Several Minitex libraries, including the University of Minnesota Twin Cities will resume processing requests for loans during the week of August 10, 2020.
Resource Sharing & Delivery News
The Minitex Delivery and Resource Sharing Units will be hosting a statewide conversation on the state of Minitex Delivery and Resource Sharing on Wednesday, Aug 5 at 11 AM. Minitex staff will discuss the process of restarting the statewide delivery service and some of the challenges we’ve faced in the process. We will also share an update on the status of MNLINK and referrals, as well as an approximate timeline for filling requests from the University of Minnesota collections. The rest of the meeting will be Q&A.
Scanning of articles and chapters from University of Minnesota Twin Cities campus library collections will resume on July 27, 2020.
The Minitex delivery network will be available for direct interlibrary loan requests on Monday, July 20.
Returns are currently being processed on-site by Minitex Referral Processing staff.
A study conducted by Batelle found no SARS-CoV-2 virus (the coronavirus that causes COVID-19) on library materials after 72 hours. The study was an initiative of the REopening Archives, Libraries, and Museums (REALM) project led by OCLC, the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services, and Batelle. The project's goal is to provide science-based information to libraries and museums as they consider reopening amid the pandemic.
The Minitex courier service restarted on Monday, June 22, for those direct courier locations able to accept delivery. Many libraries have different hours, days open, building access locations, and procedures. We will do our best to accommodate all of these changes.
Every week, Minitex receives questions about restarting the courier service. We are eager to start in a manner that is safe for library staff and patrons, and as orderly as possible. Planning is in full force, and Minitex delivery staff began going back into the office on a part-time basis starting this week.
Alyssa Chermak and Rudi Brockfeld share their recent experiences with Library Juice Academy, an online professional development platform offering courses on a wide array of library-related skills.
The REstarting Physical Delivery Safely (REDS) Taskforce brings together library leaders from across Minnesota to formulate a plan to restart the physical delivery of library materials statewide. While we don’t yet have an anticipated start date, a vigorous conversation is underway, including libraries of all shapes and sizes. We’re focusing on safety for staff and patrons, logistics, and how to reshape delivery to meet today's circumstances. Please review our Working Document, and reach out to me (my contact information is listed below) with your thoughts and ideas.
The rich resources of Minnesota libraries, available to patrons and libraries in every corner of Minnesota