Weeding with CREW Presented by Dawn Vogler 2009

Goals for Today Inspiration Share best practices Get to know CREW Change one perception about material you are reluctant to weed from your collection

Be Weeding Tigers! (or Tigresses) Take charge of your collection Change your attitude towards weeding Get intimate with your collection Make it fierce for your community!

Collection Development Process Overview Selection/Acquisition Cataloging/Processing Circulation/Reference De-selection

Weeding A process for removing books that no longer fit within the collection guidelines, are in poor condition or are outdated.

Texas Public Library Standards: Collection Standards

System Membership & Collection Size (B) have at least one item of library materials per capita or expend at least 25% of the local expenditures on the purchase of library materials; Rusk County Libraries Service Population Last Reported in 2007: 45, % growth from Reported holdings: 121,511 among 4 branches Could remove HALF of the materials (books, media, serials, e-books (not TexShare) and still be accredited!

De-selection Policy Part of a Collection Development Policy Brief Mentions methodology Disposal

The Attitude

Ranganathan Ranganathan is considered the father of library science... in India.

His 5 Laws of Library Science Books are for use (not storage!). Every reader his (or her) book. Every book its reader. Save the time of the reader. A library is a growing organism.

Law #3 - Justification to Keep All? Every book its reader This law is about items in the librarys collection and who uses them. Each book in the library has a member of the community that will find the book useful or interesting. One of the major developments that Ranganathan contributed through this law is the idea that if a book is not being used often it needs exposure to groups of readers who will find it useful.

80/20 Rule or Pareto Principle 20% of your books are responsible for 80% of your circulation

Books, in and of themselves, are not sacred objects. Libraries exist to make information available, not to warehouse unused books. -Jeanette Larson, SLM Program Workshop on Collection Development, 2007

CREW That Collection Continuous Review Evaluation Weeding Selection/Acquisition, Cataloging/Processing, Circulation/Reference ……then CREW

Weeders – you know who you are You like to save space You like to save time You like it pretty You like it fresh and now You like to keep things interesting You want to know your collection intimately

Non-Weeders (tsk, tsk!) I hate dealing with my staff when it comes to weeding. Im a packrat. If someone in my community sees me throwing away books….. I cant admit that was probably not a wise purchase. Its not a priority. I dont need the space. I know someone will adore this book just like I did when I was her/his age. Its on my long list of things to do.

Excuses-Excuses I bought this book Its won awards! Someone might need it – someday! So and so donated it I loved this book! Mr. Schneebly taught this book back in…... People should read the classics! I dont have a lot of non-fiction. We need to have X books in the collection. I have no budget to buy new books.

Benefits of Weeding Save space –Shelves should never be more than 85% full (and 75% is even better!) –Shelf space costs money It costs to purchase more shelving Employees spend time shifting and customers get frustrated more easily (many believe their time is money!) Pgs

More Benefits Save time –People today are busier than ever, dont clutter the shelves with useless or inaccurate items that will distract them from finding the info they need. –Makes readers advisory easier on the librarian too!

Even More Benefits Appeal –People are attracted to good looking materials. –Were all attracted to whats new. –Barnes & Noble appeal. Spend less time finding things/tracking things down and more time merchandising them to the community.

Can You Believe More Benefits? Enhance your librarys reputation –Reliability –Currency –Build on your historical value as a trusted source –Dont fall victim to anyone saying, The Library has nothing.

Ever More Benefits Keep up with collection needs –Ongoing weeding without a monumental effort –Easily identify holes in your collection –Adapt your collection to the community more easily by knowing what you have

Last Benefit (but not least) You have constant feedback on your collections strengths and weaknesses –Wish list –Donation process made easier –Easily identify subject areas in need –Target sections that could be supplemented by groups that fundraise on your behalf Pg. 16

Case Study

Before You Attack

Review Your Collection Development Policy Pay particular attention to: Selection criteria De-selection criteria Discard information City/County policies Let staff involved read the policy Do you have any goals for the collection?

Other Factors to Consider Library goals Community wants and needs Availability of more suitable material Budgetary flexibility to buy more satisfactory items Cooperative agreements with other libraries Future usefulness (ephemera?) Ability to borrow through ILL

Preparation Walk About- cluttered areas books shelved too high and low merchandised areas? new books items that look shabby right away

Get a Visual Merchandised Areas Top Shelves Used Bottom Shelves Used No opportunities for face-outs Most cluttered, first weeded?

Preparation Collection Evaluation (ILS vendor) Community Assessment (demographic shifts? Growth?) Statistical reports (circ and turnover)

Turnover Rate A measure of use Total # of Items Total Circulation 5,000 items in Dewey 600 range (tech, medicine, auto repair, cooking) 80,000 annual circulation rate overall for library 80,000/5,000 = 16 Each item in the 600s had an average circulation of 16 times

Know Your Enemy

Quick & Dirty De-dupe and keep only enough copies to meet normal demand Lose books in obvious poor condition Lose books without pretty covers that attract attention Remove older single title authors One book wonders! Obscure or ephemeral titles Knockoffs of popular authors (Series of Unfortunate Events, Harry Potter) Lesser works of authors who have died Minor author/poet collections Series books when titles are missing Simplified/abridged classics Jeanette Larson, Small Library Mgt. Training Program, Collection Development Course

Triage Trap Looks matter, but so does content!

Should I Weed this?

