Thomas University Library is a proud supporter of events and services that are offered by the Thomas University community. However, all advertising is limited to the two bulletin boards located outside at the front of the Library when available. The Library reserves the right to advertise library related events in other ways within the library space.
Bulletin Boards
The Thomas University Library Bulletin Boards are intended for notices and other materials related to the program and goals of the Library. Normally, commercial advertisements, promotions, etc., are not to be displayed on these bulletin boards. The Director of Library Services or a designee reserves the right to remove materials deemed inappropriate.
Library guidelines regarding items posted on the bulletin boards in the Morris Library are as follows:
It is the purpose of Thomas University Library to support the curriculum of the University by maintaining an adequate collection of books, journals, and non-print resources in addition to providing access to resources external to the collection by way of electronic databases, online resources, and Interlibrary Loan capability. The Library also makes its resources available whenever possible to the general public in the University’s service area.
The library focuses on adding newly published materials to the collection that are authoritative and/or ground-breaking in their fields. Older published materials are not typically added as they are candidates for Interlibrary Loan borrowing. However, librarians may make retrospective selections in order to fill gaps or respond to multiple requests for the same title if the item is readily available in print or electronic format. Gift items are subject to these collection development guidelines; items not selected for acquisition will be disposed of as outlined in the Withdrawn Materials Disposal Policy.
Purchases of library materials are made on the basis of requests by faculty members and the librarians. First priority is given to materials that directly support the University curriculum. All material requests will be considered in the context of building a balanced collection. Faculty input will be considered based on the rationale presented by the requesting faculty member, the usefulness/benefit to the students, cost, and the availability of the subject material within the collection or external accessibility.
Recognizing that the Library’s collection development budget is finite, faculty members are asked to prioritize their requests in order that the most needed materials are acquired within existing budgetary limits. Requests should be submitted to the Library Director.
The general principles on which materials are selected include the following:
1. Support of the University curriculum
2. General Information
3. Support of faculty research needs
4. Overall quality of the collection
5. Extracurricular interest
6. Value and cost
7. Authority and currency
Requests for ephemeral materials and materials of limited interest should be avoided.
Final authority of all purchases will rest with the Library Director, who has the responsibility for maintaining balance in the collection and ensuring equitable distribution of funds to all academic areas.
Print Periodical Subscriptions
Recognizing that periodicals play an important role in the conduct of research and in the fulfillment of many classroom assignments, as well as for providing opportunities for recreational reading, the Library strives to maintain a balanced subscription base of print and electronic magazines and journals.
Criteria for initiating and maintaining individual print subscriptions include whether the periodical:
• Is included in another format or electronic database available to the Library
• Supports student and faculty research
• Satisfies popular demand
• Is cost effective
• Is projected to have and maintains sufficient usage
Requests for the addition or deletion of a journal subscription must be made to the Library Director. Review of print periodical subscriptions is conducted annually.
Electronic Subscriptions
The library strives to maintain an updated collection of electronic journals, ebooks, and databases. Faculty may request electronic titles of periodicals and books through the Library Director. Periodical additions must have the approval of the division chair. Purchase of databases may be recommended by faculty but must have the approval of the faculty member’s division chair and will be considered based upon overall institutional need and priorities and costs. Database purchases/subscriptions are costly and funds may not be available until the next fiscal budget year. Databases acquired based upon a subscription model are intended to be ongoing from year to year along with a commitment to sustain all renewal costs.
Whenever possible, the library will request a trial from the vendor of any database under consideration for acquisition. The library will pursue partnerships in cooperative acquisitions and cost-sharing with other institutions or consortia such as GPALS and GALILEO.
