Monthly Archives: April 2021

04 25, 2021

Why We’re Eliminating Most of Our Overdue Fines

By |2022-07-27T10:37:12-04:00April 25, 2021|

As of May 3, 2021, Mentor Public Library will eliminate overdue fines for most items, including books, DVDs, magazines, and CDs.

Mentor Public Library’s mission is to enrich people’s lives by providing diverse materials, services, and programs. The library recognizes that monetary overdue fines ultimately do not serve the core mission of the library to be accessible to all.

Research shows that fines do not encourage the timely return of materials and often serve as a barrier to those in a lower socio-economic status. In an effort to eliminate economic barriers, Mentor Public Library will eliminate the charge of overdue fines for most items – including books, DVDs, magazines, CDs, and video games – effective May 3, 2021. Exceptions to this are listed below.

The elimination of fines is a customer-service initiative, not a financial one. Overdue fines currently represent less than a tenth of one percent (0.1%) of the library’s operating revenues. But they can create frustration for patrons and even cause them to not use their community library.

Several other libraries in our area – including Willoughby-Eastlake Public Libraries, Morley Library, Kirtland Library, and Cleveland Public Library – have also eliminated many fines. Removing our fines will help prevent confusion for patrons who visit and borrow from several CLEVNET libraries.

Elimination of overdue fines does not eliminate patron responsibility for the items they check out. Patrons will be billed the full cost when items are not returned. Also, patrons with existing overdue fines will still be responsible for payment.

Patrons will continue to be notified when library materials are overdue. A card will be blocked when five or more items are overdue. The library will, in good faith, attempt to notify patrons that their materials are overdue on two occasions. An item will be deemed Lost if it’s not returned within 21 days of its due date. The patron will then be charged for the full price of the item. Patrons with items not returned for a prolonged period of time will be sent to collections and billed a $15 collection fee.

The following items will continue to accrue overdue fines:

  • HotSpots and electrical devices
  • Library of Things items
  • Interlibrary Loan items
  • Book kits
  • Items from other CLEVNET libraries, according to each library’s fine policy.

You can read our Borrowing Policy for more information.

04 24, 2021

Learn Treatment Options for Hip & Knee Pain with Lake Health Physical Therapist

By |2021-04-24T12:00:58-04:00April 24, 2021|

Lake Health Physical Therapist Greg Morris was kind enough to share his expertise with us earlier this week.

He talked about the causes of hip and knee pain and answered questions about treatment options. He discussed everything from different exercises to regenerative therapy to massage guns.

We’ve hosted several talks about health and wellness recently. You can watch many of them online in their entirety, including:

04 21, 2021

Discussing Dementia: The Ethics of Dementia

By |2021-04-21T19:00:47-04:00April 21, 2021|

People who care for loved ones with dementia or Alzheimer’s disease often face difficult decisions.

Linda Bliss and Chera Inhat from Kemper House – a care facility that specializes in Alzheimer’s disease and dementia – talk about the ethical quandaries that family members may face while caring for a loved one with dementia. They discuss balancing autonomy with the best interests of people who have dementia.

By the way, we’ve hosted other programs that can help families dealing with dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. They are still available to watch on our YouTube channel.

04 20, 2021

Learn more with LinkedIn Learning from your library

By |2023-11-04T12:02:18-04:00April 20, 2021|

Learn from the experts for free with your library card and LinkedIn Learning.

You can access thousands of online educational courses without charge using your Mentor Public Library card and LinkedInLearning!

You won’t need to create a LinkedIn profile to access courses from experts on everything from screenwriting to spreadsheets. All you’ll need is your card number and PIN. Wherever you work, whatever your hobby is — there’s a course that can make you better at it: from finance to photography, and making mobile apps to music composition,

It also offers training for popular software and developer tools, including the Microsoft Office Suite, Adobe Creative Suite, and several coding languages.

The educational videos range from quick introductions to deep dives into specialized topics.

And they’re all free to watch with your library card. All you need is your card number and PIN to create your profile. If asked, Mentor Public Library’s ID number is oh0142.

Once you’ve done that, you can immediately browse the more than tens of thousands of educational videos waiting for you. And LinkedIn Learning’s collection is constantly updated so you can stay ahead of the curve in your chosen field.

For more online learning, check out Niche Academy. It’s free to use with a Mentor Public Library card.

04 18, 2021

Learn how to navigate the night sky with Star Maps & Apps

By |2021-04-18T12:00:24-04:00April 18, 2021|

Discover how to navigate the night sky during this stellar program!

Chris Mentrek from Geauga Park District’s Observatory Park (with some help from our Librarian Amber Weinrich) share star maps and astronomy apps that can help amateur skygazers identify constellations, planets, comets, and even satellites overhead.

By the way, if you’re looking for help searching the skies, we loan both binoculars and telescopes. They can be borrowed for up to two weeks.

Star Maps & Apps handout

 

Title

Go to Top