Covington I.S.D.
Collection Development Policy
and Procedures For Library
2012-2013
Covington I.S.D. 2
Collection Development Policy and Procedures For Library
Table of Contents
STATEMENT OF POLICY .......................................................................................................... 4
1.1 INTRODUCTION
1.2 PURPOSE OF POLICY
1.3 MISSION STATEMENT OF COVINGTON I.S.D
1.4 MISSION STATEMENT OF LIBRARY
COMMUNITY SERVED ............................................................................................................ 4
FORMAL PROCEDURES FOR COLLECTION DEVELOPMENT ....................................................... 5
3.1 EXISTING COMMITTEES
3.2 ADVISORY BOARDS
3.3 COLLECTION DEVELOPMENT LIBRARIANS
3.4 SCHOOL BOARD
3.5 BOARD OF TRUSTEES
3.6 NEEDS ASSESSMENT ACTIVITIES WITH PATRONS
3.7 GUIDELINES FOR PATRON PARTICIPATION
FORMATS INCLUDED IN THE CURRENT COLLECTION & NEEDED .............................................. 6
4.1 ANALYSIS OF COLLECTION STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES
4.2 PLANS FOR INCLUSIONS OF NEW FORMATS, SUBJECTS, AND/OR GENRES
GUIDELINES AS TO HOW NEW MATERIAL ARE SELECTED & PURCHASED................................. 7
5.1 BUDGETARY FIGURES
5.2 APPROVAL PLANS
5.3 LIBRARY CONSORTIA
5.4 LICENSING AGREEMENT
LOCATING LIST OF NEW PURCHASES ...................................................................................... 8
6.1 LIBRARY REFERENCE PROGRAM
6.2 READERS ADVISORY
6.3 INFORMATION LITERACY PROGRAMS
LOCATION OF LIBRARY MATERIALS ........................................................................................ 9
POLICIES AND PROCEDURES FOR HANDLING CENSORSHIP ................................................... 10
8.1 CHALLENGED MATERIAL PROCEDURE
8.2 POLICIES AND PROCEDURES FOR HANDLING GOVERNMENT-SPONSORED INVESTIGATIONS
8.3 RECORDS RETENTION
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Collection Development Policy and Procedures For Library
GIFTS AND EXCHANGES ....................................................................................................... 13
9.1 COLLECTION EVALUATION
9.2 DESELECTION (WEEDING)
DIASTER PREPAREDNESS ..................................................................................................... 14
APPENDIX............................................................................................................................ 15
10.1 CHALLENGED MATERIAL FORM
10.2 WISH YOU HAD FORM
10.3 POLICY ON CONFIDENTIALITY OF LIBRARY RECORDS
10.4 CODE OF ETHICS OF THE AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION
10.5 LIBRARY BILL OF RIGHTS
10.6 THE FREEDOM TO READ STATEMENT
BIBLIOGRAPHY .................................................................................................................... 22
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Collection Development Policy and Procedures For Library
I. Statement of Policy
1.1 Introduction
The Covington Independent Library stands behind the beliefs of the American Library Association’s
standards and the Texas School Library Commission. It is our belief that “student achievement is the
objective of school library programs.” (Commissioners)
1.2 Purpose of Policy


To guide the library staff in the selection, acquisition, maintenance, procedures, and policies of
the day to day operations
To inform interested individuals of policies regarding privacy, procedures regarding request for
considerations, and reconsideration of materials.
1.3 History of Library

The Covington Independent School District has been committed to providing excellence in
education to its students since it was founded in 1906. The libraries currently serve
approximately 280 students consisting of grade levels Pre-Kindergarten through 12th. The
current collection is housed in two separate libraries. The Staar Campus houses materials
appropriate to the grade levels of Pre-K through 6th. The high school campus houses the
collection for seventh through 12th.
1.4 Mission Statement of Covington I.S.D.

