What are the course reserves policies?

Welch Library course reserves follows Educational Fair Use Guidelines, including if necessary processing of copyright fees for Reserves.

To ensure the materials the students need are available on time, submit a Reserves Request 6 weeks before the course begins, with a final and complete reading list or syllabus attached.

For material required for a course that is not already in the Welch collection, the library will consider purchasing, after factoring in any budget restrictions.

Posting Web-Accessible Content

Welch Library staff create ereserves lists within the ereserves Application, where it can be linked to a course in the Course Management Software of SOM, SON, and SPH.

• For CoursePlus a link will be provided to the Teaching Assistant or Instructional Designer for placement.
• For Canvas the ereserves link will be activated in the course.

Welch Library places links to web accessible resources for a course into the ereserves application. Welch staff do not place resource files (e.g. pdfs of articles, etc.) or resource links directly into a course in Learning Management System to comply with Fair Use Guidelines for copyright and to track resource use.

Explaining Copyright Policies

Welch adheres to policies about copyright, academic and educational permissions, rights retention, and open access described in the following resources:

• Stanford University Libraries: Educational uses of Non-coursepack Materials
• Stanford University Libraries: Academic and Educational Permissions

Welch Medical Library makes a wide range of materials readily available to students enrolled in classes at the Johns Hopkins University and Medicine for educational use only. Reserved materials must be provided within the context and limitations of copyright law (Copyright Act, 1976, Section 107).

Welch interprets section 107 to permit making of copies of copyrighted material for classroom use as long as the four factors determining fair use are considered:

1. The purpose of the use
2. The nature of the work being copied
3. The amount of the work being copied
4. The effect of the copying on the market for the original

The library will take all steps necessary to ensure that materials placed on reserve conform to copyright law. Welch will also continue to examine current interpretations of the law and will make policy changes as needed. First-time use of photocopied material will be considered fair use. Second and subsequent uses will require copyright permission.

Welch places requested material on electronic reserve under the following conditions.

• Receipt of a Reserves Request form completed by the instructor for the purpose of serving the needs of a specified educational program.
• Materials are directly related to the educational objectives of a specific course.
• When Welch has licenses to digital versions of copyrighted material, the citation and link to the electronic version of the material will be added to the electronic reserve system, providing direct access to the requested material.
• Print versions of copyrighted materials to be copied or scanned will be lawfully acquired or purchased by the library, a school or department, or by a faculty or staff member
• Library staff will copy or scan allowable amounts of the material into electronic reserve system. The material will be available during the term or semester in which course is given.
• There is no charge to access electronic reserve materials.
• Public domain works may be placed on electronic reserve without any limitations.
• JHED authentication requirements limit access to students enrolled in the course for which the material was placed on reserve. Library staff adhere to Guidelines for Scanning or Copying Materials for Electronic Reserves.

Welch staff will scan or copy copyrighted requested materials for placement on reserve without obtaining copyright permission so long as they do not exceed the guidelines listed below:

• Book content up to 15% of a print book’s total length.
• Ebooks where available, and allowable.
• Journal articles from licensed databases or print journals.
• Streaming videos from licensed databases.
• Open internet content determined to be public domain.

Staff will refuse to scan or copy material which has previously been used if copyright permission for reuse for that course was not obtained.

Disposition of Digitized Reserve Materials

At the end of each semester or term, all copyrighted material in electronic reserves will be removed. A new Reserves Request form must be submitted for each time a course is offered.

Electronic Reserves Copyright Notice

The copyright law of the United States (Title 17, United States Code) governs the making of photocopies or other reproductions of copyrighted material. Under certain conditions specified in the law, libraries and archives are authorized to furnish a photocopy or other reproduction.

One of these specified conditions is that the photocopy or reproduction is not to be "used for any purpose other than private study, scholarship, or research." If electronic transmission of reserve materials is used for purposes in excess of what constitutes "fair use", that user may be liable for copyright infringement.

For assistance contact the Welch Service Center (wsc@jhmi.edu).