Collection Development Policy | Putnam County District Library

Collection Development Policy
The purpose of this policy is to guide staff members in building and maintaining the Putnam County District Library’s (PCDL) collection and to explain to the public how collection decisions are made.

Collection development is an ongoing activity at the PCDL. The collection evolves as material formats, community needs and interests change. The PCDL fulfills its mission by selecting materials for the enlightenment, cultural development, and enjoyment of all members of the public. This includes persons of all ages and many levels of interest and ability.

An author’s origin, gender, background, or viewpoint will not cause his or her work to be summarily excluded from the collection. Selection and deselection of materials will not be based on anticipated approval or disapproval, but rather upon the merits of the work in relation to the community’s needs and interests. The library makes an effort to have information on all sides of controversial issues. Censorship is an individual matter. Every person has the right to reject items themselves, but no one has the right to censor or to restrict the freedom of others to read, view, and listen.

All libraries are likely to contain materials which any given patron may find objectionable. Additionally, a library’s collection may not contain all the materials which some patrons feel are important. All opinions are welcome, and this policy establishes procedures which allow patrons to make their opinions known in either case.

The responsibility for monitoring a child’s reading, listening, and viewing rests with the parent or legal guardian. Selection of materials for the entire library is not restricted by the possibility that children may find materials that their parents consider inappropriate.

The PCDL does not label materials except to aid the public in finding them in the library. Thus, stickers such as “new” or “mystery” may be used; judgmental statements as “This material contains language which some may find offensive” will not.

The PCDL supports the principles set forth in the Library bill of rights and Freedom to Read statement adopted by the American Library Association (See Appendix A and Appendix B).

Responsibility for Selection of Library Materials
Final responsibility for the collection rests with the Director, subject to the policies and mandates of the Board of Trustees. The Youth Services Supervisor oversees the selection of all juvenile and young adult materials including movies rated G or PG for all library locations. The Reference Librarian oversees the selection of all non-fiction and reference materials for all locations. The Director oversees the selection of all fiction, music, and movies rated PG-13 or R for all locations. The Director is also responsible for the deselection of all library materials at all locations.

Collection Objectives
The PCDL affirms the following collection development objectives:

To provide patrons with equal access to information regardless of their age, gender, race, background, religion, beliefs, sexual orientation, economic status, or any other factor.
To meet patrons’ informational, educational, cultural, and recreational needs by providing equitable access to a well-balanced, unbiased collection of materials in a variety of formats and reading levels.
To support patrons’ intellectual freedom by building an unbiased collection representing many points of view.
To remain responsive to the community’s changing needs and interests.
To organize, maintain, and administer the collection in a responsible manner.

Principles of Collection Development
The collection is targeted to the local community, addressing the needs of both current and potential library users. To best serve the community, selectors have a professional responsibility to be inclusive, not exclusive, when choosing items. It is improper for a selector to include or exclude an item solely on the basis of his or her personal opinions or beliefs.

Items are evaluated as a whole, not on the basis of a particular section or sections. Thus, an item will not be included or excluded from the collection because of:

The author’s race, religion, nationality, sexual orientation, or views.
Depictions or descriptions of violence or sexual activity.
Controversial content.
Endorsement or disapproval by an individual or community group.

The content, not the format, is the most important consideration. Limited space may make it necessary to have needed information in an electronic format rather than in the original or “hard” copy.

Collection Scope
Both circulating and reference materials will be collected at the General Interest/Initial Study level for a subject areas. This level is defined as follows:

The library system shall house a selective collection of print and non-print materials which is adequate to support general interest, high school and some undergraduate introductory courses, and the beginning stages of independent study. The emphasis is on recent materials intended to meet the general reading interests of the lay person and the student. It should be comprehensive enough to support broad subject areas, but is not designed to provide support for all sub-topics in subject areas. The collection includes recognized significant works from the past, a broad selection of the works of the more important writers and some major works of secondary writers. Current editions of major reference works providing broad subject coverage and some reference sources covering selected sub - topics are purchased. Periodical subscriptions include the general titles plus some that cover specialized or important aspects of the subject. Growth and development are gradual.

