Every time you purchase a book, we donate a book to someone in need.Sanibel Public Library is taking steps to optimize the collection for library users in the community.
After an audit of the library’s circulation data, shelf space, and collection contents, several thousand non-circulating, worn, or outdated items are being removed in order to make room for better titles and services.
This is part of the latest round of “weeding,” a regular process that every library undergoes in order to keep the collection fresh. Libraries need to continuously remove books that are collecting dust instead of being checked out.
“What makes this round significant is that many of the unused books will be sent to Better World Books, an organization that collects and sells books,” says Duane E. Shaffer, who is head of collection development for the Library. Begun in summer of 2016, every one of the Library’s 50,000-plus books are being evaluated for its timeliness, value, accuracy, popularity and other factors for keeping it on shelves or in storage.
“The goal is to create more space, appeal, and usefulness for Library users. The top priority is the community’s needs and expectations,” according to the Library’s Executive Director Margaret Mohundro.
Each year the Library adds more than 5,500 items, and those items need to go from the “new’ section to the regular shelves. Space is at a premium.
