Collection Policies

t . I . McGill University Li1ra.ries Collection Policies Eliza.heth V. Silvester Editor and Co-ordinator Montreal 1995 This is a reproduction of a book from the McGill University Library collection. Title: Collection policies Author: McGill University. Libraries. Publisher, year: Montreal : [The Libraries], 1995. The pages were digitized as they were. The original book may have contained pages with poor print. Marks, notations, and other marginalia present in the original volume may also appear. For wider or heavier books, a slight curvature to the text on the inside of pages may be noticeable. ISBN of reproduction: 978-1-77096-193-7 This reproduction is intended for personal use only, and may not be reproduced, re-published, or re- distributed commercially. For further information on permission regarding the use of this reproduction contact McGill University Library. McGill University Library www.mcgill.ca/library Copyright ©McGill University Libraries, 1995 ISBN O-n17-0458-5 Catalogulng-ln-PubUcatlon Data McGill University. Libraries Collection policies I McGill University Libraries ; Elizabeth V. Silvester, editor and co-ordinator. -- Montreal : [The Libraries], 1995. [ix], 355 p. ; 28 em. Includes bibliographical references. ISBN 0-7717-0458-5 1. McGill University. Libraries. 2. Academic libraries--Collection development--Quebec (Province)--Montreal. I. Silvester, Elizabeth. II. Trtle. Ill. Trtle: McGill University Libraries collection policies. Z736.M3M284 1995 Supplied by McGill Uniwrsity Lilraries. TABLE OF CONTENTS Foreword Introduction ii Collection Levels IV Intellectual Freedom VI Library Collection Policies BRANCH LIBRARIES Blackader Lauterman library of Art and Architecture Architecture 1 Art History 8 Urban Planning 15 Education library (including Curriculum Lab. & Physical Education) 21 Howard Ross Management Library 32 Islamic Studies Library 42 Marvin Duchow Music Library 49 Religious Studies Library 59 HUMANITIES AND SociAL SCIENCES LIBRARY General Collections Anthropology 69 Canadiana 80 Classics 88 Communications 93 East Asian 98 Economics 103 English 109 French 115 General and Comparative literature 123 Geography, (Human) 127 German Literature 133 Hispanic 139 History 144 Italian 153 Jewish Studies 156 Library and Information Studies 165 Linguistics 170 Philosophy 174 Political Science 179 Psychology 183 Russian and East European Languages and Literatures 191 Slavic and East European Studies 197 Social Work 204 Sociology 210 Special Collections Govenunent~umen~ 217 Rare Books 225 Reference 231 LAW AREA LIBRARY 247 LIFE SCIENCES AREA LIBRARY Blacker-Wood Library of Biology 267 Health Sciences Library 276 Macdonald Campus Library 285 Osler Library 295 PHYSICAL SCIENCES AND ENGINEERING AREA LIBRARY Physical Sciences and Engineering Library 306 Chemical Engineering 310 Chemistry 312 Civil Engineering 314 Computer Science 317 Earth and Planetary Sciences 318 Electrical Engineering 320 History of Science and Ideas 322 Mathematics & Statistics (including Mathematics Library) 326 Mechanical Engineering 329 Mining & Metallurgical Engineering 331 Physics 333 Reference Collection 335 Walter Hi~chfeld Environmental Earth Sciences Library 347 Foreword It is a great pleasure to present this first edition of the McGill University Libraries' Collections Policies, a work which is the product of many hands and of many years' toil. A research library's collection is not a static entity but continually changes and redefines itself. This is because a good research library cannot be monolithic and autonomous but must constantly remain attuned to the requirements of the researchers who consult it, as well as to the changing disciplines which form it. The present collection of policies is, therefore, a depiction of McGill's library collections at a given time, and is inevitably overtaken by events almost as soon as it appears. For this reason, our policies require regular revision and a kind of bibliographic vigilance which is the unmistakable sign of a good research collection. Collections and the policies which describe and define them are collaborative creations, and take shape with the concerted effort of many individuals -bibliographers and selectors, faculty members, students at all levels, and interested readers from every background. As the policies show, library collections are systematic and coherent entities. The careful reader of the present work will come away with a clear sense of the rationale governing each collection, and of its particular strengths and weaknesses. One of the striking features of the policies contained here is their frank appraisal and statement of the gaps and weak points in our collections; the policies formulate our hopes and aspirations with regard to our collections together with our achievements. It is notable, too, how interdependent library collections have become, especially nowadays. In the following policies, important collections and resources of neighbouring institutions are listed. The interconnections among the various McGill libraries are made plain. This affords a wider field both to librarians and to scholars in the course of their work, and reinforces the principle of cooperation among libraries, so crucial today. The compilation and editing of these policies have required enormous labour extending over several years. I wish to thank Elizabeth Silvester, Collections Coordinator, for her tireless and unflagging dedication to this major task. She has brought great imagination, energy and expertise to the creation of this work. Its excellence reflects her own high standards. I thank all the librarians and faculty members who contributed so much of their expert knowledge and wisdom to the formulation of these policies, and who continue to oversee them. Eric Ormsby Director of Libraries McGill University McGill University Libraries Introduction The central purpose of this comprehensive collection of the McGill library Collection policies is to make information about our libraries better known within the University and beyond its walls. The publication of a co-ordinated and up-to-date collection policy has also been seen as an opportunity to ensure that the hbrary's information concerning academic priorities is accurate and up-to-date and that there is reasonably clear definition of collecting responsibilities between the individual McGill libraries. The format and style of the McGill libraries' collections policies to a large extent follow the precepts of the most recent edition of the American library Association's Guidelines for Collection Policies. The use of a six point (0-5) scale of levels, initially implemented by the Research Libraries Group in the United States has become an internationally accepted standard for the communication of information concerning the depth or intensity of library collecting. While some of our collection policies presented here have evolved from earlier versions dating back a decade or more, not a few represent entirely new efforts at documenting policy concerning library collections. There is a school of thought within the hbrary profession which holds that it is unwise for libraries to provide detailed documentation of their collection policies. One of the arguments against the establishment of collections policies (as opposed to very broad "mission" statements) is that the process of descnbing policy creates rules in areas where judgment is of the essence. It is also argued that considerable ambiguity concerning policy is necessary in order to allow for a flexible approach to new opportunities and challenges. Further, it is feared that documented policies in practice inhibit the library's ability to anticipate its readers needs for documentation by freezing objectives and understandings at a particular point in time under circumstances which may no longer obtain. While appreciating these dangers I believe that the arguments for documenting policy are stronger than those against. Not surprisingly, the actual process of articulating policy was of immense value in itself. As a result we gathered a great deal of useful information about our existing collections, about resources elsewhere in the city and about faculty expectations concerning their libraries' performance and put it to work in reviewing past practices and in formulating new approaches. The decision to keep the format of the documents simple and to present them as a loosely-connected series of documents was made in order to facilitate revisions. Ideally a collection policy establishes three collection levels for every subject line. The first evaluates the depth of the existing collection, the second indicates the level of intensity to which the collection is being currently developed and the third indicates a justifiable target level for the collection, should sufficient funding become available. At McGill we have chosen to confine ourselves, at least for the meantime, to establishing the current collecting level and for most disciplines establishing target levels as well. In establishing current levels we have tried to set a realistic level taking into account both regular and special funds from endowments and gifts. A collections policy helps to optimize the use of resources. Partly it is a matter of selecting the most necessary publications for our clientele, the members of this university, and partly it is a matter of avoiding the purchase of unnecessary or less necessary works. Then, in a multi-library system like ours it is desirable to ensure that books and journals are

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