Wadsworth Public Library
Collection Development Policy
I. Introduction
- A. Mission Statement
- The mission of the Wadsworth Public Library is to improve the quality of life by providing access to the world through opportunities for seeking knowledge, gathering information, and pursuing creative use of leisure time. These activities will be based upon the needs of the community while respecting every individual's right to intellectual freedom.
- B. Purpose of the Collection Development Policy
- Because no library budget is large enough to permit the purchase of every worthy resource, this collection development policy guides the Library staff in most effectively using the Library's financial resources to fulfill the present and anticipated needs of the community it serves. The Wadsworth Public Library's community is primarily the citizens within the Wadsworth City School District and, secondarily, the citizens of the state of Ohio. The Library is supported by local property tax and by a portion of the state income tax. A policy cannot replace the judgment of librarians, but stating goals and indicating boundaries will assist staff in selecting Library resources, evaluating the collection, and maintaining the collection's currency, relevancy, and usefulness.
II. Collection
- A. Purpose of the Collection
- The purpose of the Wadsworth Public Library is to serve the community by providing for its informational and recreational needs. To fulfill this purpose, the Library acquires, makes available, and encourages the use of materials in all media for the enlightenment, cultural development, and enjoyment of members of its community of all ages and levels of ability or interest. The Wadsworth Public Library affirms the Library Bill of Rights (Appendix A) and its interpretations as adopted by the American Library Association. The addition of material to the Library does not constitute or imply agreement with or approval of its content, but assures that a variety of differing points of view are represented. The Library furnishes materials for loan, provides resources for research in the library building, and provides access to worldwide databases through the Internet.
- B. Collection Defined
- The collection of the Wadsworth Public Library includes materials in print, audiovisual, or electronic formats selected for its community of users. In addition, in response to advances in technology and the changing information needs of the community, the library also offers access to the Internet, which is governed by the Library's Internet Use Policy (Appendix B). [For Internet resources, the Library has a homepage which highlights the Library and its services and presents a subject approach to selected Internet sites.] Wadsworth Public Library recognizes that each individual has informational, recreational, cultural, and educational needs and interests important to him or her. The Library also recognizes that it has limited financial resources and has a responsibility to use its public funds to serve the entire community. Consequently, the Library's collection reflects the collective informational, recreational, cultural, and educational needs of the community as opposed to any one individual's needs. The Library uses other available avenues––interlibrary loan, appropriate referral, or redirection––to serve the individual whose needs are either outside the scope of the Library's collection or are remote from the acknowledged collective needs of the community the Library primarily serves.
III. Collection Development
- A. Level of Collection Development
- Due to budget and size, Wadsworth Public Library collects in subject areas at the Basic Information Level as defined by the American Library Association's collection level definitions (Appendix C). Collecting at this level means that the Library will usually purchase materials that serve "to introduce and define a subject and to indicate the varieties of information available elsewhere." Research materials and resources, whether for informational or educational purposes, are collected for preschool through community college levels. Recreational materials are collected for life–long enjoyment.
- Wadsworth Public Library recognizes the variety and wealth of resources of the many libraries nearby and strives to avoid unnecessary and costly duplication of physical library items easily obtainable within the geographic area. The Library's staff is trained to offer suggestions for further research possibilities or to request materials from other libraries for the patron. The Library belongs to the Clevnet catalog network and to the Cleveland Area Metropolitan Library System (a coalition of public, school, academic, and special libraries in the area). If a patron requests an item within the scope of the Library's collection, every attempt will be made to provide access to or to purchase that item.
- One subject area in which the Library tries to collect at a comprehensive level is the history of the city of Wadsworth and of Wadsworth Township. The Library endeavors, so far as is reasonably possible, to include all significant works of recorded knowledge (publications, manuscripts, and other forms) on these topics.
- B. Authority and Responsibility for Collection Development
- The Director delegates the authority and responsibility for collection development and management to the appropriate department heads. However, ultimate responsibility for materials selection rests with the Director who operates within the framework of policies determined by the Wadsworth Public Library Board of Trustees. The Library's Collection Management Plan describes the selection, development, and maintenance plans for the Library's various collections.
IV. Selection of Resources
- A. Criteria
- Whatever the format and for whatever age the material is intended, the principles upon which Library material is evaluated include the following criteria:
- Resources are selected to fill the needs of both actual and potential users, within the constraints of space, availability of funds, and perceived needs of the primary service area of the Library.
