Standards for Public Library Services to Children in Massachusetts PREFACE In 2002, the Youth Services Section of the Massachusetts Library Association formed a subcommittee to review and update the Standards for Public Library Services to Children in Massachusetts. This committee’s charge was as follows:
Standards for Public Library Services to Children in Massachusetts is intended to guide the local library in its ongoing evaluation and development of children's services as a strong unit within its service and planning structure. It is meant to be used in conjunction with other planning documents, including: the MBLC regulations governing regional library directors, the service plans of the regional library systems, Children and Libraries: Getting It Right (2001), Managing for Results: Effective Resource Allocation for Public Libraries (2000),The New Planning for Results: A Streamlined Approach (2001),Staffing for Results: A Guide to Working Smarter (2002) and the ALSC Competencies for Librarians Serving Children in Public Libraries, revised edition 4/27/1999. Full implementation of these standards requires special planning and cooperation at the local, regional and state level. It is intended that Standards for Public Library Services to Children in Massachusetts be reviewed for any needed revisions every five years. The standards formulated here continue to follow the pattern of other library standards of recent years in being qualitative rather than quantitative. They describe the philosophy and principles underlying good library service to children and define essential characteristics of such service. (For information about past document revisions, please refer to the section entitled The History of the Children’s Standards in Massachusetts.) While a library may face obstacles such as an inadequate building or budgetary limitations, these are temporary constraints which should not impede the vision or progress towards achieving and MAINTAINING the level of library service outlined in the standards.
MASSACHUSETTS LIBRARY ASSOCIATION YOUTH SERVICES SECTION SUB COMMITTEE TO UPDATE CHILDREN'S STANDARDS 2002-2005 Katie Baxter Noble & Greenough School, Dedham Mary Puleo Everett Libraries Nancy Denman Duxbury Free Library Joanne Doherty Bridgewater Public Library Joan Enriquez Kingston Public Library Kathy Moran-Wallace Nevins Memorial Library, Methuen Kerry Cronin Boston Public Library Susan Nichols (Reader) Douglas School System Libraries Elaine Loehman (Reader) Douglas School System Libraries Doreen Metcalfe (Reader) Central Massachusetts Regional Library System |