RESOURCE COLLECTION POLICY:
Who Selects Books:
The Library Director is responsible for the library collection. The Board has given the Director the responsibility as part of his/her job description. The Director will buy/order books, magazines DVDs, music CD’s, videos and other appropriate Library material. The Director will take into consideration requests from Library patrons, staff and the Library Board. The final decision will be left up to the Library Director.
In compliance with our constitutional right of freedom of speech and freedom of the press, the Library will attempt to provide the widest range of viewpoints based on the quality, cost, and availability of the materials for purchase, as much as the Library budget allows.
Suggestions:
Book and movie suggestions are welcome from patrons and Trustees.
Criteria for selection:
Materials are selected to meet the reading needs of the community. We strive to have material with literary and cultural value, as well as books that are merely for entertainment.
Library Bill Of Rights:
We subscribe to the “Library Bill Of Rights” found at Appendix A.
The Freedom To Read:
We subscribe to “The Freedom to Read” statement. This statement is with our library policy (found at Appendix B)
Special Collections:
Special books and items given to the library that are not for patrons to check out will be kept on the adult side of library. These items include old school annuals, old maps, and Effingham history items. These items may be viewed in the library with permission by the Library Director.
Local History:
The library will strive to keep a record of as much of the local history as it can. We have books in our Kansas collection, as well as our Genealogy collection.
Gifts: Books, movies and other items:
We will gladly accept donated books, DVDs, music CDs, and videos and add them to our circulation if they are deemed useful for the Library. Excess books will be sold for the benefit of the Library. If they cannot be sold, they will be taken to the book shop in Topeka. If the material is not useful to the Library [i.e. pages falling out, mold, torn pages] or accepted at the book shop it may be destroyed. A Donated Library Material Form [found in the Forms section of this manual] may be requested at the time of the donation. If patron wishes to have a value put on the form, the Donor must set the value. Other gifts such as food or clothing may be accepted by the librarians. Food will be for all Library staff to share. Gifts other than food will be deemed Library property. Exception will be gifts given to staff at NEKLS events.
Rebinding:
If a book is new, a best effort will be made to repair. The Director will make the determination on whether older books are worth saving.
Withdrawal and Discard [Weeding]:
The Library needs to continuously evaluate its collection in response to the changing nature of its community through the weeding and replacement of its titles. The weeded material will then be sold for profit to the library or discarded if in bad shape.
The process will be done by the librarians and may be assisted by a trained volunteer. Weeded material in fair condition will be sold. All proceeds will go to the Effingham Community Library. Any non-usable material will be discarded.