Because the PCDL currently serves patrons in eight (8) locations, it is occasionally necessary to obtain multiple copies of important or popular titles and/or authors.

The vast majority of printed materials are collected in English. The library collects a limited number of Spanish language titles. The library does not attempt to provide a wide selection of recreational rea ding materials in any foreign language. Foreign films in the original language with subtitles are preferred over dubbed versions, unless reviews indicate that the subtitles are difficult to read. A small collection of materials is maintained to aid those for whom English is a foreign or second language.

The PCDL purchases large print books to assist patrons with visual disabilities. The lib rary attempts to purchase both popular and classic titles in this format.

The PCDL does not acquire textbooks, professional or academic journals, or other curriculum -related materials except as such materials might also serve the general public (for example, basic science books). Nor does the library 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. However, multiple copies of titles are available with advance notice from other library systems.

General Selection Criteria
Because its ability to purchase and store materials is limited by both budgets and buildings, the PCDL has established criteria for the purchase and retention of materials. The criteria include, but are not limited to:

Current patron interest
Timeliness
Educational significance
Accuracy or representative of a particular point of view
Contribution to the breadth of representative viewpoints
Value commensurate with cost and/or need
Reputation of the author/publisher/producer

Whenever possible, selectors will base purchases upon reviews found in professional library revi ew sources. Since not every item is reviewed, publishers’ and producers’ catalo gs sometimes provide the only available information about a title. While catalogs are valuable resources, selectors must remember to consider a publisher’s reputation and exercise caution about accepting a copywriter’s evaluation of a work. Many professional library organizations and journals release annual lists for the most outstanding items. These lists, representing the collective opinion of the library profession, are valuable selections resources and selectors are encouraged to consult them.

Selection by Format
In addition to the general selection criteria stated above, selectors will consider additional criteria depending on an item’s format.

Audio-books
Audio-books will meet the same criteria as printed books. Additionally, selectors must consider the availability of replacement CDs should a portion of the audio -book become damaged.

E-Books
E-Books will meet the same criteria as printed books. Currently, the PCDL belongs to the Serving Every Ohioan (SEO) Consortium and purchases E-books for a shared catalog. Selectors must consider the parameters of this collection when choosing E-books.

Books
Printed books comprise the bulk of the collection. Fiction will include not only the classics and bestsellers but also competent or successful works in a wide range of genres. Non-fiction titles will be considered based on the significance and relevance of the subject, accuracy, timeliness and effectiveness of presentation. Selectors will consider a book’s construction and durability while making purchase decisions.

Electronic Resources
Electronic resources and databases are chosen based on the resources’ scope, ease of use, and interface in addition to gaps in the collection and patron interest.

Government Documents
The PCDL is not a depository library and cannot collect all documents published by the federal government or the State of Ohio. The library does acquire a small number of government documents likely to be of use to its patrons.

Periodicals
Magazines and newspapers are purchased for up-to-date information, coverage of local news, the ability to meet the community’s interests, and for use in the selection of other materials.

Video/Audio Recordings
Video and audio recordings are selected for artistic and technical quality, in additio n to public interest and the effectiveness of the format in presenting material on a specific topic.

Both fiction and nonfiction videos for adults and children are included in the collection. Current releases are included as well as classics and foreign titles. The goal is to have a wide range of quality items, especially titles or types not available elsewhere in the community. As a rule, the library purchases all films that have won major awards (Academy Award Golden Globe, etc.). Such awards are an indication of quality. Public performance rights are purchased for films that can be used for multiple library programs.

Based on reviews, selectors may elect to buy several titles in a series but not the entire series. Ths applies to series with stand-alone episodes and not to those which are continuous.

