American Hungarian Foundation
The Library of the American Hungarian Foundation is an affiliated library of Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey. A small portion of the Library's holdings is integrated into QuickSearch. The Library is identified as Hungarian. Most of the items at the Foundation that are in QuickSearch circulate to Rutgers students, faculty, and staff, but only by placing Hold requests through QuickSearch. Anyone may visit the Library to look at materials. There is a photocopy machine available for use. The Rutgers University Libraries accept interlibrary loan requests for Foundation Library materials. The Foundation Library also has manuscripts. For further information, consult the Foundation website at https://www.ahfoundation.org/.
The Big Ten Academic Alliance (BTAA)
The Big Ten Academic Alliance was established by the presidents of the Big Ten Conference members in 1958 as the athletic league's academic counterpart. The BTAA welcomed Rutgers University to membership July 1, 2013, in advent of Rutgers' admittance to the Big Ten in 2014. BTAA members collaborate to advance their academic missions, generate opportunities for students and faculty, and serve the common good by sharing expertise, leveraging campus resources, and creating innovative programming.
BTAA Resource Sharing Agreement
Rutgers University Libraries participate in the BTAA Resource Sharing Agreement in which participating libraries give priority to BTAA requests and share items from their collections at no charge and as broadly as possible. Certain types of materials, for example, rare, fragile, non-print or otherwise non-circulating might be lent through a negotiated process. Individual libraries may set limits on the number of volumes, reels, fiche, etc. which may be sent to fulfill any one requests. There is no limit to the number of requests a member library may submit.
Reciprocal Library Borrowing
Participating BTAA institutions offer faculty, emeritus faculty, students, and staff the opportunity for in-house use of library resources under certain conditions. Graduate and post-baccalaureate professional students, and faculty, have the opportunity for in-house use and in-person borrowing. For specific details, read the following agreements:
UBorrow
The Rutgers University Libraries participate in UBorrow, the BTAA's consortial borrowing service. UBorrow provides access to more than 90 million volumes from the circulating collections of 14 major research libraries: University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Indiana University, University of Iowa, University of Chicago, University of Michigan, Michigan State University, University of Minnesota, University of Nebraska, Northwestern University, Ohio State University, Penn State University, Purdue University, University of Wisconsin-Madison, and the Center for Research Libraries. For detailed information visit the BTAA's website.
Council for Higher Education in Newark (CHEN)
The John Cotton Dana Library on the Rutgers University - Newark Campus and the George F. Smith Library on the Rutgers University - Biomedical & Health Sciences Campus at Newark participate in library activities sponsored by the Council for Higher Education in Newark (CHEN). CHEN is a consortium that includes a number of academic and research libraries in Newark. Under CHEN auspices, Rutgers University - Newark the New Jersey Institute of Technology, and Essex County College, and Newark Public Library participate in a reciprocal borrowing program. Students, faculty, and staff may receive guest borrowing privileges for one semester at participating institutions. The privileges granted by Rutgers extend only to use of the Dana Library and the George F. Smith Library. Cross-registered students from the New Jersey Institute of Technology and Essex County College receive full borrowing privileges at the Rutgers University Libraries for the semester that they are cross-registered.
New Brunswick Theological Seminary (Sage Library)
Gardner A. Sage Library of the New Brunswick Theological Seminary and the Rutgers University Libraries have a long tradition of cooperation. Sage and Rutgers library collections have traditionally been understood to complement each other since they reflect each institution's overall mission and scope of research and study. In practice, this has meant over the years that the Rutgers Libraries relied on Sage Library for many theological and religious works. The Rutgers collections now also have a strong foundation of theological and religious works, while Sage Library has expanded its scope to include strengths in such areas as the African-American religious experience, urban ministry, and Asian immigrant materials.
Faculty and students of the seminary and the university are welcome to use Sage and Rutgers Libraries according to the following arrangements:
Seminary Users at Rutgers - Full-time faculty, adjunct professors during the semester they are teaching, students, and staff are eligible for primary borrowing privileges at the Rutgers University Libraries. Privileges are issued for one year with expiration dates of 6/30 or 12/31, and must be renewed annually. As primary borrowers, Seminary users receive term loans and may request delivery of Rutgers books to a Rutgers pickup library and electronic delivery of Rutgers articles. Seminary faculty may request Alexander Library to place materials on reserve for their classes. The Sage Library provides interlibrary loan services to Seminary faculty, staff, and students. To register at the Rutgers Libraries, Seminary students must bring a letter of validation from the seminary and a physical ID card to the circulation desk of any Rutgers library. Full-time faculty, adjunct professors, and staff whose names appear on the list provided annually by Sage Library to the Rutgers university libraries administration are entered into the Rutgers online borrower file; they may present an ID card at any Rutgers circulation desk to receive a borrower card.
