The library is a place for quiet study—a place where students can come to get away from the noise of other facilities and concentrate on their studies. Library patrons are asked to respect the learning environment by speaking quietly, turning off cell phones, and setting the volume of personal stereo equipment at low levels.
Quick Links: Circulation, Library Catalog, Resources, Services, Borrowing Privileges from Other Libraries, Facilities, Off-Campus Access to Online Databases
Circulation
Books from the stacks are available
for half-semester checkout—due at either mid-term or the end
of the semester. Periodicals, audio-visual software, videos, DVDs,
music compact discs, LP recordings, and maps are available for one-week
checkout. Students may check out reference books and two-hour reserve
material overnight. These items may be checked out one hour before
the library closes and are due within one hour after the library opens
the next day. Most reserve items fall in two categories—two-hour
checkout and two-day checkout.
The library will assess fines
for overdue reserve and reference material ($1 each hour, $10 maximum).
The $1 fine is effective immediately when the item becomes overdue.
All material is checked out at
the circulation desk located at the library entrance. Material not
checked out will set off the security alarm as the material is taken
from the library. The person taking the material will be called back
to check out the material.
Material may be obtained in the open stacks on a self-serve basis.
Reserve items need to be requested at the circulation desk.
Material may be renewed only if
it is not on hold for another user.
An item may be placed on hold
if it is checked out. The requester will be notified when the item
is returned to the library.
If an item is missing from the
shelves and it is not checked out, notify the desk attendant and a
tracer will be put on the missing item. The requester will be notified
when/if it is found.
Library staff will send overdue
reminders for overdue material. If the material is not returned after
the third reminder is sent or the end of the current term, library
staff will send a bill for the replacement cost of the item plus a
$5 processing fee to the business office.
The user is responsible for lost
or damaged items. The user will be billed for the cost of the replacement
of the item and a $5 processing fee after time is allowed for searching
for the item.
Please return all material to
the book drop in the circulation desk during library hours. When the
library is closed, return items in the book return located to the
right of the east Smith Center entrance.
Library Catalog
The catalog serves as an index to all material in the library. The computer catalog indexes each item by key word, author, title, subject, and classification number. Mary Miller Library uses the Dewey Decimal Classification System. Materials are arranged by subject according to a numerical system.
Resources
Circulating books are located
in the stacks in the main reading room. Audio-visual software, videos,
DVDs, and LP recordings are located on the north wall. Feature film
videos and DVDs are shelved on the farthest west low shelving. CDs
are located in the CD cabinet at the top of the library stairway.
Periodicals which the Mary Miller
Library receives are listed alphabetically by title and by subject
on the computer catalog as well as in a notebook on library reserve.
Current issues are displayed in the west end of the reading room.
Back issues are shelved in the library basement. The stairs to the
basement are located in the northeast corner of the reading room.
Periodicals on microfilm and microfiche are filed in the metal cabinets
in the library basement.
The library also holds a variety
of periodical indices. Hesston’s online index holdings include
EBSCOhost, FirstSearch, InfoTrac, Pro Quest Nursing, and Lexis-Nexis
Academic Universe. These indices are accessible through the World
Wide Web on the Mary Miller Library home page. They include full-text
articles. Access them on the 11 fixed and four wireless laptop computers
in the library, on the computers in the computer labs, and on personal
computers in dorm rooms.
Hesston’s print periodical
index holdings include: Education Index (1976-95), General Science
Index (1978-1998), Humanities Index (1974-Sept. 1988), Mennonite Periodical
Index (1971-, yearly indices to Mennonite periodicals received by
Mary Miller Library), New York Times Index (1967-91), Reader’s
Guide to Periodical Literature (1915-), Religion Index One (1987-94),
and Social Sciences Index (1974-Sept. 1991).
Reference books include encyclopedia,
dictionaries, handbooks, and commentaries. The reference collection
is located on the low shelving near the library entrance. Large dictionaries
are located throughout the library. Encyclopaedia Britannica Online,
Encyclopedia Americana Online, World Book Online, Literature Resource
Center, Heritage Quest, Annals of American History, Opposing Viewpoints
Resource Center, CQ Researcher, a collection of college catalogs,
and a collection of academic e-books (Netlibrary) can be accessed
via the World Wide Web. Links to these databases can be found on the
library homepage. Reference works on CD-ROM are on library reserve
and can be used on the library computers.
The Internet is accessible from
the 11 fixed and four wireless laptop computers in the library.
Children’s Books (J) are
located in the northeast corner of the library and Fiction Books (F)
are located on the low shelving running east and west in the middle
of the library.
Reserve material is material which
instructors have selected for special class use. The material is placed
on reserve to make it equally accessible to all students for a particular
class. Students may request reserve material at the circulation desk.
Rotating Books is a collection
of books for leisure reading. The rotating collection is located at
the west end of the low shelving running east and west in the middle
of the library. The collection is changed every two months.
Atlases and oversize books are
located in the middle of the reading room south of the tall shelving.
Services
- Reference
- The library staff will help you with your library needs by showing you where things are located, demonstrating electronic resources, and helping you find information for class and personal projects.
- Interlibrary Loan
- Specific books, audio-visuals, and articles owned by other libraries may be borrowed. The Kansas Library Catalog (KLC) and Kansas List of Serials (KLS) which list books, audio-visuals, and periodicals owned by other libraries in the state of Kansas are accessible on the World Wide Web from the Mary Miller Library home page. From the bibliographic record on the KLC for the item needed, click “request this item” in the upper right corner and follow the directions or you can print out a record from the KLC or a citation from an online journal database for each request and leave it with the library staff. Allow one to three weeks to receive the item.
- Lost and Found
- Ask at the circulation desk for lost and found items.
- Computers
- Eleven computers are located throughout the library. They are connected to the campus computer network. A laser printer is available. Also available for use in the library are four wireless laptop computers which can be checked out from the circulation desk.
- Equipment
- Video and DVD preview equipment and audio equipment are located in the carrels at the top of the library stairway. The study room to the south of the library offices features video equipment. A microfilm/fiche reader/printer and a photocopier are available for use. Photocopies and microfiche copies are 10 cents each.
Borrowing privileges from other libraries
Hesston College students have access to a variety of libraries in the area. Hesston and Newton public libraries and Bethel College’s Mantz Library require that a student present his or her Hesston College ID to receive a library card. To borrow from Wichita State University’s Ablah Library, a Hesston student must present his or her Hesston College ID, verification of Social Security Number and current address, and $10 for a special borrower’s card.
Facilities
Mary Miller Library offers students the following facilities:
- Group and individual study rooms
- Video preview equipment for small groups
- Video preview equipment for individuals—carrels by stairway
- Telephones for student use for local and campus business calls—in the hall next to the Hesston College Gallery and in the basement hall
- Restrooms in the southeast corner of the main floor of Smith Center and down the stairs from the main entry hall
Off-Campus Access to Online Databases
A Kansas Library card which permits access to online databases from off-campus sites is available through the library director.