NOLS Technology Plan Oct 2004

The North Olympic Library System promotes the joy of reading, encourages the discovery of ideas and brings the power of information to all residents of Clallam County.

Long Range Goals:

SERVICE TO ALL: Patrons of all ages will have access to materials and services that promote life-long learning and enjoyment of reading.
VALUED BY COMMUNITY: Patrons will have access to library services and materials they most value.
RESOURCE MANAGEMENT: The community will benefit from prudent management of resources including budget, staff, technology and materials.
COMMUNICATION / PR: The community will be aware of the library's mission and services.
COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT: The library will enhance services by encouraging community participation through Friends groups, partnerships and volunteers.
FACILITIES: All library users will have access to facilities that are safe, healthy and adequate in size.
INFORMATION SERVICES: Patrons will have access to timely, authoritative and useful information and assistance in locating needed services and materials.

North Olympic Library System (NOLS) serves all of Clallam County, Washington with four branches on the North Olympic Peninsula. Centrally located in Port Angeles, the largest branch that includes the administrative Service Center is housed in a 36,000 square foot building opened in August of 1998. Other branches are in Sequim, Forks and Clallam Bay. Our service area includes 1,753 square miles with a resident population around 67,000.

The Library has nearly 40,000 registered patrons, almost two thirds the total number of residents in Clallam County. The Port Angeles Branch and the Sequim Branch are open six days and two complementary evenings each week. The Forks Branch service area, which contractually includes residents of Jefferson County's West End, is open five weekdays including two evenings, and a couple of hours each Saturday. The Clallam Bay Branch, the Library's smallest, is open four days including two evenings each week.

NOLS' integrated library system grants public access to a collection of nearly 270,000 items. Periodical indices that include full text articles and various other value-added databases are also available through the Library’s website at www.nols.org. NOLS offers Outreach Services, children's and young adult programs, and a unique Pacific Northwest collection that includes the Bert Kellogg slides and photographs of early Olympic Peninsula life.

Computers with Internet access and various productivity tools are available at all branches. The Port Angeles branch has a small computer lab for classroom or general public use. Some computers are restricted to library catalog access, to assure that patrons trying to find NOLS materials don’t have to compete with other demands on our resources.

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INTRODUCTION

This document identifies the library's technology-related objectives, our means of maintaining a designated level of service, and the steps being taken to move us toward an ever more brilliant future. Our Technology Plan helps focus our expenditures and our activities on achieving our desired results.

Members of the North Olympic Library System Planning Group, including the Library Directory, Branch Managers and Department Heads, are the library's technology planners. Additional direction comes from the library Board of Trustees, other library staff, Friends of the Library groups, interested local government and educational entities, and library patrons. Resources for planning include other libraries, the Washington State Library, the U.S. Dept. of Education, the Universal Service Administrative Company, the Government Printing Office and relevant academic white papers.

North Olympic Library System will attempt to be aware of and involved in appropriate local, regional, statewide, and national telecommunications initiatives. The Library will cooperate with other local institutions, such as schools, county and city governments, health care facilities, etc., whenever possible to enable seamless and rapid connections for sharing of resources and for a cooperative learning environment.

The technology planners understand that the rapidly changing face of technology complicates and confounds the planning process. Planners also realize that funding may be inconsistent or cumulative and that a phased approach may be required. In order to accomplish the wise use of technology at the North Olympic Library System, the planners will frame the Technology Plan as a work-in-progress to be reviewed and revised continually. The Objectives and Budget sections may address specific time periods while the overall plan spans 3 years.

No long-range plan can hope to accurately predict either the eventual design of the national and state telecommunications infrastructure or the exact nature of the public library of the future. However, we can identify worthwhile existing network architectures, products, services, and trends within the information technology marketplace and make informed choices that will fit into an evolving situation. This evolving document has successfully guided technological advancement at NOLS since 1998.

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IMPORTANT CONSIDERATIONS

An increasingly important consideration of North Olympic Library System’s plan to utilize technology is library staff development. In order for the Library to benefit from the efficiencies and increased capabilities that new technologies promise, staff members need to be motivated to continuously improve and learn while the library commits both time and resources to that purpose. Emphasis will be placed on adaptability and technological proficiency in the hiring process.

North Olympic Library System is committed to increasing public and staff access to all its resources, and to upgrading its telecommunications capabilities whenever affordable and cost effective. The security and maintenance of our electronic systems and their contents is a high priority.

The Library will make every effort to make technology accessible to people with disabilities and to use assistive technologies along with low-tech solutions for providing equal access to all its resources.

TECHNOLOGY COMMITMENT

The people of Clallam County will have convenient access to all available information resources both from within the library and from remote locations when possible. The Library will make every effort to provide user-friendly interfaces to its electronic resources.

Patrons on the premises will be assisted as needed by a sufficient number of knowledgeable staff who can help them make the best use of both new and traditional information resources. Patrons will also be able to easily avail themselves of librarians' expertise from remote locations. Library professionals will function as consultants and gatherers of information and they will manipulate, store and transmit text, images, video, and audio data that may be retrieved. Staff will be supported by technology that ensures the provision of quality services that are efficient and cost-effective.

The North Olympic Library System will expand the scope and functionality of its site on the World Wide Web. The NOLS web site is an access point to the library's own electronic resources and will host links to local and regional community information, and an index to sites that the Library believes will enhance its patrons' experience online.

While the aim of NOLS Technology Plan is to provide the best possible service to our patrons, the library recognizes that library staff tools and education, and administrative tools are an essential part of our means for delivering that result. Administrative and technical objectives and strategies will stay focused on improving our ability to deliver public service.

