About the Library

Collection Development Policy

This collection development policy is a statement of the principles and guidelines used by the Bank Street College Library in the selection, acquisition, evaluation, and maintenance of library materials. It will be used both in providing consistency among those responsible for developing the collection and in communicating the Library’s policies to faculty, students, staff, and other interested persons. It is understood that as the programs and other information needs of the College change, the collection development policy will change to meet such needs. The Bank Street Library uses the Dewey Decimal classification system for finding and retrieving materials. This system is widely used in school and public libraries—places most of our students, both children and adults, will find themselves.

Purpose and Mission

The mission of the Library is to reinforce and advance the academic mission of the College by providing resources and services in support of both new and existing programs. In its most general terms, the selection procedure of the Library is to correlate the available funds in ways most consistent with the educational philosophy and goals of the College. A prime consideration in acquiring books and other library materials is the strengthening of the College resources for instruction and research.

  • Responsibility for Collection Development

    Primary responsibility for administering the collection development policy—including planning, development, maintenance, preservation, budgeting, and evaluating the collection—rests with the Library. Instructors in the Graduate School of Education, research staff, and teachers in the School for Children are encouraged to recommend resources in their own disciplines and for their areas of instruction. It is the responsibility of Graduate School instructors to communicate anticipated required and recommended materials needed for each class. Suggestions from students and staff will also be considered. Divisions and departments are encouraged to upload their research and other materials to the institutional repository, Educate

  • Communities Served

    The Library serves the educational and information needs of current students, faculty, administration, and staff of Bank Street College. This includes educational and recreational materials for use by School for Children students from preschool through eighth grade as well as adult materials for teacher education, training, and research. Priority is given to materials that most directly support coursework preparing students to meet the requirements of education degrees and credentials.

  • Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Accessibility

    The Library is committed to providing programs, collections, and services that are inclusive and accessible to the needs of all persons in the community the library serves. In keeping with the College’s ethos of social justice, equity, and inclusion, this policy embraces the acquisition of literature and other materials that reflects a variety of lived racial, ethnic, gender, cultural, socioeconomic, sexual orientation, and other diversity experiences.

  • Intellectual Freedom

    As part of its philosophy of collection development, the Library subscribes to the following statements of the American Library Association: