The Comparison of the State Library of Louisiana (SLL) and the Dakota County Law Library’s (DCLL) Collection Development Policies By Anna Chang, Malinda Crom, and Alison Leonard

Your Goal (The SLL Mission Statement) “The mission of the State Library of Louisiana is to serve the informational, educational, cultural, and recreational needs of Louisiana residents by providing the best possible library materials and services in a timely and efficient manner. The State Library will strive to improve library services throughout Louisiana and to assure equal access to library resources.” (Jacques, 2004, p. 1)

Should You Choose To Accept It… (The DCLL Mission Statement) “To provide adequate and timely legal information to the judiciary, governmental employees, the members of the bar and the citizens of Dakota County, in the form most comprehensible to all types of users, bearing in mind that ready and convenient access to such information is vital to the justice system of a democratic society. To collaborate with existing organizations to maximize the delivery of legal information and to avoid costly and ineffective duplication. To utilize information technology to deliver legal information wherever financially feasible and acceptable to users” (DCLL, 2007, p. 1)

The What and Where of Selection (The Formats and Subject Areas) SLL and DCLL both collect a variety of formats, and SLL specifies that it includes materials for the blind and handicapped. DCLL has a vague selection policy, stating only that they wish to collect what is most needed by their patrons. SLL has a written guide to the Dewey Decimal System based on what materials they want to include. The guide notes deviations from the normal collection policy and strengths in subjects.

The Whos and Whys of Selection (The Selectors and the Criteria for Selection) SLL identifies the selectors as the staff, but the final responsibility is the State Librarian and the Board of Commissioners of the State Library of Louisiana. DCLL has the Library Manager in charge of selections, with the staff assisting. SLL lists 9 items for selection criteria (including cost, format, space-efficiency, and availability), whereas DCLL has 15 (including currency, significance, potential use, and price). SLL also has 5 exclusions (juvenile books, text books, study aids, popular novels, and highly specialized books or serials), while DCLL has no exclusions listed.

Thanks and Apologies (Gifts and Complaints) SLL accepts gifts when they are needed in the collection, and DCLL accepts gifts as well. SLL also includes a standard gift acceptance letter in their collection policy. DCLL has no policy on complaints or censorship. SLL has a policy that consists of a 6 step review, including paperwork and reviewing the offensive material.

Do We Really Need This? (Evaluation and Deselection) Neither library has a policy regarding the evaluation of the collection development practices, but SLL does state they will review the policy every five years. DCLL says they will update their policy as needed. SLL holds the librarian in charge of choosing materials responsible for also mending or weeding them, although the SLL policy does not provide a time table for weeding. DCLL has a similar policy, but unlike SLL, it provides a list of 10 weeding criteria (including relevance, potential use, and circulation record).

References Dakota County Law Library collection development policy. (2007). Retrieved March 11, 2009 from Dakota County, Law Library Web site: 62D1-4C75-AFCC- 00B6E1EBC264/3959/CDPolicy307revisions.doc. Evans, G.E., & Saponaro, M.Z. (2005). Developing library and information center collections (5th ed.). Westport, CT: Libraries Unlimited. Jacques, T.F. (2004). State Library of Louisiana collection development policy. Retrieved March 11, 2009 from State Library of Louisiana Web site: lopment_policy1.pdf