C & T Policies and Procedures

Notification of absence (sick leave, personal time)

In the event of an emergency absence (no prior permission given), all staff are required to contact their immediate M&P supervisor within 30 minutes of the library opening. Contact is to be by conversation with the person ... voice mail is not acceptable. If the supervisor is not available the person should make conversational contact with one of the following people in this exact order: the next line authority M&P, unit head, Director, KSL main line (432-3439). In the event of a medical emergency, staff may be asked to provide a medical reference if they claim it was not possible to contact the appropriate library personnel. Evening coverage people should contact each other (to confirm that one person will be in) in the event that they can not speak with a staff member in adavnce; if neither will be able to appear for the evening, leave a phone message to that effect at the KSL main circ phone (432-3439) ASAP.

Staff should request vacation time two weeks in advance whenever possible (see below) in order to allow for alternative staff coverage plans. 24 hour advance warning is required for vacation time -- less than 24 hours notice means the time must be considered Personal Time (or sick time if valid; a note from a doctor may be requested).

EXPLANATION OF UNIQUE CONSIDERATIONS:

(1) public coverage in smaller units

Due to the small number of people regularly scheduled for some of our units (Chemistry has one, Geology and Math have two, Engineering has from three to one, and Kline has from five to two staff members), we require longer notification periods for vacations in order to plan for our public service coverage when alternative staff allocations are required. All staff are cross-trained and most do provide coverage on a regular basis, with a few limited to reallocations only under special circumstances. We generally ask for two weeks notice.

(2) floaters to various units

As listed above, our small number of staff require some staff to "float" between units -- in some cases with no advanced warning or planning -- in order to cover public service desks. This flexibility is also used to perform similar tasks in multiple units (e.g. binding, journal check-in, shelving). In these cases, floaters must also provide two weeks notice in order for us to plan alternative coverage of these distributed tasks.

LEVELS OF SERVICE

The science libraries are intended to support the information gathering practices of Yale students, staff, and faculty. We also offer reciprocal assistance to scholars from other universities. We use the online Yale Directory to determine Yale affiliation. We will provide basic assistance for others if (a) this will not take much of our time, and (b) it does not conflict with the restrictions of our existing licenses. In instances where an non-Yale person asks for services beyond this level we inform them that they must visit the local public library at Southern Connecticut State University. Any questions of service levels based upon Yale affiliation are referred to the Library Privileges Office (SML).

Reference HELP

Patrons often do not ask for what they really need. When the patron's request involves a reference work (or an information question), a librarian with reference knowledge and skills is the person who can clarify the need and easily summarize alternatives. This practice will often insure more efficient use of information sources by users, and that users obtain correct and comprehensive assistance.

Staff Photocopying

Staff will use the staff photocopy machine, located beside the fax machine at KSL, for all normal copying. Only under special circumstances will staff use the added features of the Copico machines, and this will be done using the staff Copico card located on the KSL Manager's desk. Non-KSL staff may also use their library Copico cards for these special reasons.

CAGE MATERIALS

Cage material is available from 8:30am - 5:00pm on weekdays.

The person of choice for retrieving cage materials is the reference librarian on duty at the time of the request. If a reference librarian is not available, Marybeth would retrieve the item. If Marybeth is not available, the requestor will need to wait until a person with the VITA key returns.

The reference librarian on duty fills in the Library Office Use section of the form (kept in the lower right drawer), seeing needed identification and determining needs of the user (exact volume(s), lighting, electrical outlet, etc.) and indicates to the user which table will be used. Marybeth will complete this form if she is retrieving the material.

Bring the volumes to the user seated at the designated table and have the user read and sign the Reader Information section of the request form, and explain the return procedures (return the book to the Reference librarian; if not there, hand to the staff member at the circ desk; make sure the user is told the time by which the item(s) must be returned).

The completed form is returned to the Reference desk (keep it somewhat under the ref desk workstation so as not to forget about the item and so the user information is out of view) until the item is returned.

Other policies/practices:

Only a few volumes are retrieved at one time;
do not allow photocopying if materials are fragile;

When the requested item(s) have been returned, put them on the lower level of the bookshelf just inside the Director's office. The reference librarian (or circ staff member) completes the lower section of the request form and places the form in the Evening Leadperson's in box (this alerts the person to replace the material in the Cage). After returning the material to the Cage, the form is placed in the Circ desk attendant's inbox for filing.

Reserving the Group Training/Meeting Room

The downstairs office in KSL (where you will find David, Katie, and Margaret) is available if there is a need for group training or meetings. There is a computer and a projector available. This equipment must be set up in advance of the meeting (it is very easy and only takes 5 minutes) -- but you must talk with David about learning how to set this up in advance.

In order to not double book the room, and to determine if there are conflicts with the staff in the room, there is now a calendar on the back of the door which should be used for reserving the room. Please mark your required times at least one week before the time. Last minute requests will be at the convenience of the room inhabitants.

last revised: March 3, 2004