1. Children under the age of 14 must be accompanied and supervised by a parent or other adult guardian (18 or older) at all times. Children shall conform to all Library rules.
2. Library users shall refrain from any behavior or conduct that disturbs the Library's environment as a place for study and research.
3. Library users shall not treat library materials, equipment, property or grounds in a careless or destructive manner.
4. Library users shall permit the College staff to inspect all briefcases, packs, handbags, parcels, books and other materials when circumstances warrant such inspection.
5. Noise levels shall remain within the norms of typical library activity. Study rooms are provided for Macon State College students engaging in group discussion.
6. Library users shall not harm or harass any College employee or member of the public.
7. Use of Library workstations and wireless network shall conform to the College's Computer and Network Usage Policy.

In order to provide an environment conducive to study and research, cell phone use is prohibited in the Library. Patrons are asked to conduct cell phone conversations outside the Library. Prior to entering the Library, cell phones must be turned off or set to a non-audible ring. Those who fail to comply with this policy may be asked to leave.

Children under the age of 14 must be accompanied and supervised by a parent or other adult guardian (18 or older) at all times.  Children shall conform to all Library rules.

Currently enrolled MSC students, faculty and staff have unlimited borrowing privileges. Limited borrowing (up to 5 items at a time) is extended to other patron groups. Users other than MSC students/employees must show a valid form of ID in order to be issued a library card.

Patron Groups:

• MSC Students: Students currently enrolled at Macon State College
• Non-MSC (area college): Students at area private or technical colleges
• Faculty/Staff: Includes current faculty and all staff persons, including administration
• Local: Includes anyone with a local address who is not a student or employee of Macon State College
• UB Patron: Students from other colleges in the University System of Georgia
• Alumnae: Former students/faculty from Macon State College

Circulating books are generally checked out for 28 days with two renewals. However, for general circulating books, faculty and staff have an extended borrowing period. Current Fiction books are on a 28 day circulating cycle for all patrons.

Non-circulating items may not be checked out of the Library. These include magazines, journals, newspapers, reference books, microfilm, microfiche, and most Reserve items.

Overdue Fines:

Fine	Cost
Circulating books/audio material	20 cents/day
General Reserve items	$1.00/day
Interlibrary Loan items (for students only)	$1.00/day

Library Use Only materials are to be used only in the Library. A fine will be imposed on materials that are removed

I. Overview

It is the mission of the Macon State College Library to provide resources and services that reflect, support, and enhance the mission of the College by:

• Developing and maintaining a balanced collection of materials in a variety of formats to support and enrich the curricula of the College.
• Making the information and resources of the MSC Library readily accessible to MSC students, faculty, staff, as well as community at large.
• Providing instruction for users in the most effective methods of locating and retrieving information in all formats.
• Supporting the College's off-campus classes in Warner Robins and through distance learning.
• Utilizing available and emerging technologies to ensure effective access to information resources.
• To support scholarship and resource sharing through networks and cooperative agreements between institutions.

As participants in the educational programs of Macon State College, the Library strives to acquire print and non-print materials that support the curriculum and research needs of the College’s students, faculty, and staff.  In addition, the basic information sources and the general cultural, educational, and recreational materials expected in an academic library are incorporated into the resources.

Materials collected include: monographs and serials (both in paper and/or microform), electronic resources, audiovisual materials, and maps and atlases.  Textbooks that are being used for courses at the College will ordinarily not be purchased for the Library collection. The Library will concentrate on purchasing materials that expand upon textbook subject matter.

The Library’s priority will be to purchase and provide access to material that directly supports the needs of Macon State College students and faculty, with a wide variety of material that spans many disciplines.  While the Library’s collection cannot meet extensive graduate level and personal research requirements from faculty, librarians can guide patrons in need of this type of material to electronic resources, or in securing materials from other institutions through the use of interlibrary loan or GIL Express services.

II. Guidelines for Materials and Resource Selection

The quality of content and support of the curriculum are priority criteria against which any item or resource is evaluated.  In an environment of rapidly shifting patterns of information delivery and shrinking dollars, strategic decisions in the selection and management of library materials must be based on sound principles.  These objectives guide decisions:

1. Acquire print, electronic, and media materials of lasting value that support the current and anticipated academic programs of the College.
2. Acquire materials for general reference and information outside of the areas of academic instruction, thus providing a general information resource for the College and local community.
3. Acquire popular reading materials that will promote a life-long reading habit.
4. Acquire a variety of materials to provide different perspectives on controversial issues.
5. Acquire archival material pertaining to the history of Macon State College.

III. Selection Responsibility

The ultimate responsibility for selection of library materials rests with the Library Director.  Because the librarians at MSC Library are generalists, the Library relies on members of the teaching faculty to help build collections.  Members of academic schools and departments select a majority of the books that specifically support their own programs.  The librarians are responsible for working toward achieving a balanced collection, and selecting in particular those resources which are general in nature, which add to the browsing collection, and which provide reference materials, all of which meet the objectives of the Library. 

