Materials Selection Policy

PURPOSE

This policy will provide a public statement detailing the philosophies underlying the Library’s collection and will also serve as a guide for the library staff in the selection of materials and the maintenance of the collection.

GENERAL PRINCIPLES

The Library provides equal access and service to all individuals and groups, both children and adults, in the Lockport City School District and the Town of Lockport.

The Library strives to meet the wide variety of educational, informational, and recreational needs and interests of all citizens within the community. The library provides professionally selected materials in various formats in order to build and maintain an active and vital collection of library materials carefully chosen for their intrinsic worth, timeliness and usefulness.

The Library subscribes to the American Library Association Library Bill of Rights and its interpretations, including Free Access to Libraries For Minors.

MISSION

The mission of the Lockport Public Library is to be the life-long learning center of the community by:

  • Promoting the love of reading and a thirst for knowledge from early childhood and continuing for a lifetime;
  • Treating each individual with the best of our particular knowledge and skills provided with respect for his or her opinions and privacy;
  • Presenting materials in an unbiased manner that promotes knowledge of all sides of an issue;
  • Providing fiscally adequate, responsible, competent & comprehensive library services to meet the many needs of our community;
  • Informing the public fully of the operations of their library that they may appreciate and use the services provided.

SCOPE OF COLLECTION

The Library actively provides timely, accurate and useful information for community residents in their pursuit of personal and professional interests. The library promotes on-site, telephone, and electronic reference and information services to assist users in locating information on subjects ranging from practical questions to consumer information. The nonfiction collection emphasizes informational materials.

The Library assists students at the elementary and secondary level in meeting educational objectives established during their formal courses of study. Through the Homework Center and Reference Department, the Library offers tours for classes and instructs students on using library tools.
 

The Library features current high-demand, high-interest materials for all ages, both fiction and nonfiction, in a variety of formats. The Library actively encourages the use of its collection. The staff is knowledgeable about current popular interest and anticipates publishing trends.

The Library provides services for children in order to encourage development of an interest in reading and learning. Service to children and families promotes life-long use of the Library and contributes to the Library’s role as an educational center for individuals of all ages. The staff is knowledgeable about the various stages of child development and aware of the many facets of

children’s literature. Materials are acquired to provide children with access to accurate and responsible portrayals of the complexities of human relationships and the imaginative and creative use of language and art.

COOPERATIVE AGREEMENT

The Lockport Public Library is a member of the NIOGA Library System, a nonprofit, state- funded cooperative, serving member public libraries in Niagara, Orleans and Genesee Counties. Part of the mission of the NIOGA Library System is to extend and improve library service to the residents of these counties by assisting local libraries in meeting the informational needs of communities through enhanced resource sharing.

Interlibrary loan is a formal agreement that allows the Library to borrow materials on behalf of its patrons from any participating library that agrees to lend the items. Materials owned throughout the NIOGA Library System may be available for interlibrary loan depending on the policies of the loaning library. These resource-sharing programs provided by the NIOGA Library

System have a direct effect on materials selection. Selection may be based on the availability of materials in the NIOGA Library System through interlibrary loan.

RESPONSIBILITY

The Board of Trustees of the Lockport Public Library determines the material selection policy for the Library. Administration of this policy is the responsibility of the Library Director. The actual selection of materials is delegated to professional staff members who are assigned responsibility for areas of selection. Suggestions from patrons are always welcome and are given serious consideration.

AIDS FOR SELECTION

Standard library reviewing sources are used as the basis for selecting materials. Review sources include but are not limited to the following:

Library Journal, Booklist, Publisher’s Weekly, School Library Journal, as well as general interest website and media reviews.

The Library staff may select materials from specialty publishers’ catalogs, publisher ads, jobbers’ catalogs, jobber standing order plans, and patrons’ suggestions for purchase.

CRITERIA FOR MATERIALS SELECTION

The Library staff shall use the following general criteria in the selection, duplication and replacement of library materials:

  • Anticipation of and prompt response to community and individual needs and interests.
  • Appropriateness of format, content and style
  • Value of material in relation to the whole collection
  • Currency and accuracy of material
  • Space considerations
  • Cost and budgetary consideration
  • Professional judgment
  • Current and historical significance
  • Attention of critics and reviewers
  • Need for additional or duplicate materials in the existing collection
  • Need for balance of viewpoints on subject
  • Suitability of physical format for library use
  • Reputation or significance of authors
  • Likelihood of being stolen based on past experience
  • Consistency with the Library’s mission and service roles
  • Availability of materials in the NIOGA Library System through interlibrary loan, and in special or more comprehensive library collections in the area
  • Equipment and hardware considerations
  • Picture books should have an easy-to-read typeface, illustrations harmonious with text, imaginative, and well-executed
  • Books in series are evaluated as individual titles and are added for their potential value to the collection
  • Books reflecting a wide range of reading and age levels
  • Availability of indexing for magazines and newspapers

The following types of materials are not purchased as a general rule unless there is an overriding local historical significance:

  • Genealogies
  • Rare books
  • Textbooks

COLLECTION MAINTENANCE

The Library recognizes the need for continuous evaluation of its collections in response to the changing nature and needs of its community through the deselection (withdrawal/weeding) of titles. Deselection of library materials is an integral part of collection development. An active and continuous deselection program is essential in maintaining a viable and useful collection. Careful, dependable deselection will enhance the readability and currency of the collection.

Deselection saves space and money. Weeded materials no longer cost money for cleaning, mending, extra shelving, and all the other hidden costs of maintenance and space, none of which are cut by lack of use. Systematic weeding increases staff knowledge of the collection. The criteria applied to selection form the basis for weeding the collection. Decisions will be based on accepted professional practice, such as those described in The CREW Method, and the professional judgment of the designated staff.

The following criteria for withdrawal of materials may -be used:

  • Physical condition beyond repair
  • Excess number of duplicate copies no longer in demand
  • Superseded editions
  • Outdated material
  • Insufficient use based on circulation statistics
  • Existing coverage of the subject within the collection
  • Availability of new and better materials on the subject
  • Space considerations
  • Availability of indexing
  • Inclusion in standard library catalogs
  • Availability of materials through other formats (e.g., electronic) Generally, discarded materials are sold at the Library’s book sale.

Adopted by the Lockport Public Library Board of Trustees June 27, 1996. Revised 11/23/00; 1/26/07; 11/21/19; 5/19/2022

Download Policy