Inter-Library Loan Agreement
This code is a voluntary agreement recommended by the Pasco ILL Task force on March 5, 1993, (Revised June 9, 1999), to govern resource sharing among District school library media centers. It has been adapted from the Interlibrary Loan Code for the Florida School Library Media Network (SUNLINK) that was adopted on September 25, 1992.
INTRODUCTION
Resource sharing is essential to the vitality of school library media centers of all types and sizes as a means of greatly expanding the range of materials available to users. Lending between school library media centers is in the school’s best interest and should be encouraged. This code is intended to make resource sharing policies among school library media centers as liberal and as easy to apply as possible. Resource sharing should serve as an adjunct to, not a substitute for, collection development. Requests to borrow should be sent to the closest member school library media center, using good judgment and common sense, striving for as equitable a distribution as is fair and practical. When resources within the district have been exhausted, resource sharing requests to more distant school library media centers should conform to the policies of the Florida School Library Media Network (SUNLINK).
I. DEFINITION
MIND resource sharing is a transaction in which school library media center material, or a copy of the material, is made available by one school library media center to another upon request.
II. PURPOSE
The purpose of resource sharing, as defined in this code, is to obtain school library media center material not available in the local school media center.
III. SCOPE
A. Any type of school library media center material may be requested on loan or in photocopy form from any other school library media center. However, the lending school library media center has the privilege of deciding in each case whether a particular item could or should not be provided, and whether the original or a copy should be sent.
B. Under the terms of this agreement, borrowing library media centers will not ORDINARILY request:
1. Materials already owned by the borrowing school library media center;
2. Subject requests;
3. Reference materials or anything that the local library media center would not loan in its own school;
4. Any item restricted by local policy from being loaned;
5. Books in current and recurring demand such as seasonal, holiday, and Sunshine State Young Reader’s Award materials;
6. Materials for classroom, reserve, or other group use (ie: class sets).
C. Each participating school media school media center should prepare a statement of its resource sharing loan guidelines and make it available upon request.
D. Records should be kept on all ILL activities—lending, borrowing—within the Pasco County School District and beyond to other school districts or other types of libraries.
IV. RESPONSIBILITIES OF BORROWING SCHOOL LIBRARY MEDIA CENTERS
A. Each school library media center should provide the resources to meet the ordinary needs and interests of its users. Material requested from another school library media center under this code should generally be limited to those items that do not conform to the school library media center’s collection development policy or for which there is no recurring demand.
B. Borrowing school library media centers should make every effort to exhaust their own resources before resorting to resource sharing requests.
C. The ILL form on the MIND shall be completely filled out.
D. All requests will be from school media center to school media center. No media center will ILL directly to an individual.
E. The borrowing library media center will make every effort to insure the return of the borrowed materials in the condition they were received. The lending of expensive/fragile materials/equipment may require pickup and delivery by borrowing schools, to be determined by the lending IMC.
F. By the end of the first quarter, each school will make every effort to clear-up all outstanding ILL accounts. If this can not be done, as a matter of courtesy, the borrowing school will notify the lending school of the missing item. The lending school should then follow the procedure for checking out missing materials to Lost/Missing status.
G. The borrowing library media center and its user must comply with the conditions of loan established by the lending library media center.
V. RESPONSIBILITIES OF LENDING SCHOOL LIBRARY MEDIA CENTERS
A. The decision to loan material is at the discretion of the lending library media center. Each library media center is encouraged, however, to interpret as generously as possible its own lending policy with due consideration to the interests of its own users.
B. The lending library media center is not expected to process subject requests under this agreement.
C. The lending library media center should process requests promptly, making every effort to answer “Yes” or “No” via e-mail on the same day that it receives an ILL request.
D. The lending library media center is responsible for compliance with the copyright law and School Board guidelines.
E. When material is lent, conditions of the loan should be stated clearly: the due date, whether the item may circulate or is for media center use only, pickup and delivery method for special items, and so on.
F. No charges will be levied for material loans or photocopies.
VII. DURATION OF LOAN
A. The duration of the loan shall be set by the lending library, ALLOWING AT LEAST ONE WEEK FOR COURIER TRANSPORT.
B. Materials loaned through resources sharing should be returned promptly. Renewals will be granted only after consultation with the lending library media center.
C. All material on loan is subject to immediate recall. The borrowing library media center should comply promptly.
VIII. VIOLATIONS OF CODE
Each school library media center is responsible for maintaining the provisions of this code in good faith.
revised 4/5/11
