Weeding for Your Library’s Health An Infopeople Workshop Winter 2006/2007 Francisca Goldsmith, Instructor

Agenda Why weed Planning weeding projects Budget matters (money and time) Weeding shibboleths Weeding as a policy Training weeding staff Taking care to get good publicity

Introductions Name and library role Library type Collection responsibilities

What’s Your Weeding Worry? Making a (big) mistake Being misunderstood Having “too little” left Lacking human power to undertake

Why Is Weeding Difficult? Desire to husband all resources Fear of public scrutiny and disapproval Inadequate preparation of support staff and services Lack of clear plan for discards Crisis mode instead of maintenance

Weeding Is Collection Development Reselection and deselection –Would you select this material today? Preserving surrounding materials –Mildew, mites, and smells travel Focusing browsers on the useful –Eliminating useless distractions

What Causes the Need to Weed? Material’s condition Outdated and inaccurate information Unnecessary redundancy Crowded conditions

Condition Odors –Smoke –Mildew Dirt –Food –Grime Water damage –Full immersion –Limited staining Markings –Vandalism –Public editing Binding failures –Broken spines –Dog eared covers AV material degradation –Faded film –Irreprably scratched surfaces

Datedness Old information can be –Interesting –Useful to some pursuits –Inaccurate –Dangerous –Prejudicial to remainder of collection

Redundancy How many copies are enough? How close is a library where the material is in scope?

Crowding When the good stuff can’t be found for the unnecessary Special circumstances –Temporary or permanent relocations –Windfall materials budget –Change in library’s scope or mission

Access Is Essential Shelving space Browsing space Clearing paths through the collection

MUSTIE Misleading information Ugly appearance due to –wear or –outdated design Superseded by newer materials Trivial worth to users Irrelevant to collection’s scope Elsewhere would be a better place to find this

Using MUSTIE (MUSTY) Assess some material you didn’t examine in Exercise #1. Use the California Department of Education MUSTY handout as a guide.

What Is a Weeding Plan? Local procedures Tied to available resources Practical, not ideal Thorough and balanced Informed by quantitative measures Connected to collection development policies

When’s the Best Time to Weed? Continuously –Ideal for collection and users –Difficult to achieve with small staff Special projects –Collection(s) relocation –Changes in local scope or priorities In an emergency –Physical disasters

How Often Is Continuously? How important is weeding to the health of your collection? When is a good time to add it to your work week? Which library functions can accommodate some aspect of the weeding process?

Weeding for Relocation Plan ahead--as long as a year Measure what you have Measure where you’re going Identify the indispensable What won’t last until you return?

Weeding for Changes in Scope Grade levels using the school library Technical methods used by the firm Information provided through online subscriptions Added or deleted courses of study

Essential Tools Knowledge of subcollection Circulation trends Current community profile Standard bibliographies

Weeding Steps Identify inappropriate material Triage for replacement, mending, total removal Remove records from database Dispose of material suitably

Weeding Methods CREW Weed of the Month Circulation point Standing orders Annual inventory

CREW Continuous Review –Circulation/use records –Local interests/needs Evaluation –Condition –Relevancy Weeding –Timely –Steady pace

CREW’s 10 Steps 1.Weeding is policy 2.Gather usage statistics 3.Build weeding into work calendar 4.Take necessary tools to shelf 5.Study whole area first, then consider item by item 6.Check library’s holdings 7.Check pulled items against library’s subject indexes 8.Triage individual pulled items 9.Replace items and update subject area 10.Display underused but sound materials

Tools to Take to the Shelf Circulation/use data printout Paper slips for individual item notes Subject bibliography Book truck Stool for seating, climbing

SUNLINK’s Weed of the Month Topical focus –Reason to weed the topic –Suggested Dewey numbers to check –Specific weeding criteria

Collections with Special Needs Reference material Audiovisual formats Young adult/teen collections Children’s collections Journals

Extra Help for Special Concerns Consumer health advice Community redistribution plans Trading posts for backfiles

Weeding at Circulation Spot check materials going out Evaluate condition upon return –Binding? –Loose pages? –Missing parts? Handle with care

Standing Orders Weed superseded editions –Laws change –Directory listings become inaccurate State the threshold of tolerance –Travel books –Exam materials

Regular Inventory Standing order plans Sets with missing parts Grant-funded expansions

Budgeting for Weeding Time Replacement costs Repair costs Space for work flow

Whose Time? Collection development staff Support staff ILS managers …and don’t forget –Janitorial/maintenance staff – Volunteers

Triaging Weeding Candidates Enrichment and replacement budgets In house repair costs Professional bindery costs Existing electronic availability

Appropriate Disposal of Weeded Materials California state law Ethical considerations Fund raising alternatives Maintaining records

When to Replace? Material continues to be –Intellectually sound –Pertinent to the community –Not superseded by other material in collection

Relegating to In-House Repairs? Scope of mending staff’s skill sets Balancing desire to recover the old against resources to process new material Alternatives –Replacement with donations –Skilled volunteers –Appropriate handling by staff during regular circulation procedures

Planning Professional Restoration in Lieu of Weeding? Binding –Is the interior worthy of saving? Replacing missing pages –How many is “too many”? Replacement parts for av materials –Contracts in place to reduce costs?

Using Your Policy Formulate for reliability –Check for fit in terms of scope and capacity Revisit regularly –New times bring new formats and –New ideas Publicize the rules you’re weeding by –Play fair with your staff and –Your public

Who Needs Weeding Information? Support staff Library board/commissioners Teachers Public Local media

Communicating the Plan Collection development policy Stakeholder input Staff training Published and available Library’s users Absolutely everyone

“Weeding is a necessary adjunct of selection since it systematically eliminates unnecessary items; outdated or superseded materials; titles infrequently used, no longer of interest or in demand; unnecessary duplicates; and worn out or mutilated copies.” Kansas Public Library Policy Manual

Other Words for Weeding Collection maintenance Reselection Pruning Editing Culling

In Emergency Situations Clarify –Scope of related weeding need –Likelihood for recurrence Direct –Weeding procedures –PR Update –Library’s users –Staff

The Message Matters Who? How? Why? Professional staff Deliberation Stewardship

Allies Support staff –Informed and trained –Designated role in process Friends groups –Beneficiaries –Assistants Faculty –Input –Institutional awareness

Next Steps Postcard check-in (30 days) Unfinished business Evaluation