About

Current Operations Information

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About
Current Operations Information
Decker Library is closed.

Keeping people from congregating will slow down the spread of COVID-19 and make it easier for the medical community to keep up with cases.

See also: MICA's Campus Operating Status Updates: Information about COVID-19 (Cornonavirus). 

What does this look like for you and the community? 

  • Use our Library Catalog to find full-text, electronic media. 
  • Borrow articles that you can't otherwise access through our Interlibrary Loan service.
  • Get Research Help through email (refer@mica.edu) and video chat (Zoom or Google Hangouts).
  • Request Research Instruction via Zoom. 

What's not happening? 

  • Book checkouts - books in hand have been renewed by staff until the College is back open. 
  • Physical Interlibrary Loan of materials such as books and DVDs. 
  • Purchasing physical material.

Contact Information 

If you have any questions at all, please feel free to reach out to us: 

For research help, contact the Decker Librarians: 

  • refer@mica.edu

For everything else, including information about Holds, borrowing, your account, and more, contact Access Services: 

  • circ@mica.edu

Frequently Asked Questions

Your book due dates will be advanced until the end of the semester. You will not face fines or replacement fees due to being displaced or quarantined. 

If you are traveling internationally, please return all library items in advance.

 

If you have material from an area Library (e.g. Johns Hopkins University or any of the Baltimore Academic Libraries Consortium members), you may return it in our dropbox and we will mail it back to its institution's Library on your behalf.

 

If you have material from another library (interlibrary loan), please contact us at ill@mica.edu. 

Databases are available online for MICA students, faculty and staff.

 

Most of our database content is found by searching our online catalog. There is also an A-Z list of databases can be found here.

 

In both cases, login with your MICA username and password when prompted.

 

If you have any difficulty accessing a database or an article, please forward your questions to refer@mica.edu 

 

Yes, if you have internet connection and there are no restrictions to your internet access, you should be able to access all of the Library's online resources.

Access to the Library Catalog and databases from countries that restrict internet access may require the use of Virtual Private Network (VPN) software. Use of VPN may also speed up access to the MICA website (including the Decker Library homepage).

If you have restricted internet and cannot have a VPN please contact your faculty and your librarian or refer@mica.edu . We will do our best to assist you in completing your research. 

Note: The image database Artstor requires a login on campus every 120 days. If you've never created a login on campus, or haven't logged in on campus in over 120 days, please email us at refer@mica.edu.

We can currently support streaming either through Alexander Street Press or Kanopy.

You will want to check if any titles you have interest in are there or if there are titles that could be replaced with something similar. Note that for Kanopy we’re paying $150 for streaming rights for one year, so this is only for faculty to use for a film for their entire class to watch. 

 

We do not have the ability to put DVDs up online, as it is against copyright law. 

Anyone with a MICA username and password can view films we already have licenses to stream on Kanopy. However, only MICA faculty can request that we purchase films we don't already have licenses for (more information about that is located on our website under Teaching Support). 

Faculty must make requests directly through Kanopy, as this is the only way we can fulfill the request. If we have access to a film, it will appear on screen with a play button. If we don't have access to a film, when you click on the film, you will be brought to a request form.

We fulfill requests as soon as we can, but it does take Kanopy a bit of time to process.  Please keep in mind that licenses are typically for one year, so if you keep a film on your syllabus, just double-check we still have access to it. 

What's the difference between Pratt's Kanopy and MICA's Kanopy?  Pratt might have licenses to different films, so if you're searching for a film on Kanopy, we suggest checking both theirs and MICA's to see if the film you want your students to watch is available.

eBooks are available online 24/7 without any special requirements for viewing. If you want to search and read eBooks online, you can search for the book in our Library Catalog, narrow your search to Books, then using Filter Results By, click "Available Online" under Availability. 

You can also go directly to our eBooks Collection database on our Find Articles & Media page. 

eBooks are available online 24/7 without any special requirements for viewing. If you wish to download an ebook for offline viewing using a desktop computer or smartphone, follow the instructions for a “full download” here. 

Yes, if you don't already have an Enoch Pratt Free Library card, you can register for an Online eCard. "Maryland residents [which includes those who attend school in MD] can now apply online for an eCard that allows access to all of Enoch Pratt Library’s digital resources including eBooks, streaming media, and databases." 

You should have received an email from your librarian. So please look there first. 

If you would like to reschedule or think of alternative instruction formats, we can teach online sessions using Zoom or provide your students with other appropriate skill-based videos. We are happy to meet with students individually for research help (email, phone, or chat) and can also direct them to non-MICA resources (their local public library, online archives, etc.) if needed. 

 

Please contact your librarian for more information. 

Yes! We recommend staying informed by taking a look at: 

MICA's Campus Operating Status Updates: Information About COVID-19 (Coronavirus)

Center for Disease Control and Prevention: Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19)

Why We Should Care: Common Questions and Answers about COVID-19 

How to Tell If You Have the Flu, Coronavirus, or Something Else

Flattenthecurve.com

World Health Organization: Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) Outbreak

 

 

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