Annual budget allocations for the use of the Schools and Departments are determined by the Library Director, and are based on factors such as the number of degree programs offered, the anticipation of new degree programs in the subject area, the degree to which the School or Departmental programs utilize library resources, and the previous expenditures of each School or Department.

IV. Selection Tools

Aids for the librarians in the selection process are reviews, particularly those in Choice and Library Journal, publishers’ catalogs, and subject area bibliographies, and for the faculty, the journals of their respective fields.

V. Selection and Acquisition Process

1. Requesting Books or Media – Determination of how the library budget allocation is to be spent should be made within the School or Department, with the current year’s Library Committee representative serving as the liaison.  Faculty submit purchase requests to the Library Director using the Online Request Form, located on the Library’s web page.  Once the request is received, it is assumed that discussion and agreement as to the expenditure has already occurred at the School/Department level and the request is forwarded to the Acquisitions Department for duplication check and ordering.
2. Requesting Journals – Journal requests should be directed to the Library Director.  Adding journals impacts future budgets and a review of formats and options is undertaken.  Increasingly, journals are added in electronic formats only.  As a rule, journal additions and cancellations are made once a year, however, title requests can be made at any time.
3. Requesting Databases – Database requests should be directed to the Library Director.  Adding subscription databases impacts future budgets and a review and trial is conducted.  Databases are added after consultation with the academic department heads and faculty.

VI. Gifts

The Library Director is responsible for the acceptance and disposition of gift materials donated to the Library.  The criteria for the acceptance of gifts are the same as those governing the selection of purchased material.  The Library cannot accept gifts under restricted conditions, and it reserves the right to dispose of duplicate and unwanted material as it sees fit.  The Library will not provide a monetary statement of the value of a gift, but will acknowledge the receipt of the gift with a letter.

VII. Weeding

The process of weeding, or deselection, is a continuous and ongoing process necessary to maintain a vital and up-to-date collection.  The process of weeding is primarily the responsibility of the librarians, working in conjunction with the teaching faculty.  Faculty members can assure that materials of historical or research interest are not inadvertently removed.  The following materials should be candidates for weeding:

• Items that are inappropriate to the mission of the College
• Badly worn or mutilated materials (if these are important to the collection, they should be mended or replaced)
• Superseded editions
• Duplicated copies of seldom used items
• Serials for which we have no available index access
• Periodical bound volumes of which the Library also owns microform or has JSTOR access
• Short broken runs of outdated periodicals
• Unsolicited and unwanted gifts
• Obsolete materials (especially important in the areas of science and technology)

VIII. Intellectual Freedom

The Library as an institutional resource must provide information to the students that will help them develop analytical, critical and imaginative thinking skills.  To do this, the Library is responsible for maintaining a collection which represents a wide range of viewpoints.  The Library is a proponent of critical thought and the free exchange of ideas, and does not propose to hinder such activity.  As such, the Library supports the American Library Association’s Library Bill of Rights. .

IX. Cooperative Networks

As it becomes increasingly apparent that no college library can provide all of the materials needed by its users, the sharing of resources becomes extremely advantageous.  Participation in library networks and consortia such as OCLC, Lyrasis, and GALILEO, as well as increased online access to other libraries’ catalogs, facilitate our patrons’ access to materials unavailable at the MSC Library.

X. Policy Evaluation

The Collection Development Policy is subject to review at all times by the library staff and/or by the Library Committee.  In any case, the policy should be carefully reviewed every five years.

Revised August, 2011

The main computers located in the Library/ARC are for MSC affiliated persons only.   Six computers, located in the Reference study area, are available for public use.

Use of Library computers is governed by the Macon State College Computer and Network Usage Policy. 309KB

Users may not:

• Make any attempt to damage computer equipment or software
• Use any Library/ARC computer for any illegal or criminal purpose
• Violate copyright laws or software licensing agreements in their use of Library/ARC computers
• Engage in any activity that is deliberately and maliciously offensive, libelous or slanderous
• Log in other users

Restriction of a child’s access to the Internet is the responsibility of the parent or legal guardian.

The MSC Library/ARC computers are primarily intended for research and academic related information retrieval.  Research/academic use always takes precedence over recreation/personal use.

The MSC Bookstore has a fax machine available for student use. During the times the Bookstore is closed, students may send a fax from the Library’s fax machine at the following cost:

Local.................... 50 cents per page

Long Distance....... $1.00 per page

Limited eating and drinking is permitted in the Library in the following areas:

• Library Reference Tables (1st floor)
• 2nd floor study tables and seating areas
• 2nd floor study rooms

NO food or drink of any kind is permitted in the following areas:

• ARC computer area
• Study rooms containing computers
• Special Collections Room (2nd floor)
• Audiovisual Room (2nd floor)
• All book stacks

Acceptable Food and Beverages:

• Beverages in re-closable covered containers are permitted
• Open cups, soda cans, or any other open containers are not permitted
• Light snacks, such as the items sold in the Library Coffee Shop and that are not distracting to others are permitted
• Food items such as pizza, burgers, fries, salads, fast food, and similar types of food are not permitted

The Library reserves the right to amend this Food and Drink Policy if infractions occur.  Please dispose of empty food and beverage containers in trash receptacles prior to leaving the Library.

