Any personal NOBLE library card is accepted at any other NOBLE library.
The only exceptions are specially issued Teachers Cards from other libraries, and non-academic library cards of out-of-state residents, for which acceptance is a library option to be set in the system. (See below for more information.)
Issuing Cards
A public library patron without a library card can apply and receive one in any NOBLE library. The public library patron will automatically receive proper access to locally-purchased electronic resources appropriate for their community of residence. The potential library user should not be sent back to their “home” library to register.
Students, faculty and staff may have multiple academic cards if they have more than one affiliation with NOBLE academic institutions. Multiple cards are required to provide full access to each institution’s unique collection of electronic resources.
Each borrower’s card record is limited to a single active barcode. When a replacement barcode/card is issued, the prior barcode number must be marked inactive at that time. Public patrons are limited to a single public patron account.
The name fields must contain the full legal first name, middle initial and last name. Date of birth must be entered in the proper field in addition to address and telephone number. The issuing library will verify the information presented by the patron by a driver’s license or other positive identification.
Non-Massachusetts public library and community borrowers must be registered with a Main (Profile) Permission Group of Public Patron – out-of-state.
Academic libraries will issue a generic NOBLE library card if a community borrower patron seeking to borrow items does not have a public library type card or may enter a card from another network. The generic NOBLE card is issued in place of a specific public library card and functions identically to a library card issued in that community.
Linking of patron records must not be used for families or other collections of multiple persons.
Optional Provisional Card Services via Self-Registration
Libraries may offer self-registration for a provisional two-week public library patron card registration. A visit to the library with proper identification is required to complete the full registration process. Library staff will verify identity, verify all the information entered online and complete the patron record before presenting the actual card and converting the user’s record.
During the two-week period, the provisional user will be eligible to place holds and use all electronic resources available to users of the library of the community of residence. Provisional privileges will expire automatically at the end of the two week period if the record is not converted by a library visit to complete the registration process, though authorization to some electronic resources may persist indefinitely depending on the vendor’s methods of authentication.
Non-NOBLE Barcodes
Non-NOBLE public library barcodes will continue to be accepted and entered into the NOBLE database if the user prefers and if they have no other public library card in the database, or they may be issued a public library or generic NOBLE card. In either case, access to electronic resources will still be controlled by residence municipality.
Using Cards
Any NOBLE library’s card, public or academic, may be used for circulation transactions in any NOBLE library. The only exceptions are local teacher cards, non-circulation/electronic access cards and cards of non-Massachusetts non-academic borrowers, which are a local option contingent on policies configured into the system.
In addition to presentation of the original library card, other acceptable means of account identification for circulation include:
• Valid Photo ID: Accept without any further verification.
• Scanned/Digitized Barcode Image, Verbal Recitation of Barcode, Other Printed/Handwritten Form of Barcode: Accept with additional identity verification. Verification parameters will be determined by each individual library and may include, but not be limited to, having the patron correctly identify date of birth, address, telephone number, password, or other personal information in the patron record.
These recommendations pertain to material being checked out from the home library as well as items owned by other network libraries being retrieved from the hold shelf.
In picking up a hold, it is preferable to use the card for which the hold was placed. Otherwise, there is no preference as to which card should be used, all will provide the correct statistics. However, students, faculty or staff affiliated with a NOBLE institution may receive better privileges if the card matches the institution.
Updating Information
College patron records are exclusive to the issuing institution and must not be updated by any other library. Information in the records is linked to semesters, graduation years and financial records in the college offices and must not be changed by other libraries.
Public library cards are shared among all libraries. Libraries learning of verified information changes are expected to update the record accordingly. Any library receiving returned mail without a new address must flag the record so that staff obtain a new, verified address before any additional items are borrowed or renewed, orholds placed or trapped. Libraries discovering an inaccurate telephone number should likewise flag the record to obtain a correct telephone number in a subsequent contact. Libraries correcting needed information must remove the flag to avoid further unnecessary stops.
Delinquencies
Libraries should rely on and respect the delinquency statuses maintained automatically by the system. As patron records are shared, and libraries have differing policies for delinquency thresholds, fines, etc., additional manually-input delinquency warnings are unnecessary.
Non-Circulation/Electronic Access Cards
Libraries may issue patron cards without circulation privileges to provide access to online resources, PC reservation systems and other services that require authentication in cases where it is not practical to also provide lending privileges to the patron.
The non-circulation cards can be issued in cases where proof of address is not available. The patron must be affiliated with the library by claimed affiliation with the library’s service area; only one public library patron card is allowed per person.
Holders of non-circulation cards would not be able to check items out of any NOBLE library nor request materials in the web catalog or in person.
To issue non-circulation cards, the library must contact NOBLE to add a non-circulating Permission Group to the system that is coded in the loan rule table to disallow loans. Guidelines for adding these patrons will be maintained by NOBLE, specifying required information. Such cards will expire annually and can be renewed.
Non-circulation cards may be upgraded at any time at the library upon presentation of proof of address. The library will enter the proper information and changing the Permission Group accordingly.
Teacher Cards
Libraries may issue special cards to preK-12 teachers for materials for classroom use. Issuing libraries may restrict use to their own materials. Issuing libraries may not grant special privileges on other libraries’ materials. A school name must be included in the patron record. Non-classroom loans should be done on a personal card; a teachers’ card is a second separate patron record which must be linked to the teacher’s personal card.
Libraries who do not wish to supply items to Teacher Cards can choose to have their materials unavailable to these cards through a system setting.
Institutional Cards
Libraries may issue cards to non-library institutions. Issuing libraries may restrict use to their own materials. Issuing libraries may not grant special privileges on other libraries’ materials. A contact person must be included in the institutional record.
Libraries who do not wish to supply items to Institutional Cards can choose to have their materials unavailable to these cards through a system setting.
NOBLE libraries must not distribute library cards nor PINs to non-NOBLE libraries such as local schools and special libraries.
Approved by Members Meeting, November 21, 2013; amended March 19, 2015, June 8, 2017, March 15, 2018, June 14, 2018.