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Donating Books and Journals to the Health Sciences Library

Call: 919-962-0500 or Email: giftsforhsl@unc.edu

Does the Health Sciences Library accept books and journals as gifts?
What books and journal gifts does the library want?
How do I donate books or journals?
What other types of donations might be of interest to the library?
Can I give the library my own current copies of a journal received through a membership or through a paid personal subscription?
What can I do with those journals and books the library cannot use?
How can I tell the value of my donation?
Are there other ways to contribute to the Health Sciences Library?

Does the Health Sciences Library accept books and journals as gifts?

    Yes. Some of the library's important materials have been gifts. We cannot promise to add all gifts to the library's collections, but we contact other libraries in the US and in developing countries to see if they can use the materials.

What books and journal gifts does the library want?

    The library is interested in books authored or edited by UNC Health Affairs faculty. We appreciate it when the author signs a gift book.

    The library is also interested in books that are in good to fine condition that are of historical importance or those that augment or fill gaps in the collection.

    We are particularly interested in departmental, university and North Carolina documents, newsletters and publications.

    We accept specific journal issues or volumes that complete library holdings and occasionally accept longer runs of journal titles not in our collection.

    Please contact a staff member in Resources Management before donating your materials. (962-0500 or giftsforhsl@unc.edu) Let us know the size of your donation, the subject areas, and the general range of dates. For journals, we prefer that you provide a list with volumes and dates.

    Staff can arrange to look at your collection and see what may be of use to the library and then make arrangements for pickup and delivery.

What other types of donations might be of interest to the library?

    The library can provide assistance to faculty in evaluating and downsizing their professional libraries. The library also works with the Southern Historical Collection in assessing faculty archival materials.

Can I give the library my own current copies of a journal received through a membership or through a paid personal subscription?

    The library cannot legally accept ongoing donations of journals received through a membership or a paid personal subscription. Publishers price personal or membership subscriptions with the assumption that they will be used by an individual rather than a potentially large audience at an institution. Regular current use by an institution could be considered a copyright infringement.

What can I do with those journals and books the library cannot use?

    Local rare or used book dealers may be interested in older good to fine quality books.

    Libraries in developing countries may be interested recent journals and texts up to ten years old. Note that most developing countries will expect the donor to pay shipping costs. The University of Buffalo maintains a good list of contacts for overseas donations:

    Back issue vendors may be interested in runs of journals. The vendors will want a detailed list of volumes and issues and are only interested in full volumes.

    Sometimes there is nothing to do but throw things away (ouch). Remember the University of North Carolina recycles unbound and bound volumes. Unbound journals issues can also be recycled at the Orange County Convenience Center on Eubanks Road or at the recycling area behind the University Mall in Chapel Hill.

How can I tell the value of my donation?

    The library is prohibited by law from appraising donations or assigning monetary value to your gift. We do send a letter of acknowledgment that may be used for tax purposes if your gift is valued at under $5000.

    If you wish to determine a value for tax purposes, you should retain an independent appraiser to evaluate your collection before donating it to the library. You may be able to determine the value of particular items using one of these internet sites for rare and used books:

Are there other ways to contribute to the Health Sciences Library?

The Library welcomes your contributions to support outstanding programs, services and collections. You may contribute by becoming a member of the Friends of the Health Sciences Library or contributing through the Honor with Books Program. Visit our web site at: http://www.hsl.unc.edu/friends/friends.cfm. You may also contact the HSL Director of Development at 966-0943 to discuss a named endowment, major gift or planned gift to the Library.