Rutgers Users at Sage - Rutgers full-time faculty and graduate students may register for direct borrowing privileges at Sage Library upon presentation of a current Rutgers identification card. Undergraduates must present a completed form letter [PDF] from a Rutgers reference librarian and signed by a circulation supervisor, or a letter from a professor, indicating that they need Sage resources. Sage library staff may telephone the circulation desk at Alexander Library to verify a student or faculty member's current status and Rutgers affiliation. Sage Library sets borrowing terms and privileges. Rutgers faculty and graduate students are permitted to borrow up to 25 items at one time, while undergraduates are permitted to borrow up to 6 items. Materials borrowed on site at Sage need to be returned directly to Sage Library. Rutgers borrowers with long overdue items borrowed from the Sage Library are subject to Rutgers University Libraries' lost item replacement fees and delinquent accounts procedures, including transcripts and diploma holds at Rutgers and collection agency fees. Faculty, students and staff on any Rutgers campus can request Sage Library items by using Interlibrary Loan and Article Delivery Services. Materials will be borrowed from Sage or another resource sharing partner by the interlibrary loan services staff. Rutgers faculty may request Sage Library to place materials on reserve for their classes, and students on their class rosters are entitled to temporary borrower privileges.
New Jersey Library Network and Statewide Library Services
The Rutgers University Libraries participate in programs of the New Jersey State Library that provide interlibrary loan services to New Jersey public, academic, school, and special libraries through the statewide New Jersey Library Network. Rutgers libraries also participate in activities and services of LibraryLinkNJ, the New Jersey Library Cooperative.
OCLC Research Library Partnership SHARES Consortium
SHARES began as a collaborative effort of the RLG. It is now a consortium open to institutions affiliated with the OCLC Research Library Partnership. The program gives each participant's faculty, students and staff on-site access to collections and services at the other SHARES institutions. This international sharing partnership expands and enhances local collections with materials owned by partners around the world.
On-site access
On-site access privileges through the SHARES consortium permit faculty, emeritus faculty, students, and academic and professional library staff of partners' institutions to use the collections and services at other SHARES libraries. Rutgers visitors at other SHARES libraries must present a currently valid Rutgers photo ID card.
In-library use of material is permitted, but visitors are not granted borrowing privileges. When libraries have restricted stack access, visitors will receive the same degree of access accorded their peers at the host institution; for example, visiting faculty will be accorded local faculty stack privileges. Access to special or restricted collections or materials is possible if arranged in advance.
On-site access does not extend to alumni, retired faculty (except for emeritus faculty), courtesy or fee borrowers, spouses, or docents; or to faculty, staff, and students from non-SHARES units affiliated with SHARES participants.
Local protocols take precedence over the SHARES on-site access guidelines. For example, participating institutions in the same region may have established more liberal policies or more specific guidelines for each other's clientele. Visitors can expect reference consultation, photocopying at the local constituency rate, database search services at the local constituency rate, and other services available to comparable groups at the host institution.
Special arrangements may be available for using unique local resources and electronic databases that are restricted by license agreements.
On-site access is available during the institution's regular business hours. To verify hours, holiday access, and access to departmental libraries and special collections, contact the SHARES partner contact in advance.
Consult the website for policy details.
Pennsylvania Academic Library Consortium, Inc. (PALCI)
The Rutgers University Libraries joined the Pennsylvania Academic Library Consortium, Inc. (PALCI) in 2003. PALCI is a membership organization formed in 1996 as a grassroots federation of private and public academic libraries. The primary mission of the group is to spur the development of library cooperation within the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, and now beyond to other nearby states, and its focus has been the improvement of virtual library services among member institutions.
EZBorrow - Over fifty academic libraries, including Rutgers, currently participate in the PALCI EZBorrow program. PALCI libraries have developed a virtual online catalog with more than ten million unique items that permits combined searching and direct requesting by their students, faculty, and staff.
EZBorrow works as an extension of Rutgers collections. It may be used for requesting books either not owned, checked out, or otherwise not available in the Rutgers University Libraries. Requests may be placed for books charged out to or on hold for another Rutgers borrower, available only as a reference or reserve item at Rutgers, or noted as missing in QuickSearch. Books are normally available in seven or fewer working days.
EZBorrow books are checked out in QuickSearch in the same way as books owned at Rutgers. Requesters are notified by email when a request has been placed and when books are ready for pick up. They are also be notified about book availability in their QuickSearch account.
The link to search the EZBorrow shared index can be found here.
Reciprocal Borrowing - Through PALCI, Rutgers also participates in a free reciprocal borrowing program that grants faculty, staff, and students direct, personal access to materials that are not available at the home institution. A list of participating libraries is available here. Rutgers faculty, staff, and students wishing to take advantage of this service must secure an authorization form from the circulation desk of any Rutgers library. The form must be signed by the Head of Access Services on the particular campus. Faculty, staff, and students from other PALCI libraries who present an authorization form at a Rutgers circulation desk are registered as guest borrowers with one-year expiration. Copies of all forms are sent to the Head, Access & Delivery Services, Alexander Library.
