Library – Policies and Procedures

Loan Procedure

• The University ID card serves as the library card and must be presented when borrowing materials.
• The library has an automated security system in place. All materials must be properly checked out before exiting.

Loan Policies

Bethlehem University Library provides borrowing privileges to all faculty, staff, and registered students.

Books: Faculty members may borrow up to 20 books for eight weeks, with renewal allowed if no other user has requested the book. If a student needs a book borrowed by a faculty or staff member, priority is given to the student. All borrowed books must be returned at the end of each semester to maintain accurate circulation record. A fine will be imposed for overdue materials and payment is required for a lost or damaged books.

Faculty and staff members may renew book loans for up to one year by email or calling library staff. However, at the end of the year, all books must be physically returned to the library.

Faculty must not lend books to students under their name, as this can cause confusion in the circulation records.

If a faculty member fails to comply with the above regulation and accumulates dues, the Finance Payroll Officer will be notified to deduct the outstanding amount from their monthly salary.

Renewals: Faculty and Staff members may renew book loans for up to one year via email or by contacting library staff. However, all books must be physically returned at the end of the year.

Reference Books: These do not circulate except for classroom use. Faculty members may request reference books from the Library Director and must return them immediately after use.

Periodicals: May be borrowed for a period of one week.  Bound periodicals are not circulated.

Library Services

The Library staff offers special sessions to students, staff and faculty on the use of the Library and its different resources such as Library Instructional Sessions / Organized Tours and Visits.

Circulation Services / Reserve Shelf

The Circulation Desk is the front desk of the Library where library materials are checked in/out.

Faculty may display books and other materials on the Reserve Shelf located behind the Circulation Desk. Faculty, themselves are requested to bring such materials and fill out the appropriate form. They should indicate whether they want the material to be borrowed overnight, or labeled Room Use Only. Once instructions are given, the circulation staff are expected to follow them.

For Reserve Shelf Form, click here.

Reference/Information Services

The library staff in charge of Reference/ information services are available to assist any library users who needs help in looking for library materials.

Periodicals/Journals Services

Periodicals are arranged on the racks by categories such as General, Science, Nursing, Business, Social Sciences, Economics, Languages, etc. Back issues are kept in the Compactus. Bound periodicals are located on the second floor.

Faculty and staff may borrow journals only for one week.

Book Purchase Policy and Procedure

The library has a book selection policy within which the staff in charge operates. Faculty are encouraged to recommend specific titles in their fields of specialty. Each department/faculty is allocated a certain budget for purchasing books. Use “Online Acquisition” under “Library Services” on the library website to request new books for purchase. The general policy is to purchase a single copy of each title. Books needed for faculty offices are not included in library purchases. The ultimate responsibility for book selection rests with the Library Director and the Library Staff in charge. Newly processed books are displayed at the entrance on the ground floor then shelved.

Prioritized Processing of books

The library continuously acquires new books throughout the academic year. These books are classified and cataloged as soon as they are purchased. Faculty members are always informed of the arrival of new acquisitions. If certain books are urgently needed, a faculty should inform the librarian in charge, and the books will be given priority in classification.

Gifts / Donations

Many valuable books and other reading materials are received as gifts and such gifts are encouraged and welcomed. When gifts are made to the Library, adequate and prompt acknowledgment is done through a thank you note or a letter. Gifts in terms of cash/check are handed over to the Vice President for Development, who in turn submits this to the Finance Office. The Library keeps a record of all donors.

Library Liaison Team (LLT)

The Library Liaison Team was initiated in 1984 to serve as a communication channel between the Library and Faculty, aiming to enhance library resources and services. The LLT meets annually or as the need arises upon an invitation from the Library Director with a proposed agenda.

A meeting with all the representatives from each academic department and members of the library staff is scheduled in fall semester to discuss concerns updates related to book selection, ordering and purchases …etc.

Loan Policies

• A valid university ID card is required to borrow books. The card is non-transferable.
• Each student may borrow five books for a period of three weeks.
• Seminar students may borrow up to seven books.
• Reference books are for in–library use only and do not circulate.
• Reserve books may be borrowed overnight after 2:30 PM until 9:00 AM the following day and are issued on first come first serve basis.
• All books must be returned by the last day of classes each term which is notified.
• Books loaned from Compactus have to be returned to the Circulation Desk only.
• Fines: 1 NIS per a day for overdue.
• A fine will be imposed for overdue materials and payment is required for a lost or damaged books.
• Non- compliance with rules may result in suspension of library privileges and academic blocks through the Registrar’s Office.

