Collection Development Policy

Collection Development Policy Purpose

The purpose of this policy is to provide guidelines for the development and maintenance of a well-balanced collection to meet the needs of the community within the limits imposed by availability, funds, and space. This policy will guide librarians and staff of the Eastern Monroe Public Library and inform the public of the principles upon which selections are made.

Mission Statement

EMPL’s mission is to serve a diverse population and provide equal access to educational and entertainment resources for all individuals and groups in the community and to promote reading and lifelong learning.

Community Served

EMPL’s service area includes 10 municipalities of Monroe County and includes a resource sharing agreement with other libraries in the service area.

Materials Selection Criteria

Library staff utilize professional judgment and expertise in making collection development decisions, including decisions about choosing titles, identifying quantities for purchase, and selecting locations for materials. Anticipated demand, community interests, strengths and weaknesses of the existing collections, system-wide and regional availability, physical space limitations, acquisitions procedures, and fiscal resources are all factors taken into consideration. Materials are chosen for the permanent collection on the basis of the content of the whole. Judgment will be based on the total effect of the work and not on the presence of words, phrases or situations that in themselves, or taken out of context, might be objectionable. Materials are acquired in multiple formats when appropriate, including print and audiovisual items. Highest selection priority is given to those materials in all formats having the broadest appeal.

Suggestions from patrons are welcome and are given serious consideration. It should be understood that acceptance of a public suggestion is not a promise or commitment to purchase. If materials are not purchased by EMPL, the request may be submitted to our interlibrary loan department. Please see our Purchase and Interlibrary Loan Request Policy for further information.

The Library does not collect scholarly or highly specialized materials typically found in university libraries. Providing textbooks and curriculum material is held to be the responsibility of the schools. Textbooks are considered for the collection when they supply the best or only information on a specific topic. With the exception of local history materials, collections are not retained for archival purposes.

Materials will be selected based on, but not limited to, the following criteria:

  • Public demand, interest, or need
  • Contemporary significance, popular interest, or permanent value
  • Attention of critics, reviewers, and public
  • Prominence, authority and/or competence of author, creator, or publisher
  • Timeliness of materials, reflecting new areas of knowledge or changing conditions of the contemporary scene
  • Relation to existing collections
  • Need to present alternate viewpoints or balance on a specific subject matter in the collection
  • For nonfiction, accuracy of information as determined by reviews in reputable review sources
  • Suitability of physical form for library use
  • Price and availability of funds

Access and Resource Sharing

Access to materials is ensured by the way they are organized, managed, and displayed. The Library follows the fiction schema (alphabetical by author last name, first name and then by title within an author) for organizing most fiction materials. Nonfiction materials are organized according to the Dewey Decimal classification system.

Patrons access the collection via the Library’s catalog, the Library’s website, other online services and through their interactions with staff. Items located at one library location may be requested for pick up at a more convenient Eastern Monroe Public Library location; newer titles and other items may have some restrictions. The Library’s bookmobile services enable greater access to the collection.

Use limitations ensure fair and equitable access to materials. Access to some items may be limited by their rarity, value, uniqueness, fragile physical condition, or a combination of these factors. In-house and remote access to digital and electronic resources is provided within technical, budgetary, and licensing constraints.

Items that are not in the Library’s collection may be obtained on behalf of the patron from another library system via established interlibrary loan and resource sharing networks. Conversely, Eastern Monroe Public Library’s materials may be lent to other organizations that also participate in the networks.

The Library collaborates with the following programs to ensure the widest possible access to library materials:

Multi-District Lehigh Valley Pocono Library Partnership, a resource sharing program with the public libraries of Carbon County, Lehigh County, Monroe County and Northampton County.

Access Pennsylvania, is a combined catalog reflecting the holdings of over 2,600 Pennsylvania libraries and their combined collections of over 43 million items.

Intellectual Freedom

EMPL endorses the Library Bill of Rights, The Freedom to Read Statement, and The Freedom to View Statement of the American Library Association. EMPL upholds the right of the individual to secure information, even though the content may be controversial, unorthodox, or unacceptable to others. Materials available present a diversity of viewpoints, enabling people to make the informed choices necessary in a democracy.

