As stated in our Collection Development Policy, Bowman Library "periodically removes materials from the collection to ensure it remains useful over time." Withdrawing books that are no longer useful to our community is necessary to maintain a fresh and vibrant collection.
Print books may be withdrawn based on the following criteria:
Condition
Age or currency of the content
Relevance to the current curriculum
Duplication (either print or electronic versions)
Access to newer editions or versions of the content
Usage statistics (number of checkouts)
Number of other libraries in the state or shared print programs that also hold the item
This ensures we don't withdraw books that are rare, and that any book we withdraw will remain available through interlibrary loan if needed
Maintaining a diversity of viewpoints, authors, and content within the collection
Bowman Library will be continually reviewing print books in the collection for possible withdrawal. Below is a link to the list of books that are currently under review.
This list was generated from a collections analysis tool called Greenglass, which enables a data-driven approach to withdrawing books. Through this method, the items in this list were determined based on factors such as low usage and older publication dates, and they are held by multiple other libraries in California and in our library consortium.
The spreadsheet columns include data on Recorded Uses (number of checkouts); Last Charge Date (last time the book was checked out); and number of "Holdings," i.e., number of copies available in other libraries at the nation, state, and consortial level ("SCELC Overlap" refers to overlap with our library consortium, SCELC). If desired, the list may be downloaded and filtered by any of these columns.
The list is divided into multiple tabs by subject: Philosophy, Psychology, & Religion; History; Geography, Anthropology, & Sports; and Business. The longest of these lists is History, given that subject is broad and makes up a large portion of our collection. Additional subjects will be reviewed at a future date.
We value the input of the Menlo College community. If you find particular items on this list that you believe should not be withdrawn, please email randi.proescholdt@menlo.edu by the date listed. Once the listed date is reached, the books will be considered eligible for withdrawal.
Spring 2025 Review List - Review by 3/16/25
Withdrawn books will be donated to Better World Books. This organization ships the books for free, and books are resold or recycled.