The mission of Covington Independent School District is to graduate responsible young adults
with the knowledge and skills to achieve their goals by providing a learning environment that
instills values, sense of purpose and pride in our Covington owl heritage. (Covington)
1.5 Mission Statement of Library
The mission of Covington Independent School District library is to assist the district in graduating
responsible young adults with the skills to achieve lifelong learning behaviors. The library’s primary
purpose is educational; it offers enrichment for the students and resource material for the faculty.
Materials are selected from all forms of media available, based on interest, vocabulary, maturity, and
ability levels of the student within Covington I.S.D. (Covington)
II. Community Served
The community of Covington is rural in nature and consists of small to medium-sized farms and ranches
located in Hill County. The population in Covington is approximately 272. The student population is a
diverse group with approximately 86 percent White, 12 percent Hispanic, and less than 3 percent
others.
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Collection Development Policy and Procedures For Library
III. Formal Procedures for Collection Development
3.1 Existing Committees

The responsibility for the final selection shall be delegated to professionally trained personnel of
the Library who know the course of study, the methods of teaching, and the individual
differences of the students in the school which the materials are provided for. (Policy)
3.2 Advisory Boards

A yearly meeting with teachers at each subject area shall meet to contribute ideas for additions
to the library’s curriculum related materials.
3.3 Collection Development Librarians

The collection development librarian (aka. Librarian) will have the responsibility of the final
selection of materials provided by the school.
3.4 School Board


The legal responsibility for the Covington I.S.D. Library rests with the School Board of Covington
I.S.D.
The School Board subscribes in principle to the statements of policy concerning intellectual
freedom endorsed by the American Library Association and/or the American Association of
School Libraries. (Appendix)
3.5 Board of Trustees

Library does not fulfill specified roll.
3.6 Needs Assessment Activities with Patrons


Periodically, a survey will be implemented to explore the needs and wants of the faculty and
student body. The surveys will be issued by paper copy or internet survey.
Teachers and students may request a title by verbal request or by filling out a wish you had card
located in the library. (Appendix)
3.7 Guidelines for Patron Participation

Patron Conduct
o In order to ensure constructive use of library facilities, materials, and services, as well as
the personal comfort of all patrons, the Covington I.S.D. Library has established the
following rules.
1. Foul language, loud, and boisterous behaviors are not permitted.
2. Food and drink are not allowed in the library unless offered by the library as
refreshments served at a program
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Collection Development Policy and Procedures For Library
3. School dress code guidelines are required for all patrons.
4. A library patron who deliberately alters a library computer database or destroys
computer equipment will be subject to financial liability for damages.
Loan Periods
o Two weeks for books or audio books
o Overnight for reference books
o Books may be renewed if there is not a waiting list for the title
o A three book limit can be checked out at one time at the high school level.
o A two book limit can be checked out at one time at the elementary level.
o One week check out for magazines plus cannot be current month’s issue.


Fines and Charges
o The purpose of overdue fines is not to punish the patron; it is to encourage patrons to
return the items by the due date so they can be available to others.
 No fines for Pre-Kindergarten through 2
 All books, audio books, and magazines, $0.05 per day for grades 3 through 12.
 All patrons will be held financially liable for replacing any unreturned items.
Reserving Facilities
o All requests for group reservations will be upon request of the faculty.

IV. Formats Included in the Current Collection & Needed
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o


Books in hardback and paperback in fiction and nonfiction
DVD/VHS
Audio books/CD
Periodicals-for both recreation and reference
Online databases for research
Reference books
Local newspaper
EBooks
4.1 Analysis of Collection Strengths and Weaknesses
There are more than 13,000 nonfiction and fiction books housed in the combined campuses.
Current needs of the collection include updating collection in all areas. The general age of the
collection is 21 years.
Curriculum related reference materials are in tremendous need, science, language arts,
technology, history, geography, story collections, and biography on the high school level.

