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All Clarke County School District students were issued a free PINES Library Access for Youth (PLAY) Card account in May 2022 as part of a collaboration between the Clarke County School District, Georgia Library PINES*, and your Athens-Clarke County Libraries: Aaron Heard Resource Center, Athens-Clarke County Library, Lay Park Community Center, Pinewoods Library, and Winterville Library. The PLAY Card account provides each CCSD student with free materials (books, magazines) and online resources from the public library to help your child succeed in school, along with fun resources to support a lifelong love of reading.
*According to https://pines.georgialibraries.org/about, "Georgia Library PINES (Public Information Network for Electronic Services) is the public library automation and lending network for 300 libraries and affiliated service outlets in 51 library systems covering 146 counties. PINES creates a statewide "borderless library" that provides equal access to information for all Georgians."
The benefits are numerous and include:
- PLAY Card accounts will use CCSD student ID numbers as the library card number - one less login to remember!
- Check out 5 physical items at a time from the library catalog of over 11 million items for books, DVD’s, audiobooks, and other materials at over 300 libraries across Georgia.
- Check out e-books, audiobooks & digital magazines!
- Titles are returned automatically with no fines!
- No fines for overdue items!
- Fines still apply for lost, long overdue, or damaged materials; however, the account, library resources, and services are all free.
- Learn a new language online with Mango Languages. Online courses are offered in 70+ languages!
- Get help with homework using:
- Digital Library of Georgia
- EXPLORA
- Learning Express
- tutor.com
- Digital Library of Georgia
- Take practice tests for the SAT, PSAT, and others.
- Obtain state park and museum passes, including Georgia State Parks and Historic Sites, Zoo Atlanta, Center for Puppetry Arts, Chattahoochee Nature Center, and more!
The PLAY Card account is an opt-out program. If you do not want your student to have an account, please submit the Opt-Out Form.
Q&A
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How does my student log in?
From anywhere:
- Visit the PINES Account Login Page.
- Enter your Library Card Number or User Name
- The username is CLA and the student's ID number (often called the lunch number).
- CLA must be capitalized.
- Example: The student's ID is 123456. You will type in CLA123456.
- Enter your password
- The default password is the student's 2-digit birth month and 4-digit birth year (MMYYYY) with no spaces.
- Example: The student's birthdate is August 24, 2010. You will type in 082010.
- The default password is the student's 2-digit birth month and 4-digit birth year (MMYYYY) with no spaces.
Using an ACCL computer:
- Enter your Library Card Number or User Name
- The username is CLA and the student's ID number (often called the lunch number).
- CLA must be capitalized.
- Example: The student's ID is 123456. You will type in CLA123456.
- Enter your password
- The default is the student's 2-digit birth month and 4-digit birth year (MMYYYY) with no spaces.
- Example: The student's birthdate is August 24, 2010. You will type in 082010.
- The default is the student's 2-digit birth month and 4-digit birth year (MMYYYY) with no spaces.
Please note:
- While the username can be changed from the default, it is not recommended. Students will need to provide their CCSD ID number as their library card number when checking out physical materials from the public library.
- The default password can be changed by students on the ACCL online system.
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When will my student receive their PLAY Card?
The PLAY Card is only an account. No physical card will be given to students.
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What can be checked out using a PLAY Card?
The PLAY Card account allows students to check out 5 physical items at a time of any material type. It also provides full access to online resources provided by the ACCL.
If you would like your child to borrow more items, you can apply for a free PINES library card at any time. To do so, please visit your local library and bring your photo ID.
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How does a student check out a physical item while at the library?
Please go to one of the circulation desks to check out an item while at the library.
The library card number will be CLA and the student's ID number (often called the lunch number).
- Example: The student's ID is 123456. The username will CLA123456.
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What if a student already has a library card?
Students may have both a PLAY Card account and PINES card.
The PLAY Card account has the added benefit of not accruing fines (fines still apply for lost, long overdue, or damaged materials) with a check-out limit of 5 items.
The PINES card allows for more items to be checked out at one time, but does accrue fines.
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What happens when a student changes schools within CCSD, withdraws, or graduates?
- When a student changes schools within CCSD, students maintain the same PLAY Card account.
- When a student withdraws or graduates from CCSD, their PLAY Card account will expire at the beginning of the next school year (on October 15). The student may apply for a regular PINES account at that time.
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Who do I contact if the information on my PLAY Card account is incorrect?
Parents/Guardians should contact:
- The child's school to update:
- address
- grade level*
- school*
- PINES (by visiting your library) to update:
- preferred name
*Please note: The student's grade level and school will automatically be updated shortly before the beginning of the new school year. In the summer months, the information on the account will display the previous year's school and grade level.
School updates will be entered into Infinite Campus and updated with the next data sync between CCSD and PINES. Please note it could take up to a month before changes are reflected on the PLAY Card account.
- The child's school to update:
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Will parents/guardians have access to see what the student has checked out?
Parents/guardians will have the ability to see what is checked out on the account of a minor.
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Which public library is closest to me and what are the hours?
There are five libraries in Clarke County. Click here to view a map of the Athens-Clarke County Libraries to find your closest location.
Hours vary by location. Please visit http://www.athenslibrary.org/ for the current hours of the library you wish to visit.
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What libraries can I check out from with a PLAY Card account?
You can visit and check out materials from any of the ACCL locations or 300 PINES partner libraries across the state.
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How will my student's privacy be protected?
CCSD and ACCL agree to the following as listed in "Section II. Confidentiality" of the Memorandum of Understanding for the PLAY Card: All student data and information provided to ACCL by CCSD under this Agreement will be considered confidential for the purposes of this Agreement. ACCL agrees to use the student information obtained under this Agreement only for the legitimate educational purpose of providing services pursuant to this Agreement and shall not re-disclose this information to any other party for any reason, to the extent permitted by law. ACCL agrees to maintain all confidential CCSD student record information in accordance with the provisions of O.C.G.A. $24-12-30, which governs the maintenance and use of confidential library records. ACCL further agrees to comply with all other applicable federal and state laws and regulations governing student records, including the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA).
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What about homeschool students?
Homeschool students can apply online for a library account for digital access only. Click here to visit the PINES website and apply online. You may also visit your local library in person to apply for a PINES library card which will allow access to both digital and physical materials. If under the age of 18, a parent/guardian's contact information and consent are required.
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How do I change my home library location?
The student's home library is assigned based on the address the school district has on file. If the address is incorrect, please contact the child's school to request an update. If the address is correct, but you would like to change to a different home library, you can do so with a member of the ACCL staff.
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What if I do not want my student to have a PLAY Card?
The PLAY Card account is an opt-out program. If you do not want your student to have an account, please submit the Opt-Out Form.
Once the opt-out form is submitted, the student will be removed from the data shared with PINES during the next data sync. Please know, this could take up to a month.
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Who should I contact if I still have questions about the card?
Please contact the Media Specialist at your child's school or the Athens-Clarke County Libraries at 706-613-3650.