Who Can Borrow Items?

Alaska based teachers, students, librarians, home schoolers, and museums are eligible to participate in the Hands-On Loan Program. Loan requests require prospective borrowers to submit information to prove their eligibility.

How Much Does Borrowing Cost?

Participation in this program is free, however borrowers are expected to pay for return shipping.

How Many Items Can Be Borrowed?

One borrower can have up to twelve items loaned to them at a time. Some "items" may be composed of multiple objects (i.e. a pair of mittens) but will still be listed as individual items in the gallery and will only count as a single item in a loan.

How Long Can Items Be Borrowed?

Each loan period lasts a month from the time an object is shipped from the Sheldon Jackson Museum. It is recommended requests be made 3 weeks in advance per order. If a loan is not returned (hand-delivered or postmarked) by the end of the loan period, the museum may deny further loans to the borrower or their institution for one year.

Arrangements for extended loans may be made under special circumstances when there are no pending requests for the items involved. To request an extension, contact the museum directly.

How Are Items Returned?

Orders, including any instructional or educational material included in the original package, should be returned in the original shipping container using the handling specifications provided by the museum.

Browsing Items

After reading this guide, visit the Hands-On gallery and browse the items on display. The list of items can be filtered by name, keywords from their descriptions, or thematic category using the search form at the top of the page. The number of results displayed per page can also be changed for easier browsing.

Adding Items to an Order

Details for a single item in the gallery can be found by clicking or otherwise activating the link attached to its picture and title. This will open a new tab titled "View Object" in your browser window so that you can read the details about an object and then return to your search.

On the View Object page, more detailed information about an item like its source or use is displayed. The items's availability is also displayed on this page, and if available a link to add the item to an loan will appear.

Placing An Order

After selecting the item(s) you wish to loan from the Sheldon Jackson Museum, go to the Submit Request page and fill out the form with your contact information. Once you have all of the Hands On items of interest selected, click “Requests” in the upper right banner. You will see all the requested items listed on the new page. Fill in the submitter information on the left side of the page and double check to make sure all of the information is accurate. On the right side of the page, under “Type of Delivery” select your choice of delivery – you may choose “Physical Delivery” to have items mailed to your school for use in the classroom or “Virtual Delivery” for a staff-led virtual presentation. If selecting “Virtual Delivery,” select your App of choice from the drop down menu. Once complete, click “Submit Loan Request.”

Using Items

Teachers, students, and museums integrate the objects into their curriculum or program in a variety of ways, including classroom exhibits, models for reproductions, inspiration for creative writing, drawing, or drama, examples for report writing, and for lesson plans.

Fragile items will have special handling instructions.

Returning An Order

It is the responsibility of the borrower to return items on time, and in the same condition as when loaned. Returned orders should use the same packaging. Borrower is responsible for return shipping fees. Remember to fill out the questionnaire that came with your order. The questionnaires help us serve you better!