The Mitchell County High School Media Center
Collection Development Policy
Prepared by:
MCHS Media Specialist,
Jennifer L. Tucker
Fall 2013
The Mitchell County High School Media Center
1. Introduction
A. Purpose of document
B. Community and School Demographics/Description
C. Mission, philosophy, and goal statements of the school and the media center
2. Collection Development and Management Policies
A. Purpose of the collection
B. Materials included in the collection
1. Types and formats
2. Organization of the collection
C. Circulation
D. Acceptable Use Policy
3. Evaluation and maintenance of the collection
A. Evaluation Resources
1. Application of curriculum standards and recommended lists (books and other
resources)
2. Data sources and analysis (Automated systems/ Vendors)
3. Application of user-centered measures. (Patron surveys)
B. Weeding/deselection
C. Challenged Materials or Reconsideration Policy
D. Copyright policy
E. Intellectual Freedom
4. Selection Policy
A. Personnel responsible for selecting of materials
B. Role of the school library media advisory committee in the selection process.
C. Selection criteria
5. Acquisitions
A. Local and district procedures for acquiring materials
B. School-level and district level personnel (responsible for processing purchase order
requests)
C. List of vendors approved /recommended by local district
Introduction and Purpose
The goals of the Collection Development Policy are: to communicate information about the collections and their development; analyze the collection and assess areas of its strengths and weaknesses; to provide information fundamental to the planning of the use of funds; to document where cooperative programs exist; to insure consistency in the library’s collection.
The library media center also serves local community patrons at their request. These patrons typically are spouses of teachers, former students, or parents of students.
Community and School Demographics/Description
The Mitchell County population in 2012 was 5,059 people (90% urban, 10% rural). The population change since 2000 is -10.8%. Camilla, Georgia is mostly a farming / industrial community with a statistical diversity ranging from 70 percent African-American, 20 percent Caucasian, and approximately 10 percent Hispanic / Latino ( Mitchell County High School 2012-2013 student data and enrollment by grade level: Ninth grade enrollment of 35% / 143 students; Tenth grade enrollment 31% / 127 students; Eleventh grade enrollment 20% / 82 students; Twelfth grade enrollment 14% / 58 students with a total of 410 students altogether in school. Total student enrollment by sub-group at Mitchell County High School in 2012-2013: Caucasian enrollment 14% / 57 students; Black enrollment 82% / 336 students; Asian enrollment 0% / 0 students; Hispanic enrollment 4% / 17 students. Male enrollment 48.2% / 198 students and female enrollment 51.7 % / 212 students. The areas of concern noted at Mitchell County High School is that of special education, student attendance and mobility. The factors identified that contribute to the concerns are identified of student; placement, students are not ready to do high school work; get promoted anyway and students miss to many days with a lack of concern when students are late to school. Possible actions to help rectify these factors of concern are to re-evaluate students; consider the least restrictive environment; work with schools to make sure students are ready to be promoted to the next grade; stress attendance; consequences and rewards; and stress rules of being absent / late to school.
The Media Center’s role in the community is to provide its high school students with the finest library media services as possible. The Media Center also serves local community patrons at their request. As our community continues to change, the Media Center will continue to reassess and change its collections to reflect those new community needs.
Mission, philosophy, and goal statements of the school and the media center
The Mitchell County School System’s mission is to educate students in a safe and supportive environment to become responsible productive citizens.
Our vision of The Mitchell County School Systems is “Bridging the Gap” by establishing a global learning environment for student success.
The Mitchell County High School Media Center supports the mission and vision and enriches the academic program of MCHS. The Mitchell County High School Media Center strives to teach media skills to high school students so that they can successfully organize, analyze, and interpret information for class work. These skills are for a student’s preparation for higher education and/or as a future member of the workforce. Finally, we strive to involve students in, and be advocates of, the art of literature, reading, writing, and lifelong learning.
Collection Development and Management Policies
Purpose of the collection
The collection development policy is written for all members of the Mitchell County High School community, including Media Center Staff, teachers, school and district administrators, students, and parents. The purpose of this policy is to analyze the collection and assess areas of its strengths and weaknesses.It will be used as a tool to define future areas of the collection that should be addressed in terms of subject area and format.With this tool, the library can continue to be responsive to our patrons.
Materials included in the collection
Media Center staff will collect items that support the curriculum and reflect the interests of the student body. The Media Center will purchase items that facilitate learning and support State and National benchmarks for excellence. The Media Center will also purchase materials that instill a love for reading and nurturing life-long learning. Information presented through various media, including books and databases will inspire students to understand complex ideas and become empowered citizens.
