Snead State Community College’s Library Services are an integral part of the educational foundation of the school. Even though the library has transitioned away from the traditional ‘brick and mortar’ campus presence to a more integrated, electronic environment, library services remain vibrant and continue to support the educational mission of the college. The library’s major physical campus location is now on the first floor of the Administration Building. In this facility, students, faculty, and staff have access to desktop computers for research or other academic use as well as a printer, a copier/scanner, and local newspapers. The library also has laptop computers available for use within the facility and to check out to students. The library currently has a collection of over 150,000 electronic books which may be downloaded to e-readers or read on any computer with an Internet connection. Also, the library has subscriptions to four licensed online databases as well as access to over 70 additional databases available through the Alabama Virtual Library. All such databases are likewise available to all students and faculty through any Internet connected workstation. The purpose of this document is to establish and list guidelines by which Snead State Community College Library Services will operate. These guidelines will facilitate library planning and organization and help to standardize the collection development, collection management, circulation and patron access, and bibliographic instructional functions of the library.
The primary purpose of the Snead State Community College Library is to provide library and media services to support the educational programs of the college and to maintain an organized and readily accessible collection of materials and equipment to support the needs of its users.
1. To provide quality resources and services to meet the needs of the college’s instructional programs.
2. To develop a collection of timely, relevant, and readily accessible materials to support the research activities of our students, faculty, staff, and administration (patrons).
3. To provide opportunities for patrons to learn more about library services.
4. To provide equal library services to all patrons, whether on the main college campus, at satellite campuses, or online.
5. To stay current with the ever changing world of information in order to better serve our patrons.
6. To constantly integrate technology and technological equipment and software into the library to support the college’s educational programs.
7. To provide bibliographic instruction to any patrons who may need it and library orientation to any classes or groups of students for whom it is requested.
8. To provide general assistance to patrons conducting research or trying to develop search strategies for research activities.
9. To maintain the Heritage Collection of historical college materials/memorabilia
10. To maintain statistical records and compile reports which reflect the activities of the library.
11. To network with other libraries to better meet the needs of our patrons.
Selection
Faculty members of each academic division are expected to share the responsibility for selection of resources to support their specific areas of instruction. The Head Librarian, with suggestions from Division Chairs is responsible for reference materials and any subject areas that need strengthening. Students, staff, and administrators may submit recommendations. Suggestions will be accepted from all members of the college community. The Head Librarian is responsible for the balance of the collection, allocation of funds, and approval of all purchases. The library provides primary resources, secondary resources, standard works, classics and popular titles to support the course offerings of the college. Materials will be purchased based on (no specific order):
Format: As of Fall 2023 all library materials purchased will be in electronic format.
Classification: The Snead Library classifies electronic books according to the Library of Congress Classification System, and they are indexed on the Integrated Library System of the library (ILS). Online periodical databases and other online content are indexed by the specific database providers. When appropriate, individual machine readable cataloging (MARC) records from such databases are loaded into the library’s ILS. Currently the Library belongs to the Library Management Network consortium (LMN), and makes use of the consortium’s AGent™ Iluminar ILS. Through this system, all electronic books, and electronic databases may be searched in a federated environment. Local print newspapers are arranged by title and date and are kept for a minimum of one month.
Censorship: The Snead Library affirms its belief in the following policies adopted by the American Library Association: Library Bill of Rights and its Interpretations, adopted June 18, 1948, amended January 23, 1980, The Freedom to Read Statement, adopted June 25, 1953, revised January 16, 1991, and The American Library Association Code of Ethics, adopted June 28, 1995. Guided by these documents, the library will not censor materials. The library resources will reflect the widest possible variety of viewpoints. Just because an item is found in the library collection, this should not be interpreted as an endorsement of its content but as the fulfillment of the library’s responsibility to present all sides of an issue. Materials for the library are selected without partisanship or prejudice in matters concerning religion, politics, sex, and all social, moral, economic or scientific issues. The Head Librarian will reply verbally or in writing to any criticism by referring to the above policy.
Faculty Research: The Snead Library will purchase and license electronic books and online databases to support the instructional needs of faculty. Interlibrary loans will be used to satisfy faculty needs for research materials when those materials are not within the Snead Library collection. It is important that all purchased materials reflect the needs of the two-year college curriculum.
Periodicals: The Head Librarian, with input and assistance from faculty, will select appropriate online periodical databases for inclusion in the library collection. Effort is made to keep the subscriptions well balanced in relation to the curriculum and the needs of two-year college library users. Certain local newspaper subscriptions will also be maintained in print format as they are not so easily available in digital format.
Textbooks: The library will not purchase textbooks, adopted for classes, in either print or electronic format, to place in the library collection.
Computer Hardware and Software: The library will acquire computer hardware such as workstations, printers and electronic book readers/tablets when necessary. These along with the necessary software for the ILS, for desktop and laptop computers, and electronic book readers will be purchased with the assistance of the college’s Information Technology Department.
