Individual public libraries refer questions to headquarters libraries or Regional Reference Nodes. If the Node cannot answer the question, it may refer the question to the MINITEX Reference Service located in the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis. This backup reference service is funded by a contract with the Minnesota Office of Library Development and Services.
MINITEX accesses the library collections of the University of Minnesota Twin Cities Campus Libraries, the Minneapolis Public Library and Information Center, other specialized collections and individuals with relevant subject expertise.
Individual patrons and libraries do not contact MINITEX directly. Regional Headquarters Libraries/Reference Nodes refer questions to MINITEX or to other referral agencies, depending on which they feel would be the best place for further work on the question.
MINITEX Reference staff will need as much background as you can provide about the request because there is usually no contact between them and the patron or individual library asking for the information. By the time a question reaches them it has been through the hands of several people, each one searching for the answer. The collections worked with are large, so what may be simple in a smaller library becomes much more complicated. If you only have one book on cotton and your patron "wants information on cotton" you have a simple choice. If you have 200 books on cotton, you need more details to select the right source.
Since you won't necessarily know whether a question you refer will be forwarded to a state level reference service, do a thorough reference interview with each patron who asks a question.
Go to Interlibrary loan versus reference questions.
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