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Thank you for considering Mount St. Mary’s Seminary & School of Theology (MTSM) for your donation!

The inclusion of tangible gifts into the Maly Library collection is based on relevance to MTSM’s mission as a Roman Catholic seminary and graduate school of theology, its curriculum, faculty research interests, the collection development policy, the condition of the material, and the donation guidelines. Gifts not added to our collection are distributed in other ways.

To donate or to ask questions regarding donations to the library, please contact the library at 513-233-6136 or library@athenaeum.edu.

Subject Matter of Donated Items

The Maly Library serves students, scholars, local parishioners, new converts, and others interested in learning more about Catholicism. We welcome donations in the following content areas:

• Philosophy and theology (especially from a Catholic perspective)
• Biblical studies (including commentaries from all Christian faith traditions)
• Church history; Catholic music, arts, architecture, literature
• Christian life and practice (morality, ethics, prayer, spirituality, etc.)
• Catechesis, canon law, pastoral administration, homiletics, etc.
• Materials related to the Athenaeum of Ohio, MTSM, the Archdiocese of Cincinnati, local parishes, or Catholicism in Ohio

In general, we do not accept textbooks, audio cassettes or CDs, videocassettes, popular magazines or media, children’s materials, scrapbooks, materials in binders, etc.

Types of Items Accepted

• Books and pamphlets
• Journals (scholarly only; no magazines)
• Manuscripts, incunabula, scrolls, and other rare items 
• Religious artifacts (statues, medals, holy cards) on a case-by-case basis

Conditions of Acceptance

Materials must be in good condition, i.e., clean and undamaged. We do not accept items with extensive underlining and markings, water damage, loose binding, torn or fraying pages, mold and mildew, etc.

The library can handle a limited number of donations at a time. Please follow these guidelines and be selective about what is donated.

Gifts accepted by the Maly Library become the property of MTSM. Donors are generally not allowed to place special restrictions on the use or disposal of the gifts. At the discretion of the library staff, donated items may be:

• added to the Maly Library collection
• made available to students, faculty, and guests of MTSM
• donated to other libraries
• sold in book sales
• disposed of in an environmentally mindful way

Upon the Donor’s request, the library staff will acknowledge the gift of donated items by a written form letter. We cannot provide an inventory listing of the donation nor an estimate of a gift’s value. Obtaining an appraisal or valuation statement is the Donor’s responsibility.

Delivering Item Donations

The library does not pick up books or other gift materials. It is the Donor’s responsibility to bring or send donations to the library during open hours. Please contact us ahead of time to make arrangements.

Options for Your Donations

For items that do not fit our guidelines or for bulk donations that the Maly Library staff cannot manage, we suggest the following:

• Find a local institution (high school, homeless shelter, parish, prison, public library, etc.) willing to accept the donation.
• The Friends of the Public Library of Cincinnati accepts donations. For details, see https://www.cincylibraryfriends.org/. 
• Donate at local bookstores such as Half Price Books or the Book Rack; Better World Books via local drop boxes; St. Vincent de Paul or other thrift stores.
• Look into donating books for preservation and digitization via the Internet Archive: https://openlibrary.org/bookdrive.

Monetary Donations

Monetary gifts and memorial contributions are welcome and may be mailed to Maly Library, 6616 Beechmont Avenue, Cincinnati, OH 45230. Please make checks out to the Athenaeum of Ohio. Upon request, items purchased with gifts or memorial funds may be recognized with special donor bookplates. We are open to suggestions for topics. As with any donated items, the library staff reserves the right to withdraw material purchased with donated or memorial funds.