Library Gifts in Kind Policy

Burlington College welcomes gifts of books and other types of information resources suitable for the Library’s collection. Major gifts over the years form the library’s most unique research content. Gifts also create collections that enhance curriculum, support student research, and raise the visibility and reputation of the Burlington College Library. Gifts in kind are acknowledged in writing by the Burlington College Director of Development.

All offers of gift collections or individual items receive careful consideration by the Burlington College Library. Gifts in kind are reviewed by the Library Director and subject specialists; using the same selection criteria as new purchased material.

Donations of gifts in kind will be delivered to the Library by the donor or shipped to the Library at the donor’s expense. The Academic Dean may make exceptions to this policy. Large gifts should be accompanied by a list of materials compiled by the donor. The Library cannot compile a list of donated materials after a gift has been received. It is the responsibility of the donor to assess the value of his/her gift for tax purposes. IRS regulations prohibit the Library, as recipient of the gift, from appraising it. Gifts in kind valued in excess of $25,000 must be reported, prior to acceptance, to Burlington College Development Office.

The Library does not generally accept gifts in kind with restrictions on their use or disposal. Initial review of the proposed gift will consider any potential restrictions, limitations, and especially costs that will be associated with the gift and its processing and retention.

All gifts accepted by the Burlington College Library become the property of the Library and therefore determine retention, location, cataloging procedures, and conditions of access. When the Library cannot use donated materials we may arrange to donate them to other institutions or sell them and use the income to purchase other materials.

If you are considering a gift-in-kind to the Burlington College Library, please fill out and submit our Gift Proposal Form.

Funding to Support Gift Collections

Donors of significant collections are urged to consider providing funding support for preservation, housing, processing, and continuing use of the materials. Discussions regarding support of the donation should be held with the Library Director. Such support can provide funding for cataloging, processing, preservation, publicity, and reformatting (such as digitization) of items or collections to facilitate access, use and enhanced learning and research.