Purchasing
The Library shall cooperate with other libraries and institutions in order to best serve the needs of its users within the limits of its materials budgets. Inter-Library Loans will be used to secure items for patrons that are not available at the Library. The Library will also adhere to the Online Media of Northern Illinois digital collection development policy, which outlines the collection development, weeding and reconsideration policies for digital materials in the OMNI collection.
Within budgetary limitations the Library may secure multiple copies of materials to meet patron demand. Patrons may request that the Library purchase additional items. The Library will consider the purchase based on cost and how well the item fits into the needs of the overall community.
For collection development purposes, the Youth Services Department will purchase items targeted toward reading levels from birth through junior high. The teen collection will target junior high and high school reading levels.
The Library will comply with current laws regarding obscenity. The Board of Trustees believes that parents are responsible for the growth and development of their children's reading habits. The Library shall not coerce the taste of others or censor the reading materials of its adult or youth patrons.
The Library provides materials supplemental to various courses of instruction but does not provide textbooks with the exception of reference copies provided by local schools.
Because of developments in technology, formats that the Library is considering collecting will be evaluated based on several criteria including but not limited to use, availability, ability to replace, currency and availability of supporting equipment, space requirements.
Selection Criteria
As it is not possible for the library staff to personally read and review the entirety of the large number of books and other materials produced each year, the information gathered from critical reviews; reputation of the author, artist or distributor; and other positive publicity, generally serves as the basis for applying these criteria. Influencing selection includes but is not limited to:
- Community demand, whether expressed or anticipated, as demand may be for specific titles or for material and resources covering certain topics or in certain formats, therefore multiple copies may be purchased or leased in order to meet demand
- Intrinsic value or quality of the work, relating to such considerations as factual accuracy and authoritativeness of content, comprehensiveness of treatment, style, clarity, effectiveness of expression and creativity.
- Scope, depth of coverage or approach of a work, for example highly technical materials and scholarly studies of limited value to the community at large will generally not be added to the collection
- Importance of a work in adding balance to or filling gaps in the collection
- Compatibility of the subject, treatment or style of a work with its intended audience; this criterion pertains especially to materials and resources being considered for the youth and teen collection
- Authority, reputation and standing of the author
- Availability of the same or similar material at neighboring libraries or through inter-Library loan
- Cost of the material or resource
- Suitability of the physical form of the material for Library use including the quality, durability and general usefulness of the format
- Ease and practicality of providing effective physical and bibliographic access to the material or resource
- Local interest or local historical significance of the work
- Availability of the item for purchase
Technology & Media
The Library will progressively and responsibly add new material formats as community demand, emerging technologies, industry trends, budgetary considerations and compatibility with the Library environment allow. Any equipment or devices that the Library adds to its collection will also be subject to the criteria established in this policy. Digital content and other emerging format acquisitions may require additional considerations, such as:
- Community interest in format and ability of residents to access format with readily available technology
- Cost of the material or resource
- Availability of other versions and/or updates once electronic content is available
- Supplementary costs including hardware and software requirements
- Possible duplication of content
- Terms of licensing agreements
- Preservation and long-term access issues
- Provisions for providing access in-house and patron accessibility off-site
- Performance questions, such as for example if the technology makes information more easily or accurately available than its print counterpart
- Training of staff and users in the use of new electronic resources
- Ability to direct patrons to this resource through our online catalog
Acquisitions
Librarians with collection development responsibilities also determine which vendors are most appropriate for their purchases. Library vendors are generally preferred as they may offer substantial discounts, expedited shipping, and special packaging. The Technical Services Department processes material upon arrival and materials are then made available to patrons in a timely manner. Materials are cataloged according to standard library practices with ease of access in mind. Public services managers may work with the Executive Director and the Technical Services Manager to customize the organization of materials to facilitate patron access.
Retention of Materials
Weeding, the ongoing, systematic withdrawal of library materials, is an integral part of collection evaluation and helps maintain the Library's usefulness and vitality. Library staff use much of the same criteria used in the selection process.
Materials considered for deaccession may include items that are:
- Superseded by a new edition or a better work on the same subject
- Of little or diminished interest to the community
- Worn or damaged
- Outdated or inaccurate
- No longer within the scope of the collection
- In a format which is no longer viable
Weeded items may or may not be replaced with another copy of the same title or another work on the same subject.
Adopted by the Board of Trustees January 11, 1999; Revised January 10, 2005; Updated December 12, 2011; Updated April 21, 2014; Updated April 12, 2016; Updated December 11, 2017