Electronic materials are held to the same collection development standards as print material in addition to other criteria such as:
• General criteria:
o Subject matter is relevant to the curriculum and needs of primary users
o Information and updates are current, accurate, and complete
o Content provides greater accessibility to information over other formats
o Uniqueness of information
• Formats
o Availability of full-text content
o Graphics and multimedia files
• Access
o Web delivery
o Authentication (IP and/or passwords)
o Compatibility with Library’s proxy server and software
• User friendly
o Provision of leveled searching (basic, advanced)
o On screen help and tutorials
o Ability to print, save, email results, put into citation format
• Vendor and License considerations
o Purchase vs. subscription model
o Number of licensed users (1 at a time, multiple users, unlimited, etc.)
o Ownership rights
o Update/upkeep of content
o Customer Service
o Training
• Technical considerations
o Meets industry technical standards
o Extent of customization
o Compatible with library’s existing hardware and standard web browsers
o Provision of usage statistics
• Total costs and fees
o Is cost-effective
o One-time and/or continuing costs/hosting fees
o Rate of price increases
Duplicates
Thomas University Library does not generally purchase duplicates; however, exceptions can be made based upon need. If an item can be accessed full-text via electronic means, the Library does not typically duplicate the item in print format. Thomas University Library may also take into consideration the holdings of other academic libraries in Georgia when considering purchase or adding a donated item to the collection.
Formats
The Library seeks to purchase resources in the format that will be the most useful to our faculty and students. The preferred format for materials of an academic nature is electronic to provide 24-7 accessibility to the University’s students, faculty, and staff.
Gifts to the Library
All donated items to Thomas University, including books, go through the Advancement Office so that the gift can be recorded and a thank you letter sent to the donor. Persons bringing donated materials to the library must fill out a Donation Form reflecting the donor’s name and address with a description of the materials (or general description and number of items) donated and must sign the form acknowledging that the owner is relinquishing all ownership rights to the donated materials. The library will then forward the donor information to the Office of Advancement so that they may send letters of acknowledgement to the donor. The Library does not furnish a value for donated items.
All donated items are appreciated; however, gift items are subject to collection development guidelines and physical space considerations. In an effort to keep the library’s holdings as current as possible, publication dates and editions are reviewed for relevancy according to the subject content; preference is given to materials published within five years of the receipt date. Potential usage is also a consideration for determining whether an item should be included in the collection. Items in poor condition, having smoke or other odors, and signs of mold, stains and excessive age marks are not added.
The Library Director makes the final decision about which donated items are appropriate to be added to the library collection. Items not selected to be added to the permanent collection may be offered to other appropriate libraries or non-profit organizations, sold at a book sale, offered to the TU community for free, or discarded. No items or collections will be accepted with any special instructions or terms as to their disposition.
Deselection and Withdrawal
One goal of the Thomas University Library is to provide current and/or relevant print and electronic materials for teaching, research, and student needs related to the programs and courses offered at Thomas University.
To meet this goal, the library’s physical collection must be continually evaluated based on the criteria listed below. Any materials failing to me et these criteria are subject to deselection pending review by library staff and involved teaching faculty.
Deselection criteria for print and audio visual materials:
1. Collection level: How vital is the item for TU coursework and research?
2. Intrinsic value: Is the item a seminal work in its field?
3. References: Is the item listed in standard indexes, guides, bibliographies, etc.?
4. Duplication: Is demand sufficient for multiple copies of the item?
5. Physical condition: Can a damaged item be repaired? Should it be replaced? Items with signs of mold or bad odors are removed.
6. Research value: Are older materials still valuable for research or historic interests?
7. Edition: Is the edition of an item held by the library superseded by a newer edition?
8. Completeness: Is the item part of a set or series of which the library does not have a complete run?
9. Uniqueness: Is the item held only by TU?
10. Usage: Has the item been checked out or interlibrary loaned frequently or recently?
Deselection process for print and audio visual materials:
Deselection of any part of the print collection and audiovisual materials will be primarily overseen by the library staff.
1. Teaching faculty will be actively encouraged to participate in and assist with the process.
2. Teaching faculty will be contacted to assist with items that are in their areas of teaching expertise.
3. Library faculty will begin the process by using standard library statistics and methods (e.g., circulation statistics, evaluation of the physical condition and format of the item, duplication, uniqueness, relevance, value, etc.) to select candidates for withdrawal.
