Liaison librarians with support provided by the University Librarian and the Assessment and Acquisitions Librarian will conduct ongoing assessment of the collection to ensure availability of adequate and appropriate resources to support the curriculum. UCM has an M1, Master's Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs designation and the collections held as part of the JCKL are maintained to support the programming and curriculum of UCM. As such our retention of materials within the collections will support the needs of the institution and the evolution of those needs to meet the changing dynamic(s) within the respective field(s) of study offered at UCM.

Collection management is usually perceived as an activity that only adds new materials to a library. Collection management is also undertaken to maximize the usefulness of a library's collections to students, faculty, and staff and alignment with current curricula being taught at UCM. For the purpose of this policy statement, weeding is defined as the removal of items from the Library's active collection. Weeding is an important part of the management of collections. Deselection, or weeding, is the careful elimination from the collection of unwanted or unnecessary materials that accumulate over time. This is done not only to conserve valuable space, but more importantly to increase the value or usefulness or the collection (and, concomitantly, to increase circulation of existing resources). A collection is difficult to use when one must sift through large amounts of irrelevant, outdated materials.

The faculty liaison librarians, with the guidance of the University Librarian and the Assessment and Acquisitions Librarian, have primary responsibility for weeding activities. Other faculty and staff may be called upon to serve as consultants when necessary. All deselection/weeding will be accomplished according to the criteria listed. The University Librarian has the final say on titles to be deselected.

We understand that the libraries’ resources are vital for the work that you do, and we will continue to approach collection management and ongoing budgetary constraints in thoughtful and transparent ways.

1. Because of the general nature of collections at JCKL, weeding, or deselection is done on a regular periodic basis thus ensuring that the collections remain both current, authoritative, and correspond with user needs at UCM. Any weeding from the collections following the FY2019 comprehensive weeding project outlined below will be the responsibility of the library liaison for that segment of the collection in consultation with appropriate library departments, University Librarian, and special collections, if necessary. Examples of types of materials to be considered for deselection include superseded editions, duplicate copies that are no longer in demand, materials that cannot be repaired or rebound, and formats that are obsolete. When deemed appropriate by the library liaison in agreement with the University Librarian, an external expert may be consulted before a resource is discarded from the collections.
2. During the FY2019 a comprehensive weeding project performed by the Library Assessment Committee, librarian liaisons, and Technical Services established a baseline of materials to be weeded as anything that has not circulated in the past 15 years (pre-2002), superseded editions, and duplicate copies. Subsequent weeding or deselection projects will be undertaken on a regular periodic basis by the liaison librarians as outlined in point one as stated above.
3. Due to space limitations and in the interest of keeping the materials most relevant to the support of the UCM curricula and research needs readily available, the collection is regularly reviewed for condition and suitability. Materials not supporting current UCM curricula or that are less in demand due to age or topic are withdrawn/weeded at the discretion of the library liaison or University Librarian.
4. Liaisons will use the following criteria when evaluating material to be weeded:
   1. Collection level: How vital is the item for UCM coursework and research?
   2. Intrinsic value: Is the item a seminal work in its field?
   3. Format: Is the format obsolete or has it been converted to another more current format?
   4. Duplication: Is demand sufficient for multiple copies of the item?
   5. Physical condition: Can a damaged item be repaired? Should it be replaced?
   6. Research value: Are older materials still valuable for research interests?
   7. Edition: Is the edition of an item held by the library superseded by a newer edition or format (e.g. electronic or online/networked)?
   8. Completeness: Is the item part of a set or series of which the library does not have a complete run?
   9. Uniqueness: Is the item held only by UCM?
   10. Usage: Has the item been checked out frequently or recently? At a minimum, has the item been checked out within the past 15 years?
5. Gift materials may be withdrawn/discarded at the point of decision regarding their inclusion to the general or special collections at UCM and upon the weeding guidelines previously stated.
6. All withdrawal of materials/weeding will be disposed in accordance with UCM and State of Missouri guidelines.

How can I get access to a now de-accessioned title?

In most cases, the same content is also available through Interlibrary Loan or through online archives such as JSTOR. In other cases, Libraries’ consortial library partners provide reliable electronic access to the content via interlibrary loan. 

Information on how to use and access the JCKL ILL system can be found using the following link: http://guides.library.ucmo.edu/interlibrary-loan 

How can I found out what titles are being considered for de-accessioning?

JCKL will post titles being considered for de-accessioning on a Titles for Reconsideration page on our website on an as needed basis. The title lists will be posted, and faculty will be given six (6) weeks to review the lists. The University Librarian will notify faculty as the list is posted.

The UCM Faculty community will be given six (6) weeks for review and to identify individual titles they wish to have reconsidered from the proposed list for de-accessioning. 

Faculty can request items be removed from consideration for this project by consulting with faculty colleagues, review of current curricula being taught at UCM, review through WorldCat, and review by departments who confirm an ongoing need for the title which justify it remaining in the JCKL collection.

Items identified for de-accessioning will be pulled from the shelves and processed for withdraw. The JCKL catalog (as well as consortia listings and national databases) will be updated to reflect withdrawal.

De-accessioned items will be processed per the disposition of materials guidelines outlined below.

When reviewing the list of Titles for Reconsideration remember the following:

1. All titles in the Titles for Reconsideration list have already been reviewed a minimum of one time by Faculty Library Liaisons who are subject experts. 
2. Faculty Library Liaisons used the following criteria when evaluating material to be weeded:
   1. Collection level: How vital is the item for UCM coursework and research?
   2. Intrinsic value: Is the item a seminal work in its field?
   3. Format: Is the format obsolete or has it been converted to another more current format?
   4. Duplication: Is demand sufficient for multiple copies of the item?
   5. Physical condition: Can a damaged item be repaired? Should it be replaced?
   6. Research value: Are older materials still valuable for research interests?
   7. Edition: Is the edition of an item held by the library superseded by a newer edition or format (e.g. electronic or online/networked)?
   8. Completeness: Is the item part of a set or series of which the library does not have a complete run?
   9. Uniqueness: Is the item held only by UCM?
   10. Usage: Has the item been checked out frequently or recently? At a minimum, has the item been checked out within the past 15 years? (not applicable for reference materials)

The following criteria were utilized in determining retention of titles selected for de-accessioning

• Items that have circulated since 2002 (in the last 17-18 years)
• Items listed on RCL Web (Resources for College Libraries) and on other authoritative lists
• Limited item holdings according to WorldCat 
• Items written by key authors in a field
• Items that are duplicates in high demand areas
• Items that are important to coursework, research, cross-disciplinary study or are of general interest
• Items that are likely to be used in the future
• Evaluating Book Condition

Signs of Poor Book Condition Include

JCKL utilizes three standard methods for the disposition of library materials: donation, sale, or discard. JCKL  sells materials to Better World Books, offers materials to other libraries, and lastly discards materials.

1. Sale: JCKL works cooperatively with Better World Books (BWB) for the sale of deselected/weeded materials. Materials are reviewed against the Better World Books acquisition standards and those meeting the standards are shipped at a maximum quarterly and at a minimum annually to BWB. BWB provides all shipping materials and pays shipping costs. In return, JCKL receives reimbursement for materials sold by BWB. More information on the Better World Books program is available at https://www.betterworldbooks.com/go/library-donation-guidelines
2. Donation: Deselected library materials may be made available to other libraries when deemed appropriate.
3. Discard: Deselected materials that have not been disposed of through the previously mentioned methods shall be placed in university recycling bins as part of JCKL’s commitment to reducing material in landfills.