The Earlham Libraries are near full capacity for print collections, with significant fundraising needed to increase shelving capacity. As a result, book donations are difficult for us to accommodate. We can no longer accept large donations (more than 20 books), due to our lack of space. A gift is really never "free" because of the associated costs of processing and long-term storage. Therefore, and even if of significant commercial value, gift materials will not be accepted unless they meet the same criteria as those used for selecting resources to purchase.
Additional details related to gifts:
- Unsolicited deliveries by the US Postal Service or other shipping companies do not require acknowledgment and become the property of the College.
- The Libraries cannot establish a value for a gift. That responsibility falls to the donor.
- The Libraries' routine process is to check the gift materials against our collections. Librarians and/or faculty review items to decide whether to add them to the collections. Those items we decide not to keep (i.e., duplicates and rejects) may be sold, recycled, or otherwise disposed of at the discretion of the Libraries.
- The Libraries can issue the donor a letter acknowledging the gift and stating what was included, upon request. This is usually done in terms of the number of items.
- At the request of the donor, gift plates will be included with the donated materials.
- We will not promise that gift materials will be isolated from the rest of the collections.
- Prospective donors interested in gifting items to the Friends Collection and College Archives should refer to their collection development policies.
Updated 2/12/2025
