Bishop Hodges Library respects the privacy of its patrons. The library’s main guiding document is the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA). Visit the United States Department of Education’s website at http://www.ed.gov/policy/gen/guid/fpco/ferpa/index.html for further details. In addition, the Library strives to uphold the American Library Association’s (ALA) recommended privacy policy: "We extend confidentiality to all information sought or received, materials consulted, borrowed, acquired, or transmitted, including database search records, reference interviews, interlibrary loan records, and other personally identifiable uses of library resources, services, and materials. Any record identifying a library user with specific materials will be regarded as confidential and protected. Such records will not be made available to any outside agency, institution, or private firm, or any government agency except pursuant to such process, order, or subpoena as may be authorized under the authority of, and pursuant to, federal, state, or local law relating to civil, criminal, or administrative discovery procedures or legislative investigatory power. We will resist the issuance or enforcement of any such process, order, or subpoena until such time as a proper showing of good cause has been made in a court of competent jurisdiction." Visit http://www.ala.org/ala/oif/iftoolkits/toolkitsprivacy/privacypolicy/privacypolicy.cfm for further details.

Library Responsibilities: Library personnel (including student workers) will protect patron information identified in the following records:

• Circulation – library personnel will not disclose information related to the circulation of any item. Records of circulating items are not to be disclosed to students, faculty, or administrators.
  


• Overdue Item – printed notices are to be placed in a sealed envelope.
  


• Interlibrary Loan – records will be retained for three years in order to demonstrate compliance with copyright laws as per the Coalition for Networked Information, 2002)but patron names are to be purged when items are returned.
  


• Reference Requests – only non-identifying statistics will be retained.
  


• Messages sent via email.
  


• Sign-up sheets – will be destroyed on a monthly basis once general non-identifying statistics are calculated.
  


• Phone messages – library personnel are not to state the titles of items when leaving messages whether to a person other than patron or answering machine.

Patron Responsibilities:

Patrons holding borrowing cards (Cardinal ID cards or Special Borrowing Cards) are encouraged not lend their cards to anyone. As such action could result in the improper release of personal information. Library personnel are only to lend items to the person whom the card belongs.

Patrons using library computers are encouraged to clear all cache/history records when completed with use.

Patrons using copy and print machines are encouraged to make sure all documents with personal identifying information are collected. At a patron’s request the library will shred a limited number of sheets.