To Weed or Not To Weed? Checklist of Weeding Factors Date/AuthorPublisher ConditionAny more copies? Circulation statsExpense to replace Relevance to curriculumSimilar resources? FormatReading level IllustrationsCurrent interest? Visual appealIn school curricula? Can you take all these into consideration and remain sane? Page 20

Figuring Out What to Weed Objective Criteria X/X/MUSTIE Copyright Date Is it more than X year(s) ago? Maximum permissible time without use Page 51

Figuring Out What to Weed Subjective Criteria M = Misleading (Inaccurate) U = Ugly (Condition) S = Superseded (New edition/Outdated) T = Trivial (No longer of interest) I = Irrelevant E = Available Elsewhere (district library, ILL, public library) Page 51

Overview Chart of CREW Formulas, Pg. 99

Unused Materials Specifics Non-circulating for 3-5 years Duplicate copies no longer needed Periodicals that are available in full-text Unused volumes in sets or series Unneeded titles in subject areas used less frequently Hot topics popular more than 5 years ago More books than needed on one topic Formats no longer popular (VHS) Material that is no longer important to the collection (curricula, demographics)

Poor Content Specifics Outdated and obsolete (computers, law, science, space, health, technology, travel) Trivial subject matter (outdated popular culture) Mediocre writing style Inaccurate or false information Unused sets of books (keep used volumes if they meet local needs) Repetitious series Superseded editions Resources not on standard lists or that werent reviewed Materials that contain bias, racist, sexist terminology or views Unneeded duplicates Self-published or small press titles that are not circulating, especially those added as gifts

Appearance Specifics Worn out, ragged items Poorly bound or poorly printed editions Rebound editions that are worn Items that are dirty, marked up, smell of smoke, warped Small print or poor quality pictures Scratched CDs/DVDs

Joyful Noise: Poems for Two Voices Specs: 1998 Copyright Austin Public Librarys St. John Branch added it in 2000 Library Binding Black and white pages only, beautiful pencil drawings Dont have checkout stats, but date due slip on inside cover. Austin Public Library hasnt used these slips in at least 3 years. Condition: Good. In fact, so good, looks like its never been opened. There is no creasing of the spine at all to Indicate usage, very stiff. Example

The Newest Edition

ATTACK!

Steps in Weeding with CREW 1.Gather usage statistics (inventory report and/or checkout stats on collection or section) 2.Gather weeding tools (truck, slips, circulation reports, the manual itself, post-it notes, pencil) 3.Examine the collection or section you chose item by item (this is assuming youve already done a quick and dirty) 4.Check standard indexes if you are questioning items (especially relevant for literature/poetry) Page 25

Steps (cont.) 5. Treat books removed according to disposal steps – those marked bindery are boxed for shipping, discards are taken care of according to policy, replacements are ordered or put on a wish list to reorder when funds are available (and old ones might go back out accordingly marked for replacement or set aside) or take to recycling, see page Research those that are questionable and make decisions on new orders or discards – check the internet for replacements or other relevant titles, see what others in the district own, see what the public library owns, etc. 7. Set up displays for low circulating, but high-quality items and do some marketing/merchandising 8. Place your next weeding project or section on your calendar

CREWing Childrens Picture Books oThink boutique (high-quality, current selection) oBe aware of ephemeral interests oBoard books should be replaced more often since they get the most abuse oReplace worn copies of perennial faves (multiples) Page 34

CREWing YA YA Fiction Be ruthless in this section Currency is key Paperbacks >5 years, remove if not circulating well Page 34

C&YA Non-Fiction Anything is not better than nothing Be aware of online resources Better to lack books that have bad information Use CREW Guidelines by Dewey Class as in adult sections Too much of Uranus! Reading is Fundamental

Other C&YA Issues Abridged classics (often poor quality) Series Books (often poor quality, replace if titles dont stand alone and collect for various reading levels)Series Books Older titles – beware of dated look, torn pages, shabby bindings Worn classics should be replaced (Dont be sentimental!) Geography titles older than 5 years – toss Science, medicine, inventions – rapid changes so update every 5 years Textbooks – gauge by demand in community and homeschool population Page 36

CREWing Reference Types of Materials Almanacs Dictionaries Directories Atlases Handbooks Indexes Pgs

CREWing Reference (cont.) Considerations Older editions may be weeded when superseded Materials should be periodically evaluated, (not as often as circulating collection and not as continuous) Different replacement schedules (new editions may not be as frequent) Keep websites and databases in mind Consider integrating reference materials into the circulating collection, especially if usage is poor

Special Considerations for Periodicals Current use – use declines drastically 5 years after publication date Interest in circulating older issues – do you allow back issues to circulate? Full-text availability Space Pg. 72

CREWing Media Subjective Criteria W – Worn out O – Out-of-date R – Rarely used S – Supplied elsewhere T – Trivial or faddish CREW Guidelines, Pg. 73 CREWing Non-Print Media, pg. 43

CREWing Media Copyright date not as important Rely more on circulation and condition to determine when to weed

Orphaned Materials Sell Donate Trade Recycle Destroy (dumpster discreetly or in batches if policy allows, mark through library barcodes and stamps) Make sure you adhere to city/county policies!

Green WeedingGreen Weeding (pg.92) Book Sales Book Giveaways Host a Swap and Make an Event Create an list to notify community members/orgs Books Through Bars B-Logistics and Better World BooksB-Logistics Better World Books

Sacred Cows Volumes of sets and series with special merit Older reference works augmented by (not superceded by) later editions i.e. Bartletts Familiar Quotations

Hardest Areas to Weed What are yours? 600s 700s Cookbooks Picture books Romances

Weaknesses Picture books Classics Reference

Classics Debate Classics can still make up part of a core collection. Only include if they support curriculum. Its our duty as librarians to expose students to great literature. Unless a movie comes out based on a classic, are students still reading them?

OTHER QUESTIONS OR ISSUES TO BRING UP? Please complete your evaluation and thanks for coming!