Follett Destiny Library Help

For school librarians and library staff. These steps work in any district's Follett Destiny. Your district sets up your Destiny account and gives you your Destiny web address. New to the library? Start with the card below, then jump to the task you need.

Follett Destiny: where to find it. Everything below is in Back Office; use the menu on the left side of the screen. 1: Check books out or in: Circulation > Check Out, Check In or Renew; 2: Find a book: Catalog > Library Search; 3: See who has a book: Circulation > Copy Status; 4: Look up a student: Circulation > Patron Status (also Fines and Holds/ILL); 5: Add new books: Catalog > Add Title, then Add Copies; 6: Print labels or overdues: Reports > Library Reports or Patron Reports; 7: Inventory and calendar: Admin > Inventory, Admin > Calendar / Hours. Lost? Every Destiny page has a How do I... link in the top right corner. It opens Follett's help for the page you are on.

Getting around Destiny

Check the school name at the top left. If you work at more than one school, click it to switch schools.
Click the app menu at the top right and choose Back Office.
Use the menus on the left side: Catalog (books), Circulation (checkouts), Reports and Admin.

Check out a book

Go to Circulation > Check Out.

Scan the student's library card. Or type part of their last name, click Find Patron, and click their name.
Scan the barcode on each book. Each book shows under Items Out with its due date.
When you finish with that student, click Reset Checkout on the left, or scan the next card.

Check out a book: Circulation > Check Out. 1: Find the student: scan their library card, or type part of their name and click Find Patron, then click their name in the list; screenshot of the Find box, Find Patron button and a list of sample student names highlighted. 2: Scan the book: with the student showing, scan each book's barcode into the Find box, and each book appears under Items Out; screenshot with the Find box and Items Out highlighted. Done with that student? Click Reset Checkout on the left (or just scan the next student's card) so the next books do not go to the wrong person.

Check in and renew books

Check in: Go to Circulation > Check In. Click in the Find Copy box and scan each returned book.
Renew: Go to Circulation > Renew. Scan the book on the By Copy tab. To renew everything one student has, open them in Patron Status and click Renew All.

If a message pops up when you scan, read it before you click OK. It may say the book has a hold, the student has a fine, or the book belongs to another school.

Check in and renew: Circulation > Check In and Circulation > Renew. 1: Check in: scan the barcode. Click in the Find Copy box and scan each returned book; no student needed; screenshot with the Find Copy box highlighted. 2: Renew: scan the barcode. Scan the book on the By Copy tab; the Global tab renews many at once (for example a whole grade) if your account allows it; screenshot with the Find Copy box highlighted. If a message pops up when you scan (a hold, a fine, or a book from another school), read it before you click OK. It tells you what to do with that book.

Who has this book?

Go to Circulation > Copy Status.

Scan the barcode, or type the title and click Go.
If you typed a title, click the barcode of the copy you want.
The Current Checkout box shows who has it and when it is due. Buttons on the right let you Mark Lost, Add Hold or Print Labels.

Who has this book? Circulation > Copy Status. 1: Scan the barcode or type the title. If you typed a title, click the barcode of the copy you want. The Current Checkout box shows who has it and when it is due; screenshot of a copy record with the Current Checkout box highlighted. The buttons on the right let you Mark Lost, Add Hold, View History or Print Labels for that one copy.

Look up a student, fines and holds

Patron Status: Circulation > Patron Status. Find the student to see what they have out, their fines and their holds on one page.
Fines: Circulation > Fines. Find the student, then use the buttons next to a fine to take a payment or waive it.
Holds: Circulation > Holds/ILL. Find the student and click Add Hold. View Requests lists every hold waiting.

Look up a student: Circulation > Patron Status, Fines, and Holds/ILL. 1: Patron Status: find the student; you see what they have out, any fines and any holds on one page; screenshot with the Find Patron box and the Items Out and Fines area highlighted. 2: Place a hold: in Holds/ILL, find the student and click Add Hold; View Requests shows every hold waiting; screenshot with the Add Hold and View Requests buttons highlighted. To clear or pay a fine, go to Circulation > Fines, find the student, and use the buttons next to the fine.

Add a new book

Go to Catalog > Add Title.

