The Glen Lake Community Library provides information materials and services to all community residents on an equal, publicly funded basis. The cultivation of a rich, diverse collection of books and other reading materials is central to the role of the library, as is the utilization of new and emerging technologies to better link people with needed information. By preserving our traditional roles while also promoting information literacy, the library strives to meet the evolving educational, intellectual and recreational needs of our community.
Any resident of Empire, Glen Arbor, or Kasson townships may register for borrowing privileges. Residency is defined as living or owning property within the service district. People residing outside of the district may also register, but must pay a one-time fee of $10.00.
Proof of identification is required before a library card can be issued. Acceptable forms of identification include a driver’s license, checkbook, or mail received at the resident’s local mailing address.
Families will normally be registered on a single library account. All family members that may use the account should be listed in the registration. Children under the age of 16 who wish to have their own card must have the permission of a parent or legal guardian. Parents may also request that a child over the age of 16 be removed from the family account. Borrowing privileges may be extended to guests, with the understanding that the registered party will give formal notification to the library, and assume full responsibility for all materials checked out on the account.
Patrons may borrow as many materials as they can use, with the exception of DVDs. Only four DVDs may be checked out at one time. During the summer months, there is also a limit on the number of new titles that can be borrowed at one time. During this busiest season, no more than four items of each collection type (fiction, non-fiction, recorded books, music CDs, videorecordings, etc.) can be checked out at one time.
A rental fee of $1.00 is charged for feature films on DVD. There is no charge for any other collection materials.
| Books |
3 weeks |
| Recorded Books |
3 weeks |
| Music CDs |
3 weeks |
| Periodicals |
2 weeks |
| Videorecordings |
4 days |
Overdue charges are assessed at 50¢ per day for movie rentals, 10 ¢ per day for all other materials, up to a maximum of $2.00 per item. Materials that are one month past due will be automatically billed to patron accounts for replacement.
Collection development policy
The Glen Lake Community Library is based on the principles of intellectual freedom, as outlined in the Library Bill of Rights and the Freedom to Read Statement. Therefore, the library is committed to maintaining a collection that is diverse both in content and format. Both fiction and non-fiction materials are collected, as are materials for both adults and children. Selection will be balanced to include titles in popular demand along with those that are deemed to have more lasting appeal and value. Materials are also collected in a variety of formats, primarily books, periodicals, audiotapes, and videotapes.
Numerous criteria are considered when selecting materials for the library collection. These include but are not limited to: popular demand for an author or title, relevance of subject to the community, coverage of subject within the existing collection, contribution to balance of existing collection, availability of material elsewhere in the area, timeliness or permanence of the content, and physical characteristics of the material. Special consideration is given to materials by local or regional authors.
Additional criteria include literary or artistic merit, factual accuracy, suitability of content and vocabulary to age of audience, and price.
The board of trustees delegates responsibility for the selection of materials and maintenance of the collection to the library director. The librarian consults various selection tools to gather and evaluate titles for possible addition to the collection. Publishers’ catalogs, bestseller lists, reviews in professional and general periodicals, and standardized bibliographies are routinely consulted. Library staff may also select titles with which they are personally familiar, along with recommendations and requests by library patrons.
Selection of a title does not infer that the library endorses the views or ideas presented in the material. Materials are not included or excluded because of the race, nationality, political affiliation, or personal values of the author.
Donated materials will be considered for addition to the library collection. The same selection standards applied to new purchases are used with donations. Donations that cannot be used in the permanent collection will be routed to the Friends of the Library for use in the annual book sale.
Books and other materials will periodically be withdrawn from the collection, due to poor physical condition, dated or inaccurate content, or lack of circulation.
Internet acceptable use
The Glen Lake Community Library provides free public access to the Internet, a global computer network of information resources. The library respects the right of individuals to access the Internet resources of his or her choice. This is consistent with the principle of intellectual freedom that has traditionally shaped public library philosophy and practice. Since the subject content of the Internet is provided by literally millions of users, with no central governing body, it does include resources that may be considered inappropriate or offensive. This may include explicit material of an adult nature. Similarly, the potential does exist for communication tools such as electronic mail and chat rooms to be used to harass, mislead, or make slanderous statements in an essentially anonymous manner.
In response to concerns about these types of resources, the state of Michigan has enacted Public Act 212 of 2000. This law requires all public facilities that provide Internet access to take measures designed to prevent minors from viewing explicit material of an adult nature. “Minor” is defined as less than 18 years of age. This law also states that public Internet providers must at the same time guarantee unrestricted access for adults or minors accompanied by a parent or guardian. The Glen Lake Library, as a public Internet access provider, has always reserved the right to restrict use of library computers that is considered disruptive. In light of Public Act 212, the following uses of the library computers are now formally prohibited:
1. Viewing of explicit materials by minors. Adults that choose to view explicit material will also be subject to restrictions if minors are present in the library.
2. Participation in chat rooms by minors. Because of the public nature of such chat rooms, anonymous users can at any time make explicit statements that could be read by minors.
The library staff will monitor use of public computers to enforce these restrictions. Library staff will make periodic stops in the computer room. Computer screens will need to be kept in a position that allows staff to visually check what is being viewed. Staff will also periodically check the usage log that is automatically generated by the Internet browsing programs. Violations of this policy will result in suspension or termination of access privileges. Parents of minors will also be informed of any violations.
It is the belief of the GLCL that the Internet is a valuable information resource for people of all ages. The positive, legitimate uses of its resources far outweigh any potentially negative aspects. The library will continue to respect and promote intellectual freedom, while also observing the need to protect minors from potentially harmful materials.
A complete policy manual is available at the library. If you have questions about specific policies, please contact us.
|
