Sandor Teszler Library Collection Policies

Collections Policy Wofford College Special Collections

Mission Statement

The Special Collections Department of the Sandor Teszler Library seeks to supplement and complement the library's educational mission of supporting the academic programs of Wofford College.

In support of the College’s mission, Special Collections will:

• Serve as a resource to stimulate creative teaching and learning.
• Promote knowledge and understanding of primary and secondary sources and cultural heritage materials.
• Provide information services that will assist the faculty, students, and College community.
• Encourage research and scholarship by making available and promoting the use of its collections by members of the College community and the community at large.
• Appraise, collect, arrange, describe, preserve, make available, and curate cultural heritage materials of curricular, educational, and research value to Wofford College and the broader community.
• Provide adequate facilities for the retention and preservation of such materials.

Acquisitions, transfers, gifts

The chief criteria for acquisition or transfer of a collection or item are the curricular, educational, and research value of the item or collections.

The Special Collections Librarian will consider the acquisition or transfer of new collections or items using the following criteria:

• The collection or item's potential to provide a basis for scholarly research and/or curricular use.
• The collection or item's potential scholarly and/or curricular value within the existing or developing subject and/or format strengths of Special Collections.
• Adequate funds and other resources (such as storage space) must be available to ensure that a collection or item can be maintained and developed.

The evaluation of all potential acquisitions or transfers in whatever format shall include a consideration of the likely and potential costs to the Library for acquisition, cataloging, storage, preservation, and reference services.

Special Collections may purchase materials from appropriate vendors or sources to complement existing collections or in anticipation of new emphases. While purchases are ultimately made at the discretion of the Dean of the Library in consultation with the Special Collections Librarian, input and expertise from subject experts and faculty regarding the importance and utility of the items or collections, especially their potential to provide a basis for scholarly research and/or curricular use, will be sought by the Special Collections Librarian.

Gifts policy

The Special Collections Librarian reserves the right to refuse gifts, and to dispose of gifts as appropriate.

Special Collections does not accept “over the transom” gifts, i.e. items or collections physically left with/at the Library without prior agreement.

All gift solicitations are reviewed by the Special Collections Librarian; faculty, administrators, and other parties are appropriately involved in a particular collection’s or item’s acquisition on an ad hoc basis.

Special Collections shall not provide any estimates as to the monetary value of cultural heritage items or collections.

Deaccessions

Materials in Special Collections may be transferred to other institutions, sold, or otherwise disposed of in order to ensure Special Collections’ continued relevance to the College’s curricular and research interests. Input and expertise from subject experts regarding the importance and utility of the items or collections, especially their potential to provide a basis for scholarly research and/or curricular use, will be sought and documented by the Special Collections Librarian prior to the deaccession of items or collections from Special Collections.

This policy is reviewed regularly. Last update: 19 January 2021.