Type or scan the ISBN from the back of the book and click Go. A red house icon means your library already has that title.
Already have it? Open the title and click Add Copies. New title? Pick the matching result from the list and save it, then add copies.
Scan the new barcode sticker into Starting Barcode (or choose Assign next barcode), check the call number, and click Save Copies. Tick Print labels to print right away.

Add a new book: Catalog > Add Title, then Add Copies. 1: Search by ISBN: type or scan the ISBN from the back of the book and click Go; a red house next to a result means your library already has that title; screenshot with the ISBN search box highlighted. 2: Open the title and click Add Copies; already own it? You only need to add a copy, not a new title; screenshot with the Add Copies button highlighted. 3: Fill in the copy and save: scan the new barcode sticker into Starting Barcode (or pick Assign next barcode), check the call number, then Save Copies; tick Print labels to print right away; screenshot with the barcode fields and Save Copies highlighted.

Print spine and barcode labels

Go to Reports > Library Reports, then Spine/Pocket Labels or Barcode Labels.

Set Based on to Date / Time Copies Added (books you added today) or Barcode Range.
Pick the Label Stock that matches the box your label sheets came in. Use Start on label if some labels on the sheet are used.
Click Run Report. In the PDF print window choose Actual size, not Fit. Try plain paper first.

Print spine and barcode labels: Reports > Library Reports > Spine/Pocket Labels or Barcode Labels. 1: Choose which books, your label sheet, and Run Report. Based on: Date / Time Copies Added (today's new books) or Barcode Range. Label Stock must match the box your sheets came in. Start on label lets you use a partly used sheet; screenshot with Based on, Label Stock, Start on label and Run Report highlighted. The labels open as a PDF. When you print, choose Actual size (100%), not Fit or Shrink, or the labels will not line up. Test on plain paper first.

Overdue lists and notices

Go to Reports > Patron Reports.

Overdue Materials lists every overdue book in shelf order, with who has it and the due date.
Current Checkouts/Fines makes notices you can print or email. Sort by homeroom so each teacher gets their own stack.

Overdue lists and notices: Reports > Patron Reports. 1: Overdue Materials lists every overdue book in shelf order with who has it and when it was due; Export to Excel is at the top right; screenshot of a sample overdue report. For notices to hand out or email, use Current Checkouts/Fines in Patron Reports. You can sort by homeroom so each teacher gets their own stack.

Inventory and end of year

Inventory: Admin > Inventory > Start New. Name it, leave the call numbers blank for the whole library (or enter a range for one section), and click OK. Scan the shelves, then finalize. Destiny asks whether to mark books you never scanned as Lost.
Calendar: Admin > Calendar / Hours. Mark breaks and summer as closed so due dates never land on a closed day.
Before summer: run Overdue Materials and send notices so books come back before the last day.

Common problems and fixes

These come up most often in library tickets.

Students or teachers are missing, or you still see last year's students. Student and staff records load into Destiny automatically from your district's student system (such as PowerSchool or Skyward), usually overnight. If a new student is still missing the next day, or class lists are still last year's in the fall, put in a ticket. This cannot be fixed from inside Destiny.
Homeroom is blank or wrong, so notices and class lists do not sort right. Homeroom also comes from the student system. Ask your front office or district data person to fix it there. Destiny picks up the change the next day.
A student's card will not scan, or it brings up the wrong person. Search for the student by name in Patron Status. If you see two records for the same student, tell your district's Destiny administrator. If the student is not there at all, see the first item.
You cannot sign in, or you are new and need an account. Your district's Destiny administrator creates accounts. Put in a ticket with your name, school and position.
Library Search says "not available" or finds nothing. On Catalog > Library Search, click Reset All to clear old filters, check that Location shows your school, then search again.
Patron search shows students from other schools. Make sure Only my patrons is checked next to the Find box.
The checkout computer, catalog computer or scanner stopped working. Check that the network cable and scanner are plugged in, then restart the computer. Still broken? Put in a ticket with the asset tag or serial number from the device.

What to put in your ticket

Your name, school, and whether you are the librarian, aide or a teacher.
What you were trying to do (check out, print labels, run overdues) and what happened instead.
One example: a student or book that shows the problem.
A screenshot or photo of any error message.
For a computer or scanner: the asset tag or serial number.
Never put a password in a ticket.

Need help?

For how-to questions, click How do I... on any Destiny page. For accounts, missing students or broken equipment, submit a support ticket or call the Help Desk at 269-250-9280.

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