[ tl;dr: Learning Link cards are only for 3rd grade HISD students. Don't override anything for any reason on learning link accounts. There are no late fees. No more than 10 items per account. Only JUV items may be checked out on Learning Link cards. To get replacement cards, students must give their name and their student ID number (they do not need a parent or guardian and they do not need to fill out a registration form). When replacing a card, don't change anything on the account except for the User ID. ]
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Hello everyone.
HPL recently delivered 7,214 Learning Link Cards to HISD for distribution to 3rd graders at the 63 elementary schools participating in the NCAA Read to the Final Four program over the next year. The list of participating HISD schools (includes school name and number) is attached. We are excited to participate in this program by providing each of the participating 3rd graders with a free Learning Link Card with the following privileges:
· Full access to HPL’s collection of electronic resources.
· Check out of up to 10 physical juvenile items at one time.
· No fines, no fees
· No parent signature required for card replacement
There are a few limitations on the Learning Link Card that are different from other cards:
· Laptops and gaming equipment cannot be checked out on the Learning Link Card.
· Adult and Teen physical items cannot be checked out on the Learning Link Card.
· No more than 10 physical items can be checked out on the Learning Link Card at one time.
· The cards will each expire on August 31,2016.
So here’s some information and a few guidelines you need to know and follow when assisting one of our new Learning Link customers:
· This is a pilot. We are tracking data this year so that we can make a case for expanding the program next year to all HISD pre-K-3rd grade students. This is one of the many reasons we need staff to adhere to the guidelines of the pilot and be careful about who gets replacement cards. Also, we want to make sure the cards are not being abused by parents or siblings so it’s incredibly important not to override anything (item limits, JUV materials only, laptop or gaming checkout availability) because that will negatively impact the data and potentially impact the future of this program for all students.
· Learning Link Card accounts all have the HOU-HISD as a user profile name. This profile is only assigned to 3rd graders at the 66 HISD schools participating in the NCAA Read to the Final Four program this year (the list of schools is attached). The HOU-HISD profile is not and should not be assigned to other users. HISD will update our user files regularly for students transferring into the participating schools. Cards will be created for those students as we receive the files.
· Replacing a lost Learning Link Card does not require the completion of a registration form or the signature of a parent or guardian. If a third grade child from one of the participating HISD schools requests a replacement card, you need his/her name and student ID number in order to look up the existing record in the Symphony system. If there is a Learning Link account in the system for him/her, you may simply issue a new card to the child by overwriting the User ID with the new card number and saving the change. You will not need to attach a Learning Link label to the replacement card. Remember, this is only acceptable for Learning Link accounts already in the system. Cards with other user profile types still require the completion of a registration form and the signature of a parent or guardian for customers under the age of 18. Do not change the user profile in an existing account in order to issue a replacement Learning Link card.
· The Alt ID for each Learning Link Card is the student’s seven digit school ID number, preceded by the letter ‘S.’ So the Alt ID for a Learning Link Card will be S#######. This format is consistent for all Learning Link Card accounts and should not be changed. To find a student account using the Alt ID, go to the User Search widget in either Display User or Modify User, do a Keyword Search on the Alt ID index in the Search Index field and input S plus the seven digit student number in the search box.
· The default PIN for each account was set to the last four digits of the student’s HISD Student ID number.
· The Group ID for each Learning Link card will be the three digit school number + a dash (-) + the three digit homeroom number provided by HISD. 000 is assigned as a homeroom number on accounts for which no homeroom was provided in the data set. Additionally, each account includes a note field in which the school number and school name is recorded. Please do not alter the Group ID or the note fields with school number and name in any way.
· You should not override the block to check out a laptop, electronic device or any non-juvenile materials to the card.
· You should not override the block to check out more than 10 physical items to the account.
· No fines assess to the account when overdue items are returned.
· The accounts will not be sent to collection for unreturned material.
If you have any questions or concerns regarding the Learning Link cards, please do not hesitate to contact Circulation Administration at 832-393-2222 (option 3), Fred Schumacher at 832-393-1567 or fred.schumacher@houstontx.gov, or Kallie Benes at 832-393-1428 or Kallie.Benes@houstontx.gov . Any of us will be glad to help in any way we are able.
Thanks.
Fred Schumacher
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~BAH
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~BAH