Library Loan Procedures

• Use the self-Check In/Out machine to borrow or return books.
• If faced with technical issues, proceed to the Circulation Desk with a University ID.
• To use a reserve book in the library, deposit your university ID card at the Circulation Desk.
• To Borrow a reserve book overnight, check it out after 2:30 PM and return it by 9:00 AM the next day.

Graduates of Bethlehem University are permitted to use the library from Monday to Friday, between 8:00 AM and 4:00 PM.  They are expected to follow all library policies and procedures that apply to current students.

Procedures/Guidelines

• Meet with the library circulation staff.
• Complete application form ADM.07.F02.
• Submit recent personal photo.
• Pay an annual fee of 50 NIS.

(A valid Membership ID card will be issued by IT once all requirements are fulfilled).

During the academic year off-campus users may access the library and its resources/facilities from Monday to Friday, between 8:00 AM and 4:00 PM.

Off-campus users must first meet with the Library Director for an interview. If approved, they are required to complete application form no. ADM.07.F03 submit a personal photo, provide proof of residence and references in Bethlehem and pay an annual fee of NIS 50. Researchers may be granted access on a case-to-case basis. They are expected to follow all library policies and procedures that apply to current students.

Inter-library loan between Bethlehem University Library and Bethlehem Bible College Library is a deliberate effort to share resources by making library materials available to all of the members, faculty, staff and students.

Rationale:

Considering our respective curricular offerings and our close geographical proximity, the librarians of both libraries share the perspective that our resources can be put to maximum use not only by our own clientele but also by accommodating other users/borrowers, especially of our respective libraries.

Inter-Library Loan Services

Bethlehem University Library and Bethlehem Bible College Library will make available resources that are in their general collection when their respective clientele request them. However, with the exception of circulating books at George Nasra Center for Palestinian Heritage, the borrowing of rare, unique, expensive materials, reference books, dissertations, theses and books on reserve. —items that would be difficult or impossible to purchase or replace—is not permitted. Issues or volumes of journals are not available for circulation. The decision to make available any library resource remains exclusively with each of the libraries.

Procedures to observe in ILL

In normal circumstances, the library that needs materials from another library initiates the request either through a phone call or by email. Complete bibliographical information is provided so that search for the material can be carried out effectively and efficiently.

Once the book is retrieved from the shelf, it is set aside on a reserved section at the circulation desk. Books should be taken and returned by the respective borrowing library staff.

Loan Policies and Restrictions

Bethlehem University Library stipulates its policies and restrictions on its own homepage.

As indicated, these policies and procedures govern faculty, staff, students, graduates, and off-campus users. Unless the books are in demand or placed on reserve, the other library may be able to borrow the needed books for two weeks only.

If the books or materials are needed by the members of the lending library, the borrowing library is given three days to return the books/materials on loan.

Penalties/fines for overdue, damaged, and lost books will be charged to the borrowing library. Specifications of fees and charges remain within the discretion of each of the libraries concerned.

Policy

The Bethlehem University Library Staff continually seeks to enhance its collection to support academic curriculum by providing high quality services and resources. One way this is achieved through the acceptance of donated books, periodicals and other print or online materials. Donations are accepted based on the following criteria:

1. The content of the material is current.
2. The material treats topics related to the academic program of the University.
3. The material is appropriate for the reading and interest level of the students.
4. The material is in good condition. Old, worn out, or damaged material, especially books with torn pages, underlined and highlighted passages, and missing pages are not accepted.
5. Duplicate copies will not be added to the collection unless there is a need (as determined by the Library Staff in consultation with members of the faculty).
6. Only complete sets of periodicals and journals fulfilling the same criteria stated above will be accepted.

Procedure

Persons or organizations wishing to make a donation of books, periodicals, to the Library are asked to follow these action steps.

1. Send list of materials for donation before the materials are shipped:

It is important that before materials are sent to the Library as a gift that the Library Staff be contacted and have an opportunity to review and approve the list of materials being considered to be donated.  The person/s who wish to make a donation of library materials should send a list of the material (noting the author, title, publisher, publishing date, number of pages, and any other significant features) to the Library Staff.

2. Confirmation that materials for donation are appropriate for Bethlehem University:

Under the coordination of staff in charge and the appropriate faculty members will decide which materials are acceptable and would be of use to the Bethlehem University community. The staff in charge will then contact the person/s who wishes to make the donation arranging for shipping materials to Bethlehem University.

