Stellar Patrol

The Rules of the Road for using TeenSpace and the Libraries of the 

Ashtabula County District Library!

What is this YA stuff?

"YA" is library-talk for "young adults" or teens who use the Library.  Young adult programs, activities, and materials are designed for teens in 5th-12th grades.

How do I get a Library Card?

Visit the Ashtabula or Geneva Libraries to pick up an application.  Have your folks (parent or legal guardian) sign the application, then ask them to bring it back and show us their driver's license or I.D.  If you have already gotten a card and need a replacement, there will be a $1.00 charge to issue a duplicate card.

How long can I borrow things, and what are the fines?

Most items at the Library may be borrowed for 2-weeks.  If you have an ACDL account, we have a one-week grace period after the items' due date (that means we don't charge fines for the first week something's overdue!).  After that, its 10-cents a day.  

The only limits on a "juvenile account" (that's what we call the library cards for people 17 years old or younger) are: No Videos (sorry, your folks have to come in a borrow those themselves), and No Kits.  Reference materials, of course, may not leave the building.  Just about anything else is fair game!  If you have any questions about how long something can be borrowed, just ask at a circulation desk!

If you have overdue items and are hiding out of fear, stubbornness, or embarrassment, please call the library and ask about the status of your account!  Our staff has been carefully trained to not bite the patrons, and we have outlawed disintegration and bounty hunters in this quadrant of TeenSpace!).

Can I Use The Internet? 

The Ashtabula and Geneva Libraries have many Internet access terminals available to the public on a first-come, first-served basis.  If you are 17 years old or younger, you must have one of our Internet "permission slips" signed by your parent/legal guardian on file at the Library.  You may pick up this form at any ACDL Circulation desk.  When you visit to use the Internet, you must show your library card at the Circulation Desk.  We will then check your account to make sure your permission slip is on file.  This is to make sure that we have your parent's permission for you to be using the computers.

Why do they use funny words in the Library?

We use funny words because we like to refer to things by the job they do.

Circulation - This the library's department that serves our visitors and helps them find their books.  The "circ" staff checks books in, checks books out, fill holds, re-shelves books, organizes the shelves, issues new library cards, and much more.

Cataloging - This library department processes new books that the library acquires and creates computer records in the Library's online catalog of holdings.  These records help library users search for books by title, author's name, and subjects.  Without this department, we'd all be wandering around looking  for things like "that little blue book about dogs, you know, the one with the schnauzer on the cover!"  We call our Cataloging department "Technical Services."

Friends - "...that's what Friends are for..."  The Friends of the Library are auxiliary (helper) organizations set up to provide the Library with additional funds and people to help with various projects.  Currently, we have two "Friends" groups: the Friends of the Ashtabula Library, and the Friends of the Geneva Library.  Contact your local ACDL Library to get an application to be a Friend of the Library!

Lost - If you've ever heard a library staff member say "oh, that book is Lost," it doesn't mean we forgot where we put it.  With our current computer system, if an item is overdue for too long, the computer assumes we may never see it again, and changes its status from "overdue" to "lost."  Other status codes could say "Missing" which means the item was not located during our last inventory, or "In Transit" showing that it is being delivered to another library.  The best status of any item in the Library is "Checked Out" - that means the item is being used by one of our patrons!  That's what we're here for!

Patron - That's you.  Any visitor to our Library, or any user of a Library service is called a Patron.  In the old days, a "patron" was usually a wealthy person who donated money or materials to a community organization.  If your grandparents donated money to a church, they would be "patrons" supporting that organization.  Today, our patrons show their support of our Libraries by visiting our buildings (and bookmobile), borrowing material, attending programs, and using our online resources.  These things all show your support of your Library!

Reference - This Library department answers questions for our patrons.  They refer to special books and websites to find the correct answer.  The then tell you what references they checked to answer your question.  Have you tried to stump your Reference Librarian today? 

What kind of books do you have in the library?
In public libraries, books are divided into to categories:  Fiction, and Non-Fiction.  Fiction books are fictional, or made-up, pretend.  Even though some stories may seem very real, if it has not really happened to someone, the book is put in the library’s Fiction area.  Non-Fiction books are the opposite – they are true, or factual.  They won’t tell you things that are imaginary or unknown.

Reference books are a special type of non-fiction book.  They contain lots of facts and figures, and are not intended to be read all the way through.  Common reference books are Dictionaries, Encyclopedias, and Almanacs.

Libraries also organize their books in ways to help people find what they need.  Would a college student working on a report about Aquatic Animals find it helpful to read a little-kid’s book about goldfish?  (Probably not.)  What about a third-grader – would he or she really need to use a giant dictionary that was so big it took over twenty big books to print it?  (Not likely.  By the way, there is such a thing: its called the Oxford English Dictionary, Unabridged.  The Ashtabula Library has one!)

So, libraries put all the children’s material in one area, and all the adult stuff in another area.  Many libraries, like the Ashtabula County District Library, have made a third area just for teens.  Material in this area is usually labeled “young adult.”