4.2 Plans for Inclusions of New Formats, Subjects, and/or Genres

Focus will be generated toward the biography, science, and literature areas, these areas have
books over the age of twenty-two years. Newly purchased material in this area will focus on the
Covington I.S.D. 7
Collection Development Policy and Procedures For Library




current curriculum and teacher input.
Inclusion of an additional online database
Additional eBooks
Additional books of all genres to update collection.
Focus on updating all areas of collection to the general age of 12 years.
V. Guidelines as to How New Materials are Selected and Purchased



Specific criteria considered are:
o The material’s overall purpose and how well it fits into the current curriculum
o The reputation and significance of the author, editor, illustrator, publisher, and/or
producer
o The material’s timeliness or permanence
o The subject matter’s importance to the collection and curriculum
o The material’s accurate and scholarship adequacy
o The reading level and reader appeal
o The quality of the writing and/or illustrations
o The price in terms of other available or non-available resources within the community
o The fairness of ethnic and sex-role representation
o The materials selected are within the guidelines of the Covington I.S.D. Board Policy
Manual.
Sources to be considered in selection:
o Teacher request and/or recommendation
o Student requests and interest
o Recommended review sources (Favorable review from at least two selection aides, such
as… School Library Journal, Horn Books, Booklist, Library Media, Journal, and/or other
reputable sources.)
o Recommended bibliographies and award lists
Subjects which are diverse are carefully considered for the library. Among these are…
o Religion – factual unbiased material representing major religions of the world religions
of the world may be included. Bibles and other sacred writings are acceptable.
o Ideologies –basic factual, not judgmental, information on ideologies or philosophies that
are of current or continuing interest should be included, based on the intended maturity
level of the users.
o Science –medical and scientific knowledge without any biased selection of facts and
suitable to the user’s developmental stage should be included.
o Sex and profanity –the fact of sexual incidents or profanity appearing in a book shall not
automatically disqualify it. Overriding considerations include whether the book
presents like in its true proportions, whether the book has literary merit. Factual
material of an educational nature on the level of the users shall be included
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Collection Development Policy and Procedures For Library
5.1 Budgetary Figures


The Covington I.S.D. library is funded by tax dollars as allotted by the school board.
The budget for 2012-2013 was approximately $9500.00.
LIBRARY BUDGET
Magazines,
1%
Video
Stream, 9%
Misc
Cont.,
15%
Books, 21%
Travel, 4%
Renassons,
22%

Misc.,
11%
Supplement,
9.0%
Currently 21 percent of budget goes directly toward purchase of books.
5.2 Approval Plans

The Covington I.S.D. library does not commit to any automatic shipments of book orders.
Library materials shall be purchased by submitting a purchase order thorough the
administration for each requested order.
5.3 Library Consortia
The Covington I.S.D. library has a multi-regional Library Automation Consortium (MrLibS). This
consortium must be renewed yearly in order to continue the membership in the MrLibS Consortium and
the continued use of Follett Destiny. The renewal includes the annual Follett maintenance renewal for
Destiny Library Manage.
5.4 Licensing Agreement

All licensing agreements shall be under the policies of the Covington I.S.D.
VI. Locating List of New Purchases

Upon the purchase of new library material, the librarian will process all new material in a timely
manner. Each new item will be marked “NEW” and placed book cover outward on shelving
units for quick access for patron’s check-out, after initial check-out it will be placed in its proper
location on the stacks.
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Collection Development Policy and Procedures For Library
6.1 Library Reference Program

The librarian is able to quickly assist patrons with
o Research assignments
o Book selection
o Database searches
6.2 Readers Advisory
 The Elementary and Staar Campuses participates in the Accelerated Readers Program.
6.3 Information Literacy Programs



All high school English classes will have a guided tour of the library, giving valuable
information about library resources, passwords, and general library skills.
All second through six grade level students will have a guided tour of the library, giving
valuable information about library resources, and general library skills.
All pre-kindergarten to first grade level students will have a twenty minute one day a week
class of library related skills throughout the year.
VII. Location of Library Materials

