Harmony Public Library

Service Policy

Mission Statement:

The Harmony Public Library will provide access to various types of materials as well as programs and services that meet the educational and recreational needs of the community.

Services of the Library

The Library staff will provide guidance and assistance to patrons in finding the information they want or need. Patrons may be offered training in accessing local and regional databases, magazine indexes, and other sources of information as staff time permits.

The staff will initiate programs, exhibits, book lists, newspaper publicity, cable TV announcements, or other publicity to stimulate the use of library materials.

The Library will acquire and preserve local history materials relating to Harmony and Fillmore County, and to the State of Minnesota on a limited basis. The objective is to preserve all local history, past and present. The Library will continue to cooperate with the Fillmore County Historical Society and the Harmony Historical Society in the preservation of local newspapers, because the History Centre is the only nearby source for old local newspapers.

The Library will cooperate with other community agencies and organizations to:

Determine and meet the educational needs of the community.

Help them to plan programs, find parliamentary information, and provide materials, audio-visual equipment such as the slide projector, TV, DVD, VCR (within the building only), overhead projector, or booklists and promotional items.

The Library accepts the responsibility for securing information beyond its own resources by:

Collecting information about, and making available, the resources of agencies, institutions, organizations and individuals in and beyond the community.

Searching databases beyond our own, including the SELCO database, ELM, OCLC, etc. The library staff will borrow materials through interlibrary loan agreements within and outside of SELCO. For reference questions not answerable locally, staff will contact SELCO.

The Library will lend materials needed by other libraries within the SELCO region in response to requests placed through the automation system or by phone or e-mail, in accordance with SELCO policies. Patrons of this Library have priority in the use of new materials in high demand and special subjects needed by a group or class for a special project.

Service will be provided during scheduled open hours, as determined by the staff and Library Board to be those which best meets the needs of the community. Periodic review of open hours will be made using patron surveys and/or attendance counts, and hours will be increased as much as is economically feasible within budget restrictions.

The Library will endeavor to maintain a balance in its services to adults, young people, and children, with the understanding that the public library will supplement but cannot and will not perform the functions of the school libraries which are designed to meet curricular needs.

Periodic review will be made of current library services to determine whether the needs of the community are being met. Input will be solicited from community groups and individuals and based on the findings, some services may be dropped and others added.

The copy machine which is housed in the Library may be used without charge by city employees and the library staff. The public may have copying done on the machine at a fee of fifteen cents ($.15) a page, twenty cents ($.20) for double-sided pages. Color copies will be $1.00 a page. No discounts for supplying your own paper. (Copy Machine changes made and approved October 7, 2013)

Faxing may be used without charge by the city employees and the library staff. The public may send a fax at $1.00 per page. The public may receive a fax at $0.50 per page

BOARD APPROVED ON 6/7/2021