Archives for Policies:
January 30th, 2013 Brian Herzog
My library recently updated our policy for patrons replacing lost or damaged items.
The problem that arose is that patrons would check out a book (say, a non-fiction book that was five years old, with a price in the record of $30) - then they'd lose it, and eventually they'd get a bill for $30. Our previous policy said patrons could replace lost/damaged items either by paying for it or by supplying another copy of the book.
This meant that, instead of paying the $30, patrons would often find used copies of the item online, for just a few dollars, and give that to us as a replacement copy.
The problem was that often these books were in terrible condition (sometimes even discarded from another library, with their stamps and stickers still on it). Not to mention that there would often be newer versions of this item available, which we would want to get instead of the old outdated one.
So, we updated our policy to be:
Lost/Damaged item fees
- NO REPLACEMENTS ACCEPTED FOR BOOKS
- Book or magazine - patron is charged 100% of the full price
- DVD, music CD, or videogame - replacement allowed only if it is new and still sealed in the original package, otherwise the charge is the same as books, 100% of full price.
- Book on CD - $10 per CD (if the entire item is lost, then 100% of full price.)
- Playaway, CD-ROM, kit - 100% of full price
- Lost CD or DVD insert - $2
- Lost CD or DVD case - $2 (so lost case & insert is $4)
- Still not sure what to charge? Call tech svcs
What to say when patrons ask...
Why can’t the library accept replacements for lost or damaged books anymore?
There are several reasons:
- Many of the replacements we’ve been getting are used items in poor condition.
- Replacing the exact same isbn can mean getting an old edition of a book when a newer edition is available.
- In some cases, we don’t wish to replace the lost item, and would rather use the fee to buy something new that we need for our collection now.
Why does a replacement DVD, music CD or videogame have to be new & still sealed in the package?
- For similar reasons – we’ve received old and/or used items to replace things we wouldn’t have bothered to replace at all.
Why is the replacement cost 100% of the full price? I can get it for less than that on Amazon!
- True, but sometimes the items you get from Amazon are old and used, and you might not even realize it till it arrives.
- Also keep in mind that when we replace a book or other item, it involves staff time to get the new item, catalog it, and process it to go into circulation.
This all happened a couple months ago. Then just a couple weeks ago, we received the following note from a patron:
My favorite part is that she drew a picture of an open book on her note. Since the replacement copy she supplied was a brand new copy, and this title is still on the school's summer reading list, we just kept it.
Tags: book, Books, damage, damaged, item, items, libraries, Library, lost, policy, public, replacement
Posted under Books, Library, Policies | 9 Comments »
January 23rd, 2013 Brian Herzog
This has been in my "to blog" folder for awhile, but better late than never, I suppose.
In the fall, my library was able to reopen for Sundays for the first time in like five years. This is great news for patrons, but since our seasonal Sunday hours are voluntary (with paid overtime), we sometimes have a shortage of staff willing to work them.
In my library, there needs to be a Department Head in the building at all times. Generally this isn't a problem, but if no Department Head volunteered to work a particular Sunday, other staff (with library degrees) can be acting Department Head.
Since these acting Department Heads would be in charge of the building, we created some "Sunday Department Head Guidelines" for them to refer to if something unusual happened - and also to make sure the library delivered the same level of service on Sundays as we do the rest of the week. The goal was to have all necessary information - procedure, contact information, passwords, etc. - in one place.
I really like lists like this*, so I thought I'd share. Obviously it is primarily applicable to my library, and even then primarily only on Sundays (as other times follow slightly different procedures in certain situations), but perhaps it might inspire other libraries to also document procedures like this. Feel free to download and use these however you like (names, phone numbers, and other vital information removed):
I know the staff here appreciated it, as it can be daunting to be in charge when something goes wrong.
*Some people say I have a love of rules, but that's not true - orderliness and answers are what I like. Take that, entropy.
Tags: department head, guidelines, libraries, Library, management, Policies, procedures, public, rules, staff, sunday, weekend
Posted under Library, Policies | 3 Comments »
April 19th, 2011 Brian Herzog
Today's post is a response to an email I received (thanks, Amber). She said she just started working in a public library again, and asked if I had any advice on helping parents when they are looking for resources for their child's homework. This happens often enough that I've actually written it into our reference policy.
The best-case scenario is when the parent comes in with the student, and I always try to engage the student as much as possible. After all, it's the student that knows what their assignment is and what kind of information they need - not to mention I am trying to teach them research skills at the same time.
The situation that can be the most difficult is when the parent comes in alone. It is certainly a good thing to have a parent involved in their child's education, but more often than not, I get the distinct impression that the parent is just doing the child's homework for them - which makes me uncomfortable.
Here are some of the tactics I use any time an adult asks for information on the underground railroad, or the Black Plague, or a very specific animal, etc:
- Ask them if this is for them or for a homework assignment
Rarely do people let you know right away that their question is for their child's homework assignment, but the quicker you know where you stand, the better
- Ask if they have the homework assignment with them
Maybe one person in a hundred actually does, but it can help a lot. For awhile the school library staff were emailing us assignments as they got them from the teachers, but this dropped off after they had staff cuts
- Ask how much and what type of information is required, and the nature and length of the project
If they don't have the homework assignment with them, this is the next best thing - but it's still rare that a parent would know very many details. However, sometimes they know that they need just two books*, or that they need photographs, or that the project is a three paragraph biography, etc. Whatever they can tell you will help, because there's a big difference between a five page paper and a poster.