The location of materials are arranged by the Dewey Decimal system
o This system is made up of ten main classes or categories, each divided into ten
secondary classes or subcategories, each having ten subdivisions of its own.
 000 – Computer science, information, and general works
 100 – Philosophy and psychology
 200 – Religion
 300 – Social Sciences
 400 – Languages
 500 – Science and Mathematics
 600 – Technology and applied science
 700 – Arts and recreation
 800 – Literature
 900 – History and geography
o In addition
 92 – Biography
 FIC – Fiction
 E – Easy Fiction
 SC - Story Collection
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Collection Development Policy and Procedures For Library
VIII. Policies and Procedures for Handling Censorship



The Covington I.S.D. library stands behind the American Libraries Association belief of patrons’
privacy and confidentiality rights and the First Amendment of Constitution.
o ALA Policy on Confidentiality of Library Records (Appendix)
o ALA Code of Ethics (Appendix)
o ALA Bill of Rights (Appendix)
o Freedom to Read Statement (Appendix)
8.1 Challenged Material Procedure
Guiding Principles
o Any resident or employee of the school district may raise objection to learning
resources used in a school’s educational program, despite the fact that the individuals
selecting such resources were duly qualified to make the selection, followed the proper
procedure, and observed the criteria for selecting learning resources.
o The principal should review the selection and objection rules with the teaching staff at
least annually. The staff should be reminded that the right to object to learning
resources is one granted by policies enacted by the School Board.
o No parent has the right to determine reading, viewing, or listening matter for students
other than his or her own children.
o Covington I.S.D. library supports the Library Bill of Rights, adopted by the American
Library Association. (A copy of the Library Bill of Rights is attached to this
policy.)(Appendix) When learning resources are challenged, the principles of the
freedom to read/listen/view must be defended as well.
o Access to challenged material shall not be restricted during the reconsideration process.
o The major criterion for the final decision is the appropriateness of the material for its
intended educational use.
o A decision to sustain a challenge shall not necessarily be interpreted as a judgment or
irresponsibility by the professionals involved in the original selection and/or use of the
material.
Procedure
1. Fill out a Request for Reconsideration of Instructional Materials form (Appendix)
2. Return this form to the campus principle
3. Campus principle submits request to superintendent
4. A review committee will be formed consisting of
a. One member of the district staff
b. One member of the teaching staff
c. One member of the library staff
d. One member of the community
e. Two students of the school
f. One member of the school consultative committee
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Collection Development Policy and Procedures For Library

The review committee shall:
o Examine the challenged material
o Review the professional acceptance of the material
o Weigh the educational value of the material as a whole not by passages from the
material using the Checklist for Reconsideration of Instructional Materials (Appendix)
o Prepare a written report with copies forwarded to the curriculum specialist and
superintendent.
o Once report is filed, they are confidential and available for examination by appropriate
officials only.
8.2 Policies and Procedures for Handling Government-Sponsored Investigations

