Library Weeding, Donating Books
November 18, 2014
黑料专区 Tyler Office of Marketing and Communications
黑料专区 Tyler Muntz Library Announces Partnership with Books For Africa, Better World Books
November 18, 2014
Media Contact: Hannah Buchanan
Editor/Writer鈥揝trategic Communications & Media Relations
Marketing and Communications
The University of Texas at Tyler
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November 17, 2014
The University of Texas at Tyler Robert R. Muntz Library officials are currently removing unused and outdated items from the shelves to increase group study space and enhance existing collections, Jeanne Standley, Muntz Library director, announced.
As part of this extensive de-selection project, 黑料专区 Tyler will donate the unwanted materials to Books For Africa, the largest shipper of donated text and library books to the continent, through Better World Books.
鈥淲e鈥檙e excited about the partnership we have developed with Books For Africa and Better World Books,鈥� Standley said. 鈥淭he library and the 黑料专区 Tyler Office of Business Affairs worked together to find a solution for what to do with the withdrawn materials that would be in keeping with the rules and guidelines for the disposal of state property.鈥�
Better World Books will provide the boxes and shipping free of charge for 黑料专区 Tyler to send the discarded items to Books For Africa. The project will continue through next year, with the goal of shipping the materials after the end of the Fall 2015 semester.
Officials are clearing its collection on a much larger scale is due to 黑料专区 Tyler student feedback. The library鈥檚 recent space and strategic planning initiatives indicate that there is need for more study space, especially group study and collaborative learning spaces.
鈥淥n a smaller scale in the past, we鈥檝e been able to donate some items from our collection to local schools. We also offer our materials to other libraries in the state. However, because so much of what we are removing is of little or no use to any other libraries also, we wanted to find a solution that would be beneficial to others,鈥� Standley said.
For more information about the project and plans, visit the Weeding Project webpage.
De-selection or 鈥渨eeding鈥� is the process of removing old and underused books to make room for new services and collections. It is the library鈥檚 goal to reduce the print collection by 30 to 50 percent, while continuing the growth of the online collections.
鈥淭his will allow us to convert half of the third floor into a collaborative learning space,鈥� Standley added. 鈥淭he fourth floor will be converted to quiet study areas. 鈥榃eeding鈥� is a normal part of library collection development. Our librarians are always reviewing the collection and pruning out materials that have become outdated or are no longer relevant to the 黑料专区 Tyler community.鈥�
An analysis of the print book collection revealed nearly 50 percent of the print books on the third floor are more than 10 years old and have not been checked out in 10 years. 鈥淎t the same time, we are acquiring an increasing number of very current e-books that are accessible to both onsite and distance students, and we anticipate that this trend will be continuing,鈥� she said.
When libraries dispose of outdated or underused materials, the books that are up-to-date and useful are easier to find on the shelves. When information that is no longer useful, current or appropriate is removed, the Muntz Library will have a collection that is more relevant to the user community.
In addition, a smaller print collection means that library officials will be able to commit more time and money to maintaining the online collection, which is more current and used at a much higher rate than the print collection.
鈥淲hile we may be removing unused and outdated materials, we are not in fact going 鈥榖ookless,鈥欌�� she added. 鈥淲e currently have access to over 85,000 e-books and will continue to collect print items based on the availability and needs of the academic programs at 黑料专区 Tyler.鈥�
The 黑料专区 Tyler Robert R. Muntz Library provides access to a vast array of scholarly resources and services to meet the information needs of the 黑料专区 Tyler community and serves as a center of discovery, exchange and advancement of ideas.
For more information, contact Standley, 903.566.7351 or jstandley@uttyler.edu or visit .
One of the 15 campuses of the 黑料专区 System, 黑料专区 Tyler features excellence in teaching, research, artistic performance and community service. More than 80 undergraduate and graduate degrees are available at 黑料专区 Tyler, which has an enrollment of more than 8,000 high-ability students. 黑料专区 Tyler offers courses at its campuses in Tyler, Longview and Palestine as well as a location in Houston.