Appendix 1. Intellectual Freedom Statements
Library Bill of Rights adopted by the American Library Association:
The American Library Association affirms that all libraries are forums for information and ideas, and that the following basic policies should guide their services.
I. Books and other library resources should be provided for the interest, information, and enlightenment of all people of the community the library serves. Materials should not be excluded because of the origin, background, or views of those contributing to their creation.
II. Libraries should provide materials and information presenting all points of view on current and historical issues. Materials should not be proscribed or removed because of partisan or doctrinal disapproval.
III Libraries should challenge censorship in the fulfillment of their responsibility to provide information and enlightenment.
IV. Libraries should cooperate with all persons and groups concerned with resisting abridgement of free expression and free access to ideas.
V. A person's right to use a library should not be denied or abridged because of origin, age, background, or views.
VI. Libraries which make exhibit spaces and meeting rooms available to the public they serve should make such facilities available on an equitable basis, regardless of the beliefs or affiliations of individuals or groups requesting their use.
Adopted June 18, 1848, by the ALA Council; amended February 2, 1961; January 23, 1980, inclusion of "age" reaffirmed January 23, 1996, by the ALA Council.
Freedom to Read Statement
The freedom to read is essential to our democracy. It is continuously under attack. Private groups and public authorities in various parts of the country are working to remove or limit access to reading materials, to censor content in schools, to label "controversial" views, to distribute lists of "objectionable" books or authors, and to purge libraries. These actions apparently rise from a view that our national tradition of free expression is no longer valid; that censorship and suppression are needed to counter threats to safety or national security, as well as to avoid the subversion of politics and the corruption of morals. We, as individuals devoted to reading and as librarians and publishers responsible for disseminating ideas, wish to assert the public interest in the preservation of the freedom to read.
Most attempts at suppression rest on a denial of the fundamental premise of democracy: that the ordinary individual, by exercising critical judgment, will select the good and reject the bad. We trust Americans to recognize propaganda and misinformation, and to make their own decisions about what they read and believe. We do not believe they are prepared to sacrifice their heritage of a free press in order to be "protected" against what others think may be bad for them. We believe they still favor free enterprise in ideas and expression.
These efforts at suppression are related to a larger pattern of pressures being brought against education, the press, art and images, films, broadcast media, and the Internet. The problem is not only one of actual censorship. The shadow of fear cast by these pressures leads, we suspect, to an even larger voluntary curtailment of expression by those who seek to avoid controversy or unwelcome scrutiny by government officials.
Such pressure toward conformity is perhaps natural to a time of accelerated change. And yet suppression is never more dangerous than in such a time of social tension. Freedom has given the United States the elasticity to endure strain. Freedom keeps open the path of novel and creative solutions, and enables change to come by choice. Every silencing of a heresy, every enforcement of an orthodoxy, diminishes the toughness and resilience of our society and leaves it the less able to deal with controversy and difference.
Now as always in our history, reading is among our greatest freedoms. The freedom to read and write is almost the only means for making generally available ideas or manners of expression that can initially command only a small audience. The written word is the natural medium for the new idea and the untried voice from which come the original contributions to social growth. It is essential to the extended discussion that serious thought requires, and to the accumulation of knowledge and ideas into organized collections.
We believe that free communication is essential to the preservation of a free society and a creative culture. We believe that these pressures toward conformity present the danger of limiting the range and variety of inquiry and expression on which our democracy and our culture depend. We believe that every American community must jealously guard the freedom to publish and to circulate, in order to preserve its own freedom to read. We believe that publishers and librarians have a profound responsibility to give validity to that freedom to read by making it possible for the readers to choose freely from a variety of offerings.
The freedom to read is guaranteed by the Constitution. Those with faith in free people will stand firm on these constitutional guarantees of essential rights and will exercise the responsibilities that accompany these rights.
We therefore affirm these propositions:
1 . It is in the public interest for publishers and librarians to make available the widest diversity of views and expressions, including those that are unorthodox, unpopular, or considered dangerous by the majority.
