Statewide California Electronic Library Consortium

SCELC BRINGS TOGETHER INDEPENDENT NONPROFIT ACADEMIC AND RESEARCH INSTITUTIONS TO FOSTER INNOVATION AND COLLABORATION IN THE ACQUISITION AND EFFECTIVE USE OF LIBRARY RESOURCES AND SERVICES.

LICENSING OF ELECTRONIC RESOURCES: THIS IS SCELC'S PRINCIPAL ACTIVITY TO ASSIST LIBRARIES AND RESEARCH INSTITUTIONS. WHILE MEMBER LIBRARIES ARE PRIVATE ACADEMIC AND NONPROFIT RESEARCH LIBRARIES, SCELC'S AFFILIATE PROGRAM OPENS DISCOUNTED LICENSING OPPORTUNITIES TO ALL TYPES OF LIBRARIES ACROSS MANY GEOGRAPHIC REGIONS. SCELC'S NEGOTIATION, ORDER AND INVOICE PROCESSING SERVICES PROVIDE A FULL SUITE OF SERVICES THAT SAVE LIBRARIES MONEY, TIME AND LABOR. TOTAL SAVINGS AS COMPARED TO THE LIST PRICE OF MOST RESOURCES RANGE WIDELY, FROM 5% TO MORE THAN 90%, PROVIDING LIBRARIES A VALUABLE AND MEASURABLE RETURN ON INVESTMENT.

RESOURCE SHARING AND COOPERATIVE COLLECTION DEVELOPMENT IS AN ONGOING AREA OF ACTIVITY FOR SCELC. A COMMITTEE OF SCELC LIBRARIANS IS FOCUSED ON SUCH RESOURCE SHARING ACTIVITIES AS: A) COLLABORATIVE SHARED PRINT PROGRAMS, WHEREBY LIBRARIES MAKE MUTUAL BINDING AGREEMENTS TO STRUCTURE A SHARED ARCHIVE OF PRINT MATERIALS, THUS CREATING SPACE-SAVING OPPORTUNITIES FOR PARTICIPATING LIBRARIES. SCELC COMPLETED ITS FIRST FULL SHARED PRINT PROJECT WITH FOURTEEN OF ITS LIBRARIES, AND COMPLETED A SECOND PHASE WITH TWELVE ADDITIONAL LIBRARIES. IN 2019, IT LAUNCHED A NEW PHASE WITH SIX CALIFORNIA STATE UNIVERSITY CAMPUSES PLUS TWO ADDITIONAL PRIVATE ACADEMIC LIBRARIES. SCELC IS NOW THE DE FACTO LEADER IN SHARED PRINT ON THE WEST COAST, WITH FURTHER PLANS UNDERWAY TO EXTEND THE PROGRAM MORE BROADLY. THE SHARED PRINT ADVISORY COMMITTEE ASSURES ONGOING GOVERNANCE AND OVERSIGHT OF THE SHARED PRINT PROGRAM. SCELC ALSO BECAME A FOUNDING MEMBER OF THE PARTNERSHIP FOR SHARED BOOK COLLECTIONS IN 2020.B) CALLIMACHUS, A SCELC SHARED DIGITAL LIBRARY PROGRAM CREATED BY SCELC'S PURCHASE OF A SHARED CONTENTDM DIGITAL SOFTWARE LICENSE;C) COOPERATIVE COLLECTION DEVELOPMENT ACTIVITIES, WHICH WILL GROW AS A RESULT OF THE AFOREMENTIONED SHARED PRINT PROGRAMS. THE MANY SMALL OR SPECIALIZED LIBRARIES THAT CONSTITUTE THE SCELC MEMBERSHIP WILL SEE BENEFITS FROM COLLABORATIVE FOCUSING OF COLLECTION DEVELOPMENT AND MATERIALS SELECTION ONCE THE SCELC RESOURCE SHARING ACTIVITIES HAVE MATURED TO THE POINT WHERE UNIQUE AND WIDELY-HELD HOLDINGS AT EACH LIBRARY ARE READILY IDENTIFIABLE AND COMPARABLE WITH OTHER MEMBER LIBRARIES.D) COLLABORATIVE COLLECTIONS PROGRAM: LAUNCHED IN 2019, SCELC PROVIDES ACCESS TO A SHARED COLLECTION OF 40,000+ E-BOOKS FROM JSTOR TO 69 LIBRARIES. AT THE END OF EACH FISCAL YEAR EACH LIBRARY CAN THEN PURCHASE THOSE E-BOOKS WITH THE HIGHEST USE FOR PERMANENT ACCESS IN THEIR LOCAL COLLECTIONS. SCELC IS EXPLORING HOW TO EXPAND THE COLLABORATIVE COLLECTIONS MODEL INTO OTHER AREAS.

