The Hiram College Library is a selective depository for U.S. government publications, and has been since 1874. While its primary service population consists of the students, faculty, and staff of the Hiram College community, it also serves the people of the 14th Congressional District of Ohio. Because of this larger audience and wider range of potential clientele, selection of materials for the collection takes into account more than the information needs of a liberal arts college. As a selective depository, the library receives approximately 63% of federal publications made available through the Federal Depository Library Program (FDLP). This is a high percentage in comparison to other small college depositories, however we believe that it is important to be as comprehensive as possible in selection.
The Library receives U.S. government publications through the FDLP at no upfront cost, and agrees to hold all documents so obtained for at least five years (unless superseded) and maintain an organized and accessible collection. Permission must be obtained from the State Library of Ohio to dispose of individual documents after five years. The State Library has issued guidelines for this process. A large majority of publications added to the collection are retained permanently (or at least indefinitely), as they become an important historical record of activity and research by the federal government. Most government publications are now issued in electronic format, and the Library provides access through its catalog to these publications.
