Collection Management Plan

A collection management plan provides justification for the resources--money, time, and space--needed not to support the collection but to support the mission, goals, and objectives of the school. The point is not to have an up-to-date collection with all the materials that anyone would ever want, but rather, to have a collection that meets the needs of students and staff in a specific school. 

Drafting a Collection Management Plan

Much like a school improvement plan, a collection management plan is a living, working document that can be updated and flexible to adjust to new initiatives, changes in budgets, etc. Steps for creating the plan include: 

1. Draft plan and present to MTAC for review.

2. Leverage the plan to advocate for resources (school funds, PTA, grants, etc.)

3. Revisit the plan yearly with the MTAC to update progress and/or revise goals and priorities.

A collection management plan should be useful. There is no point to a plan that is just a copy/paste listing of district policies. A plan that is overly dense and detailed is also unhelpful. Instead, a quality collection management plan should contain the following: 

• A description of the school library program to explain the unique attributes of the ;

• An analysis of the collection that explains its strengths and needs;

• A broad list of overall priorities for purchasing, curating, and weeding; 

• A list of specific yearly goals (over 3 years) for purchasing, curating, and weeding that address the listed priorities. 

• Collection Management Plan exemplars:

  • 1. 1. 1. • Banks Road Elementary - notice how Laura took the template and adapted it to meet her needs

             • Morrisville Elementary - notice the detailed and specific yearly goals

             • Apex Friendship Middle School

             • Oberlin Middle School

             • Leesville Road High School

• Collection Management Plan template (NEW 2023-2024 - preview below)