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Access Privileges for High School Students and Teachers

Students and teachers at all high schools in the City of Richmond, Henrico County, Chesterfield County and Hanover County may be eligible for borrowing privileges at Virginia Commonwealth University Libraries. To borrow materials, the librarian, media specialist, or other high school library administrator must first register their school library with VCU Libraries. They can then issue students and teachers single-use borrowing passes good for borrowing up to five items at a time from VCU Libraries. Students and teachers may be issued more than one borrowing pass by their high school librarian during the academic year. Books are loaned for 28 days, and may be renewed unless requested by another patron. Each high school is financially responsible for damage fees and lost material fees on items borrowed by their students or teachers.

Limits on Loans per School

Each high school library, as an entity, will be able to borrow up to 250 items at a time. Librarians will receive an email loan receipt each time a student or teacher borrows materials from VCU Libraries. This loan receipt will include the title of each book borrowed, the due date, and the name of the borrower. We encourage librarians to keep this email receipt until they receive the return email receipt when each book is returned to VCU Libraries. High school librarians will also receive a courtesy email reminder three days before the due date of books which have been checked out, so that they can in turn remind students to return them, or to ask the librarian to renew them for another 28 days. To renew a book by phone, the librarian can call Circulation and Information Services at 828-1111 before the due date.

Fines and Fees

Overdue fines are not charged to the high school library for books which have not been returned by the due date. If a book is not returned by 14 days past the due date, it will be considered lost and a replacement fee will be assessed. The base replacement fee for books from the collection of Cabell Library is $90, and for books from the collection of Tompkins-McCaw Library, it is $160. If such a book is returned after being labeled as lost, the replacement fee is removed, and the school will responsible for the non-refundable processing fee of $25 for each lost/returned item. Books which are damaged while on loan will be assessed for the cost of repairs.

Group Visits, Orientations and Tours

  • Group visits by high school classes are limited to periods in which VCU classes or exams are not in session. These times fall primarily in October, January, March, and May. Group visits must be scheduled by the high school librarian at least two weeks in advance by contacting Donna Coghill at VCU Libraries at (804) 828-6554.
  • Group visits must be arranged by the high school librarian, who will decide whether the VCU Libraries are needed for the assignment. Teachers who request tours or instruction will be asked to have their librarian contact us.
  • Library instruction will be conducted by the high school librarian. If needed, VCU Libraries staff may assist the high school librarian by sharing teaching materials or other aids.
  • Each visiting group must be well supervised. A ratio of at least one adult for each twenty students is suggested.

Hours

High school students and teachers may individually visit VCU Libraries at any time when the libraries are open; current hours are posted online http://www.library.vcu.edu/hours/. After 10 p.m., Sunday - Thursday, an ID check is in effect and only members of the VCU community or students enrolled at other universities may access Cabell Library. VCUCard ID's must be shown for entrance at this time. Students and teachers with a current academic ID may use our guest access computer workstations to make use of our electronic resources, such as databases, and electronic journals and books, for one hour per day. High school students can also use public computers in Cabell Library on Saturdays, when, space permitting, Research and Instructional Services staff can log them in for an extended basis; this access is for academic use only.