Young Adult (YA) Services

2 - The Collection

     Reaching YAs and retaining them as library patrons is a challenging endeavor, regardless of whether you have a captive (school) audience or are in a remote public library.  Once you begin to understand the unique demographic that is young adult, you begin to see a few ways the library can fit into their rather complicated lives. 

      One of the ways library staff can attract and retain YAs is by offering quality, appealing materials in a comfortable, welcoming environment.  A library’s goal with young adult materials should be to become an active entertainment option on level with passive television and radio, while still meeting their need for personal enrichment and educational/curriculum support. 

     Materials in a YA collection should be varied, carefully selected, highly promoted, diligently maintained, and vigorously defended. 

     This course will either introduce or serve as a review to basic components of the YA collection.

Graphic of a stack of books.

Course Objectives

In this course, you will learn:                    

  1. The importance of physical space
  2. How to choose materials for YAs
  3. What materials are found in a typical YA collection
  4. Collection maintenance tips
  5. The library’s role in defending intellectual freedom

 

 

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