Library Purchases, Policies, and Procedures

Library liaisons work with academic departmental faculty and the students to build and manage the library collections. Factors we consider when adding or withdrawing items from the collection include:

appropriateness for coursework and research

item’s fundamental value (such as having won an award or being heavily cited)

local interest (such as the author being a WSU faculty member)

physical condition

availability in digital format

Fund Allocation

Funds for one-time purchases are allocated to academic departments based on a two-part formula: a base allocation and a variable portion which is calculated based on credit hours, majors, and the number of faculty. Programs that have advisory committees and directors with release time also have separate funding allocations.

Departments and programs may request library purchases with these funds until March 1st by contacting their library liaison. After that time the remainder may be reallocated to other library purchases.

Requesting Subscriptions and Licenses

Licenses and subscriptions are not charged to individual departments. The library evaluates current and potential subscriptions based on:

the appropriateness of the resources for coursework and research

the actual or anticipated usage of the resources

the proportion of ongoing expenditures devoted to each college of the university

When the subscription budget has to be reduced and some subscriptions cancelled, faculty in relevant academic departments will be consulted by the library faculty.

Requests for new subscriptions should be sent by the entire academic department to their library liaison.