2018-140 Library Resources for College and University StudentsDate: September 28, 2018 Report No. 2018-140
INFORMAL STAFF REPORT
TO MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
SUBJECT:
Library resources for college and university students
BACKGROUND:
During the September 18 City Council meeting, Council Member Hudspeth requested that the
Denton Public Library (DPL) work with libraries at UNT, TWU, and NCTC to provide a
collection of college textbooks to address potential cost barriers that students may have when
taking core college courses.
The mission statement of the DPL guides the selection of resources, development of services and
the allocation of funds:
The Denton Public Library builds community by promoting lifelong
learning, encouraging human connections and sharing resources.
DPL has ongoing collaborations with UNT, TWU, and DISD staff, faculty, and libraries. DPL
looks forward to building a relationship with NCTC as the downtown Denton location is closer
to opening for classes.
College and university students can make use of a variety of DPL resources and services to
further their college or university education and find required reading or textbooks for college
courses:
InterLibrary Loan (ILL) is a free service to library cardholders. Many university students
request course reading or textbooks that are not included in the DPL collection. DPL
submits their requests to other public, academic, and special libraries across the country.
Lending libraries ship the materials to the DPL. Patrons may check out ILL materials at
the DPL branch of their choosing and return it to any DPL branch location. DPL then
returns the ILL items back to their home libraries. Students can visit
http://library.cityofdenton.com and select “Interlibrary Loan” to submit requests.
DPL currently has literature and writing materials in its circulating and reference
collections. Our extensive collection of classical literature, poetry, plays, and
contemporary literary works are available to students. Essay and research paper manuals
and style guides such as APA, MLA, Chicago, and others may be checked out by
students.
General information to support education in the sciences, humanities, mathematics,
liberal arts, social sciences, and arts are also available to students.
Reference and scholarly ebooks are also available and may include assigned textbooks
for local university courses. EBSCO eBook Collection, Ebrary, Gale Virtual Reference
Library, ProQuest Science and Technology Ebook Collection, Small Business Resources
Collection all provide scholarly titles to library patrons 24/7. Students can visit
http://library.cityofdenton.com, click “Online Library,” and select “Research Tools” to
access reference and scholarly ebooks.
Date: September 28, 2018 Report No. 2018-140
In addition to physical materials and ebooks, DPL provides online access to scholarly
research databases. Databases are available 24/7 and provide academic research articles
on all subject matters. Examples include Academic Search Premier, 20th Century Poetry,
Business Source Complete, Health Reference Center Academic, Health Source:
Nursing/Academic Edition, Law & Government Collection, Legal Collection, Legal
Information Reference Center, Literary Reference Center, National Library of Medicine,
Newspaper Source, Opposing Viewpoints in Context, Play Index, ProQuest SciTech
Collection Premium, The American West, and American Indian Histories and cultures.
Students can visit http://library.cityofdenton.com, click “Online Library,” and select
“Research Tools” to access research articles.
The UNT and TWU Libraries, per their Collection Development Policies, do not collect
currently adopted textbooks for coursework. DPL Collection Policy states that text books are not
acquired except in areas where there is little or no material in any other format. It is rare for
public libraries to collect university textbooks due to the rapidly changing list of textbooks for
university courses, the myriad of instructors requiring different text books for the same courses,
the frequent edition updates that render old textbook editions obsolete, and the steep cost of
textbooks compared to other materials that a public library would provide. Donated textbook
materials still have costs for processing supplies and staff costs to catalog and process materials.
Space for a limited use collection is also a concern.
CONCLUSION:
The DPL will continue to cooperate and partner with educational institutions that serve the
community. Staff will work with UNT, TWU, and NCTC to increase student, faculty, and staff
awareness of the services and collections at DPL to support college and university education.
Staff will also discuss current options for textbook access to students with the university libraries
and offer participation for alternative options as can be accommodated. Staff will also discuss
expanding non-textbook library materials to support required reading in college and university
courses during collaborative meetings.
STAFF CONTACT:
Jennifer Bekker, Director of Libraries
(940) 349-8753
jennifer.bekker@cityofdenton.com