The Guttman Community College Library collection development mission is to identify, select, manage and preserve collections that support the curriculum and the research needs of its faculty, students, and staff. This mission includes facilitating access to electronic and other resources and services that may or may not be physically located in, or owned by, the IC. The philosophy of collection development that centered on acquiring everything available and having rows and rows of books, with most never being circulated has given way to the realization that no library can sustain the escalating costs of these materials. In addition, students and faculty want the increased research capability and convenience that electronic databases provide. The Guttman Community College acquisition and collection development policy is based on the following principles:

• Make available those information resources, including textbooks that are likely to be needed by students in preparation for class assignments.
• Support degree programs commensurate with the level of the degree.
• Faculty research is supported, within fiscal constraints, on an individual title basis for ongoing projects, facilitated at a judicious level and is based on faculty communication with the librarians.
• Support general academic interest, inquiry, and Guttman Community College goals.
• Provide access to resources, such as bibliographies and union catalogs that can be used to identify and access information sources not owned locally.
• Continue to support cooperative agreements with the New York Public Library, CUNY libraries and consortia whose holdings could potentially augment access to collections.