[October 15, 2007] This year, OLIS has changed its NELINET membership to a “Consortial Sponsorship” on behalf of all members of LORI.  Through this arrangement, LORI members that do not otherwise have a NELINET full or affiliate membership become “consortial associates” of NELINET.  In this way, OLIS can now provide the full array of NELINET programs and services to all LORI members. Following is a list of the major resources this arrangement unleashes in two categories – “free stuff” and products and services available at member discount rates.  Check out NELINET’s website for more information.  If you see anything else that interests you, let us know.  Look for more information in the coming weeks about how to take advantage of some of these opportunities

Free to Consortial Associates

• OLIS will be presenting a minimum of six NELINET CE sessions in Rhode Island annually.  You will have noticed these already turning up on the OLIS CE schedule,  and may have attended the first of them, “Budgeting for non-financial managers” with NELINET CFO Susan Kasuba.  Watch our CE calendar for more to come.
• NELINET Educational Services
  • Invitational NELINET summit meetings to collaborate on the design of new programs and services
  • OCLC and NELINET webinars
  • OCLC online tutorials
  • NELINET Online Hours on current topics of interest to libraries
• NELINET MIntZ (Member Interest Zones) to engage in discussions with librarians throughout New England on a variety of topics, such as Digital and Institutional Repositories, and Accreditation and Library Assessment
• TrendGauge, a regular blog and podcasting service that provides up-to-date information for library staff, and thought-provoking articles on trends affecting libraries.
• NELINET Technology Sandbox, an online service that enables library staff to experiment with fully-functioning software applications from the convenience of their own desktop.  The following applications are all currently available for use by NELINET members in the Technology Sandbox or will be available soon:
• DSpace institutional repository software
• OAI Harvester software
• Blog, wiki and forum software
• TDNet federated searching and electronic resource management system
• Evergreen ILS
• Open-source federated searching and open URL linking solutions
• Student portfolio management software
• Course management software

Educational and Other Resources (available to consortial associates at member prices)

• Registration for online courses taught by other regional network providers, which would be available to OLIS consortial associates for the same registration fee that those networks charge their own members.
• NELINET scheduled courses, seminars, institutes and conferences for our general membership on state-of-the-art trends and changes in technology and the profession.   Consortial associates would pay the same registration fee as other NELINET full members for these events (usually priced at $65 per attendee per event).
• Fully customized courses can be developed by NELINET for delivery through OLIS (for which additional charges may apply).  Tell the OLIS CE Team what you need (email Andy Egan).
• E-Resources. All NELINET e-resources and library products are available to OLIS consortial associates at the direct (wholesale) price that NELINET pays, i.e., there are no service charges, surcharges, or splitting of discounts. Check out NELINET's E-resources Listing.
• NELINET Consulting Services (NCS)
• Digital Service
  • Access to New England Collections Online (NECOL)
  • Shared digital repository service (coming soon)
  • Digital Collection Management Services (DCMS)
• Regional Depository.  OLIS consortial associates are welcome to participate in the multiple low-cost storage options that are available through the New England Regional Depository.  These options include short and long-term storage, item-level storage, and library relocation services, all of which are available at discounted pricing from the William B. Meyer Company.

Of course, OLIS will continue to offer the resources we have traditionally relied on NELINET for, including First Search and the ILL Clearinghouse.  OLIS is quite pleased to have been able to negotiate this new partnership with NELINET to enrich Rhode Island’s library infrastructure.  We will especially value you feedback during this first consortial sponsorship year, so please contact us with your comments and suggestions (email Howard Boksenbaum).