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Course Reserve Guidelines for Faculty

The Drexel Libraries’ Course Reserves Service allows instructors to set aside books, films, or sound recordings for class use, or to make articles or book excerpts available electronically through Blackboard Learn.

For step-by-step instructions on placing a reserves request, visit our Course Reserves Getting Started Guide. If the Libraries does not provide access to a particular resource, instructors may request the Libraries purchase it.

General Guidelines

Please review the following information before placing a reserves request. These guidelines apply to both physical and electronic reserves. Contact reserves@drexel.edu with any questions.

  • Allow at least two weeks from the date of submission for your reserves request to be processed.  
  • Allow four weeks for purchase requests to be processed and fulfilled. The Libraries cannot guarantee purchase of all requested items.
  • Material may be placed on reserve for the current term or semester only. Physical materials will be returned to the library shelves and personal copies will be returned to instructors at the end of the term. Instructors can transfer material between course shells in Blackboard Learn.
  • All reserve materials must be in compliance with the Libraries' Fair Use policies and Federal Copyright Law.

Physical Reserves

If an electronic version of required course content is not available, the Drexel Libraries can keep a physical version at the Service Desk in the W. W. Hagerty Library. Print materials include Libraries-owned books, textbooks and DVDs.

To place a physical reserves request, please login to Blackboard Learn. For step-by-step instructions on placing a request, visit the Drexel Course Reserves Getting Started guide.

Instructors may provide their own personal materials for reserve. Please bring personal copies of reserve materials to the W. W. Hagerty Library. In order to monitor materials, the Libraries will need to process them into our system, which includes adding a barcode and small cataloging markings on the outside of all items. A book pocket and anti-theft tape will be placed inside the book.

Please note that items on reserve may be heavily used and are subject to wear and tear. The Libraries is not responsible for damaged or loss of personal materials while they are on reserve.

Electronic Reserves

The Drexel University Libraries maintains a collection of electronic reserves materials including journal articles and books owned by the Libraries, scanned book chapters, and streaming video.

Instructors may also request digitization of Libraries-owned or licensed resources, such as books, journals, DVDs and CDs. All e-reserves content is available via BlackBoard Learn.

Scanned Material

The Drexel Libraries will scan portions of Libraries-owned or licensed resources, as well as portions of materials owned by instructors. Please note that Libraries staff are limited to scanning material per the Libraries' Fair Use Policy and Federal Copyright Law.

The Libraries will scan the following materials:

  • PDFs: Please upload the PDF with the submission form via Blackboard Learn. Include a copy of the title and copyright page.
  • Textbooks: Bring physical copies of books for scanning to the Service Desk at the W. W. Hagerty Library.
  • Photocopy: Instructors may supply a photocopy of the material or the original source for scanning. Copies must be clean, 8.5 X 11 inches, of high quality, single sided, and contain no holes or staples. A copy of the title and copyright page from the book must be included.

Streaming Media Requests

The Libraries will convert DVDs and VHS tapes to streaming media files by request. Streaming media is available only to students enrolled in the course for which it was requested, during the term for which it was requested. 

Please review the additional guidelines below before submitting streaming media requests:

  • The Libraries only digitizes portions of DVDs that it owns. We cannot digitize faculty-owned copies of DVDs and other media.
  • The Libraries will hold the original DVD or CD while the streamed version is available on reserve.
  • The amount of content streamed should be reasonable and appropriate for the educational purpose and in accordance with fair use. Instructors should consider relevance to the teaching objective and the overall amount of material assigned for the course.
  • When placing a digitization request, please include specific details about the sections of works needed, such as timing, chapter numbers, and visual cues.
  • Please submit your request at least two weeks in advance of the date course materials will be used in class.
  • Instructors who request to digitize content from three or more videos per course may be asked to submit a Fair Use Reasoning Form.
  • Please allow four weeks for all requests to purchase a physical DVD or CD.

Streaming Media from the Internet

Please refer to the following guidelines if you find a streaming video freely available online that you would like to link to for a class:

  • Is the content protected by copyright? Some content is in the public domain or licensed in such a way that it is freely available to share (e.g.: films released in the US prior to 1925 are in the public domain).
  • Was the streaming video posted by an authorized party? Not all streaming content available online is authorized by the rightsholder. Confirm that the person who uploaded the video in question was authorized to do so. For example, many copyrighted movies have been uploaded to YouTube without the rightsholder’s permission. The accounts associated with the upload of these films are often anonymous accounts with no relationship to the rightsholder. View an example of a legitimate rightsholders page. When in doubt, try to find the contact information of the rightsholder and ask if the version you found is legitimate.
  • Is the streaming video hosted on a safe and reliable platform? Not all websites that host streaming content are safe to visit. Avoid websites that may put your students and yourself at risk of exposure to malware and computer viruses.
  • Are you allowed to share the streaming video? Access to streaming content is sometimes restricted by measures such as single-use licenses. Make sure the terms of use for the video permit you to upload or link to the streaming video in your Blackboard Learn course.

Fair Use & Copyright Guidelines

Faculty are encouraged to link to licensed, full-text electronic resources provided by the Libraries whenever possible. Content found on the open web should be reviewed to ensure that it is available to share:

  • The content should be made available by the copyright holder or authorized for sharing by the rights holder.
  • The content should be hosted on a safe and reliable site.
  • The content should be freely available (not behind a paywall).
  • If faculty members choose to digitize their own content, they should make sure that the amount used from each source falls within Fair Use guidelines. Faculty should refer to the Libraries' Fair Use Policy when making their own Fair Use determinations.

For assistance navigating the use of copyrighted content as course readings, contact reserves@drexel.edu.