Many videos include the MPAA Rating (G, PG, PG-13, R and NC-17) on the original package. This packaging is generally preserved in the library’s processing procedures. The presence of an MPAA Ra ting gives consumers some decision-making information, but patrons should understand that it is just one rating source. MPAA ratings are both private and anonymous; studios choose to receive them on a voluntary basis. The rating does not have the force of law, and reflects cultural attitudes prevalent at the time of the movie’s production. A movie that would get one rating this year could get another rating next year. For this reason, the PCDL will not affix any additional rating codes to the video pack age. Additionally selectors will not summarily include or exclude a title from the collection solely on the basis of an “R” rating. Selectors must choose titles based on each work’s merits and not merely rely upon the subjective MPAA rating system.

Standing Order Plans
Titles on standing order have three (3) characteristics in common:

The titles are seldom reviewed
The titles are often issued on a regular basis
The titles are important enough to the collection that receiving them automatically without evaluating individual volumes is better than missing them.

Examples of items on standing order are travel guides, annual reference books, books by best-selling authors, and books in a series.

Deselection of Library Materials (Weeding)
The library continually withdraws items from the collection, basing its decisions on a number of factors, including publishing dates, frequency of circulation, community interest, and availability of newer or more valid materials. Items dealing with local history are an exception, as are certain classics and award winning children’s books. Fiction that was once popular but no longer in demand and non -fiction items that are no longer useful are withdrawn from the collection.

Withdrawn items are donated to the Friends of the Putnam County District Library for book sales. The proceeds from such sales are used for the benefit of the library. Books that are not sold will be disposed of at the discretion of the Friends of the Putnam County District Library.

Donation of Materials
Donations of materials are not always accepted by the PCDL. Materials must be published with in the previous three (3) years and are in new or like new condition. Additionally, donations may not be accepted for materials of which there are four (4) or more copies in the PCDL system. Additionally, Donated materials will be reviewed by the appropriate selector to ensure that they meet the selection criteria outlined in this policy before they can become part of the library’s permanent collection. Donations become the property of the PCDL. The library reserves the right to dispense with donated materials in any manner that it deems appropriate. The library regrets that it cannot provide donors with appraisals of their donation’s value.

Memorial Items
The library seeks to serve Memorial donors by building the best collection possible. Items selected to fulfill Memorial requests must meet the selection criteria outlined in this policy. An item ’s longevity is a very important consideration when selecting Memorial titles. Selectors will choose titles of enduring value in high-quality, durable formats.

While the library will attempt to select titles matching an honoree’s interests, the library cannot always fulfill requests for specific titles.

Memorial items will remain on the shelf for seven years. At that time , it may be necessary to weed the item due to its condition or relevancy. Memorial books will be weeded according to the criteria and method outlined in this policy.

Request for Reconsideration of Materials
The PCDL recognizes that materials in its collection may be controversial and that any given item may concern a patron. In such instances, the library can best serve the concerned patron by using existing selection criteria to include materials that reflect their viewpoint in the collection rather than removing the disputing materials.

Should a patron decide to formally request that an item be removed from the library’s collection, the following procedure will be followed:

The patron must be a current Putnam County District Library card holder and be a resident of Putnam County Ohio.
The patron will receive professional and courteous service throughout the reconsideration process.
The patron will be directed to the Library Director. This individual will acknowledge the patron’s concern and briefly explain the selection and reconsideration process. The patron should also be given a copy of the library’s collection development policy.
The patron will be asked to complete a “Request for Reconsideration of Library Materials” form (see Appendix C). A completed “Request for Reconsideration of Library Materials” form must be submitted to the Director for the process to proceed.
The Library Director, with appropriate professional staff, a PCDL Board Member and a community member will review the reconsideration form and the material in question to determine whether its selectin follows the criteria stated in the Collection Development Policy.
Within 15 business days, the Director will make a decision and notify the concerned person who requested the reconsideration, stating the reason(s) for the decision.
If the individual is not satisfied with the decision, a written appeal may be submitted within 10 business days to the PCDL Board of Trustees.
If the PCDL Board of Trustees plans to address the appeal at their board mee ting, the individual will be notified of when and where the meeting will be held.
The PCDL Board of Trustees reserves the right to limit the length of public comments.
The decision of the PCDL Board of Trustees is final.
Items under review will remain available to the public during the reconsideration process.