Additional information is available on PALCI's Onsite Borrowing Page.
Princeton University
All Rutgers University faculty and students can obtain access to Firestone and most Princeton libraries by showing a valid ID at the access office at Firestone Library. You may call the access officer at 609-258-5737 to check hours that the office is open and ask any other questions. Access to other Princeton libraries may require a Rutgers ID or photo ID and Firestone access card.
A limited number of Princeton borrowing cards may be granted to active (not retired or emeritus), fulltime faculty. Faculty may apply to the Rutgers University Libraries by contacting the RUL New Brunswick Libraries Administration offices in Alexander Library, TEL: 848-932-7129x0 . When granted, these cards expire on June 30 of each year and are not automatically renewed.
If you have previously been granted borrowing privileges because you reside in Princeton village or borough, Firestone is no longer granting privileges under this arrangement.
Reciprocal Borrowing and Lending Program (REBL)
The John Cotton Dana Library on the Rutgers University - Newark Campus participates in REBL, a reciprocal borrowing program for borrowers in good standing from public and academic libraries in Essex County. REBL stickers are issued on a calendar year basis by the patron's home library. Guest borrowing privileges extend to Dana Library only and must be renewed every six months.
Urban Campus of Camden County College and Rowan University
The Paul Robeson Library on the Rutgers University - Camden Campus provides students, faculty, and staff from Camden County College and Rowan University Urban Campus in Camden with library services. These services include borrowing materials onsite from any Rutgers University library, requesting interlibrary loans from any library in the world, and arranging for bibliographic instruction sessions in the Robeson electronic classroom. The annual contract includes the hiring of a librarian, who has direct liaison responsibilities with this program, and financial support for library collections.
VALE Reciprocal Borrowing
VALE, the Virtual Academic Library Environment of New Jersey, is a statewide consortium composed of public and private institutions of higher education. Through cooperation, technology, and leveraged purchasing, VALE has made available scholarly electronic resources to its members. The "VALE Reciprocal Borrowing Agreement," effective January 2, 2002, is a cooperative onsite borrowing agreement among participating VALE colleges and universities. The VALE agreement replaces the New Jersey Academic Library Network (NJALN) and Council of Two-year College Libraries agreements.
A description of the VALE agreement, a list of participating libraries, and instructions are available on the VALE home page. Under the agreement, faculty, staff, graduate students, and undergraduate students from participating institutions who are in good standing at their home library qualify for onsite borrowing privileges at each other's libraries.
To apply for onsite borrowing privileges at one of the participating VALE libraries, faculty, staff, graduate students, and undergraduate students must first obtain a signed "VALE Reciprocal Borrowing Application Form," available at their home institution's library, and present it along with a photo ID at the lending library's circulation desk. At Rutgers, a guest borrower card will be issued. Privileges are for one academic year and expire June 30th. To renew borrowing privileges, borrowers must re-qualify and present an updated "VALE Reciprocal Borrowing Application Form" at the lending library. Faculty, staff, graduate students, and undergraduate students are responsible for complying with the lending library's circulation policies, including loan periods, overdue fines, recalls, all replacement and processing fees, and for returning all borrowed items directly to the lending library.
Rutgers faculty, staff, graduate students, and undergraduate students wishing to apply for guest privileges at one of the VALE participating libraries can contact the circulation desks at the Robeson Library in Camden, at the Dana Library or George F. Smith Library in Newark, or the Alexander Library or Library of Science and Medicine in New Brunswick/Piscataway.
Whitman Library
The Whitman collection is comprised primarily of books donated to the Walt Whitman House by Colonel Richard Gimbel upon his death in 1971. The collection was added to the library catalog in 1986-87 as part of a grant received by Professor Geoffrey Sill, the President of the Walt Whitman Association and a member of the Department of English at Rutgers University in Camden. The collection is available to scholars by prior arrangement with Margaret O'Neil, curator of the Whitman House, a National Historic Landmark.
Walt Whitman lived with his brother George in Camden from 1873 until 1884, when he bought his own house at 328 Mickle Street, where he lived until his death in 1892. Among the many visitors he received in Camden were Thomas Eakins, John Burroughs, Oscar Wilde, and Horace Traubel. The house, now numbered 330 Mickle Boulevard, displays furnishings owned and used by Whitman and a collection of manuscripts, photographs, and memorabilia. The house is managed by the State of New Jersey Division of Parks and Forestry and is open to the public. The library is in an adjacent building at 326 Mickle Boulevard (856-964-5383).