The CONSORT Colleges Cooperative Collection Development Program

Cooperative Collection Development activities among the four CONSORT libraries [i] are informed by the missions of the individual institutions and their libraries, and by professional standards and guidelines regarding ethics, intellectual freedom, censorship, copyright, and licensing [ii].

The primary purpose of cooperative collection development by the four CONSORT member libraries is to maximize the strength, currency, and diversity of the individual collections in order to build a more robust consortial collection. Our efforts are based on the following principles:

• The individual collections should continue to reflect their institutional history and character and appropriately support undergraduate coursework, research, and teaching.
• With selective specialization, strategic diversification, and intentional duplication, we aspire to create a joint collection that approaches the Advanced Study Level or Research Level [iii] in core areas.
• With the understanding that no library can supply materials to satisfy all of the needs of its users, the CONSORT collection is enriched by the resources available to us through our membership in OhioLINK [iv] and standard interlibrary loan practices.

A secondary purpose of CONSORT Cooperative Collection Development is the simultaneous containment of costs by reducing unnecessary duplication of purchases of library materials among the four colleges and the enhancement of the combined collections through the deliberate purchase of more unique materials that would not have been purchased otherwise. The four libraries will also continue to explore and adopt policies and procedures for increased sharing and timely delivery of materials.

Cooperative Collection Development activities among the four CONSORT libraries are guided by the Coordinator of Cooperative Collection Development and the Collection Development Subcommittee [v] under the general direction of the Five Colleges Library Committee.

Approved by CONSORT Library Directors 5/10/02

[i] The CONSORT members are the libraries of The College of Wooster, Denison University, Kenyon College, and Ohio Wesleyan University.

[ii] See ALA Standards & Guidelines.

[iii] Collection level definitions are based on those developed by the American Library Association as most currently defined in Anderson, Joanne S., ed. Guide for Written Collection Policy Statements, 2nd. ed. Chicago: ALA, 1996.

[iv] Resources available to CONSORT libraries through OhioLINK may be accessed through individual library web pages and through the OhioLINK site:

[v] The Collection Development Subcommittee is composed of one representative from each college. The names of the members and the coordinator can be found at the Five Colleges of Ohio web site.