How To

Welcome to the Cybrarium! We can’t wait to meet you. Register online for a temporary card to access electronic materials. Bring in your identification to the Cybrarium in order to get your card.

A borrower must present identification with their current home/employment address verifying that they reside in Homestead or one of the reciprocal jurisdictions to obtain a Cybrarium card to borrow materials. A parent or legal guardian must present his/her photo identification and proof of current address for cards issued to children under the age of 18.  A card will only be issued if the child is present.

Every resident of Homestead is eligible for a free Cybrarium card account regardless of age. Those who own property, own a business, work, or attend school in Homestead are also eligible.

Miami-Dade County residents are eligible for a Cybrarium card account.

Borrow

The Cybrarium offers a wide variety of items for checkout. 

Renew

If an item does not have a hold on it, it will be automatically renewed up to 3 times. You can log on to your account and renew the item as well. Items can be renewed three times.

Reserve

Any circulating library materials may be placed on hold. When the item requested is available, you will be notified, and the material will be held for 7 days. Patrons may place up to 25 holds per account.

The Homestead Cybrarium accepts donations of new, or like new, materials to be added to the collection. Materials must meet the requirements of the Collection Development Policy. Unused items may be recycled at the Cybrarium’s discretion.

The Cybrarium also accepts financial gifts to enhance library services in the community.

The Cybrarium will gladly accept:

• books and other items in good condition, clean, dry, with no damage
• commercially recorded items: audiobooks on CDs, movies on DVD, and Blue-ray
• video games: Sony PlayStation 4 and 5, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One and Xbox Series X

The Cybrarium is not able to accept:

• items which are unhealthy to handle or dirty, moldy, smelly, burnt, chewed, or damp
• books with missing covers
• textbooks, encyclopedias
• National Geographic magazines
• Reader’s Digest condensed books

The Homestead Cybrarium is pleased to be a member of Florida’s Library Information Network, a new Interlibrary Loan (ILL) service to find books, articles, and other media from public and academic libraries throughout Florida.

The Cybrarium offers three study rooms for public use. Study rooms are offered on a first-come-first-served basis at no cost. A valid Cybrarium card is required to reserve a room.

The Cybrarium offers two meeting rooms for reservations at an hourly rate for for-profit use: a large meeting room ($75/hour) and a small meeting room ($50/hour). There is no charge to reserve and use the meeting rooms by government, educational, and non-profit organizations. A valid Cybrarium card is required to reserve a room. Below are key limitations for meeting room use:

• Organizations or individuals may reserve meeting rooms once per month, in order to provide fair access to the entire community. However, if the meeting room is not reserved, same day reservations may be permitted, given reasonable time for review and approval by the Director or designee, regardless of prior usage within the month.
• Cancellations must be reported to the Cybrarium 48 hours in advance of scheduled reservations. Failure to cancel with sufficient notice, twice, may lead to cancellation of all remaining reservations.
• Maximum time frame for single use of meeting rooms is four (4) hours.
• Review the full Facilities Use Policy prior to reserving any room.

To register as a non-profit, community organization, or business, complete the application below. Cybrarium staff will contact you if any follow-up information is required.

Apply for a number of open volunteer positions through the Cybrarium’s TimeCounts.org account. To get started and learn what it takes to become a Cybrarium Volunteer by attending one of the Volunteer Orientation. To view the upcoming Volunteer Orientation dates please visit our event’s calendar at Calendar

You will need an email address to create an account and apply for positions. Click the button below to view the available positions and apply.

The Cybrarium welcomes expression of opinion by patrons about the collection, individual titles, or VR experiences, but will be governed by the Cybrarium’s Collection Development Policy in making additions and deletions.

Patrons who request the reconsideration of Cybrarium materials or VR experiences must submit their request in writing by completing and signing the Request for Reconsideration of Material. A digital version of the form is also available.

After review, the Cybrarium Director (the “Director”) or designee will communicate a decision and the reason for it, in writing, to the patron who initiated the request for reconsideration.

The Cybrarium endorses the American Library Association (ALA) Library Bill of Rights, the ALA Freedom to Read Statement, and the ALA Free Access to Minors Statement, and interprets these statements to include all Cybrarium materials regardless of format. Responsibility for the selection and removal of books and other materials resides with the Director, who may delegate that responsibility to staff.

Suggestions from the public regarding selection, retention, or reconsideration of materials or experiences are encouraged and reviewed promptly.

Print from a Cybrarium computer for $0.15 per page for black and white and $0.50 per page for color.

Wireless printing is available.

Planning Your Visit to the Cybrarium

Preschool Groups

Our wish is to make preschoolers welcome and comfortable in our library. Guided group visits give them a chance to learn about and enjoy resources that they can use for the rest of their lives. Generally, a visit would include a special storytime, followed by a brief introduction to what is found in the children’s area.

Elementary School Classes

Grades K- 5 are invited to come and discover the resources of their local library. A Grades K-2 visit will include library etiquette, a description of our services, and a tour of the library. If time permits a book talk or specialized program may be included. Students in upper levels (Grades 3-5) may also request an introduction to the Cybrarium’s online resources.

Middle and High Schools

Teen Services staff may provide special programs and services if you arrange a visit enough in advance. Let us know if you would like a library orientation, book talk, online database training, or research assistance on specific topics. Homeschoolers, scout troops, and church groups are all encouraged to schedule a visit to the Cybrarium. Please inform us if there is any special skill or research topic you would like us to present.

Policies

In order to provide the best service during your visit to the Cybrarium, we have established the following policies and procedures.

• Group Limit: 30 students
• Chaperone Requirement: One (1) supervising adult, teen counselor, or similar chaperone must be present for every 10 students.
• Duration: 1 hour – 1.5 hours
  • The guided program of your visit will typically be under 1 hour 30 minutes in duration. You are free to use the Cybrarium after the official portion of the field trip is complete.
• Lunches: The Cybrarium has limited spaces to accommodate lunch requests. On some dates the Cybrarium may not be able to offer a space for lunch and other arrangements will be needed.
• Request Deadline: Six weeks before the requested date; the earlier, the better. Field trip requests made with less than four week’s (one month’s) notice will require approval by the Library Director, or their designee. The Cybrarium is a popular field trip destination and field trip slots fill up fast. A request does not guarantee a field trip.

If you have any questions, please call the Cybrarium at 305-224-4410 and request to speak with our Children’s Services staff.

Request a Field Trip

Complete the form below to request a field trip or group visit to the Cybrarium. Submitting a request does not guarantee a field trip. Staff will contact you to confirm details and dates.

The Cybrarium is operated by Library Systems & Services (LS&S). If you are interested in joining the Cybrarium team, please visit the LS&S Careers page and search for “Cybrarium”.

Updated 07/09/24