Request for Addition of Titles
The library exists to serve the community of Putnam County, and therefore welcomes suggestions for titles that the library should acquire. Any patron may request that a title be purchased for the library collection. The majority of requests are informal. Patrons may also make a formal request by filling out a “Request for Addition of Title” form (see Appendix D). The following procedure will be used to handle the request:

The patron must be a current Putnam County District Library card holder and be a resident of Putnam County Ohio.
The patron will receive professional and courteous service throughout the process.
The completed “Request for Addition of Title” form will be given to the selector responsible for choosing books in the area of the request.
The selector will research the title to determine if it should be added to the collection.
Within two (2) weeks, the patron will be informed of the decision whether or not the library will add the title to its collection.
If the patron is dissatisfied with the decision, he or she may appeal in writing to the Director.
The Director will decide whether or not to purchase the title and inform the patron of the decision within 30 days of receiving the appeal.
If the patron is dissatisfied with the Director’s decision, he or she may make a final written appeal to the Board of Trustees. The library will inform the patron of the Board’s decision, usually following the next regularly scheduled Board meeting.

Appendix A: The American Library Association Bill of Rights”

The American Library Association affirms that all libraries are forums for information and ideas, and that the following basic policies should guide their services.

I. Books and other library resources should be provided for the interest, information, and enlightenment of all people of the community the library serves. Materials should not be excluded because of the origin, background, or views of those contributing to their creation.

II. Libraries should provide materials and information presenting all points of view on current and historical issues. Materials should not be proscribed or removed because of partisan or doctrinal disapproval.

III. Libraries should challenge censorship in the fulfillment of their responsibility to provide information and enlightenment.

IV. Libraries should cooperate with all persons and groups concerned with resisting abridgment of free expression and free access to ideas.

V. A person’s right to use a library should not be denied or abridged because of origin, age, background, or views.

VI. Libraries which make exhibit spaces and meeting rooms available to the public they serve should make such facilities available on an equitable basis, regardless of the beliefs or affiliations of individuals or groups requesting their use.

VII. All people, regardless of origin, age, background, or views, possess a right to privacy and confidentiality in their library use. Libraries should advocate for, educate about, and protect people’s privacy, safeguarding all library use data, including personally identifiable information.

Adopted June 19, 1939, by the ALA Council; amended October 14, 1944; June 18, 1948; February 2, 1961; June 27, 1967; January 23, 1980; January 29, 2019.

Inclusion of “age” reaffirmed January 23, 1996.

Appendix B: The American Library Association’s “Freedom to Read” Statement

The freedom to read is essential to our democracy. It is continuously under attack. Private groups and public authorities in various parts of the country are working to remove or limit access to reading materials, to censor content in schools, to label "controversial" views, to distribute lists of "objectionable" books or authors, and to purge libraries. These actions apparently rise from a view that our national tradition of free expression is no longer valid; that censorship and suppression are needed to counter threats to safety or national security, as well as to avoid the subversion of politics and the corruption of morals. We, as individuals devoted to reading and as librarians and publishers responsible for disseminating ideas, wish to assert the public interest in the preservation of the freedom to read.

Most attempts at suppression rest on a denial of the fundamental premise of democracy: that the ordinary individual, by exercising critical judgment, will select the good and reject the bad. We trust Americans to recognize propaganda and misinformation, and to make their own decisions about what they read and believe. We do not believe they are prepared to sacrifice their heritage of a free press in order to be "protected" against what others think may be bad for them. We believe they still favor free enterprise in ideas and expression.