Creative thought is by definition new, and what is new is different. The bearer of every new thought is a rebel until that idea is refined and tested. Totalitarian systems attempt to maintain themselves in power by the ruthless suppression of any concept that challenges the established orthodoxy. The power of a democratic system to adapt to change is vastly strengthened by the freedom of its citizens to choose widely from among conflicting opinions offered freely to them. To stifle every nonconformist idea at birth would mark the end of the democratic process. Furthermore, only through the constant activity of weighing and selecting can the democratic mind attain the strength demanded by times like these. We need to know not only what we believe but why we believe it.
2. Publishers, librarians, and booksellers do not need to endorse every idea or presentation they make available. It would conflict with the public interest for them to establish their own political, moral, or aesthetic views as a standard for determining what should be published or circulated.
Publishers and librarians serve the educational process by helping to make available knowledge and ideas required for the growth of the mind and the increase of learning. They do not foster education by imposing as mentors the patterns of their own thought. The people should have the freedom to read and consider a broader range of ideas than those that may be held by any single librarian or publisher or government or church. It is wrong that what one can read should be confined to what another thinks proper.
3. It is contrary to the public interest for publishers or librarians to bar access to writings on the basis of the personal history or political affiliations of the author.
No art or literature can flourish if it is to be measured by the political views or private lives of its creators. No society of free people can flourish that draws up lists of writers to whom it will not listen, whatever they may have to say.
4. There is no place in our society for efforts to coerce the taste of others, to confine adults to the reading matter deemed suitable for adolescents, or to inhibit the efforts of writers to achieve artistic expression.
To some, much of modern expression is shocking. But is not much of life itself shocking? We cut off literature at the source if we prevent writers from dealing with the stuff of life. Parents and teachers have a responsibility to prepare the young to meet the diversity of experiences in life to which they will be exposed, as they have a responsibility to help them learn to think critically for themselves. These are affirmative responsibilities, not to be discharged simply by preventing them from reading works for which they are not yet prepared. In these matters values differ, and values cannot be legislated; nor can machinery be devised that will suit the demands of one group without limiting the freedom of others.
5. It is not in the public interest to force a reader to accept the prejudgment of a label characterizing any expression or its author as subversive or dangerous .
The ideal of labeling presupposes the existence of individuals or groups with wisdom to determine by authority what is good or bad for others. It presupposes that individuals must be directed in making up their minds about the ideas they examine. But Americans do not need others to do their thinking for them.
6 . It is the responsibility of publishers and librarians, as guardians of the people's freedom to read, to contest encroachments upon that freedom by individuals or groups seeking to impose their own standards or tastes upon the community at large; and by the government whenever it seeks to reduce or deny public access to public information.
It is inevitable in the give and take of the democratic process that the political, the moral, or the aesthetic concepts of an individual or group will occasionally collide with those of another individual or group. In a free society individuals are free to determine for themselves what they wish to read, and each group is free to determine what it will recommend to its freely associated members. But no group has the right to take the law into its own hands, and to impose its own concept of politics or morality upon other members of a democratic society. Freedom is no freedom if it is accorded only to the accepted and the inoffensive. Further, democratic societies are more safe, free, and creative when the free flow of public information is not restricted by governmental prerogative or self-censorship.
7 . It is the responsibility of publishers and librarians to give full meaning to the freedom to read by providing books that enrich the quality and diversity of thought and expression. By the exercise of this affirmative responsibility, they can demonstrate that the answer to a "bad" book is a good one, the answer to a "bad" idea is a good one.
The freedom to read is of little consequence when the reader cannot obtain matter fit for that reader's purpose. What is needed is not only the absence of restraint, but the positive provision of opportunity for the people to read the best that has been thought and said. Books are the major channel by which the intellectual inheritance is handed down, and the principal means of its testing and growth. The defense of the freedom to read requires of all publishers and librarians the utmost of their faculties, and deserves of all Americans the fullest of their support.
We state these propositions neither lightly nor as easy generalizations. We here stake out a lofty claim for the value of the written word. We do so because we believe that it is possessed of enormous variety and usefulness, worthy of cherishing and keeping free. We realize that the application of these propositions may mean the dissemination of ideas and manners of expression that are repugnant to many persons. We do not state these propositions in the comfortable belief that what people read is unimportant. We believe rather that what people read is deeply important; that ideas can be dangerous; but that the suppression of ideas is fatal to a democratic society. Freedom itself is a dangerous way of life, but it is ours.
