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Library Policies

Northern Seminary Library Policies

Welcome to the Northern Seminary Library. As you make use of the library, please keep the following policies in mind to ensure the availability of library resources for the entire community.

Copyright Guide

Click here to view Northern’s Copyright Guide

Loan periods

  • Books are loaned for 4 weeks with 1 renewal.
  • Students and faculty are permitted 3 renewals.
  • Doctoral students and faculty receive an initial 3 month loan.
  • DVDs and CDs are loaned for 1 week with 1 renewal.
  • Faculty receive an initial 2 week loan.
  • Northern Seminary DVDs and CDs are available for loan via I-Share

Library fines

  • We do not charge library fines for overdue materials, except course reserves which are fined at $0.25 per hour.
  • Unreturned library materials will be automatically declared lost by the library system and will be billed to the borrower for the cost of the item plus a $25 processing fee.
  • If a borrowed item is needed for another patron or for course reserves, it will be recalled. Items that are recalled are fined $1.00 per day if they are not promptly returned.
  • Excessive unreturned materials or unpaid fines will result in the suspension of library borrowing privileges.

Food and drink

Drinks are permitted in the library in covered containers with secure lids. Simple, non-messy foods (snacks, candy) are permitted in the library. If the food is messy or has a strong aroma (fast foods, cooked meals), please take it up to the third floor and eat it in the communal dining area.

Library card

All students, staff, and faculty should use their Northern Seminary ID card as their library card. The library can provide you with a library barcode sticker for use in our library or in I-Share libraries.

Community resident and alumni library cards are only valid for borrowing materials from the Lisle campus library. They are not valid for borrowing from I-Share, ATLA, or ACTS. Please click on the button below to request a community resident or alumni library card.

REQUEST A LIBRARY CARD

I-Share

Northern Seminary is a member of the Illinois consortium of I-Share libraries. Students, staff, and faculty from other I-Share schools may borrow materials from Northern Seminary’s Lisle campus library using their institutional ID card; Northern Seminary students, staff, and faculty members have reciprocal borrowing privileges at all 90 other I-Share libraries in Illinois using their Northern Seminary ID card with a valid library barcode sticker.

How to login to I-Share / your library account.

Also note that I-Share materials may be requested online from the I-Share catalog. Requested materials can be delivered to any I-Share library for convenient pick-up, and I-Share materials can be returned at any I-Share library to be securely routed back to the owning library.

Atla & ACTS

Northern Seminary also participates in the American Theological Library Association Atla reciprocal library program as well as the local Association of Chicago Theological Schools (ACTS) library consortium. Please see the Other Libraries page for more information on how to access these libraries.