4. If a faculty member cannot be found or is not available to assist in the culling process for a particular discipline or field of study, final decisions for deselection will be made by library staff if the library staff believes that weeding must take place.
5. Items listed as missing in the library’s catalog will be withdrawn after sufficient time that the item has been marked as missing, and/or as a result of review in the area where the items should have been located.
6. Items that are culled will be removed from the library’s online catalog and from OCLC within a reasonable time period.
7. Withdrawn items will be disposed of according to Thomas University policies and other relevant local or state policies.
The library strives to maintain a professional and studious atmosphere for all users. We ask that all patrons adhere to the following;
Library users are expected to clean up after themselves and report any spills or mess as soon as possible.
Thomas University Libraries are dedicated to providing a positive, welcoming, and enriching experience for all members of the community.
We value diversity of thought, perspective, experience, and background and are actively committed to a culture of inclusion and respect. We ask that our patrons show consideration towards one another and take care of the physical space and materials as resources for all.
Patrons who experience or witness any questionable behavior in the Libraries are encouraged to approach a staff member. Patron privacy is important to us, and our staff is available to address any concerns or questions.
The Thomas University Library hosts events that support the academic success of Thomas University. It is our mission to provide the TU community with opportunities to grow by collaborating with departments across campus to ensure innovative and inclusive programming.
Reserving the Library Space
Due to the nature of our size, services and contents of the facility, the Thomas University Library does not allow the reservation of it's space to hold events. All events must be in cooperation with the Library, academic in nature and be held during normal Library business hours.
Thomas University Library is committed to protecting patron privacy as a critical component of intellectual and academic freedom on campus. The guarantee of privacy is supported by federal and state law, and by the privacy policies of Thomas University. TU Library limits the collection of personal information to what is relevant and necessary to conduct library business, e.g. patron name, university identification, and items borrowed. We retain that information only as long as it is needed to complete transactions or provide service. Information in a personal library record is considered confidential and will not be released by the Library to a third party except by court order or legal search warrant.
While the library makes every effort to negotiate the protection of user information in licensing agreements with outside database vendors, the University does not govern the privacy practices of those vendors. Users, therefore, should read the privacy statement on each Web site to determine these practices.
The Thomas University Library has two private study room available for 2 hour check out by current Thomas University students, faculty and staff. The study room is available upon a first-come, first-served basis and can be renewed if there is no one waiting. The study room is available any time during the library’s regular operating hours during the semester.
The study rooms at Thomas University cannot be reserved unless they are being used for a library related event. The TU library will monitor this room for activity and maintains the right to eject anyone from this room and the library if suspected of inappropriate behavior or room usage. Any damaged room furnishings will be charged to the student’s account.
If a patron leaves the room the Library is not responsible for any materials left behind. If a patron leaves the room for more than 30 minutes they forfeit.
The Thomas University Library and Learning Commons wishes to maintain a high level of rigor, focus, and interaction during appointments. Failure to follow the Code of Conduct during online Zoom appointments can result in the immediate termination of the session and/or loss of privilege to these services. Students enrolled in programs with disposition requirements may be reported to the appropriate division.
Your web camera and audio must be on at all times.
Appointments must be conducted in an environment free of distractions.
Do not allow children, roommates, classmates or pets to come in and out of the room in which you are Zooming.
Do NOT DRIVE while Zooming. This is not safe!
Do not attend appointments while at work or in a public location.
Remain alert, attentive, and focused on the class activities and instruction.
Do not lie down, watch television, check your phone messages repeatedly or get up out of your seat repeatedly to conduct other activities, such as cooking or babysitting/taking care of children, etc. while Zooming.
Participate fully in the session.
Be respectful of your tutor or librarian's time.
Be on time! Tutors and librarians have the right to terminate a session if you are more than 5 minutes late.
Cancel appointments at least 24 hours in advance or make sure to contact the LLC (tulibrary@thomasu.edu) if you are not able to make the meeting.
Arriving late and/or missing appointments (3) times may result in loss of privilege to use our services.
Use the correct, quality technology that is required.
Test your technology to make sure your video, sound and connection work properly.