UofL Faculty, Staff and Students must show their Cardinal Card to charge circulating items.
All other borrowers must show a state issued photo identification card with their University Libraries Borrower Card to charge items or to discuss their personal library account.
A Community Borrowers card may be issued to individuals 18 years of age or older. A valid photo ID is required as well as proof of Kentucky residence. Use of the public computers does not require a borrower’s card.
Consortia and Metroversity faculty and staff must present a valid ID card from their home institution.
Visiting Academics must present a letter from the sponsoring University of Louisville Dean or Department Chair requesting library privileges. The letter should be on department letterhead, state the length of stay, visitor’s home affiliation, local and home address, and agree to be fiscally responsible for all unreturned library materials.
All borrowers are responsible for items charged to their account. If your Cardinal Card is lost or stolen, notify Ekstrom staff at the West Service Desk.
Library books may be returned to the West Service Desk, or, after hours, to the book drops located on either side of Ekstrom Library.
Media items, interlibrary loans, course reserves, and damaged materials must be returned to the service desk inside the library. Do not place these items in the book drops.
Each borrower is responsible for the safe keeping and timely return of library materials. Notifying borrowers of overdue items is a service provided by the Access and User Services Department. However, failure to receive a courtesy, overdue or fee notice does not relieve the individual from responsibility for items charged to his/her account.
The cafe, located on the first floor by the West entrance, is not part of the library. All materials required to remain in the library may not be taken into the cafe.
Borrowing Materials
Browsing books have a loan period of 21 days.
Hard copy Course Reserve loan periods are set by the instructors: two hours, one day, or seven days. Two hour reserves must remain in the library.
Reference items do not circulate and must remain in the library.
Current periodicals and bound journals in the stacks, and theses and journals located in the Robotic Retrieval System do not circulate and must remain in the library.
Carrel keys must be returned before the Access and User Services Department closes for the day, and must remain in the library.
Laptops, headphones, videos/DVDs other media-related items are circulated from the West Service Desk.
Interlibrary Loan materials are due at or before the date printed on the band of the book.
Renewing Books
As long as items are not overdue they can be renewed:
Books may be renewed before the due date up to five times as long as no hold or recall has been submitted for the item, and no library block exists on the borrowers' account.
Overdue books must be brought to the West Service Desk for renewal. Books 7 days overdue or longer will not be renewed.
Course Reserve items may be renewed unless other borrowers are waiting for the materials.
Interlibrary Loan materials that state eligibility for renewal on the book band may be renewed. Renewals must be submitted three days in advance of the due date. Renewals are granted at the discretion of the lending library. Renewals can be done:
Recalls are a means to provide fair access to the University Libraries collection for UofL faculty, staff, and student borrowers.
The consequences for not complying with the return request include suspension of library privileges, and the possible placement of a bursar block on your University account.
A recall may be placed on a book currently charged to another borrower by submitting a Recall Form.
When an Ekstrom Library item is 28 days overdue, a block is placed on the borrower's library account. Library privileges are suspended until either the return of the book or the payment of replacement fees.
A bursar block will also be placed on students' University accounts. A bursar block may take up to three business days to remove after the return of library items or payment of fees.
The replacement fee per item is $80. This includes a $25 processing fee.
No replacement copies will be accepted to waive a fee.
Items lost due to extenuating circumstance (i.e. items lost due to fire, theft, flood, etc.) must be documented in the form of a police report or an insurance claim and provided to the Access and User Services Department at the West Service Desk. Fee waivers for these items lost will be evaluated on a case by case basis.
Fees are payable in four ways: cash for the exact amount due, by MasterCard, Visa or Discover card, by check payable to University of Louisville Libraries, or by Cardinal Cash. Fees may be paid at the West Service Desk between the hours of 8am-4pm Monday-Friday.
A refund in the amount of $55 is allowed in the event a library item is found within 30 days after payment has been made. No refunds will be given after 30 days.
Ekstrom Library borrowing privileges may be permanently suspended for failure to return item(s) charged to the borrower's account and/or failure to pay the replacement fee for lost/damaged item(s).
When an extremely overdue item is returned (more than 30 days), it must be reshelved in in the stacks before it is available for checkout again.
If a borrower believes a library item was returned, a request can be made to search the library for it. This request should be made as soon as the borrower receives an overdue notice. Once the form is received, we will look for the item for 30 days. During this interval normal borrowing privileges will be allowed.
If the item is found the book will be discharged from the borrower account and all fees waived.
If the item is not found after 30 days, borrowing privileges will be suspended until either the item is returned or the fees paid. A bursar block will also be placed on students' University accounts.
A borrower will be allowed ONE OCCASION with a maximum of two items without assessment of fees if a claims returned form was completed and the item were not found. The item will be removed from the borrower record and the bursar block removed. After this one occasion, or if more than two items are being claims returned (even if on the first occasion), the borrower will be responsible for paying the $80 replacement fee.
