The library is removing worn and out-of-date books from its possession for the purpose of making it more digital friendly.

Due to students expressing a stronger desire for electronic resources, the decision was made to have books removed from the library.

Though the majority of students may prefer having digital resources rather than print, the question of why books are being removed from the library still remains.

Megan Lowe said the reason for the “deselection process” is to remove books that have built up over the years.

“A library is a lot like a garden. If you just start planting everything and never weeding anything, your garden is going to get a lot of bugs, weeds, and problems,” said Lowe, coordinator of public services.

The bugs and weeds Lowe refers to are books in the library as old as the 50’s and 60’s. She said some are even as old as the late 1800’s, which will be added to a historical collection.

Lowe said they’re “weeding” in all parts of the library’s book collection, from the A’s to the Z’s.

“For the health of a library collection you once in a while have to weed a collection,” said Lowe.

Lowe also said the books are not only being removed because of their age, but by their relevance and rate of use.

Usage statistics show that print materials circulation has been less than e-book use for the last ten years, according to Don Smith.

Smith said students commonly ask “don’t you have anything electronic on the subject?” and prefer electronic materials rather than print even when both are available.

Smith said books are being removed or kept according to those that are available electronically, and those that aren’t.

Jana Giles said the deselecting process could possibly affect her.

“As a professor, there are books I need for teaching and research that I think the library should retain,” said Giles, assistant professor of English.

Giles said she has no problem with those books being removed so long as they are available electronically.

Victoria Oden, a senior English major, finds the deselection process saddening.

“We are losing what will always be the most profound joy to me, finding a book in a library. It’s like finding hidden treasure,” Oden said.

Oden said finding books electronically seemed dull in comparison to random discovery.

The deselecting process will create more free spaces to be equipped with the latest technology and more study rooms for students.