Public Access Policy

The Howard-Tilton Memorial Library is a private library with public access whose primary mission is to serve the students, faculty and staff of Tulane University. Recognizing its value to the greater New Orleans community and its unique resources of broader interest, the Library welcomes visitors and special borrowers. Public access to the Library is not extended to visitors as a surrogate for the general use of public or other academic libraries in the New Orleans area, however.

A related Computer Use Policy applies to the computers provided for library research and as a means of access to the Library's online catalog and digital resources.

User Groups

Services and privileges addressed in this policy include walk-in workshops, reference or point-of-use instruction, interlibrary loan and document delivery, mediated online searching, requests for in-process materials, requests for on-order materials, and recommendations for item purchases. Levels of service are determined through the reference interview and are described below for the Library's user groups.

Tulane Affiliates

Tulane students, faculty, and staff are given priority assistance and are entitled to all services and privileges listed above. Tulane students, faculty and staff affiliated with programs supported by the Tulane libraries of business, law and medicine receive priority assistance and are entitled to all services and privileges except interlibrary loan, document delivery, and mediated online searching. Tulane alumni with alumni borrowing cards are entitled to most services and privileges except interlibrary loan, document delivery, mediated online searching, Microsoft Office and other licensed software, and off-campus access to research databases.

Visitors and Special Borrowers

Visitors and special borrowers are welcome to use the Library's General Collections, the Special Collections in Jones Hall, and the Library's Government Documents Depository. "Special borrowers" are those included with the CALL and LALINC programs, other reciprocal borrowers, and those who have purchased special borrower cards.

All borrowers with Tulane library cards or reciprocal-, alumni-, and special library cards may request in-process and on-order items and may submit recommendations for new purchases.

For use of the General Collections, visitors and special borrowers may expect basic assistance that includes a brief introduction to searching the local catalog and/or another resource most appropriate to the visitor's needs. For use of the unique materials at Special Collections, visitors and special borrowers may expect basic assistance that includes a brief introduction to searching the local catalog, onsite finding aids, and resources most appropriate to the visitor's needs. More in-depth assistance with Special Collections is available by pre-arrangement or as staff time permits.

Visitors and special borrowers served by other local libraries are expected to use their home library for in-depth instruction or detailed help with research topics. Visitors and special borrowers are identified through the initial reference interview employed with each library user who requests in-depth assistance. Instructors at other schools should not refer their students to Howard-Tilton for resources and services available at their own institution.

Pre-College Students

Use of the Library by pre-college students is not encouraged.

Use of the Library by minors below the age of 14 unaccompanied by an adult is not permitted. Service to pre-college students is generally limited to a brief introduction to the online catalog or to general reference sources such as encyclopedias and government publications, or they may be referred to a more appropriate library.

Pre-college students are not allowed in the Library during exam periods except to use the Government Documents Collection.

In cases where pre-college students report they have been sent by their teacher to the Library, the name of the teacher will be obtained and the Dean of Libraries will contact the teacher's school.

Requests for groups of pre-college students to visit the Library, accompanied by a teacher, may be considered as time permits. Unannounced visits by a teacher with a group of pre-college students are not allowed. Pre-arranged visits will generally be arranged as structured tours led by a library staff member. These visits will not involve specific instruction in the use of the collections and it should be understood that such visits are not intended to prepare pre-college students for subsequent use of the Library.