I also use this question to try to limit the amount of books the parent takes - some parents just want to take every single book they can find on the topic, and let the child sift through them once they get home. This is bad because often more than one student has the same topic, so if the parent says they need just two books, I try to hold them to that to leave resources for other kids
- Ask for the age/grade of the student
Obviously this is important in selecting the most appropriate resources, but also tells me right away if adult or teen resources are even applicable, or if I should refer them to the Children's Room
- Ask when the assignment is due
The answer to this is usually "tomorrow," but not always. This is especially helpful to know if I'm having trouble finding books on the topic - if the project isn't due for a week or so, that opens up the option of requesting books from other libraries. If there isn't time for that, I do remind patrons that they can drive to other libraries and pick up materials there (thanks to being in a consortium)
- Give them our guide to accessing databases from home
Also very helpful when I'm having trouble locating resources in the library, but this of course is limited to people who have internet access at home. I always give my speech about how databases are not an "internet source," and also write down the specific name of the databases that will help. If there is time, I show the parent how to search the database and that there is relevant information - and if we get this far, I always email one of the articles we find to them from the database, to remind them when they get home to use it
- Tell them to have the student call or come in if they need more help or have questions
Of course, it is ideal to work directly with the student, even if it's just on the phone. Sometimes students come in the next day after school, but I have had kids call later that night after their parents got home, asking where in the books they brought home is the information they need. I walk them through using the book's index and table of contents, and that is often enough to get them started
I'm curious to find out what other tactics are useful for this situation - it's something we face all the time, so please share your success stories in the comments.
*The absolute worse-case scenario, but one I've been seeing more and more, is when the project is already done and they just need a book source for the bibliography. Generally this confession comes from the student rather than the parent, but I probably hear this once or twice a month. I mentioned this to a middle school teacher who tutors a lot in the library, and she was shocked - enough that she said she'd bring it up at the next curriculum meeting.
Tags: help, helping, homework, libraries, Library, parent, parents, public, question, reference, student
Posted under Library, Policies, Service | 7 Comments »
January 13th, 2011 Brian Herzog
Over the last few years, we've noticed a rise in DVD thefts at my library. It seemed to happen in waves - once in awhile, we'd suddenly notice ten or so empty DVD cases on the shelf.
In general we're pretty relaxed at my library, and try to err on the side of good customer service. However, as the empty cases built up, staff started investigating ways to curtail the thefts.
But the kicker was that, when we ran the numbers, all of the security options we looked at (cameras, dummy cameras, security cases, a DVD jukebox, keeping DVDs behind the desk, etc.) were actually more expensive than just buying replacement DVDs. At least, this was true for the rate of theft we were seeing.
It seems counter-intuitive, and a little aggravating, but this is the route we took. The Circ staff was especially frustrated by the apparent "do nothing" approach, but we reviewed the numbers multiple times over the years, and replacement was always the cheapest option. Well, that combined stepped-up monitoring by staff.
And then something happened that no one expected: a stack of DVDs with a note attached ended up in our bookbox. Apparently, whoever had been stealing them got a conscience (or else, as one popular theory holds, his mother found them*). And then, a week later, a second stack of disks showed up.
We had been saving the empty cases all along, so re-adding them to the collection was easy. Hopefully, this trend will continue, and we'll end up with all of our DVDs back - just a couple years late. And we haven't noticed many missing lately, so the increased staff monitoring also seems to be working.
*Most of the DVDs that were stolen were Adam Sandler/Will Ferrell/American Pie-type movies, which implies the culprit(s) is probably high school boys.
Posted under Library, Policies | 13 Comments »
November 2nd, 2010 Brian Herzog
Yesterday afternoon, patrons suddenly started asking our Circulation staff why there was a man on our front steps holding a "Free Hugs" sign.
This was news to us, and since there were also a couple complaints, our Head of Circulation walked out and told the man that he can't do that on library property. The man, very nicely and politely, said okay and left.
It was a little strange, and got us thinking - why can't he do that? Our first thought was that it violated our "no soliciting" policy - but technically he was giving out hugs, not asking for them. We couldn't come up with a hard and fast rule that he was breaking, other than it was creeping out patrons and affecting their library use - which does violate our Appropriate Library Behavior policy.
But come on, hugs? I know libraries are open public buildings, and we need to make sure everyone feels comfortable using them. But when the free hugs guy gets banned, maybe dialing back the fear and restoring sanity isn't a bad idea.
But it gets better - a few hours later I saw this tweet:
Apparently he went from the library to the Town Center, where loads of people were out holding campaign signs (loitering?) - and someone called the cops on him for his "Free Hugs" sign.
Tags: appropriate, behavior, free hugs, libraries, Library, Policies, policy, public, sign, signs, soliciting
Posted under Library, Policies, Random | 10 Comments »