This statement was originally issued in May of 1953 by the Westchester Conference of the American Library Association and the American Book Publishers Council, which in 1970 consolidated with the American Educational Publishers Institute to become the Association of American Publishers.
Adopted June 25, 1953, by the ALA Council and the AAP Freedom to Read Committee; amended January 28, 1972; January 16, 1991; July 12, 2000; June 30, 2004.
A Joint Statement by:
American Library Association
Association of American Publishers
Subsequently endorsed by:
American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression
The Association of American University Presses, Inc.
The Children's Book Council
Freedom to Read Foundation
National Association of College Stores
National Coalition Against Censorship
National Council of Teachers of English
The Thomas Jefferson Center for the Protection of Free Expression
The Freedom to View Statement
The FREEDOM TO VIEW , along with the freedom to speak, to hear, and to read, is protected by the First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States . In a free society, there is no place for censorship of any medium of expression. Therefore these principles are affirmed:
1. To provide the broadest access to film, video, and other audiovisual materials because they are a means for the communication of ideas. Liberty of circulation is essential to insure the constitutional guarantee of freedom of expression.
2. To protect the confidentiality of all individuals and institutions using film, video, and other audiovisual materials.
3. To provide film, video, and other audiovisual materials which represent a diversity of views and expression. Selection of a work does not constitute or imply agreement with or approval of the content.
4. To provide a diversity of viewpoints without the constraint of labeling or prejudging film, video, or other audiovisual materials on the basis of the moral, religious, or political beliefs of the producer or filmmaker or on the basis of controversial content.
5. To contest vigorously, by all lawful means, every encroachment upon the public's freedom to view.
This statement was originally drafted by the Freedom to View Committee of the American Film and Video Association (formerly the Educational Film Library Association) and was adopted by the AFVA Board of Directors in February 1979. This statement was updated and approved by the AFVA Board of Directors in 1989. Endorsed January 10, 1990, by the ALA Council.
Appendix 2. Suggestion for Materials Purchase Form
For a printable version of this form, click here.
If you wish to request materials online, please use our ASKALIBRARIAN e-mail service.
SPRINGFIELD CITY LIBRARY
Suggestion for Materials Purchase
Date___________________ Library _____________________
The format of the material I'm suggesting for purchase is (circle one): Book / Large Print Book / Music CD / Spoken Cassette / Spoken CD / VHS Tape / DVD / Other (specify):
Title: _______________________________________________________________
Author/Artist: ________________________________________________________
Any other specifics about the item (subject, ISBN number, etc.) _____________________
Where did you hear about this item? Why do you think the library should purchase it?
___________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
Would you like this item held for you? _____ Would you like us to contact you regarding this request?
If you answer "yes" to either question, please provide your contact information:
Name: ______________________________________________________________
Phone and/or e-mail address: ______________________________________________
Library card number (needed to hold the item for you): _____________________________
Appendix 3. Additional Selection Considerations Relating to Specific Types of Materials
Reference materials -- The Central Library acquires and maintains an accurate, up-to-date collection of reference sources in various formats; the discussion that follows refers primarily to print materials, but the same considerations apply to electronic formats, discussed below.
The Central Library maintains a substantial list of standing orders for reference titles. Since inflationary pressures hit these costly materials particularly hard, every effort is made to hone the list to the most useful, cost-effective titles, with consideration given to alternative electronic formats as discussed below.
The Central Library attempts to fill the information needs of the general community of Greater Springfield, but has a particular focus on the following areas:
1. Educational community - Students in the Springfield schools look to the Library to provide information services tailored to their needs. The Library will acquire supplemental curriculum materials needed as indicated in Massachusetts' Curriculum Frameworks. Emphasis is placed on materials which support the curriculum of students in Springfield schools through Grade 12, including both basic and in-depth reference materials and indexes which meet student needs.
2. Business community - Materials that facilitate the investment strategies of individuals, the economic development of the Springfield metropolitan area (e.g., small business start-up and development), and local government decision-making, are acquired.
3. Cultural community - the Central Library, located in a metropolitan area that supports local museums, art galleries, a professional orchestra and many amateur musical endeavors, attempts to support the information needs of this community.
