Weeding

TTSD Library Services Weeding Process


Establish criteria and a purpose


  • Record your reasoning and criteria for the weeding project at hand

  • Share your reasoning and criteria with your building principal

  • Include a project timeline and plan for refilling and restocking shelves

  • If there is a surplus, mention that as a reason why the weeded material will not be replaced


If it is a large project (removing more than 500 copies)


  • Share your written plan and criteria with the District Librarian and Director of Teaching and Learning


Focus on older materials first


  • Follow CREW and MUSTIE guidelines

  • Books older than 2000 may be weeded by the discretion of each library staff member

  • Share reasoning for removing books newer than 2000 with the District Librarian prior to removal (Damaged and duplicate copies are exceptions)

  • Once approved mark the book as "loaned out, "lost" or "out for repairs" depending on the reason for removal


Weed by publication decade


  • Start with the most dated material by decade and work up

  • Decade lists retrievable in Titlewave

  • Titles newer than 2000 require coordination with the District Librarian

  • Damaged and duplicate copies are an exception


Start with copies that have had 0 circulations since 2013


  • Can increase to one or two circulations

  • If there is an ample supply on the shelves you can increase to 3 or 4 circulations


Weed 500 copies at a time:


  • Run an analysis after weeding each group of 500

  • Compare analyses, revisit weeding goals, and move forward from there


Coordinate with the District Librarian if weeding more than 500 titles at once:


  • Collaboratively develop or share a plan for replenishing the collection

  • If there is a surplus replenishment should not be necessary

  • Shelves should not be bare for more than a few weeks

  • Keep some material on the shelf until it can be replaced with newer content

  • Display more outward-facing titles to fill the space

  • Process new books before weeding a ton of old books

  • District Librarian can help process books and refill shelves if needed


Collections need to consistently have:


  • Fiction and Nonfiction signage

  • KF can provide temporary signage if in the midst of deciding

  • Outward facing titles

  • Convention-based Genre Fiction organization is preferred by students, staff, and T&L

TTSD library staff should consult C.R.E.W. guidelines for weeding

crewmethod12.pdf


How many books should library staff remove from the collection each year?

TTSD library collections should have between 10,000 - 13,500 copies depending on the average age of the collection.

It is unnecessary to have a collection of over 14,000 copies unless the collection's average publication age is 2000 or newer.

Weeding Procedure

  1. Remove the material from the library collection by scanning the barcode in the "Update Copies" page in Destiny

    • Make sure to select the "track as weeded" option

  2. Use a "WITHDRAWN" or "DISCARD" stamp to cover up any library name labels found in the weeded material

  3. Cross out barcode and school name with a sharpie or remove the label from the copy

  4. Cross out school address and name with sharpie or cover it with a blank label

What should TTSD library staff do with books that have been removed from the collection?

  1. Weeded school library material (non textbooks) should first be offered to students, staff and other school libraries.

    • Titles that contain outdated information are an exemption and should be recycled instead.

  2. If the site has many excess copies, weeded titles or donations, it is permissible to organize a used book sale fundraiser to raise funds for new books. Books should be no more than $1 - $2. Leftover books should be given away to students. See TTSD Board Policy IGDK-AR for more info.

  3. Small amounts of leftover weeded materials may be donated.

  4. Large amounts of library books in poor condition may be sent to a recycling facility.

Should TTSD Library Services Staff recycle books?

  1. Small amounts of paperback books with no cellophane cover may be recycled in a mixed recycling bin. Taking the covers off helps make it very clear that it was an intentional discard.

  2. Washington county accepts hardcover books at their recycling centers only. More info here.

  3. Please do not put too many books into the building recycling bin at once. This can be perceived as wasteful.

Other Sources that Accept Weeded Materials

Discover Books - https://www.discoverbooks.com/

If a site has a huge amount of books that are not worth much staff can arrange a pick up at your site with Discover Books.

Discover Books no longer pays out but they do bring their own boxes and haul the materials away.

Local Rep: Ryan Kent | 253-254-3238 | rkent@discoverbooks.com

Weeding and Transferring Electronics

Outdated technology such as VCRs and tape players can be weeded or recycled .

  • Complete a deletion of equipment form for all electronic devices with a TTSD asset tag. Admin should agree on deletion prior to removal.

  • If the building does not have electronics recycling, or the set date is far, the item may be donated after all tags are removed.

  • The link below also contains a transfer of equipment form and a new equipment tag request.

https://drive.google.com/a/ttsd.k12.or.us/file/d/0ByKDqUMLHnhhQUVlaVhoZXRXSXY0X2FDRmNTVlZmMVUtNWNN/view?usp=sharing

Weeding Past Curriculum Materials

Angie Willis maintains curriculum weeding guidance. Please see the link below for 2021-2022 guidance.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Y-FmhZaycQMMzu7kmG8V6britgBfnob9/view?usp=sharing

Titlewise Collection Analysis