As a university library, our primary patrons are the current students, faculty, and staff of Western Oregon University (WOU), and their needs and expectations drive our collections, services, and facilities. As a courtesy, we extend certain privileges to Visitors, defined as people with no current WOU affiliation who use the library in any capacity. The overall Visitor program has three tiers of access: 1) Community Patrons (free), 2) Community Patrons with Borrowing Privileges (free), and 3) Independent Scholars (for a fee). The following policy outlines the terms and conditions for Visitors and the scopes of each tier.

We encourage–and in some cases, require–Visitors to have a library card from an appropriate Home Library. A Home Library is a governmentally-established public or tribal library or an academic library of a public or private college or university, for which a Visitor is a qualified patron. The Home Library may or may not be a participant of the Oregon Library Passport Program or a member of the Orbis Cascade Alliance. The Visitor’s card from their Home Library is reused in the WOU library environment.

Tier 2 & 3 Visitors without prior WOU affiliation are required to supply their Social Security Number (SSN) at registration per WOU’s Social Security Number Disclosure Consent Statement. The SSN field is encrypted, and WOU assigns a unique “V- number” campus identifier to the Visitor. At no point do library staff or systems have access to SSNs.

While all WOU Policies and Library policies apply to Visitors, the Acceptable Use of University Computing Resources is especially relevant to them.

WOU’s current Code of Student Responsibility outlines the university’s expectations of conduct within its environment. All Visitors are subject to the same policies and behavior standards as students. However, when Visitors transgress, their non-student status limits the range of appropriate consequences, and none of the resolution framework (the Student Conduct Program) is available to them. As necessary, staff members of the Library and of Campus Public Safety determine appropriate consequences. Such consequences will be in line with the university’s commitments to personal dignity and to a community free of harassment and protected-status discrimination, as mentioned in the Code’s Introduction.

In some cases, staff have developed specific resources and processes to serve Visitors in an approximately similar manner as our primary patrons. Examples include printing and access to electronic collections. When such resources and processes for Visitors fail but do not impact our primary patrons, there may or may not be solutions available. Visitor privileges are on an as-is basis.

Visitor Access Tier 1: Community Patrons

Free

Community Patrons are Visitors 14 years or older who wish to use library services, facilities, or collections on site–but with no take-home borrowing. This includes, but is not limited to, alumni of the institution, Oregon residents of high school age and above, visitors to the area, and students enrolled at other universities. Community Patrons are welcome at Hamersly Library Monday-Friday, 8 a.m.- 6 p.m. After 6 p.m. and on weekends, the library is limited to WOU students, faculty, and staff and to Summit Visiting Patrons. Exceptions to the time restriction for Community Patrons are by appointment or arrangement.

In general, Community Patrons have access to use, within Hamersly Library:

• Most hard-copy materials in the local collection
• General computing, and black and white printing in small quantities
• Electronic collections (ebooks, journals, research databases) via in-library computers
• Guest Wifi
• Scanning and photocopy equipment
• Reading areas and small rooms
• Information services and research guidance

For library computing, Information Desk staff require photo identification.

For the guest wireless network, the online registration requires an email address and phone number.

Visitor Access Tier 2: Community Patrons with Borrowing Privileges

Free

In order to add borrowing privileges for physical materials to the access listed above, a Community Patron must

• Have a previously-issued V-number (WOU ID#), or
• Be a Summit Visiting Patron, or
• Be 18 years old or older with a Home Library

See further details regarding the terms of Visitor Accounts & Borrowing.

Visitor Access Tier 3: Independent Scholars

$50 fee per quarter–roughly equivalent to WOU’s academic terms

Fall term: October-December
Winter term: January-March
Spring term: April-June
Summer: July-September

Independent Scholars are Visitors who desire library privileges beyond those available as a Community Patron with Borrowing Privileges and who pay the $50 Continuing Access Fee.

The $50 Continuing Access Fee provides three months of standard student access to library facilities and collections, most notably

1. borrowing from the local physical collection and through the Summit borrowing system
2. borrowing ebooks
3. off-campus use of subscription databases.

The above services are fixed licensing expenses for the library, and so the fee provides for authorized WOU access to them.

Additional charges are variable:

1. Per- transaction costs incurred by the library on behalf of the Independent Scholar.  These costs include but are not limited to
   • Pay-per-view articles
   • Borrowing fees related to Interlibrary Loan (ILL) requests (beyond the scope of the Summit borrowing system)
   • Shipping costs (to and from residence of Independent Scholar, if requested, and ILL returns to lending library)
   • When pay-per-view costs and borrowing fees apply, we will solicit approval prior to incurring the charge.  We will not solicit approval for any shipping cost before incurring the charge, but those charges will be passed on to the Independent Scholars as they accrue.
2. Replacement costs.
3. Computer printing.

When any Independent Scholar paid quarter has expired, the account reverts to the Community Patron with Borrowing Privileges tier.

See further details regarding the terms of Visitor Accounts & Borrowing.