New Reserve Policy

As of June 25th, we are no longer allowing reserve books to be taken outside the library. Do not desensitize books from the reserve collection for any reason.

Please read this and leave a comment with your initials and any comments.

Why: Firstly, books are much more likely to be kept overdue when they are taken out of the library. Some people have even kept reserve books out for weeks. Sure, they have to pay a $25 fine when they finally bring the book back, but that doesn't help all the people who needed the book while the book was overdue. Secondly, we hope that not allowing reserve books to leave the library will cut down on theft; last semester we lost multiple copies of the organic chemistry textbook, among others. Thirdly, this is the way most libraries do this; we were the only library in the CoF that allowed people to take reserves outside the library.

What it means for you: When you charge out a reserve book to someone, don't ask if they want to take it out of the library. If they ask to take the book out of the library, tell them our policy has changed and show them the sign (signs are located to the right of both circ desk computers). If they give you a hard time just ask me (Kyle), Marcie, or anyone else in the back office for help. Never desensitize any reserve materials.

Let us know how this is going: As I said above, I want everyone to leave a comment with their initials to indicate that they've read the post, but if you run into problems enforcing this policy, please let us know! You can talk to us about this in person, drop us an email, or leave a comment here with your feelings about the policy change (you can even comment anonymously if you want). We believe this policy is the best choice for the library right now, but it is not set in stone and if it doesn't work, it can be changed. You guys are the ones on the front lines dealing with the patrons' responses to the policy, so your opinions count.