Faculty requests should be submitted to their assigned Library liaison. Requests should be as specific as possible and include information such as author, title, publisher, date, ISBN, and price of the item. They should also indicate for which course, if any, the material will be used.
All materials orders will be on a first-come, first-served basis according to established priorities. The Library will abide by any existing book or materials contracts in selecting a vendor and initiating an order. Sufficient lead-time (minimum of 2 months) should be given in cases where timely receipt of the order is important.
The Van Wagenen Library participates in interlibrary loan as both a borrower and a lender through its membership in various consortia and networks. SUNYConnect, the SUNY library consortium, offers rapid delivery of materials from all SUNY libraries throughout New York State through the ELD courier service, administered by ESLN (Empire State Library Network). Through participation in the IDS (Information Delivery Services) Project, the Library can provide faster access to materials from other member libraries, via a combination of electronic article delivery, unmediated requesting, utilization of courier services, and a commitment to faster turnaround times. Through the Capital District Library Council, we can secure access to materials in the Capital District as well as the rest of the State. And through our involvement with OCLC, we request titles from and loan materials to libraries throughout the country and overseas.
The types of materials to be requested through interlibrary loan include:
The Library's first commitment is to its enrolled students and faculty currently serving on campus. Secondly, as a member of a consortium, it is obligated to meet the demands of others member libraries and will continue to serve future network involvement as funds allow. Specifically, the Library is committed to the Capital District Library Council to collect serials and books in the areas of agriculture and early childhood. Any regional collection development funds received will be used to support this commitment. Only items that we would loan to other institutions would be purchased with these special funds.
The Library accepts gifts of materials with the understanding that only those materials which meet the selection standards applied to the purchase of all other Library materials will be added to the collection. The Library will make the final decision on the use or other disposition of all donations and will decide the conditions of display, housing and access to the materials. Unless the donor wishes them returned, all rejected materials will be discarded, offered to appropriate institutions, or sold. Special shelving or sections for gift collections cannot be promised, but an appropriate book plate may be placed on each gift identifying the donor and purpose of donation. The Library will not provide appraisals for tax relief or other purposes.
Funds for the purchase of materials will be accepted. Donors are encouraged to place as few restrictions as possible on the funds in order to permit the most flexible use of the donations for the enhancement of the collection. The librarians are happy to provide suggestions of appropriate titles to groups or individuals who wish to donate new titles to the collection.