- Each resource is evaluated according to its value to the collection and the audience for whom it is intended.
- Each resource is evaluated according to professional standards for the type and format which could include any of these criteria: accuracy; scope; timeliness; readability or technical quality; social significance or relevancy; literary or recreational value; authority of the author or source; relationship to other materials or resources in its field or format; comprehensiveness; clarity and effectiveness of its presentation; accessibility; usability of arrangement; appropriateness of format.
A resource which does not meet the standards for its type may still be selected if it presents a point of view not otherwise represented in the collection or if community demand justifies purchase or access.
Resources of current interest, which may be of temporary value, are selected if timeliness gives them relevance. Resources of potential future value, for which immediate demand is small, are selected for their lasting importance. - A resource is evaluated as a whole, not on the basis of a particular section or sections.
- Resources representing different viewpoints on controversial issues will be acquired or made available, including those which may have unpopular or unorthodox positions. The library recognizes the importance of making available a variety of viewpoints, realizing that a resource which might offend one person may be considered meaningful by another.
- A resource will not be selected, or excluded from selection, solely for the reason of the race, color, religion, gender, sexual preference, national origin, disability, age, ancestry, or other characteristic of the author or the source.
- A resource will not be excluded from selection solely because of its frankness of expression, unorthodox language, nontraditional theme, or unusual presentation.
- The availability of a resource in the service area of the library or the accessibility of a resource through interlibrary loan does affect the selection process and is especially important when evaluating specialized resources within the context of the collective needs of the community.
- One area where resources will be selected regardless of selection criteria is Wadsworth local history. The Library will strive toward comprehensiveness in this area.
- B. Format
- When the same item is available in several formats, selection is based on the formats most suitable for the subject, the ease of use by the patron most likely to use the item, the availability, and the level of usage by the community.
- When available and appropriate, a format which better serves the visually handicapped or hearing–impaired is considered.
- If a book is to be retained permanently, preference is given to hardbound copy over paper. A nonprint format (e.g. microform) is an option for retention of an item (or run of periodicals) which is fragile, would easily deteriorate, or would consume a large amount of space. Electronic access is an option for resources which are high–priced or high–maintenance or are not readily available in another format.
- C. Duplication
- Depending on budget and space, the Library purchases or leases multiple copies of items in heavy demand. The decision for duplication and the number of extra items remains with the selecting librarian.
- The Library does not necessarily attempt to duplicate titles or items in sufficient quantity to meet the assigned informational demands of local institutions, schools and colleges, or non–institutional reading groups.
- D. Patron Recommendations
- Wadsworth Public Library welcomes suggestions for purchase of Library materials [or for the inclusion of links to specific internet sites]. Decision for purchase or inclusion is made by the selecting librarian according to the Collection Development Policy.
- E. Donations
- Donated material is accepted with the understanding that any donated item is evaluated according to the Collection Development Policy. The cost of processing, the availability of space, the suitability of format, and the physical condition of the item are factors in the selection process. The Library accepts donated materials only with the understanding that they are used or disposed of as the Library determines is appropriate.
- No donated item can be accepted with restrictive conditions unless the conditions are specifically approved by the Director. An exception is a subject request for a memorial gift. In this case, the librarian purchases a memorial item in a requested subject area according to the Collection Development Policy. If a donor requests a specific title or item as a memorial gift, it can only be accepted if the item would be purchased as part of the regular selection process.
- The Library does not provide evaluations of donated items for tax purposes.
- F. Withdrawal of Resources
- Resources are regularly withdrawn from the collection by the selecting librarians for the following reasons:
- The resource is no longer accurate, current, or timely.
- The item is physically worn or damaged beyond reasonable repair or cannot be rebound properly.
- The item can be replaced at a lower cost than repair or rebinding.
- The resource's value to the collection has decreased as other comparable resources have been added to the collection.
- The resource is no longer being used frequently enough to justify its space in the collection or the staff time to maintain.
Withdrawn items may be sold at a modest price by the Friends of the Wadsworth Public Library at publicly announced sales, with proceeds used by the Friends of the Wadsworth Public Library to enhance services of the Library.
- G. Reconsideration of Resources
- A procedure is available to assure that objections or complaints about Library resources are handled in an attentive and consistent manner. The Library will review the selection of a specific item upon the written submission of a completed "Request for Reconsideration of Library Materials" form (Appendix D). This form is available at the Circulation Desk, the Adult Reference Desk, Children's Room, and on the Bookmobile.
