The Wichita State University Libraries provide access to information resources and develop library collections that meet the teaching and research needs of the WSU faculty, staff, and students. Collection development involves evaluating the strengths and weaknesses of current collections, assessing the needs of the university community, carefully selecting new materials in all formats, promoting the use of library materials, and continuing the effort to find the most effective means of providing information to the WSU community.
Liaison Librarians
At WSU Libraries, Subject Librarians are library faculty who not only serve as Reference Librarians but who have been assigned the responsibility for evaluating, selecting, and otherwise developing the collections in one or more subject areas. As Subject Librarians, they serve as library liaisons to the corresponding academic departments and units. They not only handle faculty requests for library materials, but they also offer library instruction specially designed to meet the needs of specific classes, provide library orientation to new faculty, and are available for consultation by faculty or students for specialized reference.
The library encourages department and program chairs to meet regularly with their liaison librarians in order to keep the library informed of changes in emphasis of programs and to learn about new library resources and services.
For a list of Liaison Librarians, please click here.
Books & Other One-Time Purchases
Liaison Librarians work to maintain a strong book or monograph collection that meets the needs of faculty and students even during fiscally challenging times. Faculty, staff, and students are encouraged to make requests for specific books. They may forward written requests to the appropriate Subject Librarian or fill out the Purchase Request Form which will be forwarded to the appropriate librarian.
Databases, Journals, & Other Subscriptions
WSU Libraries subscribe to databases, journals, and other resources that are updated regularly. Subscriptions are ongoing costs, like rent for a house, so the Libraries are rarely able to add a new subscription. Adding a subscription always requires canceling current subscriptions of comparable cost. Faculty are encouraged to forward requests for new subscriptions to the appropriate Liaison Librarian or fill out a Purchase Request Form so the request can be added to the wish list. The wish list is consulted during the annual subscription review and the Collection Strategist assesses whether any low use subscriptions can be dropped to free funding for new requests or to support new programs.
