Assessing the Diversity of the E-collection of the William H. Hannon Library; a Phased Project

The American Library Association’s 1982 statement on Diversity in Collection Development reminds librarians of our professional responsibility “to select and support the access to materials on all subjects that meet, as closely as possible, the needs, interests, and abilities of all persons in the community the library serves. This includes materials that reflect political, economic, religious, social, minority, and sexual issues.” The William H. Hannon (WHH) Library’s vision statementaffirms that the library views itself as Bridge, Gateway, Agora, and Enterprise. To ensure that our materials collection aligns with our institutional vision and meets the research needs of our diverse campus population, the project team proposed an assessment of our electronic collection through the lens of diversity. The assessment was to determine if the library’s online databases (most often the first point of research consultation for our students and faculty) are adequately “bridging disciplines” (Bridge) and “representing diverse topics and perspectives” (Gateway). What the team learns will inform the library collection strategy, to ensure that it builds collections that deliberately and positively contribute to an inclusive campus climate.[1] http://library.lmu.edu/aboutthelibrary/libraryvisionmission/