Cole Library Circulation Policies
The library’s circulation policy is grounded in its dual responsibility to provide access to material for the population it serves and to act as stewards of the resources the library holds. To that end, the library seeks to arrive at a circulation policy that meets these two goals, attempting to meet the needs of the individual reader and the College’s library community. Meeting such a goal requires that we ensure that our users have the materials they need when they need them and that our community has access to the broad range of resources.
Check the status of your library account online.
Circulation Periods and Notes
| Material | Loan Period for Faculty | Loan Period for Students, Staff, and Public Borrowers | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Academic Year |
4 weeks |
Faculty: All materials are due at the end of the academic year. The Library notifies the campus each year of the end-of-year date. Those items faculty wish to retain can be brought to the library for renewal for the coming academic year. This allows the library to meet its goal of stewardship in knowing that the materials are truly accounted for. Other Users: These materials may be renewed unless there is a hold or recall on the item. |
|
4 weeks |
4 weeks |
These materials may be renewed unless there is a hold or recall on the item. |
|
1 week |
1 week |
These materials may be renewed unless there is a hold or recall on the item. |
Reserve items may be borrowed only by students, for a period of three hours. Reserve materials may be checked out overnight within one hour of the library closing. The materials will be due within one hour of the library’s next opening.
Notices
End-of-year notices: Faculty members receive a reminder of the end-of-year due date for academic books and instructions for accessing their library account to see a listing of all materials checked out to them by the beginning of the last term. All of these materials need to be returned to the library for return or renewal. Materials not returned within 30 days of the due date will be considered lost. Bills will be generated and sent to faculty members. One month after bills are sent to users, outstanding fees will be submitted to the Division of Business and Enterprise Services for payment.
Overdue notices: Faculty members receive overdue notices two days, ten days, and eighteen days after an item becomes overdue. If materials are not returned or renewed thirty days after the due date, we consider the material lost. This status results in a replacement fee being charged to the faculty member. A notice of the fee will be sent to the faculty member. One month after bills are sent to users, outstanding fees will be submitted to the Division of Business and Enterprise Services for payment.
Recall notice. All library users may recall material that is currently checked out to another user. Because of academic needs of students and faculty, it is critical that those recalled materials be returned to the library as quickly as possible, at least by the due date. Fines are doubled per day after the due date to users (including faculty members) who haven't returned recalled materials by the due date. Please contact the Circulation Department if you are unable to meet that due date because of travel or other obligations.
In the case of materials checked out for the academic year and subsequently recalled by another library user, once the faculty borrower has had the material for four weeks (i.e., the circulation period for non-faculty borrowers), recalled material is due back in the library within two days. Please contact the Circulation Department if that is not possible.
Failure to respond may result in suspension of further borrowing privileges.
Fines for Students. Fines are not charged for academic items. The standard fine for overdue non-academic materials (DVDs, audiobooks, browsing room books) is $.50 per day; children's materials accrue overdue fines at $.10 per day. The fine rate for recalled items is $1.00 per day after the due date.
Replacement Fees. The library considers an item lost after three overdue notices have been sent. At this point, the borrower will be assessed two fees: a processing fee and a replacement charge. The processing fee ($10) covers the cost of generating notices, postage, searching for the item, and other related activities. If an item is returned within two months after the fee has been paid, a refund will be generated. However, the processing fee will apply because the library has expended these efforts already. The replacement cost is based on the following schedule:
| Materials | Costs |
|---|---|
|
Academic books |
$50 |
|
Browsing Room books |
$20 |
|
Children's books |
$15 |
|
Videocassettes & DVDs |
$25 |
|
Audiobooks |
$30 |
|
CDs |
$15 |
|
Periodicals |
$10 |
If bills includes replacement costs, please note that amount is Cole Library's average cost for this type of material. If you contact us we can determine our actual cost for replacement. We will happily reduce this charge to our actual costs if it is lower than the billed amount. If the actual replacement cost is higher, rest assured that we will not increase this cost! However, please to not purchase a replacement on your own--we cannot accept user-purchased materials!
Materials borrowed through interlibrary loan are subject to the policies of the lending library. Therefore, if interlibrary loan items are lost or damaged, patrons may be required to pay damage or replacement costs imposed by the lender.
Please note: the replacement cost does not cover the costs to the library for cataloging and processing the replacement item. As a result, replacing lost items takes away from our overall buying power.
Questions. If you have questions about a specific item, please call our Circulation Desk at (319) 895-4271.