About the Library Collections

Collections Overview

The University Library includes more than 2.5 million items, including access to more than 22,000 periodicals and 250,000 U.S. Government publications, and provides global access to help meet the curricular, scholarly, and recreational needs of students and faculty of St. Cloud State University and residents of Central Minnesota.

Managing the collections involves a collaborative effort between library liaisons, faculty, program administrators, and students to develop a collection that represents user needs and University programs.

University Archives and Special Collections

University Archives maintains St. Cloud State University’s corporate memory by preserving and making available records, photographs and publications of long-term value. The records detail St. Cloud State’s development and serves as a resource of information about St. Cloud State’s programs, people, policies and properties.

In addition to information about St. Cloud State, University Archives houses and manages records from organizations related to the University along with collections of rare books and publications and papers of Central Minnesota authors including Sinclair Lewis.

Acquisitions and Processing

The library’s acquisitions and electronic resources librarians and staff coordinate the purchase and processing of additions to the library’s collections, including books (monographs), reference resources, serials (journals, newspapers, etc.), videos, films, microforms, and electronic access to online resources.

Acquisitions is also responsible for labeling, temporary binding and repair, preparing bookbinding shipments to a vendor when necessary, and preparing theses for microfilming. 

Cataloging

Cataloging provides access to resources in the library's physical and digital collections by creating and maintaining bibliographic metadata to describe and organize library materials in all formats.