The Media Center contains approximately 8,000 fiction and nonfiction books that have been chosen to teach and excite learning in adolescents. Materials selected for inclusion in the Media Center collections shall be chosen for their relevancy to the curriculum and State and National Standards. In doing so, each item will be examined to determine its individual merits as well as how it complements the existing collection.
Types and formats
Print Materials
- Books
- Paperbacks
- Periodicals
- Newspapers
- Pamphlets
- Reference
Non-Print Materials
- Electronic Resources
- Videocassettes and DVDs
Organization of the collection
1. Chronological Coverage
Currency: According to the attached figures, the library contains, according to published date, the following:
SectionAve. Age
000-0991991
100-1991988
200-2991983
300-3991990
400-4991980
500-5991987
600-6991988
700-7991985
800-8991977
900-9991985
Biography1984
Faculty1997
Fiction1987
Non-Print1991
Reference1987
Older publications are sometimes kept for research purposes, especially in history and literature.We are in the process of renovations to the Media Center and also weeding the whole entire collection.
Circulation
- All MCHS students are entitled to use the library and to check out books.
- Students may check out books for 2 weeks. Books may be renewed. There is a limit of 2 books per student at a time.
- A $.05 fine is charged to students for each school day a book is overdue. No books will be issued to any person owing a fine until it has been paid. Fines do not exceed $1 per book. Students will be asked to pay for lost books. Overdue notices will be sent periodically to students.
- Damage to materials beyond reasonable wear shall be paid for.
- Each student is held responsible for all books checked out in his/her name and for all fines occurring on the same.
- NO materials may be taken from the library without being checked out. This is defined as stealing and will be dealt with as such. Disciplinary actions will be taken for deliberate damage to materials.
Acceptable Use Policy
(All policies are located on the right side of the webpage under forms.)
The Mitchell County School System Computer Network and Internet Resources Acceptable Use Guidelines Policy can be found online for download at the following web address:
The Mitchell County School System Computer Network and Internet Acceptable Use Policy can be found online for download at the following web address:
The Mitchell County School System Computer Network and Internet Employee Technology Use Policy can be found online for download at the following web address:
Evaluation and maintenance of the collection
- Evaluation Resources
In order to ensure that the library collection is current, comprehensive, and appealing, ongoing evaluation and weeding procedures are implemented. Ongoing weeding procedures help maintain the integrity of the collection and encourage the use of materials. Statistics gathered through the process provide an accurate description of the adequacy of the collection. The Media Specialist relies on knowledge of the collection, the curriculum, and the potential for use in the evaluation process, and as a result is the ultimate authority for removal of materials.
Assessment of materials occurs informally through daily use and systematically through annual inventory and weeding procedures. The process is initiated using the automated inventory system to compute the average age of the collection, determine the weight of each Dewey system category, update circulation figures, and identify duplicate copies of materials. These reports will be forwarded to the school principal annually. The weeding process will be scheduled so that it does not disrupt the service of the library.
- Weeding / deselection
Criteria for weeding include several factors:
1. Publication Date: Some categories of materials become more quickly out of date than others and need to be weeded accordingly. Suggested guidelines are:
000Computer. 2-5 years
100Psychology. 5-10 years
300College and Career. 5 years
400Grammars. 10 years
500Astronomy, chemistry, physics, biology. 5-10 years
600Electronics, engineering, health, technology. 5 years
900Popular biographies. 15 years
(Georgia Department of Education, Mitchell County High School)
Some categories do not become outdated quickly. These include:
- Dictionaries and reference materials
- Biographies
- Literature
- Foreign language fiction
- Art books
- Local history and geography
- Earth sciences
- Almanacs and yearbooks
- Materials that explain the general principles of a discipline
Faculty will be consulted when additional assistance in making a replacement or deselection decision is required. Withdrawn material is given away, donated, or discarded, at the librarians’ discretion.
- Challenged Material
The library endorses The Freedom to Read Statement, see Appendix B, The Freedom to View Statement, see Appendix C, and The Library Bill of Rights, see Appendix D, ofthe American Library Association. If materials are challenged, the complainant will fill out the Request for Reconsideration of Library Resources form, see Appendix E, and the matter will be referred to the Head Librarian, and if necessary, to The Mitchell County High School Administration, who will review the complaint and make a written report and recommendation. Final disposition authority to keep or remove library materials rests with the Principal of the school and the Head Media Specialist. A letter explaining the decision shall be sent to the complainant.
- Copyright Policy
- Intellectual Freedom
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