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Circulation

LIBRARY BORROWING ELIGIBILITY GUIDELINES

The Gregg-Graniteville Library is pleased to make its facilities and resources available on an in-house use basis to all residents of the university's service area. Check out privileges, however, are limited to:

  • Current USC System students and employees -- A valid barcoded University ID must be presented. Only students enrolled for the current semester will have library privileges.
  • Current Aiken Technical College students and employees -- Valid barcoded ATC ID card must be presented.
  • Retirees of the Avondale Company -- Valid Driver's License and employee ID card must be presented.
  • Alumni Policy -- Current USCA Alumni membership card and a valid Driver's License must be presented. Limited borrowing privileges are granted but the study rooms are available only to current students, faculty and staff of USCA. Computer use is restricted to the public machines on the 1st floor and the visitor policy applies.
  • Currently employed teachers, K-12,in the public and private schools of Aiken County -- Valid Driver's License and proof of employment must be presented.
  • Immediate family (spouse and dependent children 16 years old and up) of current USC-Aiken employees -- Valid Driver's License must be presented.
  • Retired USC Aiken faculty and staff residing in the University service area.
  • Holders of current VIP cards issued by the USC-Aiken Development Office -- Current Driver's License and VIP card must be presented.
  • Current participants in the Academy of Lifelong Learning program -- Valid Driver's License and valid Academy ID card must be presented.
  • Community Patron Cards -- (for those living in Aiken County) are issued at a cost of $15.00 and are valid for six months. A valid Driver's License showing correct mailing address must be presented. Community patrons are limited to 5 items checked out at a time.

Limited charge-out privileges are granted on an occasional basis, through special arrangement, to participants in various special university programs. Please contact Circulation for further information.

LOAN PERIODS

  • USC System students - 6 weeks
  • Faculty and staff - 6 months (subject to recall after four weeks)
  • Special category borrowers - 2 weeks
  • Reserve material - loan periods vary
  • Juvenile Collection books - 6 weeks
  • Media - 1 week
  • Periodicals - 1 week (faculty only)
  • Laptops - 7 days (with one online renewal)
  • iPads - 7 days (not currently for checkout- receiving updates & maintanence)

FINES

Overdue Aiken books are $.20 per item per day.

Overdue CDs and Videos are $.20 per item per day with no grace period.

Overdue Reserve material fines are $1.00 per item per day with no grace period for items that leave the building.

Reserve Library Use Only items that leave the building are $.10 per minute after the library closes.

Replacement of a Reserve cover is $1.00.

Overdue Laptop, power cord, and laptop case is $15.00 per day with no grace period.

Interlibrary Loan overdue fines are $.20 per item per day with no grace period.

Pascal overdue fines are $1.00 per item per day with no grace period.

As a courtesy to borrowers, the Library sends notices of overdue items. However, it is the borrower's responsibility to return the items on time regardless of receipt or non-receipt of notice.

PAYMENT OPTIONS

The library is able to take cash and checks to pay for fees. The Gregg-Graniteville Library does not reduce or forgive fines based upon financial hardship. To make it easier, you may set up a payment plan. Please inquire at Circulation or email the interim department manager at DorothyG@usca.edu for more information.

CHARGES FOR LOST BOOKS

The minimum charge for a lost book is $40.00 plus a non-refundable service charge of $10.00 plus overdue fines and additional charges that may be assessed. Expensive or out-of-print books will cost more. Library books cannot be purchased. Even if a lost book charge has been paid, the book still remains the property of the University. Any person who falsely claims to have lost a book simply to retain possession may be charged with illegally possessing State property.

Study Rooms

Study rooms are available for study sessions. These rooms must be checked out with a valid USCA ID at the Circulation Desk. These rooms are available for USCA students, staff, and faculty only. Study rooms may be checked out for a maximum of 4 hours a day. Study room keys are LIBRARY USE ONLY and cannot be taken out of the building. Keys taken from the building may result in fines and loss of checkout privileges. There are 3 larger group study rooms with whiteboards. These rooms can accommodate 5-8 people and dry-erase markers and erasers are available at the Circulation Desk. There are 13 smaller study rooms that can accommodate 2-3 people. All of the smaller study rooms have a desktop computer.  2 of the smaller study rooms are equipped with a TV and VCR/DVD for viewing course reserve films. Study Rooms may be booked in advance at https://libcal.usca.edu/allspaces.