In no case will library materials be excluded because of race, nationality or social, political, or religious views of the authors, nor will materials be proscribed or removed from the library because of partisan or doctrinal disapproval.

Reconsideration of Materials

Controversial Materials

The Library recognizes that it has an obligation to provide materials which reflect current interests, although they may not have enduring value. The Library also recognizes that many materials are controversial and at any given time may offend some patrons. Selections will not be made on the basis of any anticipated approval but on the basis of anticipated usage, merits of the item, and its relationship to the collection and interests of library readers. No materials will be removed from open shelves or kept in a restricted area because of their controversial nature or because their subject matter, viewpoint, or treatment may be distasteful to certain individuals or groups. The existence of an item within the collection does not imply an endorsement of the author’s or artist’s viewpoint.

The Library does not stand in loco parentis. Parents and guardians have the responsibility to guide the reading, listening, and viewing choices of their own minor children. Selection of collection materials cannot be inhibited by the possibility that items may be accessed by minors.

Request for Reconsideration of Materials

No challenge materials that have been duly selected shall be removed from the Library’s collection except upon the recommendations of the Library Director or upon formal action of the Board of Library Trustees when a recommendation of the Director is appealed.

Procedure:

    1. Discuss the item with the librarian in charge of the department in which the item is normally kept.
    2. A patron challenging any part of the collection should then be offered a copy of EMPL’s Collection Development Policy to read.
    3. If material is still questioned, a copy of the form “Request for Reconsideration form” should be filled out completely by the patron.
    4. The Library Director will review the form and make a reply to the patron.
    5. If the patron is not satisfied with the reply, they should bring the matter to the attention of the Board of Trustees, not less than one week prior to a scheduled meeting.
    6. The Board of Trustees will review the communication, the decision, and the issues raised and will respond to the patron when the review process is complete. The Board has the legal responsibility for the collection and its protection under the First Amendment of the Bill of Rights of the United States Constitution.

Donated Materials

EMPL accepts donations to be added to the collection if they meet the same criteria as those required of purchased materials. Retention and/or utilization of donated material is at the discretion of library staff. Donated items will become the property of EMPL upon acceptance by library staff, the library will not return donated material to the donor.

Staff may use their discretion in determining if such items will be accepted for the collection or will be placed in the Friends of the Library book sale.

Memorial/Honorarium Book Program

EMPL accepts cash donations for the purchase of items to commemorate important events in the lives of its patrons. Donors may suggest a subject area or title for purchase and the Library will make every effort to consider suggestions. However, the Library reserves the right to make the final selection based on the guidelines in the Materials Selection section above. The Library reserves the right to remove such items from the collection based on the criteria outlined in the Collection Maintenance section below.

Independently Published and Local Authors

EMPL welcomes the opportunity to support the creative and literary expression of our community. Independently published and local authors are subject to the same collection development guidelines as all other contributors and are welcome to donate their works to the library. Please see our Author Book Donation Form form.

For independently published/produced material, a positive review in one or more library review journals, including those that specialize in independently published material, along with potential wide appeal and/or ability to fill an otherwise hard-to-fill collection gap, are the strongest indicators for purchase.

Collection Maintenance

Weeding
A strong collection requires ongoing evaluation and maintenance. Materials will regularly be weeded (withdrawn) from the collection based on the following criteria:

    • Accuracy and currency of information
    • Physical condition of materials
    • Availability of newer, more comprehensive, or more accessible material
    • Relevance to collection and scope of collection
    • Ease of borrowing materials from another library
    • Relevance to community needs
    • Date of last circulation and number of circulations
    • Number of copies in the collection

Weeded materials will be sold to the public at the Friends of the Eastern Monroe Public Library book sales. Weeded materials or donations of little or no value or interest will be recycled.

Rebinding, Repair, Replacement

Whenever possible, damaged materials that are still useful will be repaired. Items that cannot be mended will be replaced if funds are available, but items withdrawn because of loss or damage are not necessarily replaced. Popular or classic titles in conditions too poor for circulation will be replaced whenever possible.

THIS SELECTION POLICY SHALL BE SUBJECT TO PERIODIC REVIEW AND CONSIDERATION BY THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS.

Approved by the Board of Trustees August 20, 2024