COLLECTION DEVELOPMENT POLICY
Princeton Day School Libraries
VISION STATEMENT
The Princeton Day School Libraries strive to support the academic and extracurricular information needs of all members of the school community through exceptional services, instruction, resources, and facilities and to uphold the mission and philosophy of Princeton Day School.
MISSION
The Princeton Day School Libraries provide a welcoming, inclusive space to serve our diverse community of pre-Kindergarten through 12th grade students, faculty, and staff. Each library offers innovative services, developmentally appropriate resources, and modern facilities to transform teaching and learning at PDS and equip students to become engaged, lifelong learners.
GOALS OF THE COLLECTION DEVELOPMENT POLICY
Enthusiastically promote reading, creativity, literacy, and intellectual pursuits through resources, programs, and the curriculum
Provide and maintain a balanced, current collection of print and digital resources to support all areas of the PDS curriculum and the pursuit of individual interests and inquiry.
Maintain and promote a collection representing diverse perspectives and voices to both reflect the members of our community and to broaden understanding of and appreciation for various cultures and views.
RESPONSIBILITY FOR MATERIAL SELECTION
The primary responsibility for materials selection and collection management in the libraries rests with the three divisional librarians, under the direction of the Head of Libraries. Members of the school community may submit requests for adding materials to the collections, and library professionals use a variety of selection methods and materials to build the collections.
COLLECTION OVERVIEW
Princeton Day School has three divisional libraries that serve the three divisions in the school. The Upper School Library serves grades 9 -12, the Middle School Library serves grades 5 - 8, and the Lower School Library serves grades PK - 4. Each library collection supports the unique teaching and learning needs of its respective division. The libraries use Follett Destiny to circulate their collections, and the total collection count in 2022 from Follett is approximately 47,000 books. This includes 19,000 books in the LS, 15,000 in the MS and 13, 600 in the US. The library subscribes to twenty ebook and esubscription services, many of which have access to multiple subject databases within them. The esubscriptions vary in both topic and targeted age, with many of our databases and online sources supporting the research needs of older students. The libraries subscribe to SORA, an Overdrive App which offers access to a wide variety of audiobooks and ebooks. The Sora collection is populated with titles by request, however Sora connects PDS users to their public library collections, thus making available many more resources to our community. .
COLLECTION DEVELOPMENT METHODOLOGIES
A. Budget
The libraries are amply funded by the school, and an annual budget is allocated that runs from July 1 through June 30 each year. Spending reports are submitted to the PDS business office bimonthly. Each librarian has the ability to purchase materials in the following categories, while coordinating with the Head of Libraries: eSubsciptions, (including databases renewals, and print subscription services); Resources (including print books); Supplies (including all supplies needed to run the libraries); and Maker Materials (including ebooks purchased for Sora). The budget process is managed by the business office and the Head of Libraries.
B. Evaluative Criteria for Materials Selection and Deselection
1. Selection
The library collections are continually evaluated to ensure achievement of the aforementioned collection development goals, with service to students being of primary importance. Overseen by the Head of Libraries, each division librarian is responsible for proactively seeking age/grade-level appropriate materials for their respective library with the aid of authoritative professional resources. In addition to the school curriculum and course syllabi, the librarians regularly consult book reviews, awards lists, and professional publications when selecting both print and electronic resources. The libraries are committed to offering current, accurate resources and representing a multitude of perspectives.
Print & Electronic Sources
Librarians select materials using various criteria including format and content appropriateness for the population served in each division; relevance to curricular program and instructional goals; authority, currency, and accuracy of information; literary trends and student interests; diversity of representation; and cost and sustainability.
Professional Sources
Librarians may select materials for the Professional collections that directly apply to pedagogy or defined school goals. Books provided by the Miss Fine’s Center may also be added to these collections.
Gifts/Donations
PDS Libraries may accept book donations to be considered for inclusion in the library collection. Once donated, items will be used at the discretion of the division librarian.
2. Deselection
As curriculum and community needs evolve, systematic removal of materials is essential to preserving the quality of the library collections. Librarians conduct continual informal checks and periodic formal analysis of the collections to determine which materials are eligible for deselection, or weeding. Weeding allows librarians to remove damaged materials and outdated or inaccurate resources, as well as to make space for new titles, reorganize collections, and accommodate changes within the library space. Each division librarian is responsible for evaluating and weeding their respective collections using the following criteria: book condition, circulation statistics, currency and accuracy of information, redundancy of title or subject, and relevance to the curricular and extracurricular program of the school.