CONTINUING EDUCATION, NETWORKING AND STAFF DEVELOPMENT ACTIVITIES: WITH THE SUPPORT OF SCELC STAFF, LIBRARIANS SERVING ON ADVISORY COMMITTEES, THE SCELC BOARD OR TASK FORCES HELP SCELC PROVIDE A NUMBER OF OPPORTUNITIES IN THIS AREA. THESE ACTIVITIES INCLUDE:A) EVENTS SUCH AS THE SCELC VENDOR DAY, COLLOQUIUM, DEANS AND DIRECTORS' SYMPOSIUM, AND RESEARCH DAY. THESE EVENTS TAKE PLACE DURING A ONE-WEEK SPAN TO PROVIDE CONTINUING EDUCATION FOR THE CUTTING-EDGE ISSUES CONFRONTING TODAY'S LIBRARIES AND ATTRACT MORE THAN 300 LIBRARIANS OVER THE COURSE OF ONE WEEK. IN RECOGNITION OF TIGHT LIBRARY BUDGETS, ALL EVENTS ARE FREE OR VERYLOW COST, WITH COSTS UNDERWRITTEN BY SCELC, WITH SOME VENDOR SPONSORSHIPS PROVIDING SOME ADDITIONAL REVENUE;B) MEETINGS THREE TIMES PER YEAR OF A COLLECTIONS AND ELECTRONIC RESOURCES COMMITTEE TO PROVIDE CURRENT AWARENESS OF TRENDS IN THE LIBRARY INFORMATION MARKETPLACE;C) PROFESSIONAL INPUT ON LICENSE LANGUAGE AND TERMS AND CONDITIONS FROM A LICENSE ADVISORY COMMITTEE;D) A COMPETITIVE FUNDING AWARDS PROCESS TO ENABLE FIRST-TIME CONFERENCE ATTENDANCE FOR LIBRARIANS;E) RESEARCH INCENTIVE AWARDS TO HELP LIBRARIANS COMPLETE AND PUBLISH THEIR RESEARCH;F) SCHOLARSHIPS AND AWARDS TO SCELC LIBRARIES' STAFF AND INTERNS TO OFFSET THE COSTS OF COMPLETING AN ACCREDITED DEGREE-GRANTING LIBRARY SCIENCE PROGRAM;G) A SCELC PROJECT INITIATIVE FUND TO PROVIDE SEED MONEY TO LIBRARIES TO ENABLE NEW KINDS OF INTER-LIBRARY COLLABORATIVE PROJECTS, SUCH AS THE AFOREMENTIONED SCELC SHARED PRINT PROJECT;H) A SCHOLARLY COMMUNICATIONS COMMITTEE TO ADDRESS THE GROWING AREA OF CHANGES IN RESEARCH AND OPEN ACCESS PUBLISHING.I) A MONTHLY VIRTUAL COMMUNICATION EVENT ENTITLED "SCELC CHANNEL ONE," IN RESPONSE TO THE CHALLENGES POSED BY THE PANDEMIC AT THE SCELC INSTITUTIONS AND THEIR LIBRARIES. CHANNEL ONE HAS EFFECTIVELY SERVED TO BROADEN OUTREACH TO SCELC LIBRARIES AND HAS CREATED A LARGER COMMUNITY FOCUSED ON CURRENT ISSUES FACING SCELC LIBRARIES.J) A MONTHLY VIRTUAL TOWNHALL WITH LIBRARY DEANS AND DIRECTORS TO DISCUSS SCELC OPPORTUNITIES AND ADMINISTRATIVE CHALLENGES IN RESEARCH, MEDICAL, AND ACADEMIC LIBRARIES.