Print is preferred, and paperbacks or library bound books are standard. E-books are valued for accessibility and multi-user capabilities, with purchases made independently or via cooperative arrangements.
Journals and newspapers are primarily digital, acquired through subscriptions and cooperative agreements. Select Appalachian regional newspapers are collected in print and databases. Microform journals and newspapers are no longer collected.
Audiovisual materials support academic programs, liberal arts education, and research, selected using the same criteria as books. The library maintains a CDs and maintains a vinyl collection but does not acquire books on tape. A DVD collection is maintained, and players are available on-site or for checkout. VHS tapes have been removed due to format obsolescence. The library maintains subscriptions to a small number of streaming audio and video databases as funding allows.
Sheet music is not regularly purchased.
Microforms are no longer collected, though select titles are retained.
Sheet maps are no longer collected or retained.
Popular reading approval plans are not used.