These efforts at suppression are related to a larger pattern of pressures being brought against education, the press, art and images, films, broadcast media, and the Internet. The problem is not only one of actual censorship. The shadow of fear cast by these pressures leads, we suspect, to an even larger voluntary curtailment of expression by those who seek to avoid controversy or unwelcome scrutiny by government officials.

Such pressure toward conformity is perhaps natural to a time of accelerated change. And yet suppression is never more dangerous than in such a time of social tension. Freedom has given the United States the elasticity to endure strain. Freedom keeps open the path of novel and creative solutions, and enables change to come by choice. Every silencing of a heresy, every enforcement of an orthodoxy, diminishes the toughness and resilience of our society and leaves it the less able to deal with controversy and difference.

Now as always in our history, reading is among our greatest freedoms. The freedom to read and write is almost the only means for making generally available ideas or manners of expression that can initially command only a small audience. The written word is the natural medium for the new idea and the untried voice from which come the original contributions to social growth. It is essential to the extended discussion that serious thought requires, and to the accumulation of knowledge and ideas into organized collections.

We believe that free communication is essential to the preservation of a free society and a creative culture. We believe that these pressures toward conformity present the danger of limiting the range and variety of inquiry and expression on which our democracy and our culture depend. We believe that every American community must jealously guard the freedom to publish and to circulate, in order to preserve its own freedom to read. We believe that publishers and librarians have a profound responsibility to give validity to that freedom to read by making it possible for the readers to choose freely from a variety of offerings.

The freedom to read is guaranteed by the Constitution. Those with faith in free people will stand firm on these constitutional guarantees of essential rights and will exercise the responsibilities that accompany these rights.

We therefore affirm these propositions:

1. It is in the public interest for publishers and librarians to make available the widest diversity of views and expressions, including those that are unorthodox, unpopular, or considered dangerous by the majority.

Creative thought is by definition new, and what is new is different. The bearer of every new thought is a rebel until that idea is refined and tested. Totalitarian systems attempt to maintain themselves in power by the ruthless suppression of any concept that challenges the established orthodoxy. The power of a democratic system to adapt to change is vastly strengthened by the freedom of its citizens to choose widely from among conflicting opinions offered freely to them. To stifle every nonconformist idea at birth would mark the end of the democratic process. Furthermore, only through the constant activity of weighing and selecting can the democratic mind attain the strength demanded by times like these. We need to know not only what we believe but why we believe it.

2. Publishers, librarians, and booksellers do not need to endorse every idea or presentation they make available. It would conflict with the public interest for them to establish their own political, moral, or aesthetic views as a standard for determining what should be published or circulated.

Publishers and librarians serve the educational process by helping to make available knowledge and ideas required for the growth of the mind and the increase of learning. They do not foster education by imposing as mentors the patterns of their own thought. The people should have the freedom to read and consider a broader range of ideas than those that may be held by any single librarian or publisher or government or church. It is wrong that what one can read should be confined to what another thinks proper.

3. It is contrary to the public interest for publishers or librarians to bar access to writings on the basis of the personal history or political affiliations of the author.

No art or literature can flourish if it is to be measured by the political views or private lives of its creators. No society of free people can flourish that draws up lists of writers to whom it will not listen, whatever they may have to say.

4. There is no place in our society for efforts to coerce the taste of others, to confine adults to the reading matter deemed suitable for adolescents, or to inhibit the efforts of writers to achieve artistic expression.

To some, much of modern expression is shocking. But is not much of life itself shocking? We cut off literature at the source if we prevent writers from dealing with the stuff of life. Parents and teachers have a responsibility to prepare the young to meet the diversity of experiences in life to which they will be exposed, as they have a responsibility to help them learn to think critically for themselves. These are affirmative responsibilities, not to be discharged simply by preventing them from reading works for which they are not yet prepared. In these matters values differ, and values cannot be legislated; nor can machinery be devised that will suit the demands of one group without limiting the freedom of others.

5. It is not in the public interest to force a reader to accept the prejudgment of a label characterizing any expression or its author as subversive or dangerous.