The Librarian has been designated as the person responsible for handling law enforcement
requests. All library staff should understand that it is lawful to refer the agent or officer to an
administrator in charge of the library, and that they do not need to respond immediately to any
request. A librarian should try first to call the Principal, the Assistant Principal, Superintendant,
or a member of the School Board.
During a visit:
1. If anyone approaches a staff member alleging to be law enforcement official requesting
information, DO NOT DISCLOSE ANY INFORMATION.
2. Ask for identification and then immediately refer the agent or officer to the Librarian or
office staff. Photocopy identification or take business card.
3. Librarian will meet with the agent with another colleague in attendance.
4. Ask to see the court order(s) (for example, search warrant, subpoena, National Security
Letter) authorizing law enforcement.
5. If the agent does not have a court order compelling the production of records, the Librarian
should explain the library’s confidentiality policy and/or state’s confidentiality law and
inform the agent that users’ records are not available except when a proper court order in
good form has been presented to the library.
6. If there is no court order presented the FBI and/or local law enforcement has no authority
to compel cooperation with an investigation or require answers to questions (other than the
name and address of the person speaking to him/her). If the agent makes an appeal to
patriotism, the Librarian will explain that, as good citizens, the library staff will not respond
to informal requests for confidential information, in conformity with professional ethics,
First Amendment freedoms and state laws.
7. If the agent does present a court order the Librarian should immediately refer the court
order the district’s legal counsel for review.
Covington I.S.D. 12
Collection Development Policy and Procedures For Library
If the court order is in the form of a subpoena:
1. Counsel will examine the subpoena for any legal defect including the manner in which it
was served on the library, the breadth of its request, its form, or an insufficient showing of
good cause made to a court. If a defect exists, counsel will advise on the best method to
resist the subpoena.
2. Through legal counsel the Librarian will insist that any defect be cured before records are
released and that the subpoena is strictly limited to require release of specifically identified
records or documents.
3. The Counsel will require that the agent requesting the information submit a new subpoena
in good form and without defect.
4. The Attorney will review the information that may be produced in response to the
subpoena before releasing the information. The Librarian will follow the subpoena strictly
and will not provide any information that is not specifically requested in it.
5. If disclosure is required the School District’s Attorney will draft a request to the court to
enter a protective order keeping the information confidential and limiting its use to the
particular case.
If the court order is in the form of a search warrant:
1. Search warrants are executable immediately. However, ask to have the School District’s
Counsel present before the search begins to allow counsel to examine the warrant and
assure that the search conforms to the terms of the warrant. This request may not be
granted.
2. Gather records identified in the warrant and present them rather than allowing non-library
personnel to go through the Library’s databases or records. (Intellectual Freedom
Committee, 2008)
If the court order is a search warrant issued under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FICA)
(USA PATROIT ACT amendment):
1. The recommendations for a regular search warrant still apply. However, a search warrant
issued by a FISA court also contains a “gag order.” That means that no person or
institution served with the warrant can disclose that the warrant has been served or that
records have been produced pursuant to the warrants.
2. The library and its staff must comply with this order. No information can be disclosed to
any other party: including the Librarian if not present at the time the warrant is served
and the patron whose records are the subjects of the search warrant.
3. The gag order does not change a library’s right to legal representation during the search.
The library can still seek legal advice concerning the warrant and request that the School
District’s Legal Counsel be present during the actual search and execution of the warrant.
(Intellectual Freedom Committee, 2008)
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Collection Development Policy and Procedures For Library
If the court order is a National Security Letter:
1. The procedure is the same as for a search warrant. However, a gag order applies. The
School District Principal/Librarian will contact Counsel. They may request that District’s
Counsel be present during the search and that the search be delayed until counsel
examines the court document. If law enforcement chooses to proceed, the Library must
comply.
It is only through continued public confidence in the fact that these guidelines are being upheld that the
public can maintain its confidence in the public library. (Intellectual Freedom Committee, 2008)
8.3 Records Retention
 This library current policy will conform to state guidelines for retention of records.
o Internet signup sheets – one week
o Patron circulation records – Three weeks if resolved
o Incident reports (patron) – Permanently (Intellectual Freedom Committee, 2008)
IX. Gifts and Exchanges
 Gifts may be accepted on a base by base decision made by the librarian.
9.1 Collection Evaluation
 In order to maintain an up-to-date materials collection, the Covington library personnel will
continually evaluate the collection according to the following criteria:
o Thorough knowledge of the current collection.
o Thorough knowledge of changing curriculum.
o Changing needs of the school community
o Consultation of reputable selection aids and other appropriate sources
o Removal of materials according to weeding policy
9.2 Deselection (Weeding)
 Weeding is an ongoing process. Criteria to aide in the deselection process…
o Duplicates
o Unsolicited and unwanted gifts
o Obsolete books, especially science
o Supersede editions
o Books with small print, brittle paper, and missing pages
o Unused, unneeded volumes of sets
o Periodical with no indexes
 Goals for weeding are to maintain an average collection age no older than twelve years.
Covington I.S.D. 14
Collection Development Policy and Procedures For Library
o
Guidelines for weeding classes
 000 – Computer science, information, and general works – every 5 years
 100 – Philosophy and psychology – every 5 years
 200 – Religion – every 5 years
 300 – Social Sciences - every 3 years
 400 – Languages – every 5 years
 500 – Science and Mathematics - every 2 years
 600 – Technology and applied science - every 2 years
 700 – Arts and recreation – every 5 years
 800 – Literature – every 5 years
 900 – History and geography - every 3 years
 92 – Biography – every 3 years
 FIC – Fiction – every 5 years
 E – Easy Fiction – every 5 years
 SC - Story Collection – every 5 years
X. Disaster Preparedness

