Extreme Makeover: How We Decreased Our Collection by 40% and Simultaneously Increased It by 50% in 10 Months

The Brennan Library at Lasell College had not conducted a systematic weeding in over 20 years. With space in demand and an increase in online courses, desperate times called for drastic measures. Over a 10-month period, the library withdrew 40% of its tangible collections. Simultaneously, the staff’s focus shifted to promoting e-resources and adopting the EBSCO EDS discovery layer. Using a weighted collection development allocation formula, the librarians overhauled the materials budget and designed a departmental liaison program. After calculating the holdings of new e-book and streaming video packages, the library’s collection increased by 50% despite the massive deaccessioning. This paper describes how a small academic library with limited funds and staffing made major changes leading to positive perceptions and avoiding imposing threats. The Brennan Library added seating, zoned areas, and in-demand e-resources for a growing distance-learner population. By changing the collection development emphasis from just-in-case to just-in-time, the library now provides access to more items than ever before. The Brennan Library’s example illustrates that an access over ownership model of acquisitions can give similar libraries improved return on investment and positive improvements for stakeholders, provided that significant changes are communicated in a strategic manner emphasizing benefits for the user community.