The ideal of labeling presupposes the existence of individuals or groups with wisdom to determine by authority what is good or bad for others. It presupposes that individuals must be directed in making up their minds about the ideas they examine. But Americans do not need others to do their thinking for them.

6. It is the responsibility of publishers and librarians, as guardians of the people's freedom to read, to contest encroachments upon that freedom by individuals or groups seeking to impose their own standards or tastes upon the community at large; and by the government whenever it seeks to reduce or deny public access to public information.

It is inevitable in the give and take of the democratic process that the political, the moral, or the aesthetic concepts of an individual or group will occasionally collide with those of another individual or group. In a free society individuals are free to determine for themselves what they wish to read, and each group is free to determine what it will recommend to its freely associated members. But no group has the right to take the law into its own hands, and to impose its own concept of politics or morality upon other members of a democratic society. Freedom is no freedom if it is accorded only to the accepted and the inoffensive. Further, democratic societies are more safe, free, and creative when the free flow of public information is not restricted by governmental prerogative or self-censorship.

7. It is the responsibility of publishers and librarians to give full meaning to the freedom to read by providing books that enrich the quality and diversity of thought and expression. By the exercise of this affirmative responsibility, they can demonstrate that the answer to a "bad" book is a good one, the answer to a "bad" idea is a good one.

The freedom to read is of little consequence when the reader cannot obtain matter fit for that reader's purpose. What is needed is not only the absence of restraint, but the positive provision of opportunity for the people to read the best that has been thought and said. Books are the major channel by which the intellectual inheritance is handed down, and the principal means of its testing and growth. The defense of the freedom to read requires of all publishers and librarians the utmost of their faculties, and deserves of all Americans the fullest of their support.

We state these propositions neither lightly nor as easy generalizations. We here stake out a lofty claim for the value of the written word. We do so because we believe that it is possessed of enormous variety and usefulness, worthy of cherishing and keeping free. We realize that the application of these propositions may mean the dissemination of ideas and manners of expression that are repugnant to many persons. We do not state these propositions in the comfortable belief that what people read is unimportant. We believe rather that what people read is deeply important; that ideas can be dangerous; but that the suppression of ideas is fatal to a democratic society. Freedom itself is a dangerous way of life, but it is ours.

This statement was originally issued in May of 1953 by the Westchester Conference of the American Library Association and the American Book Publishers Council, which in 1970 consolidated with the American Educational Publishers Institute to become the Association of American Publishers.

Adopted June 25, 1953, by the ALA Council and the AAP Freedom to Read Committee; amended January 28, 1972; January 16, 1991; July 12, 2000; June 30, 2004.

Appendix C: “Request for Reconsideration of Library Materials” Form
Date ___________________________________________________________
Name __________________________________________________________
Address ________________________________________________________
City ____________________________ State/Zip _______________________
Phone __________________________ Email __________________________
Do you represent self? ____ Or an organization? ____ Name of Organization ___________________________
1. Resource on which you are commenting: ___ Book (e-book) ___ Movie ___ Magazine ___ Audio Recording ___ Digital Resource ___ Game ___ Newspaper ___ Other
Title ________________________________________________________________________
Author/Producer _______________________________________________________________
2. What brought this resource to your attention? ___________________________________________________________
3. Have you examined the entire resource? If not, what sections did you review ___________________________________________________________
4. What concerns you about the resource? ___________________________________________________________
5. Are there resource(s) you suggest to provide additional information and/or other viewpoints on this topic? ___________________________________________________________
6. What action are you requesting the committee consider? __________________________________________________________

Signature______________________________________________________ Date _______________________

Appendix D: “Request for Addition of Title” Form
NEW BOOK REQUEST Pub Date _____________
Author: __________________________________________________
Title: ____________________________________________________
Patron: _________________________ Staff Initials: _________
Phone: _________________________ Date: _______________
ISBN: __________________________ Price: _______________

Effective 5/21/24