The Covington Library’s Disaster Preparedness coincides with the School District’s Policy to such
situations.
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Collection Development Policy and Procedures For Library
XI. Appendix
10.1 Challenged Material Form

The school board of Covington ISD delegates the responsibility for selection and evaluation of
library/educational resources to the school library media specialist/curriculum committee, and
has established reconsideration procedures to address concerns about those resources.
Completion of this form is the first step in those procedures. If you wish to request
reconsideration of library resources, please return the completed form to the Covington ISD
office at 501 N. Main Street Covington, TX 76636
Covington I.S.D. 16
Collection Development Policy and Procedures For Library
EXHIBIT A:
REQUEST FOR RECONSIDERATION OF INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS
Name ___________________________________________ Date ____________________
Address __________________________________________________________________
City ____________________________________ State __________ Zip _______________
Phone ____________________________________________________________________
Do you represent yourself? _____ an organization? _____ (If an organization, please identify:
_________________________________________________________________)
Resource on which you are commenting:
____ Book
____ Magazine
____ Audio Recording
____ Textbook
____ Library Program
____ Newspaper
____ Video/DVD
____ Electronic information/network (please specify)
____ Display
____ Other ________________________________
Title _____________________________________________________________________
Author/Producer ___________________________________________________________
1.
Have you reviewed the materials in their entirety? __________ If not, please do so before
completing and submitting this form.
2.
To what in the material do you object? (Please be specific: cite pages, and the like)
_____________________________________________________________________
3.
What do you believe might be the result of using this material?
_____________________________________________________________________
4.
For what age group would you recommend this material?
_____________________________________________________________________
5.
In its place, what material of equal quality would you recommend that could be used to
teach similar subject matter?
_____________________________________________________________________
6.
What do you believe should be done with the material in question?



