accommodate them, if enrollment and circulation data are available to verify their likely usage, and if they are accompanied by funds to support the added costs of their processing.

Also, regardless of what other University offices may have been asked to consider gift of library materials, all potential donors must be referred to the library.  If such a gift qualifies for acceptance, any development credit connected with the value of the donated items accrues exclusively to the library; the only exception is when items are not cataloged and circulated by the library, but are retained within the college for local use or use  by a department or program within the college. 

For further information, please contact Administrative Services Librarian Henry Dubois.