Mission Statement

The mission of the reference department is to provide information to the public by acquiring and maintaining a current, accurate, and accessible collection of reference materials in many formats and to convey knowledgeable information to the public.

For assistance with simple reference questions contact the reference department
by clicking here.
Please allow 2-3 working days for your question to be answered.

For further assistance with questions or information about our databases,
call (318) 327-1490.

Services:

	Text A Librarian. Text any question to us and we'll text the answer back. Follow the link on the icon to the left for complete instructions. *Please use good txt etiquette!

Assistance to walk-in patrons: Reference librarians will assist patrons with the use of specialized resources, both print and electronic.

Telephone reference (318) 327-1490 ex. 3008: Reference librarians will provide quick, factual answers to your questions. Librarians can check up to five titles on the online public access catalog (OPAC), check the shelves, and hold the books or send them to another branch for you. We can place holds on books not available when you call. Some questions require more research than staff is able to provide over the telephone. You may need to visit the library to do in-depth research. Email: help@oplib.org.

Interlibrary Loan: Reference librarians will borrow books and other materials which the library does not own. Other libraries do not lend new fiction or best sellers. The library can borrow compact discs, videos, films, and audio cassettes from the State Library of Louisiana only. ( See our video department for this service)

Collections

Books: A wide range of books, arranged by subject, is available to assist you in business, school and personal research. Reference books are denoted by an R before the call number in the computer catalog and on the spine of each book above the call number. They are for in-building use only.

eAudio Books: Over 4,000 titles available for free download from NetLibrary. Search our online catalog for titles and follow the instrcutions. Click here for complete download instructions.

Periodicals/Newspapers/Microfilm: Current and past issues of magazines and newspapers are available in the periodicals section. The Monroe News-Star, Ouachita Citizen, Free Press and Monroe Dispatch are available on microfilm. Ask at the Reference desk for details.

Vertical File: This file contains materials on local and state issues not readily available otherwise. It also contains general folders of information, with a special emphasis on school assignments and on subjects for which we have few or no books and on which little is available in periodicals.

Louisiana Documents: The Ouachita Parish Public Library is a selective or partial depository for Louisiana State Documents. These are publications produced by state agencies and various other associated groups. The documents contain a wide variety of statistical and factual information.

Online Databases: These databases are available for use at the Main Library and at each branch of the Ouachita Parish Library and may be accessed from our web site, through the CATALOG link (above and to the left) and the Database Super Search tab. They can also be accessed through the Enhanced Catalog, AquaBrowser, by either clicking on the database link on the welcome page or after you do a search by clicking in the blue databases area at the lower right of the return screen. Residents of Ouachita Parish may access them with a valid library card only remotely.

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