Remove it from the curriculum.
Do not allow my child to use this material.
Use it as resource material or a choice selection.
Complainant signature___________________________________ Date ______________
Covington I.S.D. 17
Collection Development Policy and Procedures For Library
10.2 Wish You Had Form
EXHIBT B
Name: __________________________________________________________________________
Title of Requested Item: ____________________________________________________________
Author of Requested Item: _________________________________________________________
Propose of Item Requested: ________________________________________________________
10.3 Policy on Confidentiality of Library Records
The Council of the American Library Association strongly recommends that the responsible officers of
each library, cooperative system, and consortium in the United States:
1. Formally adopt a policy that specifically recognizes its circulation records and other records
identifying the names of library users to be confidential. (See also ALA Code of Ethics, Article III,
"We protect each library user's right to privacy and confidentiality with respect to information
sought or received, and resources consulted, borrowed, acquired or transmitted" and Privacy: An
Interpretation of the Library Bill of Rights.)
2. Advise all librarians and library employees that such records shall not be made available to any
agency of state, federal, or local government except pursuant to such process, order or subpoena
as may be authorized under the authority of, and pursuant to, federal, state, or local law relating
to civil, criminal, or administrative discovery procedures or legislative investigative power.
3. Resist the issuance of enforcement of any such process, order, or subpoena until such time as a
proper showing of good cause has been made in a court of competent jurisdiction.1
1Note: Point 3, above, means that upon receipt of such process, order, or subpoena, the library's officers
will consult with their legal counsel to determine if such process, order, or subpoena is in proper form and
if there is a showing of good cause for its issuance; if the process, order, or subpoena is not in proper
form or if good cause has not been shown, they will insist that such defects be cured.
Adopted January 20, 1971, by the ALA Council; amended July 4, 1975; July 2, 1986.
10.4 Code of Ethics of the American Library Association
As members of the American Library Association, we recognize the importance of codifying and making
known to the profession and to the general public the ethical principles that guide the work of librarians,
other professionals providing information services, library trustees and library staffs.
Ethical dilemmas occur when values are in conflict. The American Library Association Code of Ethics
states the values to which we are committed, and embodies the ethical responsibilities of the profession
in this changing information environment.
We significantly influence or control the selection, organization, preservation, and dissemination of
information. In a political system grounded in an informed citizenry, we are members of a profession
Covington I.S.D. 18
Collection Development Policy and Procedures For Library
explicitly committed to intellectual freedom and the freedom of access to information. We have a special
obligation to ensure the free flow of information and ideas to present and future generations.
The principles of this Code are expressed in broad statements to guide ethical decision making. These
statements provide a framework; they cannot and do not dictate conduct to cover particular situations.
I.
II.
III.
IV.
V.
VI.
VII.
VIII.
We provide the highest level of service to all library users through appropriate and usefully
organized resources; equitable service policies; equitable access; and accurate, unbiased, and
courteous responses to all requests.
We uphold the principles of intellectual freedom and resist all efforts to censor library resources.
We protect each library user's right to privacy and confidentiality with respect to information
sought or received and resources consulted, borrowed, acquired or transmitted.
We respect intellectual property rights and advocate balance between the interests of information
users and rights holders.
We treat co-workers and other colleagues with respect, fairness, and good faith, and advocate
conditions of employment that safeguard the rights and welfare of all employees of our
institutions.
We do not advance private interests at the expense of library users, colleagues, or our employing
institutions.
We distinguish between our personal convictions and professional duties and do not allow our
personal beliefs to interfere with fair representation of the aims of our institutions or the provision
of access to their information resources.
We strive for excellence in the profession by maintaining and enhancing our own knowledge and
skills, by encouraging the professional development of co-workers, and by fostering the
aspirations of potential members of the profession.
Adopted at the 1939 Midwinter Meeting by the ALA Council; amended June 30, 1981; June 28, 1995; and
January 22, 2008.
This page has long held the incorrect amendment date of June 28, 1997; the Office for Intellectual
Freedom regrets and apologizes for the error.
10.5 Library Bill of Rights
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 abridgment 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.
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VI. Libraries that 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 19, 1939, by the ALA Council; amended October 14, 1944; June 18, 1948; February 2,
1961; June 27, 1967; January 23, 1980; inclusion of “age” reaffirmed January 23, 1996.
A history of the Library Bill of Rights is found in the latest edition of the Intellectual Freedom Manual.
10.6 The 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
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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.
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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.
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XI. Bibliography
Commissioners, T. S. “School Library Programs: Standards and Guidelines for Texas”, Texas School
Library Standards, May 16, 2005, www.tsl.state.tx.us/ld/schoollibs/slsAdopted2005doc
(Accessed April 20, 2013)
"Code of Ethics of the American Library Association", American Library Association, July 7, 2006.
http://www.ala.org/advocacy/proethics/codeofethics/codeethics (Accessed March 14, 2013)
Document ID: 615b49c6-2ba0-1f64-f914-6bfb9b240357
"Library Bill of Rights", American Library Association, June 30, 2006.
http://www.ala.org/advocacy/intfreedom/librarybill (Accessed March 14, 2013) Document ID:
669fd6a3-8939-3e54-7577-996a0a3f8952
"The Freedom to Read Statement", American Library Association, July 26, 2006.
http://www.ala.org/offices/oif/statementspols/ftrstatement/freedomreadstatement (Accessed
March 14, 2013) Document ID: 71705c25-86e1-8c44-b16e-3e87d19893aa
Covington Independent School District, (unknown). “Our Mission”. Retrieved from
http://www.covingtonisd.org/ (Accessed March 15, 2013)
Policy On Line. (2013). “Covington ISD Board Policy Manual”. Retrieved from
http://pol.tasb.org/Home/Index/652 (Accessed March 1, 2013)