Diversity Statements in Collection Development Policies in Libraries at CCCU Institutions: Applying Antiracism and Critical Theory to Academic Library Policies

The Council of Christian College and Universities (CCCU) has made diversity a major focus of the organization, but commitment to diversity among individual CCCU institutions and within their departments, such as academic libraries, varies. Diversity is a core value of the library profession and complements the CCCU’s commitment to diversity, yet despite this convergence of interests, a review of the literature indicates that nothing has been written about diversity initiatives within academic libraries at CCCU institutions. This study was devised to begin to fill this gap in the literature and, thus, starts to investigate racial diversity within Christian higher education through the purview of the academic library’s collection development policy. To that end, this study focuses on whether collection development policies in academic libraries at CCCU institutions include a diversity statement, and, for those that do, document analysis is used to identify the themes and connotations that emerge around the term diversity. The study frames its analysis of diversity through the lens of critical theory and antiracism, provides guidelines for writing an exemplary diversity statement, and reflects on the responsibility of academic libraries at Christian institutions to promote diversity through its collection development