The MSC Library appreciates donations of books and other library materials. All gifts are accepted with the understanding that the Library reserves the right to evaluate, select, and dispose of any donation that does not meet the needs of the Library’s collection.

In accordance with IRS requirements and the Statement on Appraisals of Gifts adopted by the Association of College and Research Libraries, the MSC Library cannot make appraisals of gifts. This is the responsibility of the donor. The Library does not provide itemized lists of materials donated. Every donor, however, will receive a letter of acknowledgement for his/her gift, unless he/she requests otherwise.

Purpose of Interlibrary Loan

The purpose of Interlibrary Loan (ILL) service is to provide access to materials (books and journal articles) that are not found in the Macon State College Library.

Who is eligible?

ILL service is offered only to current Macon State College students, faculty, and staff. Patrons not currently affiliated with Macon State College are not eligible.

Textbooks

Interlibrary Loan cannot be used as a substitute for purchasing class textbooks, and all requests to borrow textbooks will be denied.

Number of items requested

Students are limited to five (5) book requests at any one time. There is no limit on the number of journal articles requested; however, consultation with a librarian may be suggested to assist with selection of appropriate articles.

Charges

ILL service is provided free of cost to eligible borrowers. However, borrowers are responsible for overdue charges ($1.00 per day) and for replacement cost for lost items.

Requesting an ILL

Complete the online form for books or articles and submit. You will be notified when your item has arrived. Articles will be electronically delivered to the borrower's e-mail account unless otherwise requested.

Time

The time needed to obtain an interlibrary loan is dependent upon the difficulty of the request, proximity of the lending library, and the number of requests to be processed.

Loan Period

The lending library determines the length of the loan and restrictions concerning the use of the material. Renewals may or may not be granted, depending upon the policy of the lending library. Requests for renewals must be made to the Interlibrary Loan office prior to the due date.

Lost Materials

All MSC Library borrowers are responsible for the items checked out to their Library account.  MSC students with outstanding library materials will have a block placed in BANNER on their student record and they will not be allowed to register, or obtain grades or transcripts until the material has been returned or paid for.  Library shelves will be carefully searched before such a block is placed.  Other MSC Library users who are consistently delinquent in returning library material may have their library privileges revoked. 

Unless actual price assigned, standard replacement costs are as follows:

Hardback book	$30.00	Paperback book	$10.00
Records	$10.00	Audiocassettes	$10.00
Videos/DVD’s	varies	CD’s	$20.00
Reserve folders	$ 5.00

In addition to the replacement costs, borrowers must pay all overdue fines that have accumulated.  Borrowers will be refunded the replacement cost only if they should find and return the item.  Overdue fines will not be reimbursed.

Damaged Materials

All MSC Library borrowers are responsible for the condition of items checked out to their Library account. Patrons returning damaged items will be responsible for the replacement cost per the above pricing, unless the actual price is assigned to the item.  This cost will be attached to your Library account. Students with an outstanding replacement cost will have a block placed in BANNER on their student record and they will not be allowed to register, or obtain grades or transcripts until the replacement cost is paid.

Credit card payments may be faxed to the MSC Business Office using this form.

Macon State College recognizes that students need to print documents in the course of completing their academic coursework. MSC students pay a technology fee each semester, which is used to support technology improvements and/or upgrades on campus. This technology fee covers a limited amount of student printing, from the computers only. All registered MSC students will have a printing account of $35.00 allocated to them each semester for computer printing.

Printing from Computers: 

• 10 cents per page (b/w); 50 cents (color)
• After the initial $35.00 allotment is used up, students may add money to their print account
• The $35.00 is added to the student’s account at the beginning of each semester. If it is not all used, it will not be carried over to the next semester
• Refunds will not be given for student printing errors, only for equipment malfunctions. Students unsure about how to print should ask for help at the information desk
• In order to print, students must log-in using their MSC e-mail username and password

Guests: Guests are defined as anyone other than MSC students, faculty or staff. They will be charged for all printing at the same rate as students. They should log in using “mscguest” as the username with no password. Print jobs will be sent to the information desk where they can be picked up and paid for.

Photocopying: 

• Copies made on the photocopier can not be charged to the student’s $35.00 printing account
• Photocopies are 10 cents per page
• To use the photocopier, users must purchase a copy card at the information desk for a minimum of $1.00 (more value can be added if desired). When the value has been used, the card may be brought back to the information desk and more value can be purchased.