Circulation Forum Minutes November 2012

Date:  November 7, 2012
Location: Southern Oaks Library

Present: Patricia Ortiz-SO, Anita Roesler-OUT, Sharon Maine-OUT, Cheryl Mann-CC, John Wood-IT, Dianna Rupp-BE, Warren Anderson-RE, Crystal Easley-DC, Reagan Kloiber-DN, Regina Wolfinger-BI, Ruth Harder-CT, Vickie Ross-ED, Donna Adamek-ED, Melody Kellogg-ED, Julie Schofield-SO, Jorge Mascorro-CH, Denise Ryan-BUS, Emmy Verdin Crowe-MC, Kevin Sendall-LO, Chris Larwig-MAC, Shanelle Johnson-VI, Brittany Schein-BE, and Jevon Doolin-NW

Welcome

Melody Kellogg (ED Manager) introduced herself to the Circ Forum attendees and asked everyone in attendance to introduce themselves.

Tour of Southern Oaks Library

Randy Wayland (SO Manager) gave a tour of SO.  He mentioned that 3,000 sq ft have been added to SO library as well as 2 study rooms.  Also, SO now has 36 public computers.

Books By Mail

Sharon Maine (BBM Coordinator) presented on Books By Mail service which has been in existence since 1972.  She is the only BBM staff member and currently serves about 800 customers. The program allows customers to receive any item with the exception of DVDs and ILLs by mail. Any person 65 years or older with a valid library card qualifies for BBM. If not 65, a customer may qualify if homebound, even if it is short-term. Sharon mentioned that she speaks to every person personally before they are allowed into the program. Clerks were reminded to forward any purple BBM bags to Sharon without opening or removing any of the items inside.

Missing Reserve Procedures

Melody informed everyone that at a recent Managers’ Meeting the decision was made to allow non-owning libraries code reserves that have disappeared from the shelf “Missing”.  Cheryl Mann clarified that the preferred procedure is to check that the Item Inquiry reflects SR/Shelf before it is cleared, then to check the item in, code it missing, print and send the Item Inquiry slip to the owning library for proper follow up.

Reserves may be identified as missing when a customer comes to retrieve their item and cannot find it or when an item listed on the pull list cannot be found on the shelf. In the first situation, if the item inquiry reflects that it is checked out to someone else or In Transit or IN or any other mis-matching situation, clerks must call Circ Control to clear the reserve from the customer’s record.

Discussion: New “Messages” in VCirc

The new VCirc Messages feature went live on August 20.  Cheryl Mann addressed the forum and provided a handout with a few reminders about the new message feature (attached).

• Phone numbers - Customers are not required to give a phone number to obtain a library card.  Therefore, do not use the “Update Phone Number” flag if the customer just filled out a new card application and did not provide their phone number.
• Damaged/Missing Materials - Remember to remove this flag when an item has been taken care of.  If the problem was taken care of at a non-owning library, remember to call the owning library to remove the flag.
• Uncataloged Item - Remember to remove this flag when a customer is given the item.
• Lost Item or card - When a library card is found, place the flag on the card.  Do not send the card to circ control until the 3 months are up.  After 3 months, the lost item flag will automatically drop from the card.  Clerks reminded to remove the flag when a customer picks up their card.
• Security Alert - The Security Alert flag on VCirc Messages will not block a customer from getting on the computers.

Winter Readfest

Anita Roesler (Adult Services Coordinator) from Outreach discussed Winter Readfest. This year the program will start two weeks earlier and run six weeks. Adults 18 and older are eligible to participate. When customers read three books, they will be given a game card in a tic-tac-toe format to fill out in return for a drawing slip. Each square will list a different genre. The details were explained and Clerks reminded that employees may not participate.

Circulation Forum Email Inquiries

Melody reminded clerks that any inquiries that they would like to be addressed by the forum anonymously can be sent to the following email:  [email protected].

Identification Requirements - Melody addressed the most recent email inquiry which asked for clarification on what type of ID a customer is required to show to gain access to their library account. Library policy states that a customer must provide the same type of ID required to get a library card in order to gain access to their account. At this point in the discussion, attendees were reminded of the importance of sharing what they learn at the Circ Forums with their fellow clerks and for all clerks to read the Circ Forum minutes in order to keep informed. The minutes are posted on the Intranet and they can be found under the tab About MLS and then under Committees.

College students - Cards issued to college students need two addresses if a student is not living in the area permanently. Cheryl advised that the student’s Permanent Address should be their parents’ address. The student’s school address should be entered into Special Mail. If the student truly has no other permanent address, the school address is entered for the Permanent Address. The same applies for students whose permanent address is out of the country – the school address is entered for the Permanent Address. Cheryl also asked the Clerks to include the name of the school on the application.

Reminders for Clerks

Attendees were reminded to share what is discussed at Circ Forum with their co-workers. It was also suggested that clerks read the minutes from each meeting. Minutes are available on the Intranet (About MLS > Committees > Circ Forum).

Denise Ryan reminded clerks to be careful accepting mutilated coins or bills. She asked that we not accept damaged or bent coins or bills taped with electrical tape. These will be rejected by the bank’s counting machines. Also, bills must have both serial numbers in order to be valid.

Cheryl Mann reminded clerks that it is important to use the correct tab in VCirc when accepting credit cards. Specifically, do not use Other for Damaged, as it affects the customer’s reimbursement.

Announcements

Kevin Sendall was welcomed as the newest member of the Circ Forum Planning Committee.

Suggested Topics for Future Meetings

Clerks would like to have an ILL presentation, a presentation or demonstration of the book sorters, a visit from those working in the new combined Circulation/Reference desks to discuss their experiences, and a presentation from Materials Selection. It was also requested that any Clerks who participate in a Webinar training share their feedback – good or bad.

Closing

Melody suggested that clerks read the Tech Support Group Minutes on the Intranet to get an idea of the ILS Vendors being considered. Melody thanked everyone for attending. The meeting adjourned at 4:00 pm.