Recent trends in statewide academic library consortia - consortia discussed include Georgia's GALILEO, Louisiana Library Network, OhioLINK, TexShare, and Virginia's VIVA - Resource Sharing in a Changing Environment

Library Trends, Wntr, 1997 by William Gray Potter

Funding

Initial funding for the Louisiana Library Network came from a federal grant. In 1994, a tariff was enacted to support network connections in educational institutions. This tariff reduced the costs of continuing the project after the term of the federal grant. Many of the ongoing costs of the network have been funded by the state legislature with some support by the Board of Regents. The costs of the network connections are borne by each library.

Involvement of Large Libraries

Louisiana State University, the largest library and the flagship university in the state, took the lead in establishing the Louisiana Library Network. As the host of LOUIS, LSU initiated the federal grant proposal that created the network. Leadership was provided by the Provost at LSU as well as staff of the library and the computer center. Technical support and direction was provided by LSU. Again, involvement of the largest library in the state appears to have played a crucial role.

Governance

LOUIS and the Louisiana Library Network are administered by a director and staff at LSU. This office operates the server, manages the database, maintains the communications network, and provides staff training. Oversight is provided by the Louisiana Library Network Commission, which also makes budget requests and other recommendations to the Board of Regents. The commission includes several academic library directors, the state librarian, and staff from the Board of Regents.

OHIOLINK

Background

OhioLINK consisted originally of all state-supported universities plus two private universities and the Ohio State Library. Using a common vendor, each library operates its own integrated library system that in turn connects to a centralized system where an online union catalog is maintained. This arrangement permits users to identify and request materials held in the other libraries using current circulation information. A courier service is used to deliver materials from one library to another. In addition, OhioLINK maintains an assortment of databases. As with GALILEO, some are maintained on a central server while others are accessed through Internet gateway connections.

The school libraries and the public libraries have also formed networks in Ohio. INFOhio connects the school libraries and consists of over twenty sites where an integrated library system is installed. The Ohio Public Library Information Network (OPLIN) connects public libraries to the Internet.

Participating Libraries

OhioLINK began as a network for publicly supported universities and colleges but is expanding to include private academic libraries on a cost recovery basis. The state library was also included from the beginning. Altogether, OhioLINK includes fifteen state-assisted universities, seventeen separate two-year colleges, two standalone medical schools, and the State Library of Ohio. Two private institutions, Ohio Northern and Oberlin, have joined OhioLINK and nine others are planning to join. The school libraries and public libraries developing their own networks and connection to OhioLINK is viewed as a critical component. These are three separate projects, and the extent that databases and other resources will be shared has yet to be determined. While this may present a set of difficult issues, library networking in Ohio is extremely advanced.