Library Gift Acceptance Policy: Since the library no longer actively maintains the print collection, gifts of books and other individual print materials will generally not be accepted. Periodical subscriptions given as gifts will be evaluated on an individual basis. Potential gifts related to the history of Snead State Community College and the Heritage Collection will be evaluated by the Head Librarian for possible acceptance depending on the needs of the Heritage Collection.
Heritage Collection: The library maintains a “Heritage” Collection consisting of materials about Snead State Community College and its history. This collection includes publications of the college and materials about the college. When items are duplicates, the library will keep two copies. The Heritage Collection is housed in a special room with limited access. Patrons may not remove items from the Heritage Room without permission.
De-selection
De-selection of materials is an integral part of collection development. Obsolete and unused materials are de-selected as required. Decisions to de-select materials are made in consultation with faculty representatives. The Head Librarian routinely evaluates and removes electronic books from the reference and general collection. Materials are removed when information is out of date, when they have been superseded by a better title, are unused, or are otherwise no longer suitable for the library collection. Online Databases are kept up to date by their individual producers. Factors considered when removing electronic books include: age or obsolescence, number of copies, last date of circulation, and value to the collection. Some general guidelines for specific areas of the collection are as follows:
Responsibility for Evaluation and De-Selection: The ultimate responsibility for de-selection rests with the Head Librarian. However, deselection of resources in various instructional areas is done in cooperation with faculty. The Head Librarian will notify Division Chairpersons when their area of the subject collection needs attention. The Division Chairperson or a representative from the department will examine the materials and make recommendations for items to be removed. This procedure will take place when needed.
The Snead State Library cooperates with other institutions, libraries, and agencies in requesting and lending print resources that are not available locally. One of the requirements as well as benefits of membership in the LMN consortium is the sharing of materials among members. Therefore, other LMN member libraries are the first choice for obtaining interlibrary loan materials. The library adheres to the National Interlibrary Loan Code for the United States. The library will attempt to obtain for students, faculty, staff, and administration materials not found within the Snead Library collection through the use of interlibrary loan. Interlibrary loan requests may be made by emailing the library or in person within the library’s physical location. All interlibrary loan requests must be approved by the staff member in charge of ILL. Generally, book requests are filled at no charge. The requester is responsible for any charges by the lending library if they occur and for any damage or late charges should they accrue. Photocopy charges are often necessary when printing of articles is required of the lending library. Most items arrive by mail within two weeks. The loan period for books is also at the discretion of the lending library but is usually for two to three weeks.
Procedures:
Library Account
Library accounts are issued to Snead students and employees each semester. After registration, new students are assigned accounts. New employees or students who register late should come to the library to request that an account be created. Student accounts are valid for five years and must be renewed after that time. A student identification card must be presented each time a student wishes to borrow items from the library. Community members who are not Snead students, employees, or alumni may not check out books or other materials from the library.
E-books and Online Database Passwords
The entire collection of electronic books (eBooks) and proprietary online databases to which the McCain LRC subscribes are available to all patrons. Access on any campus computer is direct from the library's Web pages and authenticated by IP address. Use of eBooks or proprietary databases from off campus requires a library account. The default password for the library account will be given to students and employees upon request.
IInterlibrary Loans
If a desired item is not held by this library, a patron may request an interlibrary loan from another library.
Computers
Computers provide access to the Internet. Microsoft Word is available on all computers. Also, other programs are available which are used in academic computing classes. Users may be asked to sign in and out on a time log, especially at times of high usage. All users must abide by the Acceptable Use Policy of Snead State Community College. Policies for circulating "loaner laptops" are listed on another LibGuide here: Loaner Laptop Program.
The Snead State Library is concerned with the need and right of its constituency to have freedom of expression and freedom to read via library services and resources. Consequently, the library endorses and subscribes to the American Library Association’s official statements concerning intellectual freedom, The Library Bill of Rights, The Freedom to Read Statement, and The Policy on Confidentiality of Library Records. Additionally, the Snead State Library abides by all aspects of the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA).
It is the policy of the Snead State Community College Library to provide equal library services to all patrons, whether on the main college campus, at satellite campuses, or online. The library adheres to the policies and guidelines of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) concerning online and distance learning students and students at satellite campuses as well as guidelines established by the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL).
Students at the Arab Center of Snead State Community College, as well as online students, have access to all electronic books and online databases through the Internet with nothing more than their Student Identification Number required.
The Head Librarian will conduct bibliographic instruction for satellite campus and other offcampus classes at the request of the instructors of such classes.
The library will reply to all after hours requests for assistance by 9:00 AM the next day of regular library operation.
Margaret Story Library at Snead State Community College (Story Admin Building - Room 105) - Hours: M-Th: 7:30 AM - 4:30 PM / Fr: 7:30 AM- 12:00 Noon - Phone: (256) 840-4173