The branch libraries focus their much smaller reference collections on ready reference materials, and reference materials that support the needs of students in Springfield schools through grade 8. Electronic resources, including the Internet, give branches access to materials which serve more sophisticated educational and informational needs, but no attempt will be made to expand the print collections beyond these basics. The Central Library is available as the reference back-up to the branches; it alone has both the allocated space and the budget to maintain a wide array of in-depth print reference materials.
Online resources -- Online resources include the Internet and databases, both locally and remotely loaded. The library makes the Internet available to the public see the library's Computer Use and Public Internet Access Policy (click) for general disclaimer and conditions of use. The library retains the option to restrict access to Web sites which have been determined to be inconsistent with its mission and goals. The library does identify and maintain links to individual Web sites in an attempt to guide users towards material of high quality. The library's collection procedures manual, available upon request, includes guidelines for the selection and maintenance of online resources.
As with other library materials, users may request reconsideration of Internet sources using the ARequest for Reconsideration of Library Materials@ form (click/appendix 4). This could be a request to restrict access to a site which is currently unrestricted by filtering software, a request to unblock a site which has been restricted by filtering software, or a request to eliminate the library-maintained link to an individual site. Users may also make suggestions for web links to be added.
"Selection" of online resources can mean either selecting to purchase or choosing to add a link from the library's web pages. The general selection criteria apply to these materials, as do the following additional factors:
1. Reputation of the publisher
2. Origin of the content
3. Comprehensiveness and scope of data
4. Accuracy of indexing
5. Ease of use for intended audience
6. Preservation of older information files
7. Quality of documentation
8. Speed of access
9. Reliability of vendor
Subscription databases are usually more costly than similar or equivalent print versions. Substantial consideration must be given, therefore, to the value-added aspects of online resources. Added value may be seen as: the aggregation of data from disparate sources; relative speed with which data is updated; indexing protocols; etc. Where possible, subscription databases should be continuously monitored for use. Every attempt should be made to ensure that databases are available both at the branches and remotely, however, in many cases, the cost of such additions is prohibitive. The factors influencing the purchase of online vis-à-vis print are listed below.
1 . Cost - Is an electronic version less expensive than a print version of the same or comparable source?
2. Currency - How frequent are the updates or cumulations? Is the electronic or the print source more current?
3. Frequency of Use - Is the source used constantly, once a month, or somewhere in between? Are many users likely to need the source at the same time?
4. Type of Use - Is use a brief checking of dates or facts, such as in an index, or full-text reading, such as in an encyclopedia or work of criticism?
5. Nature of User - Will the primary users of the source be staff, users, or both? If users, will they be adults, children, or both?
6. Search Techniques - How easy is the source to use? Can most users complete a search independently, or is extensive assistance often needed? Does the source, even if duplicating a print source, offer search capabilities not possible in print?
Nonfiction (hardcover and trade paperback )-- The Central Library=s circulating nonfiction collection is developed to meet the same needs as the reference collection, described above. In addition, the Central Library acquires general popular materials and materials that will serve the more in-depth and diverse interests of the entire community. A lengthy portion of the library's collections procedures manual, available upon request, articulates the intended scope for each Dewey area.
Selections are made from review sources such as Booklist, Library Journal , and Publishers Weekly , from vendor catalogs, from information found online through vendors such as Amazon.com, and from distributors that represent an array of small press materials not regularly reviewed. When a choice exists between hardcover and trade paperback, the decision depends on the anticipated use of and relative cost of the item . Self-published and vanity press publications are generally not selected for purchase unless reviewed favorably in the standard review sources. Donations of such items by authors living in the greater Springfield area are encouraged. Textbooks are not acquired unless they are the best (or only) available source of information on a needed topic.
In the branches, circulating nonfiction collections meet both the needs of Springfield youth through grade 8 as well as general interest materials for users of all ages. Specific general interest subjects vary with communities served, but topics usually well-represented include: biography; health and exercise; nature; sports; test books for education and employment; travel, especially within the region; home and auto repair and improvement; personal finance; and language improvement. Standard review sources, vendor catalogs, and online listings are the primary selection methods. In all subject areas, branches will select materials that are geared to varying levels of ability.
