Library Materials Circulation FAQ

Paul D. Camp Community College students, faculty, and staff use their PDCCC identification card as a library card.

Community patron cards can be issued to all Virginia residents, including alumni.  In order to receive a community patron card, you must present a valid form of identification that includes a photo and complete an application card.  We require the signature and the identification (presented in-person) of a parent or guardian for patrons under the age of 18 who request a community patron card.

Loss of a PDCCC identification card or community patron cards are reissued for a $5.00 charge. Community patron cards have an expiration date of 12 months from date of issue.

You are required to present a valid PDCCC identification card or community library card at the circulation desk to borrow library materials.

PDCCC Students AND Community Patrons:

• Books- 4 weeks
• Videos/DVDs- Library use only
• Textbooks- Library use only
• Magazines/Journals- 1 week (past issues only)
• Reference- Library use only
• Reserves- Library use only

Patrons may check out a total of ten books with a valid library card.

To keep a book for another borrowing period, you can renew a book in person at the library’ss circulation desk or it may be renewed by phone as long as it is before the book’s due date.

Remember:

• To renew an item, it must be renewed before the due date.
• No overdue items or outstanding fines are on your library account.
• Items which have requests placed on them cannot be renewed.

Patrons may renew materials twice as long as no prior requests have been made for the material by another patron.

Patrons are responsible for returning or renewing all items borrowed with their library card by their due date.  Patrons are prohibited by library policy to lend their library card to others. Lost or stolen cards should be reported immediately.  Patrons are responsible for notifying the library of any change in name, address, phone number, and/or status from non-student to student.

If you are affiliated with PDCCC, you can check your library account information by following a few simple steps:

• Go to the PDCCC library homepage
• Under Reference Resources, click on VCCS Libraries
• Click on My Account in the first column at the top of the page
• Enter your MyVCCS user name and password (also used to access Blackboard)

All of your library account information (including current materials checked out) should be displayed on the page.

You can “Request” a book currently checked out by another patron. When it is returned to the library, it will be available for your use. Requests merely secure the book for you when it is returned by the current borrower. You can request a book in person at the library’s circulation desk or via phone 757.569.6737 (for the Franklin campus) or 757.925.6345 (for the Suffolk campus). Only PDCCC faculty, staff, or students are entitled to place requests.

Please keep in mind that other patrons may also have a request on the same item. Requests for items will be accommodated based on the date of the request, with priority given to the earliest request date.

If you do not find the resource you desire, you should consider our Interlibrary Loan service. ILL is reserved for PDCCC students, faculty, and staff only. Please see our Interlibrary Loan FAQ.

Materials may be returned at the library’s circulation desk. The library also has an outdoor book drop for after-hours returns.

Overdue books are fined at a rate of five cents ($ .05) per day. Overdue magazines are fined at the rate of twenty-five cents ($ .25) per day.

Unpaid fines/fees may result in suspension of borrowing privileges. Overdue fines are not charged to faculty and staff.

To find out if you have any fines, you can request a list of your fines in person at the library’s circulation desk or via phone 757.569.6737 (for the Franklin campus) or 757.925.6339 (for the Suffolk campus).

Overdue, Lost, or Damaged Material
You are responsible for returning or renewing all items borrowed with your library card by their due date. When an item becomes overdue, borrowing privileges will be blocked until the item is returned.

Lost items, damaged items, and lost ID or library cards should be reported as soon as possible to the library staff.

Failure to return library materials and/or pay library fines may result in campus records begin blocked. A $50.00 replacement fee will be charged for all lost items. Damaged items are evaluated to determine if the item can be repaired or a new one must be ordered. A librarian determines damaged item fees.

Missing Items

You can ask any library staff member to help you find a book.

If an item is not on the shelf, and not checked out in the online catalog, stop at the library’s circulation desk for assistance. The item could be in the process of being reshelved by the library or may have been reshelved incorrectly by another patron.

Faculty may place personal and/or library-owned materials on reserve for their students. All course reserve materials are located behind the library’s circulation desk.  Reserve materials may be used in the library only. Reserve items should be returned to the staff at the library’s circulation desk.

Audiobooks may be found in the Overdrive Media audiobook collection; this collection is only available to PDCCC students, faculty, and staff. To access the collection, go to Audiobooks.

Checking out audiobooks from Overdrive Media:
To check out materials from the audiobook collection, you will need to enter your MyVCCS user name and password (also used to access Blackboard). Audiobooks may be checked out for a period of two weeks.

All downloads must be done on a personal computer.

To download the audiobooks, you will need to install the Overdrive Media Console on your personal computer. System requirements and downloading instructions are provided on the webpage.

To utilize the downloaded audiobook, you will also need to have the most recent version of Windows Media Player installed on your personal computer. Downloading instructions are provided on the webpage.

The phone number for the Franklin campus library is 757.569.6737; the phone number for the Suffolk campus library is 757.925.6345. See the Library Staff section of the PDCCC Library homepage for more detailed information.