Collections
The Library maintains print collections of books that are of special interest to the Kent State Stark community. When a title contains information of particular interest to the campus (as in the Archived Materials), the library attempts to obtain both a circulating copy of the title (one that users can checkout and take home to read) as well as an archived copy to preserve as part of the campus' historical record.
Archived Materials
The following collections are stored in the Library Director's Conference Room and can only be accessed by appointment. Click on the collections below to see a list of titles in the collection and access individual records in the KentLINK catalog.
- Rare Books Books the library has obtained and determined to be rare because of their age, author signatures, limited printing, etc.
- Local History Books in this collection were acquired specifically to reflect the interest of the surrounding geographical area.
- Featured Speakers Every year the campus invites important speakers to campus. As a fixed part of this initiative, the library acquires materials authored by the speaker.
- Faculty Publications Whenever a Kent State Stark faculty member (or staff member) authors a work, the library obtains a signed copy for its archives.
New Acquisitions
The library adds new titles to its collection year-round. In addition to selecting books reviewed in major journals, the library maintains an approval plan. Faculty on campus are alerted through the approval plan of new books in their discipline. Click on one of the links below to review new additions to the library's collection or learn more about the library's approval plan:
- Monthly This report provides all new materials acquired within the past thirty days.
- Departmental This report lists all of the titles added to the collection within the current fiscal year, listed by the academic department requesting the title.
- Approval Plan The library maintains an approval plan with YBP Library Services. The profile for this plan generates 50-100 notifications of recent publications of interest to various selectors (mostly Kent State Stark faculty) across a wide range of disciplines. The approval plan profile is available to review as well as instructions for selectors.
Leisure Reading
In addition to building a collection of materials relevant to the academic programs offered at Kent State Stark, the library maintains a collection of books for those who simply enjoy reading.
- Best Sellers Review a list of books in KentLINK that were selected from the New York Times Best Seller list. These books are for local users, so they cannot be requested on KentLINK. Users must come in the library, retrieve a best seller from the shelf next to the library's display case, and check it out in person in the Kent State Stark Library. Due to their anticipated popularity, these books have shorter loan periods than most other materials. If you have recently read a good book, feel free to Contact Us with the necessary information so that we could consider adding it to our collection.
- Displays The library has a large display case near the entrance to the building. Some displays are created to bring attention to current events, some bring focus to diverse aspects of our society, celebrating Black History, Women's History, LGBT Awareness, and some displays are just for fun. The displays are not only created to provide awareness of a particular issue, they also highlight various materials in the library's collection related to the issue displayed.