GENERAL STATEMENT

Description of Department and Programs

The Department of Economics consists of twenty six faculty members including the Chair, Robert I. Bell Ph.D.

Library Liaison: Dr. Taiwo Amoo

The Department of Economics offers the following degree programs:

· B.A. Economics

· B.S. Business

· B.S. Management

· B.S. Finance

· B.S. Accounting

· B.S.- M.P.S. in Economics and Computer and Information Science.

· B.A. Social Studies Teachers grades 7-12

· Certificate of Achievement (Accounting)

Library Facilities:

The library maintains a collection of books, serials, government documents and electronic resources selected to provide curriculum and research support for the students and faculty of the economics department.

A. Funding:

The acquisitions budget varies from year to year, depending on general economic conditions and variations in New York State tax rates and tax collections.

General Approach to Materials Selection

Materials acquisitions are dependent on the extensive expertise of the faculty. Typically, acquisition lists are presented to the librarian by the library liaison. Books on the acquisition list are bench marked using the acquisitions of other colleges and universities and statistical citation analysis.

Print and electronic materials are evaluated and selected using reviews published in:

· Choice

· Library Journal

· Booklist

· Various publishers catalogs

Online selection resources include:

· Books in Print

· World Cat

· Institute of Scientific Information Index

B. Level of Difficulty

Materials collected for the economics department will support economics and accounting education from the baccalaureate to master level. Highly advanced materials, above the master level are available at the CUNY Graduate Center.

C. Languages:

Materials are collected in English.

D. Format:

All formats, print and electronic, will be considered with the following selection criteria in mind:

· Departmental need

· Budgetary considerations

· Cost savings

Electronic resources requiring a subscription for access as well as free electronic resources, will be evaluated for content that supports of the economics/accounting curriculum. Items meeting educational and curriculum goals of the economics department will be added to the subject guide available at the Brooklyn College Library home page.

E. Duplication:

While it is the policy of the library not to order duplicate books, duplication will be considered on a case by case basis; particularly if a book is in high demand by the students and faculty members.

F. Selection Activity:

When funds become available, the subject bibliographer will advise the library liaison of the amount and availability of the funds. Next, the library liaison will discuss departmental needs with the faculty. From this activity an acquisitions list will emerge. Working closely with the library liaison, the subject bibliographer will submit the acquisitions list to the technical services department for order processing, cataloging, and delivery.

G. Weeding Policy:

The rate of information decay in the field of economics is increasing. However, the collection should stress the importance of primary journals, both print and electronic. However, since the evolution of the field of economics is increasingly dominated by mathematical modeling and the application of high speed computers, we should exercise judgment in weeding books and other materials of true historic significance while addressing new needs in mathematical economics, computer applications in accounting, economics and international finance.

Updated: May 8, 2002
Prof. James Castiglione