Collection Development Policies

The University Libraries collect, preserve, and provide access to materials in print and other physical and electronic formats to support the research, teaching, and service mission of the University. The Libraries participate in consortia and collaborative efforts that maximize the Libraries’ ability to acquire and access scholarly resources.

The Collection Development Policy of the University Libraries of the University of Colorado Boulder seeks to complement the Libraries’ mission by providing to the University community materials and resources to support instruction, research and scholarship, and public service. A secondary objective will be to provide for Colorado residents resources to support individual, business, cultural, educational, governmental and other information needs. In addition, we hope to create a collection that will, through sharing, benefit the national and international higher education community.

This policy will be administered by means of collection development policies formulated for specific subject areas in order to guide subject specialists in their decisions. These comprehensive documents, established in partnership with the faculty and user communities, will provide a foundation for a coordinated collection development program throughout the Libraries. These collections will be developed based on a continuing analysis of the evolving academic programs, research interests, user needs, and the strengths and weaknesses of the collections already in place. The University Libraries reserve the right to make the final decision on those materials and resources that will be acquired for or deselected from its collections.

The Libraries are committed to diversity and inclusive excellence in our collections, services, and spaces. When selecting materials, the Libraries fully subscribes to the Library Bill of Rights, issued by the American Library Association. Among other rights, this statement affirms that no materials shall be excluded because of the origin, background, or view on current and historical issues, and that censorship should be challenged.