Fiction (hardcover and trade paperback) -- Hardcover fiction, especially at the adult level, is a key component in meeting readers= recreational needs. Fiction titles are purchased primarily on the basis of reviews and user requests. Weight is given to indicators of potential demand, such as the author=s reputation or popularity, proposed promotional advertising, planned author tours, etc. In addition to the usual review sources (e.g., Kirkus and Publishers Weekly ), adult fiction titles may also be selected from vendor catalogs. Self-published and vanity press publications are generally not selected for purchase unless reviewed favorably in the standard review sources. Donations of such items by authors living in the greater Springfield area are encouraged . Youth fiction titles are selected primarily from review sources such as Booklist and School Library Journal .
When a choice exists between adult hardcover and trade paperback, the decision depends on the anticipated use of the item. If the selector needs to acquire several copies of a title made popular through book groups or other promotions, trade paperback would be preferable. If, however, the copy is to be displayed when new and then to become a part of the long-term collection, hardcover may be the better binding choice. When a choice between trade and library bindings exists in youth materials, the library binding is selected.
Multiple copies are purchased where justified by anticipated demand and where budgets allow. Reserves are monitored and additional copies purchased as indicated to ensure responsiveness to user demand. Bestseller lists and awards announcements are monitored for surprises and collections are adjusted accordingly. The Central Library makes an effort to offer a more comprehensive selection of fiction (including more mid-list titles, more short story collections, and more works in translation) than do the branches, which build fiction collections based primarily on actual and anticipated demand, and rely on swift delivery from the Central Library to meet more in-depth requests.
Materials in languages other than English -- The library will purchase materials in languages other than English based on community demographics. Currently, the need is greatest for Spanish-language materials, followed by materials in Russian and Vietnamese. While the need for materials in one language or another varies throughout the city, the total need is growing. Selection methods include vendor catalogs, reviews in standard sources, visits to vendors, book fairs, discussions with community representatives, and vendor approval plans. Materials selected for both the reference and circulating collections in these languages include: materials in core curriculum areas (math, science, social studies, etc.); standard literary works that will help bilingual students keep pace with native English speakers; general adult interest titles on such subjects as health, home and automotive repair, and career-related information; and general leisure materials at all levels and in a variety of formats.
Mass market paperbacks -- The library selects mass market paperbacks primarily to support the goal of providing satisfying entertainment and recreational experiences. Titles are selected from vendor catalogs. Selections are based on such factors as: popularity of author; popularity of series (especially in children=s paperbacks); popularity of title when in hardcover; genre variety (romances and mysteries are consistently very popular, though other genres, such as science fiction and westerns, are represented as well); and planned promotional efforts (e.g., ads in Romantic Times). For children's and young adult collections, a paperback may be selected over a hardcover of the same title in response to demonstrated user preference for the paperback format. Paperbacks are sometimes selected to supplement a hardcover title that is either perennially popular or has become newly popular due to factors such as a film version. Occasionally, multiple copies are purchased. The library also selects graphic novels for all age levels.
To a lesser extent, mass market paperbacks also help to meet user's educational and informational needs. In addition to popular paperbacks, youth collections include paperback copies of award winners, reading list titles, and study support materials such as dictionaries, report-writing guides and literature guides; the library makes a reasonable effort to provide multiple copies of summer and other reading list titles, based on budget, anticipated student demand, and timely communication with schools.
Government documents -- In general, items are selected which have the highest potential for meeting the information needs of the largest number of people living within the geographic area served by the City Library.
The Library acquires publications of a general and statistical nature with strengths in demographic, business, social and educational materials . Current legal and regulatory publications are also collected.
Following the principles of the general selection criteria, the selection of government documents takes into consideration:
1. Current relevance or interest
2. Information requests from the public; demand
3. Importance as an historical record; timeliness or permanence
4. Relevance to existing collections; scarcity or abundance of other material
5. Citation in special or significant bibliographies or indexes
6. Relative cost, in terms of processing time and number of desirable/undesirable publications attached to the Item number
7. Format; ease of use
8. Availability elsewhere through interlibrary loan or other cooperative agreements.
The type and proximity of other depository libraries mitigates the Springfield Library's need to acquire publications which focus on remote, narrowly defined subjects. No attempt is made to acquire materials which support an academic program or require the support of an academic program to understand. With the exception of tax forms and copyright application forms, forms required for doing business with various government agencies are not acquired. There is general cooperation with other local depositories -- Elms College, Western New England College Law Library, and Hampden County Trial Court Law Library -- in an attempt to minimize duplication of materials.
