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Policies & Governance

Information about the J. W. Martin Library.

Note on Access Policies

NWOSU Library Services’ access policies were created to ensure that each patron may borrow materials for a time long enough to accomplish needed academic tasks, yet short enough to ensure that materials are available to other members of the university community who may wish to use them.

Want to know how long you can check out items? See the page on Borrowing for loan limits.

Challenges to Library Materials

The librarians and staff of the Northwestern Libraries support freedom of speech in accordance with the United States Constitution and the guidelines of the American Library Association (ALA).

All materials in the libraries have been selected using established criteria; therefore, some materials may be offensive to some individuals.

For further reading, see:

Children in NWOSU Libraries

The Northwestern Libraries’ collections and services were developed for its community of academic users. Therefore, not all materials are appropriate for K–12 students.

The libraries operate within an adult, unsupervised environment. The library staff is not responsible for unsupervised children. Children under eighteen must be accompanied by a parent or adult caregiver, or must be supervised in the context of a public school- or university-sponsored activity previously arranged with the library staff.

Unsupervised children may speak to a librarian for assistance with information needs.

  • Children are not allowed in the library / study lounge on the Woodward Campus.

  • For reasons of safety, children are not allowed on the library’s second-floor balcony on the Alva campus.

Collection Development Policy

See the document below for the current policy.

Strategic Plan

See the document below for the current plan.