Library & Learning Commons
Library & Learning CommonsThe primary clientele of the UNCSA Library and Learning Commons are the university’s students, faculty, and staff. The Library also serves the needs of alumni and the general public.
The UNCSA Library and Learning Commons endorses the American Library Association’s Bill of Rights, Freedom to Read Statement, and Freedom to View Statement. In accordance with these principles of intellectual freedom, the Library and Learning Commons endeavors to collect materials for the interest, information, and enlightenment of all members of the University community, which represent a diversity of views and expression. Selection choices transcend the personal views of any single selector, and materials are not excluded because of the origin, background, or views of those contributing to their creation.
The UNCSA Library and Learning Commons seeks to comply with Copyright Law of the United States. At the same time, the Library supports user rights and fair use policies, which allow for limited use of copyrighted works, without permission, for purposes of criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research.
The primary subject areas collected are those that support the creative, instructional, and research activities of the University, which is divided into the Schools of Dance, Design & Production, Drama, Filmmaking, and Music. Library resources are also selected to support the High School and the Division of Liberal Arts, which require a broader, more traditional subject set than the professional and practice-focused content for each arts school.
Changing user demands, emerging creative fields/projects, new courses, a limited budget, and limited space oblige us to take a calculated approach to selection choices. We reserve the right to perform a site visit to evaluate materials before they are brought to the Library or Archives. Materials are evaluated under the following criteria, on a case-by-case basis:
The UNCSA Library and Learning Commons is a member of NC LIVE, a statewide library consortium that purchases electronic resources and services on behalf of 205 academic and public libraries around the state. NC LIVE’s collections are selected by a committee of academic and public librarians and has historically focused on high-use, high-impact resources across liberal arts subject areas and public/general interest content.
The UNCSA Library and Learning Commons is also a member of the Triad Academic Library Association (TALA) and UNC System. Because of cooperative borrowing opportunities with these networks, we consider the collections available through these sister systems (particularly their research materials) when selecting for our local collection.
Donations to the UNCSA Archives
New Faculty Development Fund
New faculty are eligible for a $500 development fund to grow the library’s collection in underdeveloped areas, particularly in the content areas that new faculty will be teaching.
New Course Development Fund
Faculty launching new courses are eligible for a $500 development fund to grow the library’s collection in the content and research areas of the new course.
Deselection of material is an important part of successful collection maintenance. The same guidelines used above as Selection Criteria for new library materials guide the process of deselection. In order to keep the collection current, accurate, and appealing and to deal with shifting space and budget constraints, this process is continuous and ongoing. Materials may be identified for deselection based on relevancy and currency of their contents, sensitivity of their contents, availability in digital format, duplicate copies in the collection, and/or poor physical condition.
Library materials are expensive to purchase, process, house, and maintain. The Library acknowledges the necessity of preserving library materials. Damaged items will be considered for mending or format transfer if still useful to the University community and if they still contribute to the depth or breadth of the collection.
While we do not often deaccession materials from the UNCSA Archives, we do reserve the right to do so based on careful consideration of the following criteria:
Physical Condition: The Archives has limited ability to conserve fragile materials and may deaccession materials that are too fragile to handle. Material that has deteriorated beyond the point of any intellectual or artifactual value may be discarded. Considerations may include availability of resources to conserve and maintain material.