Mission Statement (June 1997)

The mission of the Branch District Library System is to provide the residents of Branch County with library collections and services to meet their educational, informational and recreational needs. This includes the traditional book format as well as CD-ROM, online collections and access to the Internet.

The Board is committed to serving people of all ages, with a special emphasis on children and youth.

Purpose

The purpose of the Materials Selection Policy is to guide librarians, etc., and to inform the public concerning the methods used by the Library to fulfill its obligation to our community, to provide open access to information in a neutral, unbiased, objective fashion.

Responsibility for Selection

In keeping with the laws of the State of Michigan, the Board delegates all selection of materials to the Library Director, who may in turn delegate parts of the selection process to professional staff, who by training and experience are qualified for this task.

Objectives in Materials Selection

A public library exists to communicate the diary of human experience to its community. To accomplish this goal, the library provides a wide array of formats: books, periodicals, pamphlets, newspapers, videos, maps, CD-ROMS, cassettes, microforms, and public access to electronic resources.

The scope of the collection is intended to offer a choice of format, viewpoint, and level of difficulty in comprehension. Materials for varying levels of education and differing social and religious customs are provided and are included on the open shelves of the collection.

The library also pays close attention to the professional, commercial, industrial, cultural, and civic enterprises of its community.

The collection is not intended to be either comprehensive or archival. Every effort is made to avoid needless duplication, but also provide an adequate number of copies for materials in demand due to popularity, class assignments, regional interests, etc. Specialized resources may be obtained from other libraries with Interlibrary Loan.

The Branch District Library exists to support but not to extend local public school libraries; so, local curriculum-based materials will not be purchased except as such materials might either serve or be requested by the general public.

Materials are evaluated as a whole and not on the basis of a particular passage or passages. A work will not be excluded from the library's collection because it presents an aspect of life honestly or because of frankness of expression.

Criteria in Selection

• Availability and suitability of physical form for use.
• Suitability of subject, style and reading level for the intended audience.
• Reputation and/or significance of author.
• Reputation of the publisher or producer.
• Quality of design and illustrations.
• Present and potential relevance to community needs.
• Demand for materials.
• Relationship to existing materials in the collection on the same subject.
• Availability and accessibility of the some material in the area.
• Appropriateness and effectiveness of medium to content.
• Importance as a document of the times.
• Insight into human and social conditions.
• Attention given by critics, reviewers, professional book selection aids and the public.

Non-Book Materials

The Library Staff considers that non-book materials represent an alternative format and may be selected when the non-book form best meets the needs of the community. In general, the same selection policies will apply.

Selection Aids

When making selection decisions, the librarians will rely upon a number of tools as well as as general criteria. Selectors use reviews and information found in a variety of sources and catalogs, as well as suggestions and requests from library patrons. Reviews of materials published in various professional periodicals, as well as general interest periodicals, will be consulted. Examples of periodicals include Library Journal, School Library Journal, Booklist, and the New York Times Book Review. In addition to review periodicals, the librarians may consult bibliographic record sources. In addition to the reviews and bibliographic listings and in cases where evaluative reviews are not available, the librarians will rely on professional knowledge and judgment.

Scope of Collection

Materials representing various points of view are acquired. Works normally are not excluded because of language or explicit text or illustrations, if they meet previously stated criteria.

The choice of library materials by users is an individual matter. While a person may reject materials for himself/herself, he/she cannot exercise censorship to restrict access to the materials by others.

Request for Reconsideration of Library Material

If a patron finds any portion of the library's collection objectionable, he or she may file a formal request for re-examination of the materials by completing a Citizen's Request for Reconsideration of Library Material form, which can be requested at any public service desk. A completed reconsideration form will be reviewed by the appropriate department head and director who will respond to the patron in written form describing the action the library will take in regard to the challenge. The Materials Selection Policy will act as the basis for the response. If a patron is not satisfied with the staff response, the request for reconsideration may be taken to the Board of Trustees. The Board will decide what course of action to take.

Access

Processing and shelving of materials shall in no way reflect a value judgment of the materials. There will be no labeling of any item or of its electronic records or catalog cards to indicate its point of view or bias. All materials except for documents will be shelved in their proper order on open shelves freely and easily accessible to the public.

The Library assures free access to its holdings. All patrons are free to select or reject for themselves any item in the collection. Individual or group opinions about a particular item or type of material in the collection may not preclude its use by others.

Responsibility for a child's reading must rest with the parent or guardian, not with the Library. Parents and guardians give their minor children authorization for a library card by signing a registration card and indicating which services they wish their minor children to have.

Weeding

Book withdrawal is an important aspect of collection development. When library books lose the value for which they were originally selected, they should be withdrawn so that the collection remains vital and useful. The withdrawal of books is done by the professional staff and is based on the following guidelines:

• To remove physically worn out or damaged volumes from the library.
• To eliminate books containing obsolete information.
• To remove duplicate copies of titles which have waned in popularity, eliminating those most physically damaged or worn.
• To consider for withdrawal books which have not been checked out for several years.

The professional staff will make the final decisions regarding the disposition of books withdrawn from the collection. Withdrawn books, which in the estimation of the professional staff are appropriate for further use, will be given to organizations or institutions under the following conditions and priorities:

• All books will be stamped: "WITHDRAWN" over the ownership marks.
• Withdrawals which are to be donated will be dispersed according the following priorities:
  • Friends of the Library
  • Other Libraries
  • Other non-profit organizations or institutions

Approved by the Branch District Library Board 5/18/1998