Library materials may be checked out by BRCC students or employees from the Information Desk with a BRCC student/staff ID or other photo identification. Library materials must be picked up in-person at the Information Desk. If there are extenuating circumstances that prevent in-person pick-up, please contact library staff (library@brcc.edu). A BRCC student ID card or BRCC faculty/staff card (issued by Card Services in G167) serves as a library card. Effective March 1st, community members must have a BRCC library card to access all library resources, including usage of library computers. The library information desk can issue a free library card with any form of government issued ID. Persons under 18 will need a legal guardian present to obtain a signature. As a community service, the Houff Library is open to the public free of charge.
The amount of items that may be borrowed depends on the patron's borrower status. If a patron is a student, faculty, or staff member they borrow up to 20 items. Community members may borrow up to 5 items.
*Calculators, webcams, laptops, DVDs, course reserves, and ILL materials are not available to community members.
| Books | Magazines/Journals | Calculators | Webcams | Course Reserves | ILL Materials | Laptops | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loan Period: | Four week loan | Seven day loan | Four week loan | One week loan | Majority are in-library use only, usually for 2 hours unless stated otherwise | Loan period is set by lending library | Available for on-campus use, 5-week, or 15-week periods |
| Renewal Options: | One renewal | No renewals | Can be renewed in person every four weeks | Can be renewed in person every week | No renewals | Renewals are set by lending library | No renewals |
Library books and interlibrary loans can be renewed by being brought to the library, emailing the library, or calling the library. Calculators and webcams can be renewed every 4 weeks in-person at the library.
Students that do not return their laptop after 3 business days past their due date will have a hold placed on their account and a negative service indicator will be placed in SIS. Students will also be charged a $2.50/day overdue fine for each day the library is open.
Patrons that lose or damage library items will be required to pay the replacement fee. For materials other than laptops and laptop accessories, borrowing patrons will also be given the option to purchase a replacement copy (or equivalent) of the lost item(s) by requesting the purchasing information from library staff.
Physical items can be placed on hold. This can be done if you would like to have an item available for easy pickup at the Information Desk or if someone else has an item that you would like when they are done with it. Placing an item on hold can be done through the catalog or by contacting the Information Desk. All holds will expire within seven days of being contacted that the item is available.
Libraries use classification systems to organize books on the shelves. Most colleges follow the Library of Congress classification system which uses letters and numbers to arrange books so that items on the same subject are together on the shelf.
Each subject area has a corresponding letter or group of letters with it. For example, science books are found in the Q section while the History of Education is found in the LA section. These letters and numbers are usually located on the spine of the book and are called "call numbers."
For a complete list, see the Library of Congress subject list located here: https://www.loc.gov/catdir/cpso/lcco/
*If you find one book on the shelf that works perfectly for your research interest, make sure to check the surrounding books because they might also be perfect resources for your research.
The first letter(s) of a Call Number are shelved alphabetically.
P is before PR is before PS
The numbers following the first letter(s) are whole numbers.
5 comes before 10; 10 comes before 100; 100 comes before 2,000, etc.
HV 52 is before HV 502 is before HV 4311
The number to the right of the decimal point is a fraction of the whole number to the left.
PA 128.25 is before PA 128.3 is before PA 128.325
