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Collection Development Policy

It is the mission of the Ashley County Library to provide high quality library service to the public and to provide and maintain an organized collection of resources meeting the recreational, educational, and informational needs of the public.

 

To meet this mission, the Library may purchase fiction and nonfiction books, periodicals, audio books, and video recordings. The Library also has the resources of other libraries as well as the state library available through Interlibrary Loan.

 

When considering the collection, concern should be given to all ages, backgrounds, interests, and abilities  The Library must consider not only the present needs of the community but must anticipate the future needs whenever possible. The library does not collect material to support local school curricula except when these materials also serve the general public. The Library does collect supplementary materials to promote lifelong learning and provide a beginning point for those seeking more advanced information or materials.

 

The collection is not archival and items are expected to be used frequently. The Director oversees an annual assessment to ensure the collection meets current needs and a substantial percentage of the materials are less than five years old.  

 

The Ashley County Public Library adheres to the American Library Association’s Library Bill of Rights and its interpretations, The Freedom to Read, and The Freedom to View statements.  The Library strives to present materials representing all sides of an issue in a neutral, unbiased manner. The existence of a particular viewpoint in the collection is an expression of the library’s policy of intellectual freedom, not an endorsement of the particular point of view. The Library recognizes any given item may offend some patrons, but because the Library follows accepted principles of intellectual freedom, it will not remove specific titles solely because individuals or groups may find them objectionable. Parents or legal guardians have the responsibility to guide and direct the reading, viewing, or listening of their own minor children. The Library does not assume the responsibility to act in loco parentis and censor material for minor children.

 

Neither the Library Director nor Library Staff can read or review every item purchased. For that reason, selection is made through reliable sources such as professional library journals, book reviews found in magazines, newspapers, and online, as well as recommendations from other libraries/librarians as well as patrons. The authority and responsibility for the selection of library materials is delegated to the Director. Patrons are an important part of the selection process.  Forms by which Ashley County Library patrons can request materials are available at the circulation desk. Serious consideration will be given to purchasing patron-requested materials when the requests meet collection objectives  Remaining requests may be met through Interlibrary Loan. The final decision rests with the director.

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Criteria for Selection

 

These general criteria are taken into account for all materials selected for the Ashley County Library.  All items selected will meet several of the general criteria.

  • Current and anticipated needs and interests of the public

  • Accuracy of content

  • Timeliness of content

  • Scarcity of material on the subject and availability elsewhere

  • Popular demand

  • Literary merit

  • Media reviews

  • Suitability for intended audience (research-level books not purchased.)

  • Representation of diverse cultures and points of view

  • Receipt of or nomination for major awards or prizes

  • Affordability

 

Books
 

Materials are purchased in the most appropriate sustainable format for library use. Books can be purchased in hardback and paperback, including large-print editions, and audio formats. Due to budgetary and space concerns, multiple copies are not purchased of single titles, but titles may be available in multiple formats  Ever changing media has required the Library to monitor the development of new formats and the discontinuation of others in order to keep the collection relevant.  

 

Periodicals & Newspapers
 

The Library no longer maintains a collection of magazines or newspapers. Prior to the Covid–19 pandemic, the circulation of magazines had fallen dramatically. In addition, the state newspaper is no longer available in a print version, the preference of the library patrons. Further, the COVID-19 Pandemic exposed the difficulty of properly sanitizing these materials. Due to the lack of availability, lack of viable circulation, and difficulty sanitizing print items, these forms of media were discontinued by the Ashley County Library. The library is a member of the Arkansas Digital Library Consortium and through their online or mobile platforms, patrons have access to over 5000 magazine titles on a daily basis. 

 

Video Recordings
 

The Library maintains a collection of video recordings in DVD format for information and recreational viewing. Due to the rising frequency of streaming services and the number of DVDs never returned, the library will maintain the current collection and only add to it through donations.
 

Special Collections
 

The Ashley County Library supports the acquisition and preservation of useful and important historical, municipal, public school, and genealogical materials relating to Ashley County. The development of special collections will focus on the areas of county genealogy and county history. Due to the fragility of county genealogy documents, a digitization project was undertaken. Physical records will no longer be available to the public, but all local records have been scanned and are accessible through the ACL website. 

 

World Language Materials
 

The Library generally does not acquire materials in languages other than English  However, due to a growing Hispanic population in Ashley County, the Library has added a small collection of children’s picture books in Spanish for recreational reading and to support multicultural programs  Growth of materials will strictly be based on usage of the current collection.

 

Collection Assessment
 

Circulating collections undergo an annual assessment to make space for current materials, to make collections more attractive, to facilitate ease of use by patrons, and to reduce the damage caused by overuse  Assessment decisions are made using the CREW: A Weeding Manual for Modern Libraries from the Texas State Library, which has been recommended for use by the Arkansas State Library. The following are considered before removing an item from the collection:

  • Circulation frequency

  • Physical condition

  • Potential future use

  • Value to the library total collection

  • Availability of the information or title elsewhere

  • Accuracy

  • Relevance

  • Timeliness of information


 

Ashley County Library Book Donation Policy
 

The library is very happy to receive donations of new and recently published (within the past 3 years) materials as well as used material in very good condition.  Donations are accepted and added to the collection at the discretion of the director.  We will catalog material appropriate to our collection and offer material not selected on our sale shelves.  The profit from the book sales will go to replacing lost or damaged library materials and to supporting programming at the library. The library will no longer be able to accept the following materials for donation:

 

  • Materials over 3 years old

  • Encyclopedias or other reference sets

  • Catalogs

  • Textbooks

  • Condensed books

  • Books in poor condition

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