Library Consultation for New and Revised Courses:
Guidelines for Faculty and Departments

 What you need to do: The request for a Consultation on Library Holdings for new courses is initiated by a college or Department.

► Send the request directly to the liaison for your department [list of liaisons]. If you send it to the liaison's supervisor or to library administration, they will need to forward it to the liaison (which can slow the process. Completing the assessment is the responsibility of the liaison. Requests may come via e-mail, phone, campus mail, etc.

 ►The preferred format is e-mail or attached Word document.

 ► Required documentation includes: Full course proposal and syllabus or draft syllabus of the course. The librarian cannot complete the course proposal form until these documents are provided.

 What the librarian does: Each proposal is treated on a case by case basis. The librarian reads the proposal and syllabus to become familiar with the level of library research requirements of the course. The level of research required determines the level of collection assessment necessary.

 Other factors the librarian considers include: number of students anticipated in each offering, how often tthe course will be offered and number of sections. Has the course been offered previously as a topics course or under a different name? Is this a new curriculum or an expansion or variation on one previously taught?

 If the course is library research intensive, the librarian will make a determination about the type of resources needed such as books, journal articles, etc. The librarian will then evaluate the library's holdings based on these factors.

The librarian makes a decision as to whether library's holdings are superior, adequate, adequate only if the department purchases additional holdings, or inadequate. 

Please note: an assessment of "inadequate" or "adequate only if the library purchases" does not prevent the course proposal from being accepted. This is an important alerting mechanism for your department which keeps it apprised of collection development needs. In most cases, however, the collection will be adequate.

In the event that the library collection is weak or outdated, the librarian preparing the consultation may wish to append a bibliography of recently published books or other materials that the department could recommend to further bolster the collection.

The librarian writes comments which support this decision. Comments can be brief and may include relevant databases by name, monographic holdings in terms of numbers and currency, etc.

 Academic Affairs prefers that the library submit completed consultation forms in electronic format. These may consist of a copy of the Word document pasted directly into an e-mail message, or as an attachment. Academic Affairs no longer requires a paper copy with a physical signature, but uses the e-mail address from the liaison's work e-mail account as an electronic signature. 

The completed form is e-mailed to the requesting faculty member, or if this person is not identified, to the departmental chair (or both). Please let the liaison know who is to receive the form.

The library also archives these forms in our Technical Services Department. When the full course proposal is complete, it is added to the file with the initial documentation and library consultation form. The liaison librarian should also maintain a file of his/her course proposals in the event that a question arises in the future.