Periodicals -- At the Central Library , the selection of periodicals is based on the general selection criteria suggested for other materials with first consideration given to those titles indexed in either InfoTrac or the Reader's Guide to Periodical Literature , and then to the titles in other standard periodical indexes. Increasingly, InfoTrac offers full text articles; in those cases, the library must determine whether usage warrants maintaining a paper subscription as well. Careful attention is given to those titles available in other libraries in the area as indicated in the Union List of Serials in the Libraries of the Greater Springfield, Massachusetts Area , with the general policy being to augment rather than duplicate those titles. In addition, the Central Library offers an array of popular magazines in areas such as lifestyle, young adult and children's titles, automotive, computers, health, home improvement, and sports.
The retention policy for the Central Library's periodical collections is as follows:
1. Gifts - 1 year
2. Periodicals used only for the latest information - 3 years
3. Circulating periodicals - 5 years in paper
4. General reference/research titles - 20 years in paper with microfilm backup as possible
5. Permanent cultural interest - complete in paper (some bound) with microfilm backup as possible.
At the branches , magazine titles are selected and maintained on the basis of use; lists are adjusted annually to reflect shifts in popularity. Areas usually covered include news weeklies, lifestyle, young adult and children=s titles, automotive, computers, home improvement and sports. The branches make no effort to maintain significant back files of any but the most long-lived titles (e.g., National Geographic ). Each branch has a regularly monitored retention policy for all titles, ranging from current year only for ephemeral titles to 5 years or more for standards such as American Heritage . The branch print collections are supplemented by InfoTrac , which offers many full-text articles.
Media -- Advancing technology and the availability of many media formats dictate that libraries have growing media collections. Specific formats may change over time. The library is prepared to embrace new formats when the potential user population has grown to a "critical mass" (e.g., the library will consider adding a new form of technology if and when a reasonable proportion of our users own the hardware needed for that technology), assuming that the new format is durable enough to stand up to typical library use.
In addition to the general selection criteria, media selectors consider:
1. The technical quality of the title
2. The appropriateness of the subject to the format
3. The artistic merit and reputation of the artist(s)
4. The quality of interpretation and reputation of the artist(s)
5. Intelligibility, effective presentation (especially in spoken audio, video)
Current formats include:
Music compact discs/ music cassettes - The emphasis in the sound recording collection is the compact disc format. Aiming for an in-depth collection, the selection of the Central Library's compact discs provides the listener with choices within a variety of musical styles throughout history as well as a wide range of performers. Branch collections emphasize current demand in CD selection, and do not aim for breadth or depth. The library retains a small collection of music cassettes of popular interest. A limited number will be acquired when and where appropriate.
DVD/Videocassettes - Videos are selected for educational, informational and recreational purposes. The Central Library acquires a wide array of nonfiction videos in an effort to make information available in formats other than print. Special Central Library video collections include: close captioned; Spanish, Russian, and Vietnamese language; citizenship; English as a second language; and employment resource center. Educational videos are selected which supplement school curriculum needs.
The Central Library acquires feature films for viewers of all ages. A continuing effort is made to add award winning and quality films, but Central=s dual role as system resource and neighborhood Abranch@ in its own right dictates that a good variety of popular feature films be available to browsers of all ages.
Branch video collections include primarily feature films in a variety of genres, children's titles (both live action and animated), and popular non-fiction (e.g., cooking, travel, exercising). Spanish, Russian, and Vietnamese language videos are collected in branches according to demand. While videocassettes may still be acquired, emphasis is strongly on the DVD format.
Spoken CDs/cassettes - While spoken cassettes may still be acquired, the emphasis is on the spoken CD format. Titles are selected in English and Spanish, with Russian and Vietnamese titles added as available and appropriate for the collections. The Central Library's spoken CD and cassette collections provide unabridged audio titles in popular, mystery and classic fiction as well as self-help and other areas of non-fiction (most notably, language instruction). Branch adult collections provide a combination of unabridged and abridged audio titles in various fiction genres, as well as language instruction, self-help, and other popular nonfiction areas. The unabridged/abridged decision is made on the basis of relative cost, availability, and the need to ensure that each location have sufficient new titles for browsers within the established budget; as unabridged prices drop relative to abridged titles, the former emerges as the preferred format. Youth spoken audio collections, at both the Central Library and the branches, provide unabridged audio titles.
