Summary

This policy addresses accepting gifts of books, journals, videos and resources in other formats offered to UNT Libraries in support of teaching and research information needs of University students and faculty.

Purpose

The UNT Libraries will review gifts of unique and archival collections in support of the academic teaching and research mission of the university. The UNT Libraries are not currently accepting donations of monographs for the general collections.

Material Donations

Upon receipt donated materials become the property of the Library. Accordingly the UNT Libraries are under no obligation to discuss retention decisions with the donor or other parties. Gift materials that the Library keeps and catalogs are added to the collections.

We solicit the following types of materials for consideration to add to the collections:

• Materials that support the teaching and research needs of UNT students and faculty.
• Works published within the past three years.
• Scholarly treatments of topics.
• Works in the following languages:
  • French
  • Hebrew
  • Italian
  • Latin
  • Spanish
  • Japanese

Monetary donations

Gifts of funds in support of the UNT Libraries are also appreciated. Such gifts may be designated to support acquisitions in a specific subject area, or may be for the unrestricted use of the Library. Refer such gifts to the Assistant Dean for External Relations (See CONTACTS).

Restrictions

Gifts are accepted at the discretion of the Head of Collection Development, the Head of Archives and Rare Books, or the Head of the Music Library with the understanding that there are no conditions attached to their disposition.

Gifts to which the donor has attached conditions, such as those concerning retention, housing, or classification, may not be accepted for inclusion in the collections, nor can the UNT Libraries impose restrictions on use that will negatively affect access to the materials. (These restrictions do not apply to personal papers and archival materials that are governed by a separate policy administered by the Library’s Special Collections Department.) SEE CONTACTS.

Gifts that will require commitment of funds or special facilities must be approved by the Dean of the Libraries or his/her designee.

Offers to donate books from organizations should be referred to the Head of Collection Development (See [CONTACTS]CONTACTS.).

Tax Deductions

Federal tax law generally allows individual donors who give non-cash gifts to the University to claim a charitable contribution deduction for the fair market value of the gift. Donors are encouraged to consult legal, tax accounting, or other professional advisors about the current IRS regulations (www.irs.gov) governing non-cash charitable contributions.

The UNT Libraries are not permitted by the IRS to give donors an estimate of the value of gifts. Donors are responsible for meeting the appraisal requirements of the IRS for any contributions claimed. Appraisal fees must be borne by the donor.

For IRS reporting purposes, it is important to note that it is the responsibility of the donor to keep accurate records describing the individual items donated and the value attached to each item. The Libraries do not supply itemized lists of donations. The donor indicates on the Gift Acceptance Form whether they will claim the donation as a tax deduction. If so, the donor will:

1. Indicate the value of the donation that they are claiming.
2. If they are reporting a value between 500 - $4999, they must attach an IRS 8283 form (this does not require an appraisal). Please see the 8283 form here and the IRS information regarding the 8283 form
3. If they are reporting a value of $5,000 and over, they must attach an IRS 8283 and have an appraisal.

Contacts

To offer a gift to the Libraries, or to obtain further information, please contact:

Todd Enoch

Head of Collection Development
University of North Texas Libraries
941 Precision Drive
Denton, TX 76207
phone: (940) 565-2516
e-mail: todd.enoch@unt.edu

To offer rare books, archival materials, genealogical primary materials or personal papers, please contact:

Morgan Gieringer

Head, Special Collections
University of North Texas Libraries
1155 Union Circle #305190
Denton, TX 76203
phone: (940) 369-8657
e-mail: morgan.gieringer@unt.edu

To offer gifts to the Media Library, please contact:

Jenn Washburn

Head, Media Library
University of North Texas Libraries
1155 Union Circle #305190
Denton, TX 76203
phone: (940) 565-4832
e-mail: jenn.washburn@unt.edu

Susannah Cleveland

Head, Music Librarian
University of North Texas Libraries
1155 Union Circle #305190
Denton, TX 76203
phone: (940) 565-2859
e-mail: susannah.cleveland@unt.edu

To offer monetary donations, please contact:

Dreanna Belden

Assistant Dean for External Relations
University of North Texas Libraries
1155 Union Circle #305190
Denton, TX 76203
phone: (940) 369-8740
e-mail: dreanna.belden@unt.edu

Dates

• Approval: 06/19/12
• Revised: 09/18/18
• Reviewed: 07/08/24

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