Bethlehem University is not able to fund the transportation and shipping costs for the donation of books and other library materials due to budget constraints. Consequently, donors are asked to make arrangements for shipping as part of their donation.

For further information, please contact:

Mrs. Mary/Claire Habash, marycs@bethlehem.edu
Library Director, library@bethlehem.edu

Introduction

Bethlehem University Library, the “heart of the academic community”, serves the University’s educational mission.  In October 2009, the University Library embarked on a daunting project, that of digitizing four areas of its resource-collection envisioning a carefully selected array of materials to be converted into e-formats and make them available to on-campus and online users.

Hence, the project of digitization, first of its kind among the West Bank universities, has as one of its aims, the conversion of library resources into digital format to enhance the teaching-learning process in the classroom. It is also aimed at assisting the academics exchange resources with their fellow colleagues locally and internationally since their mobility is greatly paralyzed by checkpoints and walls built around the cities and villages where they live and work.

A. Arabic and English books – rare/old resources/newspapers on Palestine

I. Selection Criteria

Books and other resources (old newspapers and oral history recordings) are selected according to the following criteria:

• According to date (before 1900 and up to 1947, old and rare, without copyright dates/places, nor authors);
• According to subject (on and about Palestine, written/contributed by Palestinians living here in Palestine or overseas).
• According to subject interest and significant contribution to the arts, culture and education in Palestine; work by artists, painters, authors, etc., regardless of publication date.

II. Guidelines

After selection and scanning of the book/manuscript, the staff in-charge prepares a full description of the content of the book or manuscript both in Arabic and English, including author, title, publishing date/place (if available), etc.

Past issues of newspapers are converted into pdf and are saved on the Online Public Access Catalog (OPAC) to make them accessible online. The Bethlehem University Journal annual issue basically follows the same procedure.

In general, access to such documents is done only through the OPAC.

Rare books and manuscripts should not be taken out of the Library. Copies made of online format are only for research or educational purposes and not for sale of any kind.

B. Archives

I. Selection criteria

Criteria for selecting materials to be digitized were based on the recommendation of the UNESCO Archivist who visited the Archives sometime in August of 2007.

1. The idea of preserving the value of the original materials is the main objective of digitization.
2. Another criteria in selecting materials to be digitized is the educational use of the materials to the teaching-learning activity in the university.
3. A practical criterion is space-saving; keeping ephemeral files on electronic format saves space for other more important records.

II. Guidelines

Digitized materials are recorded in the Library Management System (Libsys) and can be accessed through the OPAC. Most of the Video Cassette Recordings (VCR) Sector can be accessed immediately through the OPAC and can be used for educational purposes such as classroom activities and/or private viewing by teacher, staff, or student for research purposes only.

Digitized materials that are sensitive and confidential in nature such as recorded private interviews, lectures, talks, maps, plans and photographs cannot be accessed through the streaming server although stored in the OPAC and can be accessed with permission from the Archivist and/or Library Director.

Digitized materials (DVDA) which are permanently kept in the Archives can be copied by Faculty/Staff members of BU for research purposes. A request form can be filled out and a promissory note signed by the researcher stipulating using information gathered for a good purpose.

In general, no regular loans are allowed in the Archives considering the confidentiality of information found in its stored materials. If deemed necessary and upon permission of the respective authorities, some photocopying may be allowed.

NOTE: In all of the above-cited materials (found in A & B sections), the Library has purchased scanners for the purpose of converting hard formats to digitized forms. Hence, the Library, with its funds has purchased these scanners which are included in its inventory of owned items.

One of the responsibilities of the library personnel is removing from the library collection those materials that are no longer appropriate nor supportive of the university curriculum. Removing such materials improves the overall quality of the collection.

Factors to be considered in removing materials from the library book collection include:

The condition of the book:	Missing pages, loose pages, fragile and brittle paper, torn cover, highlighting, writing, underlining, damaged binding, mutilated …etc.
Duplicates:	The number of copies of the same book in relation to space on shelves and use. (Store in the Compactus)
Edition:	Superseded edition where content is cumulative (To be stored in the Compactus)
Content:	·         material with outdated, inaccurate factual content ·         material with outdated interpretations of values, attitudes ·         materials with inappropriate reading, interest level ·         material no longer circulating
Cost:	replacing the book with a new copy