C. Procedures for Handling Materials Challenges
The libraries welcome discussion and or questions about the inclusion of items within their collections. When the libraries receive a question about the inclusion of an item in a collection, the divisional librarian and Head of Libraries will have a meeting with the person questioning the item to understand more about the objections. After that discussion, if there is a desire to formally challenge an item, the next step will be a discussion with the division librarian, the Head of Libraries and the Division Head. During this process, they will review the library collection development policy, the mission of the school, and the ALA Library Bill of Rights. Once a decision about the challenged item is made, the librarians and/or the Division Head will communicate that decision with the person making the challenge.
The American Library Association affirms that all libraries are forums for information and ideas, and that the following basic policies should guide their services. This Library Bill of Rights, in tandem with the mission of Princeton Day School as an educational institution, acts as a guiding philosophy for library services and collections.
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.
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.
Libraries should challenge censorship in the fulfillment of their responsibility to provide information and enlightenment.
Libraries should cooperate with all persons and groups concerned with resisting abridgment of free expression and free access to ideas.
A person’s right to use a library should not be denied or abridged because of origin, age, background, or views.
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.
All people, regardless of origin, age, background, or views, possess a right to privacy and confidentiality in their library use. Libraries should advocate for, educate about, and protect people’s privacy, safeguarding all library use data, including personally identifiable information.“
How do we purchase print and online books for our collection?
To be sure it fits into our mission and goals, and is age appropriate
We use a number of review sources including, here are some:
Junior Library Guild - Preselected books for many categories, but books can be swapped out for others.
School Library Journal slj.com Library Journal and Horn Book hbook.com online: Online or print versions read monthly for book reviews and articles relevant to libraries and maker spaces.
Username is sgoeke@pds.org, Password is Pantherlibraries2022
Others
Kirkus, SLJ, Booklist, Bulletin of the Center of Children’s Book
Award Winners and Best Book List from various publications
SORA ebooks and audio are privately rented by request, and the same selection criteria is used.
UPDATED_Anti Slur Policy
Princeton Day School is committed to treating all persons equally and respectfully. Our Nondiscrimination Policy prohibits students, faculty, staff, and visitors from the willful, weaponized or negligent use of slurs against any person on the basis of race, color, creed, national origin, ancestry, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, or disability.
At times, academic courses may encounter materials containing slurs as they work to gain a full appreciation of our complicated history and social relationships. To prepare for these lessons, faculty must carefully balance the educational merit of the material with the need to create a safe and inclusive environment for all. This preparation includes ongoing professional development and self-reflection.
To facilitate this process, faculty will inform their department chairs of materials that contain slurs, explain the academic relevance of the work, and discuss their plans for presenting the materials in a thoughtful and supportive manner. If the materials present particularly egregious slurs, due to the power of the word, the context in which it is used, the frequency of its use, or other factors that raise concern, then the department chair will refer the faculty member to a larger committee for feedback and support.
Prior to meeting with the committee, faculty will reflect on the material, the educational merit of the work, and their plan to support students by completing a written proposal. The proposal should be submitted to the relevant Department Chair and must include the following elements:
Self reflection: How have you reflected on your own identity and its impact on your class?
Educational merit of work: Why is this material important for students to discuss and explore?
Rich depiction of the target group: How will you ensure that the target group is fully and fairly represented?
Class norms: How will you create an environment in which all students can engage with the material?
Presentation of material: How will this material be presented to the class and how will you structure student engagement?
Communication and feedback: How do you intend to inform students and families of the material and its relationship to your educational goals? What formal ways will you receive feedback?
Verbalization: Acknowledge your agreement that the slur will not be verbalized in class and describe how this will be communicated to students.
To provide teachers with feedback and support, the proposal will be reviewed and evaluated on an ongoing basis by a committee comprised of the Director of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion; Middle and Upper School Divisions Heads; Chair of CMDT; Department Chair overseeing the class proposing the work; one additional Department Chair; and a peer reviewer chosen by the faculty member submitting the proposal.
There is clearly a difference between teaching a text that all students read that contains slurs, and having books and materials in libraries that contain slurs. Here are some questions that have been raised about sharing materials with students with slurs:
1. When students are researching topics, and the materials that might answer their questions contain slurs, do librarians help the students put those slurs in context, or do we not share the materials due to the slurs? Is this only dependent on the age of the student or are there other considerations at play?
2. When recommending books for individual reading, how do we deal with sharing titles of books that do or might contain slurs?
3. When putting book lists together currently we are not including books that we know have slurs. However, some award-winning books that many would think are worthy of reading do contain slurs. If we want to include them on a book list , or recommend them to a particular student, should we go through the Anti-slur policy process?
4. When purchasing materials for our libraries that do contain slurs, but otherwise are worthy of being in the collection in the librarians estimation, do we catalog or otherwise identify a book as having slurs?