Library Coronavirus (COVID-19) Service Update

Coronavirus (COVID-19) Updates on Library Services & Operations

Please visit this page regularly for updates on changes to library hours, services, and operations.

Last updated: Thursday May 28, 2020

The Library is committed to supporting Laurier faculty, students, staff, and University’s educational and research missions by maintaining core academic operations online. Our primary concern is the health and safety of library users and staff. We will maintain close contact with the university's leadership and working groups in the days and weeks ahead, making adjustments to Library operations as needed.

Library Spaces

All library campus locations (Waterloo, Brantford and Kitchener) were closed effective March 17, 2020 until further notice. We understand this will have a significant impact on many in our community and we will continue to monitor the situation in coordination with the university. Library staff will continue to support faculty, students and staff through online modes of instruction, research consultation and assistance, learning support and resources as outlined below.

Help & Research Assistance

The Library’s Ask Us chat service is available Monday to Friday 10 AM to 10 PM and Saturday and Sunday 11 AM to 5 PM.

Subject librarians are also available to work remotely with members of the Laurier community. Appointments can be booked online with Librarians. Course guides and subject guides can provide support for your class assignments. You can also send us your questions directly by Email.

Online Resources

Online resources continue to be available to support the university's academic and research mission. These include:

The Library has also recently acquired the following online resources, all accessible through Omni:

The Library is working on strategies to provide access to individual streaming video titles for classes through distributor sites, including Kanopy.

If you have trouble accessing online resources, consult: troubleshooting off-campus access problems.

Print Collections - Access & Returns

Returning Library Books and Materials on Loan

No fines will be charged for overdue Library books and other materials not returned during building closures. All borrowed items will have their due dates extended accordingly. You may hold on to borrowed items until Library facilities re-open.

Current due dates for all books and materials on loan from Laurier, Waterloo and Guelph are being extended to September 10, 2020. The Library will provide additional information about materials borrowed from other libraries (interlibrary loan) in future.

You can review your borrowed items online through the My Library Accounts menu option in Omni. Should you have trouble renewing your loans, or have any questions, please contact us Library’s Ask Us chat or Email us.

Recalls/Holds

Recalls/Holds services are suspended until further notice.

Interlibrary Loans

Borrowing and lending of print books and physical materials from other libraries are suspended at this time (including TUG and Omni) as most libraries are closed or operating at significantly reduced capacity. The library continues to provide Interlibrary Loan services for electronic materials only (e.g. journal articles that can be provided in electronic format).

If you have already placed an ILL request, Library staff will make every effort to follow up with you regarding the status of the request if it has not been filled.

Course Readings (Reserves) & Copyright

All library electronic reserves remain available via Ares. Library print reserves are not currently accessible as our facilities are closed. Faculty members are encouraged to work with Library Copyright and Resource Delivery Services Department (CaRDS) to develop and provide access to electronic reserves and electronic course packs. Please consult the “Faculty” section of the course readings (reserves) page or email libreserves@wlu.ca for assistance with course readings (reserves). Students are encouraged to check with their professors with questions about revised course readings.

Subject librarians can also provide assistance to faculty members for course readings through purchase of electronic books (where available). The Library also maintains a resource page with information on openly licensed teaching materials, such as Open Educational Resources (OERs).

The Library provides a number of copyright services to faculty, including copyright clearance services for course materials. The Library’s Quick Guide to Copyright is available. Questions on copyright including clearances should be emailed to: libreserves@wlu.ca.

Online Instruction Support

Librarians can support online courses by providing online research skills instruction and student research help. Some possible options are suggested on the online instruction support page. Librarians can do live instruction using Zoom or Virtual Classroom, create help resources, or be added to your MyLearningSpace course to assist students. Please contact your subject librarian to discuss options. The Library also provides a large number of video tutorials on basic research skills, which can be linked to or embedded in MyLearningSpace.

Accessibility Services

The Library continues to offer accessibility services to Laurier students, faculty and staff with disabilities who are working online. For research or other assistance, please email the Library's Accessibility Services staff.

Since print library collections are unavailable, the ACE print digitization service is currently on hold. Students can continue to use electronic library resources, through Omni, specialized subject search tools, and ebook collections. Students with ACE tokens can also browse materials currently digitized and contained in the ACE repository. To obtain accessible print alternatives, please fill out an ACE request as usual and library staff will investigate other available options.

Laurier Archives

Physical items in the Archives and Special Collections that can only be consulted on site are not available at this time. Some digitized materials are available. Please see the Laurier Archives Research collections and University Archives websites to research our holdings online.

Staff are working remotely but can provide some virtual reference services and answer questions about supports for classes and research. At this time, we will be unable to receive archival, rare books, or special collections donations or university records transfers. Please contact the Laurier Archives by email.

Research Data Management & Scholarly Communication

The Library continues to support research data management services, and support for scholarly communication, including:

For Up-to-date Information

Please consult this website for up-to-date information on Library operations and visit the university's Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) Information page to find up-to-date information for the Laurier community.