Gift Policy

DIVISION: Academic Information Services
UNIT: Olson Library
DATE: December 13, 1991; revised December 8, 2011
PURPOSE: To articulate criteria for review of materials donated to the Library.
APPLICABILITY: Academic Information Services faculty and staff are guided by this policy in reviewing donated material for retention in the collection.

POLICY:

  1. Donations of useful materials or money to purchase them are accepted, provided that no restrictions are attached.

    Gifts needing special consideration (e.g., materials with restrictions, for storage, in non-English languages, originating from the publisher) may be considered at the discretion of the Dean of Academic Information Services. Monetary gifts are credited to the Olson Development Fund for the Olson Library and are handled through the office of the Dean in collaboration with the NMU Foundation.
  2. Items that fit established selection criteria – including format preferences and restrictions – and are in good physical condition may be retained.
  3. Gift materials become the property of Olson Library, and the Library is free to dispose of unneeded materials regardless of how they were acquired. If retained, they may be placed in circulating, non-circulating, or Special Collections, or transferred to the Central Upper Peninsula and NMU Archives. Items may be donated to other libraries or institutions, exchanged, sent to vendors, or discarded. If the donor requests it at the time of the gift, the Library will try to return items not added to the collection but cannot guarantee their return.
  4. The Library cannot legally appraise gifts. The Library may assist donors in obtaining, if available, prices located in book-auction records or the catalogs of second-hand book dealers. If a substantial collection is involved, the Library may help the donor locate a professional appraiser. Donors with further questions about valuations for tax purposes in particular are directed to IRS Publication 561, “Determining the Value of Donated Property” (http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p561.pdf).

CONTACT: Douglas Black, Collection Development Librarian, (906) 227-1208, or doblack@nmu.edu