Study rooms are not open to visiting patrons or community members. Study rooms are not available for booking long-term e.g., reserving a room on the same day or time each week/month.

Laptops

The Gregg-Graniteville Library currently has 36 Dell laptops available for checkout. The laptop checkout is for 7 days at a time, with an opportunity to renew once online through your library account. Power cords and laptop cases are also available for checkout at the Circulation Desk. For more information on laptop checkout and fees review the Laptop Checkout Policy and USCA Laptop Equipment Liability Agreement.

Who can checkout a laptop?

  • Laptops circulate to current USC Aiken students, faculty, and staff ONLY

How do I checkout check out a laptop?

  • The borrower must present a current USC Aiken I.D. card and must read the Laptop Checkout Policy and complete a USCA Laptop Equipment Liability form at the Circulation desk.

The library has temporarily stopped checking out iPads so that the iPads can receive updates and maintenance. iPad checkout will resume sometime in Fall 2022...

 

Eligibility

Checkout of iPads is limited to currently enrolled USC Aiken students. 

Loan Period

The iPads may be checked out for 7 days with no renewals allowed.  They are on a first come first serve basis.  There will be downtime from when an iPad is returned and when it will be available for checkout due to charging and maintenance.  The iPad will have user data wiped after each use and returned to the default configuration.  The iPad should be returned to the Circulation department staff in the Gregg-Graniteville Library during normal operating hours.  The iPad should not be placed in the blue Book Return bins.  Failure to follows the rules will result in fines and possible loss of checkout privileges.

Fines

Overdue fines are $20.00 per day that the iPad is late.  An iPad that is not returned to a staff member of the Circulation department during operating hours will result in overdue fines and possible loss of checkout privileges.  Fines are added to the patron’s library record and may result in registration, transcript and diploma holds being placed with the university. 

The working condition of the iPad will be assessed before checkout and upon its return.  Patrons are responsible for damage to and/or loss or theft of the loaned iPad.  Patrons are required to report any problems experienced with the iPad while it is checked out to them.  Failure to report problems may result in the patron being held liable for any damage.

A replacement cost of $750.00 will be charged for stolen or destroyed iPads.  Damaged iPads will be assessed the cost of repair.  Once an iPad has been overdue for 5 days, it will be considered lost or stolen and the patron will be charged for its replacement.  Once a patron has been charged for a replacement, the patron’s information including the location data from the Find My iPad application will be turned over to University Police for recovery of the iPad.

Paging Service

We are excited to offer a convenient new service to our library patrons! If there is a book that you want to check out, but you are short on time, we will pull the book and hold it at the Circulation Desk for you.

  • What is a page? A page is a request for library Circulation staff to pull a book from the Gregg-Graniteville Library general collection and have the item held for you at the Circulation Desk. You will need to check out the item when you pick it up, so please remember your USCA ID.
  • Who can place a page? All current USC system students, staff and faculty.
  • What items can I page? You can place a page request on any general collection book that circulates. Sorry, we cannot page Reference items, May Collection items, Reserve items, Films, CDs and/or other non-circulating items.
  • What if the item is checked out? You can request to be put on the hold list for when the item is returned by clicking on the Request button near the top of the item's page in our online catalog. Please contact Circulation at 803-641-3286 with inquiries.
  • What if the item belongs to another USC campus library? You can request the item by clicking on our Request button near the top of the item's page in our catalog and selecting Aiken from the dropdown list of pickup locations. As long as the item circulates, you will receive the item in approximately 3 business days.
  • How long may I keep other USC campus books? You will be given the loan period that the campus library permits but you will be allowed to renew the books as many times as you want until another patron needs the book.
  • When and how can I place a page? You can place a page online at any time via the Request button in the online catalog. The Request button has a red checkmark next to the word request. If your request is urgent you may call the Circulation Department (803-641-3286) during library operating hours.
  • How long will it take to process my request? For requests placed before noon on a business day, the books will be available by 5pm the same day. Requests placed after noon or on the weekend will be processed by noon the following business day. For the purposes of this service, business days are defined as Monday-Friday, 9am-5pm.
  • How will you notify me when my item is ready? You will receive an email at your USC Aiken email address when your item is ready for pickup.
  • How long will the item be held for me? Books will be held for 7 days.
  • Where can I pick up my paged item? You can pick up your items at the Circulation Department.

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