It is the librarian's goal to select materials that serve the scope of the curriculum and meet the needs of DIS/RHS students. The library provides a wide range of materials representing many levels of difficulty and a variety of formats while presenting different points of view and appealing to the diversity and ethnicity of the student population.
The Internet and other on-line services are not subject to this Collection Development Policy. Our library does not and cannot control the information found on the Internet.
Library materials are meant to be housed in the library, and made available to all students and/or staff. Materials to be housed and used only in specific, individual classrooms will not be purchased with library funds.
The following criteria are used as a guide in selection:
Contribution to the curriculum and educational goals of the school
Requests and recommendations from teachers and students
Relevance to the interests of the students
Favorable reviews found in reputable review sources (School Library Journal, Kirkus, etc.)
Reputation of the author, producer and publisher
Currency and timeliness of materials
Contribution and representative viewpoints of controversial issues
Appropriateness of format and appearance for intended use
Degree of potential user appeal and value commensurate with cost
Quality, durability, and variety of format
Age appropriateness, recognizing, however, that what is appropriate for juniors and seniors may not be appropriate for younger students. Ultimately, it is up to students to use their discretion when selecting materials.
Weeding is the process of eliminating out-of-date or damaged materials from the collection. Systematic weeding is a necessary practice that allows maintenance of a collection that meets the needs of the current learning community. The collection should be evaluated regularly to determine low-use sections requiring weeding.
The criteria for weeding materials are as follows:
Material is damaged or unusable (missing pages, water damage, cover torn, etc.).
Material contains outdated information (outdated technology, geographic materials, stereotypes, etc.).
Material has not circulated within the last ten years (unless designated as having classic literary or historical value).
When removing materials:
Materials that have been deselected will be clearly stamped with the word "WITHDRAWN" or “DISCARD,” and all barcodes will be removed.
Item barcodes will be deleted from the Destiny Library Management System. If the copy deleted is the last item associated with a particular title, Destiny will automatically remove the bibliographic record from the database.
The librarian exercises discretion about whether materials are:
given to teachers for classroom use
offered to students and staff at a nominal fee
donated to a charitable organization, such as the Lamplighters, a group that provides financial support for the Radford Public Library.
4. disposed of (for books in extremely poor condition, moldy, or containing incorrect or outdated information.)