KANHIOTE TYENDINAGA TERRITORY PUBLIC LIBRARY
COLLECTION DEVELOPMENT POLICY
INTRODUCTION AND DESCRIPTION
Tyendinaga Territory is approximately 17,000 acres, with frontage on the Bay of Quinte. Overall Band membership is +7,000, with an on-reserve population of 2300 (1931 registered members). Since 1985 and as a result of BillC31 reinstating Native people our population continues to grow steadily. Of the on-reserve population 11% are seniors and 18% are enrolled at Quinte Mohawk School, grades k to 8. The population is fairly evenly split between male and female with the largest sector less than 40 years of age. The library opened in temporary quarters May 1990 and moved to the present location May 1991.
PHILOSOPHY AND GOALS
It is the philosophy of Kanhiote Tyendinaga Territory Public Library to provide a well-balanced collection for residents of Tyendinaga; to focus on maintaining a Native resource/reference collection with emphasis on Iroquois, Mohawk; to function as an information centre on all aspects of our culture, history, traditions and language.
The goals of Kanhiote are:
- To collect un-biased, non-stereotypical material on the culture, heritage and current issues facing Native people, with teacher’s guides when possible.
- To meet the informational needs of the people of Tyendinaga Territory.
- To provide resources for learning the Mohawk language.
OBJECTIVES
To meet the goals set forth in this policy statement, the following objectives have been adopted:
- Serve the population by making information available in many formats for personal and private use.
- Invite lectures, demonstrations and discussions to take place in the library building.
- Provide programming that has a cultural relevancy.
PURPOSE OF THE POLICY
The purpose of this policy statement is to clarify for the public and library staff and volunteers the criteria used for selecting material, as well as the responsibility for the collection. We have included goals and objectives and a description of the community and the philosophy of the library to put those criteria into perspective.
SELECTION STATEMENT
RESPONSIBILITY FOR SELECTION
Final responsibility for materials selection rests with the librarian, who operates within the framework of policies determined by the library Board. The people are encouraged to recommend material for consideration.
GENERAL STANDARDS OF SELECTION
Selection is based on the merits of a work in relation to the information needs, interests and demands of Tyendinaga community. In no case should any book be excluded because of the race or nationality or the political views of the writer. The library will provide as wide a range of material as budgeting and space limitations will allow. Emphasis will be on material of historical and cultural knowledge, material of current and future interest, material which stimulates imagination and creativity, material which allows an individual to function as a productive member of society and also material that entertains. Material being considered should meet the standards set by the library Board in areas of level of writing, timeliness, authority of author /publisher /producer, quality of writing/filming/recording, popular appeal, format, price.
The library will not collect textbooks. Only material lost from the Native collection will be automatically replaced. Material for special interests like foreign language will be obtained through inter-library loan.
SUBJECT AREAS
In order to meet the informational needs of Tyendinaga Territory the library will collect material in the following subject areas:
Aboriginal culture with emphasis on Iroquois, self-teaching material in practical how-to-do-it subjects, recreation, family life, healthy lifestyle, environment and fiction.
BOUNDARIES
The library will provide material in the form of print, talking books, e-books, video, DVD and periodicals.
Native material in all formats is a priority.
GIFTS/DONATIONS
Kanhiote encourages gifts of material or funding for material by groups or individuals. These gifts must meet standard criteria and will be accepted only if the decisions as to whether or not they are to be added to the collection and where they will be placed are left to the library. Any material the library cannot use will be sold at book sales or donated to other places.
COLLECTION MAINTENANCE
The collection of this library is maintained by judicious weeding of materials, which are out of date, are no longer of interest to the community, are not being used or are in poor condition. Book sales and distribution of weeded materials are done twice yearly. Books donated to the library may be sold or given away at this time.
INTELLECTUAL FREEDOM AND CENSORSHIP
It is the policy of this library to purchase material based on the criteria presented above. To meet its goals and objectives, this library must protect the freedom of all to choose their own information in the style in which it is presented. To the end, we subscribe wholeheartedly to the “Statement of Intellectual Freedom” and to the “Library Bill of Rights” which are appended to this document.
CONSIDERATION OF OBJECTIONS
Every effort will be made to consider objections keeping in mind the best interests of the community. Since differences of opinion do exist in our society, the following procedure shall be observed to recognize these differences in an impartial and factual manner. All criticism shall be presented in writing to the librarian. The REQUEST FOR RECONSIDERATION form shall be used. It should be filled out as completely as possible and be signed and identified so a proper reply can be made.
The material in question shall be withdrawn from circulation until it is read and discussed by a library committee. The committee shall consist of the librarian, a community member and a member of the library Board. The committee will review the questioned material and all critical evaluations available. The material will be evaluated in its entirety. The librarian shall implement the final decision of the committee. The complainant shall be sent a copy of the evaluating report and decision.
A copy of this procedure shall be available in the library.
PROVISION FOR REVIEW OF POLICY
This policy shall be reviewed at the first meeting of the Board every year and may be revised as time and circumstances allow.
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