RESOURCES SELECTION POLICY

A. PURPOSE

The Resources Selection Policy defines the criteria used by the Library selector personnel in choosing Library resources and materials.

B. POLICY STATEMENT

The Durham County Library Mission Statement
The mission of the Durham County Library is to provide to the entire community books, services and other resources which inform, inspire learning, cultivate understanding and excite the imagination.

Intellectual Freedom
Recognizing that ours is a free society, the Durham County Library provides access to a collection of materials which is balanced and diverse. The Library subscribes to the Library Bill of Rights set forth by the American Library Association.  In addition, the Library endorses the Freedom to Read Statement, also developed by ALA, and the Freedom to View Statement, adopted by the Library Board of Trustees on January 28, 1985. These documents are appended to the Resources Selection Policy.

Parents and legal guardians are responsible for the selection and use of Library materials and resources by their children.  The Library provides informative materials by way of flyers and links to various websites to help educate children and their parents or legal guardians to use the internet safely and responsibly. The Library also supports the right of individuals to reject for themselves or their children resources and materials they find unsuitable or objectionable.

Selection of Resources
The Durham County Library will provide resources and materials supporting its mission in a variety of print, non-print and electronic formats.

All resources and materials considered for addition to the collection will be judged on the following criteria, where applicable, evaluating the work as a whole:

1. Authority and reputation of the author/producer
2. Responsible and timely treatment of the subject
3. Clarity, organization, and readability of both design and content
4. Significance and/or usefulness in relation to the existing collection
5. Evaluation of critical reviews
6. Content (literary or artistic merit and/or validity of ideas, insights)
7. Production quality (visual aspects or sound elements)
8. Cost
9. Durability of format
10. Appropriateness of medium to subject portrayed
11. Relevance to the community
12. Popular demand considered with the above criteria

Selection of recommended Internet sites:

1. Currency and frequency of maintenance
2. Availability of contact information for responsible parties
3. Quality of access through fast loading files, clearly defined elements, ease of use, and graphics that complement rather than distract
4. Stable Uniform Resource Locator, unlikely to change often
5. Complete access without requirements for credit card or personal information
6. Does not present known security risks (spyware, virus, etc.) and do not rely on unstable practices (e.g., pop-ups).

Patron suggestions. The Library welcomes suggestions of titles for the collection from all citizens and will consider them following the guidelines indicated above.

Interlibrary Loan. Realizing that no one library collection can be comprehensive, the Library may at times provide for the needs of its patrons by using the resources of other libraries in compliance with the National Interlibrary Loan Code for the United States.

Weeding. The Library must continually evaluate its collections in order to maintain the usefulness of these collections. Resources that are no longer useful will be systematically weeded from the collection and discarded according to accepted professional practices. The same judgment exercised in the selection of the collection shall be used in the weeding process. Materials will be evaluated according to professionally recommended criteria such as frequency of circulation, overall condition of title, currency of information, inclusion in standard bibliographic catalogs, role in the entire collection.

Curricular materials. The Library provides supplementary resources for individuals enrolled in programs of formal education but does not specifically provide curricular materials.

C. GIFTS

Gifts are evaluated by members of the Library’s selection committee according to criteria in the Library’s Gift Policy. This committee is responsible for determining where gifts can best be used within the system.

D. APPLICABILITY

The Resources Selection Policy applies to all Durham County Library selectors.

E. PROCEDURE

Responsibility for developing and implementing effective procedures to support this policy lies with the Library’s Administrative Council. These collection development guidelines are reviewed annually by the Collection Management Coordinator, branch managers and other selector personnel and are updated periodically as needed.

Requests for Reconsideration:

1. Borrowers wishing to register a formal complaint about the inclusion of any particular title must complete a "Request for Reconsideration of Library Resources" form, from Library Staff.
2. Requests for Reconsideration will then be reviewed by a committee composed of the Deputy Director, the manager of the facility where the complaint took place, the Resources and Technical Services Administrator, the Collection Management Coordinator and other Library staff as deemed as appropriate.
3. The recommendation of this committee will be communicated to the Library Director.
4. The Library Director will make the decision and communicate it by letter to the complainant.
5. To appeal the decision, a complainant may request a hearing by the Library Board of Trustees.  Such a request should be made in writing to the Library Director at least one week prior to a board meeting.  The Library Board of Trustees advises the Library Director, who is authorized by the County Manager to make a final decision.

F. RESPONSIBILITY

The ultimate responsibility for implementing the Resources Selection Policy lies with the Library Director.

F. APPENDICES

1. American Library Association's Library Bill of Rights
2. American Library Association's Freedom to Read Statement
3. Durham County Library's Freedom to View Statement
4. Durham County Library's Request for Reconsideration of Library Resources Form

Effective Date: February 3, 2009

Review Date: February 2010

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Last Page Update: February 5, 2009