FAQ for Faculty & Staff

How can I share required readings with my class? 

• You can create your reserve list in Canvas. Log in and open your course, then click Reading Lists in the menu on the left.  Prompts within Canvas will walk you through setting up your list. 

• See our help pages for step-by-step written directions for Reading Lists. 

• You can add library-owned online resources (such as articles, e-books, and streaming videos) to your list, and your students will have immediate access. 

• If you add a physical book to your list, it will be placed on reserve at the SMFA Library. Reserves are shelved behind the SMFA Library circulation desk with a 1-day loan period.  This location appears in the library catalog as SMFA Library Desk Reserves. 

• This is our default policy for reserves, but if you’d like, we can change the loan period to 4 hours, 3 days, or 7 days. 

  • If you’d like to encourage your students to browse the shelves for related materials, we can return the item to its regular location in our stacks while retaining the short loan period.  The item location will appear in the library catalog as SMFA Library Stacks Reserves. 

  • If this is a recommended reading and a short loan period is not required, we can take the item off reserve and return it to its regular location in our stacks with a regular loan period.  The book’s citation will remain on your Reading List for your students to refer to. 

  • Contact Lauren at lauren.kimball_brown@tufts.edu to make any of these changes to your reserve items. 

• If you add a physical video or audio item to your list, you’ll see a form where you can provide information about making the material available for your students to stream. 

• If possible, we will license a streaming version from a vendor. 

• Where necessary, we will digitize the smallest required amount to meet your stated pedagogical needs. Please note that only required assignments can be digitized, not recommended materials. 

• The library can also create your Reading List for you.  To submit a request by email, contact Lauren at lauren.kimball_brown@tufts.edu.Please include your course name and number and a list of citations. 

How can I find high-quality images? 

• See our Finding Images and Audio Research Guide for tips on searching for images, and links to image databases such as ArtStor.

• SMFA faculty also have access to the Visual Resources Collection.  

• For help finding high resolution images, contact Visual Resources Manager Christine Cavalier.

Can the library make streaming video available? 

Faculty and instructors can use Tisch Library’s Streaming Media Service, which digitizes films from the Library’s DVD collection and uploads those films to Canvas for students to stream. 

• To make a request, email tischstreamingmedia@tufts.edu. 

• Note that only required viewing can be digitized. 

Can a librarian meet with my class? 

• Our Research & Instruction Librarian Carrie is available to provide instruction sessions to your classes over Zoom. To schedule a class, contact carrie.salazar@tufts.edu. 

• For presentations about artists’ books and other materials in our Special Collections, contact Darin (email darin.murphy@tufts.edu). 

Can the library help me diversify my syllabus? 

For help finding resources, contact Darin (email darin.murphy@tufts.edu) or Carrie (email carrie.salazar@tufts.edu).

How can I access databases? 

See our Databases A-Z page for a complete list. Below are direct links to some recommendations: 

• Art & Architecture Source 

• ARTstor 

• BrowZine 

• Electronic Arts Intermix 

• JSTOR 

• Kanopy 

• Library Stack 

How many books can I check out at once?

Lots! You can have up to 500 books on your library account at one time. There is no separate limit on the number of books you can check out in one visit to the library.  For more information about borrowing, see Borrowing from the SMFA Library.  

Can I get a list of all the books I’ve ever checked out? 

To protect your privacy, we don’t keep information about what you’ve checked out.  

• To see a list of what is currently checked out to you, open JumboSearch and click Log In in the upper right, then choose My Loans from the dropdown menu that displays your name. 

• If you would like to keep a list of the books you use, we recommend saving favorites to your account in JumboSearch by clicking the pin icon to the right of an item’s title, or using a citation software such as Zotero.

• To find the titles of books you checked out in the past, you can try searching your email inbox for library notices sent from noreply-library@tufts.edu.

What if the library doesn’t have a book I want? 

There are a few options for getting books that aren’t held by the Tufts libraries. 

• We are always happy to consider recommendations of books to add to our collection, so feel free to fill out our Purchase Request Form or send requests directly to Lauren. Click here to email lauren.kimball_brown@tufts.edu.

• You can also request to borrow a book from another library through interlibrary loan (see below).

Can I borrow books from other libraries? 

Our Interlibrary Loan service enables Tufts students, faculty, and staff to borrow materials from libraries worldwide.  If you need an item that is not available at a Tufts library, you can submit a request through our interlibrary system, ILLiad. 

• Log on to ILLiad with your Tufts username and password. 

• Choose the type of request you’d like to place from the menu on the left, and fill out the form. 

• You can request to borrow books and video recordings, and request scans of book chapters and articles. 

• You can place ILL requests through Libraries Worldwide, which allows you to search thousands of library catalogs at once. Libraries Worldwide, formally WorldCat, is a great resource when you aren’t sure exactly what you’re looking for, because it allows you to search for subjects, authors, and keywords.

  • When you find an item you’d like to request, click the title to open the record.

  • Click the blue Request Item through Interlibrary Loan button.

  • This prompts you to log in to ILLiad with your Tufts username and password.

  • You'll then see the ILLiad request form with the item information already filled out. Add any other details needed before submitting.

• Email smfalill@tufts.edu if you have questions about ILL.

Will the library scan something for me? 

If you need a chapter or article from a book or journal in our collection, request it through our Scan & Deliver service. 

• If you already know the citation details, log on to ILLiad with your Tufts username and password. 

• Choose either Article or Book Chapter from the left-hand side menu. 

• Fill out the form and submit your request. 

• You can request scans through JumboSearch by looking up the item you need.

  • Click on the title to open the record, then click Request Scanned Chapter or Pages 

  • This prompts you to log in to ILLiad with your Tufts username and password. 

  • You'll then see the ILLiad request form with the item information already filled out. 

  • Add the details about what you need scanned, and submit the form. 

• Note that due to copyright guidelines the library will not scan more than: 

  • Two chapters per book that amount to no more than 20% of the entire book. 

  • One article per journal issue that amounts to no more than 20% of the journal issue.

Does the library scan personal copies?

We are unable to make scans from materials that don't belong to the library, but you may use any scanner in the library to do this yourself.

Can I request scans by phone, e-mail, or in person?

Please request scans through ILLiad as outlined above. This sends your request to the appropriate staff member, ensures requests are filled in the order received, and helps us gather statistics about our services.

Find more information about Scan & Deliver, or contact Séphora (click here to email sephora.bergiste@tufts.edu). 

Can my class have an exhibition in the library? 

If you would like to use the library for an exhibition, meeting, or event, please read our exhibition policies and fill out our form to submit a proposal.