McGraw-Page Library: About: Using the Library

Using the Library

All members of the Randolph-Macon College community are encouraged to use the services and resources of the McGraw-Page Library. The first floor is a social space, with group tables, computers, media and design software and equipment, Makerspace, and the 24/7 Abernathy Room. The second floor is oriented toward quiet, individual study and is furnished with carrels and enclosed group study spaces. We ask users to choose the floor and space that best suits their study habits, and to please be considerate of others near you.

All relevant College policies apply to individual and group activities held in the Library. Such policies include the College’s Code of Academic Integrity, Code of Student Conduct, and Computer Use Policy. These policies can be found in The Student Handbook.

Food and Drink

Covered drinks and food are are permitted in all areas of the library except Special Collections & Archives. Please be considerate of others using the space and refrain from eating foods with strong odors that may be distracting for other library users.

Study Room Reservations

In addition to classroom and meeting space, the McGraw-Page Library offers seven (7) group study rooms for RMC community use only.

Rooms can be reserved by current RMC students only, but if not reserved are available on a first come, first served basis. You can check the reservation status of a room, and make a reservation:
Each student may reserve a room for up to four (4) hours per day.
Rooms may be reserved up to two (2) weeks in advance.
If they are not reserved, rooms are available on a first-come, first-served basis, but must be vacated if a reservation holder arrives.
Reservations will be forfeited after 10 minutes if the users fail to appear.
Individuals may reserve group study rooms, but please defer to groups needing the space.

Courtesy Matters:

Occupy your room. All patrons are encouraged to be respectful of their time and that of others. When it is your time to occupy the room, if it is occupied please knock softly. If it is free, just go in.
When your time is over, if another group is waiting, please leave as quickly and efficiently as possible. If no one is waiting, you may remain in the room, but only until the next group with a reservation arrives.
If your plans to use the space change, please cancel your reservation.

Please address any violations of these policies yourself. The library will not police these spaces.

The library is not responsible for unattended, lost, stolen, or damaged personal items.

Commuting Students

Commuter students are welcome in all areas of the library, and may use the resources both on- and off-campus, reserve study rooms, study for as long as they want, etc.

In addition, the Library has a few amenities located in the Abernathy 24/7 Room that may be especially helpful for commuting students:

Lockers. Available on a first-come, first-served basis, lockers can be used to store your books, backpack, lunch, or other accessories between classes.
Mini-fridge. Store your lunch, eat in the 24/7 space or wherever you need to go. Please don't leave food in the fridge overnight.
Microwave. Provided by SGA, heat up your lunch or coffee, or make popcorn for a late night study session.
Keurig. Bring your own pods and use our machine to caffeinate before class or while studying!

Need something else? Email library@rmc.edu and we'll see what we can do!

RMC Retirees

Retirees, including emeriti faculty, are welcome to use the McGraw-Page Library. Beginning in Summer 2023, library access will be automatically programmed onto retiree smart cards. If you do not have access to the library but think you should, please contact Campus Safety by visiting 300 England St, Ashland, VA 23005 or calling (804) 752-4710.

Community Guest Policy

The McGraw-Page Library is an academic library intended to support Randolph-Macon College students, faculty, and staff. Others are welcome to use the library as long as they conform to library rules and policies and follow directions given by Library staff members. The College reserves the right to restrict an individual from entering the McGraw-Page Library or from using some or all library resources, equipment, facilities, and/or services. Children under the age of 15 must be accompanied by an adult.

Building Access: The Library building is locked at all times per RMC policy, accessible only to current RMC students, faculty, and staff except during special events. Community members should email library@rmc.edu or call (804) 752-7257 for access to the Library.
- Community members are only allowed into the building between 9 AM and 5 PM on weekdays, when Librarians are available to assist them.
Library Card & Checking Out Physical Items Books: A library card is required to borrow materials. A Randolph-Macon College ID card functions as a library card for College students, faculty, and staff. Adult residents of Virginia may purchase a library card See Borrowing & Renewing for more information, including loan periods.
Students & Faculty at Other Virginia Colleges: No library card or fee is required for students, faculty, or staff from an institution participating the VIVA Cooperative Borrowing Program. Students may borrow ten books at a time for one month, with one renewal.
Use of library computers: The library provides open access to the library’s catalog via dedicated workstations on both floors of the library, but the Library does not have desktop computers available for use by community guests. Guests are welcome to use the RMC guest wireless network, R-MC Connect, with their personal laptops. Exceptions to this policy may be made for friends of the College (e.g. College alumni or parents of current or prospective students visiting the campus) on a case by case basis.

The library adheres to the Randolph-Macon College Acceptable Use Policy of Computer Resources.

Individuals seeking general internet access are encouraged to visit the Ashland Branch of Pamunkey Regional Library.

Use of library resources by high school students: High school students are welcome to use the library's catalog, which lists individual works in the library's collections, journal titles as well as index information for journal articles. Electronic access to the full text of any of these items is not available to public users.

Note to high school teachers: With the above restrictions, the McGraw-Page library is not likely to be suitable for routine use by most secondary school students. However, if there is a special need for a particular student or group of students to do advanced library research, please contact the Library at library@rmc.edu to arrange for help and/or instruction on a case-by-case basis.

For further information on use of the Library by community users, please contact library@rmc.edu or call the Information Desk at (804) 752-7257.

Collection Development Policy

Updated 10 January 2022

The collections of the McGraw-Page Library are purchased for the non-profit, educational use of students and faculty. Priority is given to academic resources that broadly support the College curriculum.

Any member of the Randolph-Macon College community can recommend items for the library to purchase. Recommendations should be submitted using this form or sent to the appropriate Subject Librarian.

Items recommended for purchase are evaluated according to the same criteria as other purchases. Please contact the appropriate subject librarian with questions regarding recommended purchases. If we do not own and cannot purchase a resource, we make every effort to obtain it through interlibrary loan.

Challenges to Library Materials

The McGraw-Page Library strives to provide unbiased access to information on diverse topics and perspectives to support the R-MC community. The Library resists censorship in all its forms. All complaints concerning library materials must be submitted to the Randolph-Macon College Library Director using the Challenges to Library Materials form.

Challenged materials shall remain on the shelves or display pending a final decision.
The library director will consult with the library faculty on the issue. As an academic library committed to intellectual freedom as articulated in the American Library Association’s Library Bill of Rights and its documents on Intellectual Freedom Principles for Academic Libraries, decisions about what remains in the collection will be made by library faculty in a way that is consistent with these principles.
The library director shall notify the complainant of the decision in writing.
If the complainant is not satisfied with the decision, they may ask the library director to present an appeal to the Provost, who will make a final determination.

Donation Policy

McGraw-Page Library is no longer accepting donations of printed books or journals. There are three exceptions to this policy:

The College Archives welcomes materials that document the origins, developments, activities, achievements, and people associated with Randolph-Macon College.
Donations of unique and rare materials will continue to be accepted and reviewed by our Special Collections & Archives Associate.
The Library welcomes donations of new books written by R-MC faculty, staff, and alumni.

This policy change is due to the high cost of storing, reviewing, and processing donations. As a college library with a collection that supports our current curriculum, we have found that it is more cost effective to purchase new titles than to review older titles that too often duplicate existing copies in our collection.

For further information about donating items that fall under the above three categories please contact the library at library@rmc.edu.

Other Options for Donating Books:

Adapted from Donations policy developed by
DeWitt Wallace Library, Macalester College.
Accessed December 2020
Updated 9 February 2021