6 Illinois Libraries To Join Shared Catalogs, Including Palatine

Press release from the Reaching Across Illinois Library System:

July 1, 2020

The Reaching Across Illinois Library System (RAILS) awarded grants to six libraries in northern and central Illinois to join shared catalogs, including: $32,985.95 for Glenside Public Library District to join SWAN; $37,865.00 for Grayslake Area Public Library District to join CCS; $8,846.00 for Lostant Community Library to join PrairieCat; $45,965.00 for Palatine Public Library District to join CCS; $32,755.93 for Roselle Public Library District to join SWAN; and $23,668.28 for Warrenville Public Library District to join SWAN.

Libraries choose to join shared catalogs, or consortium, to provide their patrons with access to materials from all the libraries in the consortium. This benefits patrons by allowing them to search thousands more titles and have those titles delivered by RAILS to the patron’s home library. Illinois library patrons share more than 18 million items annually, greatly broadening the number of catalog items available to an individual library user.

“RAILS is thrilled to support the expansion of resource sharing among Illinois libraries by helping to offset the one-time costs associated with joining a shared catalog consortium. By joining a consortium, these libraries are tapping into the efficiencies of scale that are possible when sharing a complex software platform, sharing the costs of staffing and training, and most importantly, expanding the resources available to their own patrons,” said RAILS Director of Technology Services Anne Slaughter.

Illinois is a leader nationally in promoting the sharing of library resources and this grant helps libraries benefit their users with state-of-the-art technology and the necessary support for that technology.

The Reaching Across Illinois Library System provides delivery, shared online catalogs, e-book services, talking book services, continuing education programs, communication services, and other leadership services and support to all types of libraries in northern and western Illinois. The system serves private, public, school, and university library members in a 27,000 square mile area. More information about RAILS is available at railslibraries.info.

This press release was produced by the Reaching Across Illinois Library System. The views expressed here are the author's own.