SOUTH CAROLINA STATEWIDE LIBRARY BORROWING AGREEMENT

Library Directors' Forum/South Carolina Independent Colleges and Universities
Joint Agreement on Library Use

The purpose of this document is to formalize joint resource sharing for direct circulation of library materials among the libraries of the South Carolina higher education institutions. Participation in this agreement is defined by an institution's membership in the Library Directors' Forum (LDF) or the South Carolina Independent Colleges and Universities (SCICU). Recognizing that the interests of South Carolina's higher education students, faculty, and staff can be better served through a program of mutual and reciprocal use of the libraries of all institutions, it is the intention of these institutions to establish and maintain a system for such cooperative use.

Upon presentation of a valid LDF/SCICU Borrowing Card issued by the home institution and a valid picture identification to be determined by the lending library, a student, faculty, or staff member from any of these institutions shall have the full rights and privileges of borrowing from any one of these libraries, in accordance with each library's policy regarding loans to individuals not connected with the institution. Existing agreements between member libraries and any internal borrowing policy may take precedence over any privileges granted by this document. Borrowers will be responsible for knowing and honoring circulation policy and procedures at any library from which materials are charged out. The individual borrower is responsible for the safe return of all materials borrowed.

Each lending library will pursue overdues directly with the borrower until the point at which the borrower's records become delinquent according to the lending library's policy. At that point, the home institution will become responsible for retrieving or replacing the unrecovered material according to its existing procedures. The home institution will reimburse the lending institution for the replacement costs , including processsing fees. The home institution will not be billed for unpaid fines at the lending library. Individual or institutional borrowing privileges may be revoked at the discretion of the lending library.

The library directors of the participating institutions, or designated representatives, will administer these guidelines and be the responsible parties for any change in this agreement. These agreements should be reviewed yearly. Any library that wishes to withdraw should notify the other schools involved in writing six months in advance of the intended date of withdrawal.