Mrs. McCoy the Librarian

This past Tuesday, Mrs. McCoy took time to speak with us about public records and some of the resources we have available at USF.

Something I didn't realize was that while we don't have access to school records or medical records, and usually social security numbers either, journalist do have ways of getting hold of social security numbers for reporting purposes. This is because Florida records law is the most open in the United States.

Another way of accessing information is thru the appraisal office at www.hcpfla.org. You could put in any name and instantly find all the properties someone may own, the value of their home, and any attempts they have made to sell or buy property in the past. I thought this was amazing that such information is made available to anyone and everyone. Myfloridacounty.com is another helpful site in finding records here in Florida.

Mrs. McCoy was very informative about the value of taking advantage of the opportunities we are given at USF to do research on people, whether they be private or public figures.