Bizzell 5th Floor Special Research Collections Policies

The policies below apply to all visitors to the 5th Floor Special Research Collections.

• Researchers may use pencils and personal electronic devices, including laptops, tablets, and cell phones, for notetaking while working with collection materials.
• Pens and other ink based items (highlighters) are not permitted around collections materials. Adhesive notes are also not permitted. Acid-free paper is available for researchers needing to bookmark items.
• All collection materials, including books, must remain in the 5th Floor Special Research Collections reading room.
• Researchers are responsible for appropriately handling materials they are using until the materials are returned to a staff member, which includes materials in publicly accessible areas. This includes using the available resources to prevent damage.
• Backpacks, tote bags, briefcases, jackets, and other personal belongings must be kept in the designated lockers.
• No food or drinks are allowed in the reading room at any time.
• Cell phones must be on silent. Please take all phone calls outside the reading room.
• Activities that are disruptive to others, such as talking loudly or excessive cellphone noise, such as notification alerts, are prohibited.
• Service animals are allowed in the facilities. Please contact us for accommodations.
• Materials are limited to five books or four document cases at a time (with one document case on a desk at a time, and only one folder is to be removed from a document case at a time).

Accessing Materials

Requesting Materials: Please see the Research Services Page  for information about requesting materials. All materials must be requested before your appointment. Please discuss any additional materials you may need during your visit with a staff member.

Access: For the protection of its holdings, the 5th Floor Special Research Collections reserves the right to restrict access to materials. Reasons for restrictions can include documents and books that are valuable or fragile, materials that are unprocessed, and materials restricted by donor agreement. This list is not exhaustive, and access to any material is subject to curatorial staff approval.

Retrieval: Visitors and researchers are not permitted in collections’ storage areas. All materials will be retrieved by staff.

Handling Materials

• Researchers should have clean hands when using collection materials.
• Researchers may use only pencils in the reading room (pens, highlighters, or "rubber fingers" are not permitted).
• Collection materials shall not be written on, leaned on, folded anew, traced, fastened with rubber bands or metal paper clips, or handled in any other way likely to cause damage.
• Adhesive notes may not be attached to original materials.
• Researchers shall keep unbound materials in the order in which they are delivered and filed. Researchers shall not rearrange materials appearing to be disordered, but shall notify the curators about the condition.
• Archival-quality bookmarks and book snakes (ropes) are available for use.
• Researchers should use one box at a time and one folder at a time. This includes when materials are provided on a cart.
• Gloves are only required for handling photographs, slides, or negatives.
• Researchers are expected to exercise all possible care to prevent damage and to notify a staff member should damage of any kind occur to any materials. Under no circumstances should a researcher attempt to repair the damage.
• Researchers are expected to follow all instructions when using sound recordings and equipment to avoid damaging the materials and equipment.
• Researchers are expected to follow any additional handling requirements staff provide based on the value or condition of the item.

Cell Phone/Tablet/Cameras: Cameras are permitted for the photographing of materials at the 5th Floor Special Research Collections. Flash photography is prohibited. Please turn off cell phone camera sounds.

Flatbed/Handheld/Feeder Scanners: Any equipment that touches collection materials, such as feeder, flatbed, and handheld scanners, is not permitted. 

Overhead Scanners: Scanners that do not touch materials, such as overhead scanners, are permitted for scanning materials.

• Use of certain published materials and manuscripts is restricted by law or by reason of their origin.
• Permission may be granted upon request for use of photographs for publication, exhibition, or other purpose if the proposed use is specified. Restrictions have been placed on the use of some collections by the donors.
• The University of Oklahoma is not responsible for any illegal or improper use of these materials.
• All copying of collections materials will be performed by BL5 personnel.
• The researcher is responsible for determining the copyright status of any materials used.
• Permission to publish must be secured from the rights holders. Responsibility for determining the rights holders and adhering to copyright law rests with the researcher.
• The researcher is responsible for crediting the the proper source for any materials used.

Materials in the Public Domain

No laws restrict copying of public domain materials. However, the 5th Floor Special Research Collections reserves the right to limit or deny copying in order to protect materials which might be physically harmed as a result of such copying.

Published and unpublished materials may be protected by Copyright Law (Title 17, U.S. Code). Permission to publish must be secured from the rights holders. Responsibility for determining the rights holders and adhering to copyright law rests with the researcher. Any copies of published and unpublished materials provided by the 5th Floor Special Research Collections are for research, scholarship, and study purposes only, and are not to be placed on file in any other repository. Use of certain published materials and manuscripts is restricted by law, by reason of their origin, or by donor agreement. For the protection of its holdings, the 5th Floor Special Research Collections also reserves the right to restrict the use of unprocessed materials, or books and documents of exceptional value and fragility. Use of any material is subject to the approval of the curatorial staff.

• Fair Use Reproduction Limits: Only two chapters per book or two articles per journal issue may be copied, or 20 percent of a book or journal volume, not to exceed 50 pages (whichever comes first). This only pertains to copyrighted materials.
• Only 20 percent of a musical score may be copied, as long as that portion copied does not comprise a performable unit of work.
• Only 20 percent of an unpublished manuscript may be copied.
• No portion of a work intended by the publisher to be consumed by the original user may be copied (e.g., workbooks, etc.).

Notice: Warning Concerning Copyright Restrictions

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 copy of other reproductions. 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 a user makes a request for, or later uses, a photocopy or reproduction for purposes in excess of "fair use," that user may be liable for copyright infringement. This institution reserves the right to refuse to accept a copying order if, in its judgment, fulfillment of the order would involve violation of copyright law.