Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

It's Time To Look That Gift Horse In The Mouth: Approaches To Managing Gifts, Kathleen Spring

Faculty & Staff Presentations

Many librarians have a love-hate relationship with gift donations. Gifts can be a welcome source of material for a library’s collection and can provide great public relations opportunities for libraries, but their associated costs – including the amount of time it takes to review and process donations – are very real. Is accepting gifts worth the effort, or is it time to send the proverbial gift horse packing? This session engaged attendees in discussion about a variety of issues pertaining to gift donations, such as: How do you handle an onslaught of donations at the same time with minimal staffing? …