CD-ROMs - As demand warrants, the library will purchase interactive multimedia CD-ROM software for circulation to the public, primarily children, taking all of the above selection criteria into consideration. Informational and educational titles are preferred over those which are purely recreational.
Appendix 4. Reconsideration Form
For a printable version of this form, click here.
SPRINGFIELD LIBRARY
REQUEST FOR RECONSIDERATION OF LIBRARY MATERIALS
The Springfield Library attempts to serve the entire community. Selection of books and other materials is guided by community interest and demand and is grounded in the library's Collection Development Policy (a copy is available on request). If you feel that a particular item is not suitable for inclusion in the library's collection, please fill in the form below and either give it to a librarian, or send to the Library Director, 220 State Street, Springfield, MA 01103.
Books and other materials
Title _______________________________________________________________
Author _____________________________________________________________
Publisher and Date _____________________________________________________
Type of material (book, video, etc.) __________________________________________
Your name __________________________________ Phone ____________________
Address _______________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
Do you represent:
Yourself _______ An organization (name) ____________________________
1. Please summarize your reasons for requesting reconsideration of the work:
2. Did you read the entire work? ______ If not, what parts? _________________________
3. Are your objections based on age of the potential user or to the point of view expressed?
4. What do you believe is the theme or intent of this work?
5. Are you aware of judgments of this work by reviewers or critics?
6. What action would you like the library to take in regard to this work?
7. What work would you recommend that would, in your judgment, be more appropriate?
Internet sites
Access to the Internet is granted to all our users. Springfield Library filters certain portions of the Internet to deny access to those sites that do not meet the library's mission or are deemed inappropriate for viewing in a public place. Filtering systems are not perfect. You may wish to request that a particular site either be blocked; or, if a seemingly appropriate site is blocked mistakenly, to request that it be unblocked.
8. What is the Web address (URL) that you would like us to reconsider?
9. Would you like the site to be blocked? _______ or unblocked? ___________
10. Please tell us what you know about this site, including its content, where you learned about it, whether it was a link from another site, etc.
What happens to this form once I have completed it?
The request goes to either the Collection Development or the Youth and Outreach Services Manager, depending on the type of material being questioned. The manager then drafts a recommendation, based on such factors as the information provided by the user, how well the item meets the criteria for materials selection, consultation of review sources for the item, how the item fits in with the overall collection, personal xamination, and consultation with appropriate library staff. This recommendation is forwarded to the library director for approval. The library director then responds to the individual in writing with the library's decision.
Individuals who still have concerns about the material may request a hearing before the Springfield Board of Library Commissioners by making a written request to the Chair of the Board. The Board reserves the right to limit the length of presentation and number of speakers at the hearing. After receiving testimony from the public and from the library director, the Board will decide, based on the library's policies, whether to uphold or override the decision.
Appendix 5. Gift Policy and Transfer of Ownership Form
For a printable version of this form, click here.
SPRINGFIELD CITY LIBRARY
220 State Street Springfield, Massachusetts 01103 (413) 263-6828
GIFT POLICY
The library selectively accepts gifts of books, periodicals, audio and video recordings, and other material for public use. In accepting gifts it is the library's policy that:
1. The appraisal of a gift to the library for tax purposes is the responsibility of the donor.
2. The library, in accepting the gift, obtains free and complete legal title to it.
3. The library reserves the right to determine housing and location of the material.
4. The library will determine whether or not material should be added to the collection. If, for some reason, it is decided that the materials should not become a part of the collection (e.g., duplicate copy, outside collecting area of the library, poor condition), the library reserves the right to dispose of the material in the most advantageous manner possible.
Gifts may be accepted on bases other than the above at the discretion of the Springfield Board of Library Commissioners.
__________________________________________________________________
DOCUMENT OF TRANSFER OF OWNERSHIP
I hereby present as an unrestricted gift to the Springfield City Library the materials described below.
Date _____________________ Name ____________________________________
Branch/Dept._______________ Address ___________________________________
Received by ________________ Signature __________________________________
Description of gift:
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
Acknowledgement _______________________ Date __________________________
(Director's Office) (Director's Office)
Rev. 1/2006