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PUBLIC SERVICES OBJECTIVES and STRATEGIES

Continually expand and enhance the functionality and scope of electronic resources and tools for public access.

Update OPAC: migrated to GIS Polaris in December 2004. Improve configurations in 2005.

Authority Control service: contract to repair over 300K NOLS catalog authorities in 2005.

Database subscriptions: provided online since 1998, re-evaluated at each contract expiration.

Wireless access for library patrons at each branch, including authentication: 1^st quarter 2005.

Emphasize tools that assist Library patrons with personal growth and prepare them for employment opportunities. Make educational and self-help software applications available to the community and provide access to distance learning opportunities for patrons and staff. Provide the opportunity for learning to use electronic resources and tools.

Self-help collection development: ongoing by Reference staff.

Public Access Computers: 30 new, 6 new/refurbished, all others upgraded 1^st quarter 2005. Network: negotiate increased Internet access speed for July 2005.

Make provisions for computer-training laboratories to accommodate both staff development and public classes at all branches as feasible.

Port Angeles: Accomplished in 2002 by Bill and Melinda Gates grant

Sequim: In planning stage, attempting to accommodate space.

Forks and Clallam Bay: In consideration stage, plan for space and maintenance

Improve electronic access to Document Delivery and ILL services.

Library struggles with cost of ILL services, will work on improving efficiency.

Plan and implement electronic access to special local collection materials.

Kellogg collection photographs described and scanned thumbprints collected in local database – in progress. Continue by placing digitized images in cataloged and searchable database.

Begin digitizing Oral History and Language tapes by 2006.

Begin process for putting previously scanned local newspaper archives online 4^th quarter 2005

Increase the availability of electronic Government Documents and develop or acquire a series of instructional procedures for accessing federal government documents online.

Re-evaluate in 2005.

Establish and maintain standards for library web publications as well as procedures for the maintenance of pages on NOLS' web site.

Re-evaluate in 2005.

Improve automatic queuing for public computers.

Purchased Comprise SAM in 2004. Make SIP connection to new ILS January 2005.

Improve public access management configuration and feature set 1^st quarter 2005

Empower patrons to manage their own affairs.

Self-service checkout accomplished at Port Angeles and Sequim 4^th quarter 2003, other branches in consideration stage.

Enable self-service features in OPAC: self-registration, renewal, saved searches.

Begin planning for RFID in 2006.

Develop relationships with community government/cultural/educational/social/health agencies whenever possible to share instruction and information resources.

Develop a plan to promote the Library's electronic services and resources to the public.

Deputy Director position will be filled in 2005 and will coordinate emphasis on public relations.

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ADMINISTRATIVE AND TECHNICAL OBJECTIVES and STRATEGIES

Maintain internetwork architecture standards and procedures that insure reliability and functionality of networked resources. Patch and upgrade internetwork and network operating systems and devices, other equipment, services, and applications as necessary. Maintain vigilance of internetwork security throughout the system.

Ongoing.

Technology staff suggests that NOLS plan to budget for new internetwork technology in 2006 or 2007, and will research and make more specific recommendations by 1^st quarter 2006. In the meantime, Tech staff will maintain/repair or replace existing devices with discounted items.

Use standards based systems to ease remote administration.

Ongoing.

Implement SMS server in mid-2005.

Provide the best possible tools for staff to accomplish public service and library system management.

Staff computers: 45 new, 2 refurbished and others upgraded 1^st quarter 2005.

Improve the scope and functionality of the staff Intranet for dissemination of internal information including policies, procedures, white papers, calendars, time sheets, etc., and for Helpdesk support.

Install content management software in 2005 and train staff to use.

Upgrade mail server and improve junk filtering 1^st quarter 2005.

Design and implement SQL databases for all information stores. Plan for implementing imaging and document management for personnel records and other important internal documents.

SQL servers are available and in use by other services. New databases in consideration stage until staff time is available, expect to begin in 4^th quarter 2005.

Expand upon the use of accounting software to provide efficient management of NOLS finances.

Evaluate current situation and other options in 2005.

Create and maintain an online inventory of furniture equipment and tools; computers and software

SQL database is in beginning design stage. Finish by 3^rd quarter 2005 and create associated application interface immediately after.

A Computer Literacy Assessment document will be posted and periodically reviewed.

Periodically ask staff to use materials provided for self-evaluation, to identify areas where they should seek additional expertise

Periodically review the structure of the Technology Department to provide the best possible support for the Library.

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TECHNOLOGY MANAGEMENT and EVALUATION

North Olympic Library System will employ person(s) qualified to plan, implement and integrate computer and internetwork systems, along with integrated automated library systems. The Library acknowledges the ongoing need for the services of qualified information systems personnel. The Library has and will continue to purchase maintenance contracts for major technological systems when their oversight lies beyond the capabilities of in-house staff. The Library will allow for consultants and contractors as a budget contingency.

The Library budget includes funds for staff development and will stress the importance of continuing education to all employees and new hires. Classroom courses and Computer Based Training, including those aggregated and presented by the Washington State Library and some offered by the local Peninsula Community College, will be promoted to staff. The Library will continually acquire self-instruction materials including books, videos, software and online resources, and will encourage identification and recruitment of local mentors. NOLS staff will attend appropriate Library professional conferences and workshops in order to learn about current practices and to provide input to the profession. In-house training will be provided as new technologies are implemented and staff will be expected to succeed and/or seek additional help.

Evaluation of new technologies and services is ongoing by all North Olympic Library System technology planners in online discussions and monthly meetings. Other staff will be polled periodically. Public use of Library resources will be audited to determine how successfully we accomplish our service goals.

BUDGET CONSIDERATIONS

The Library prepares a budget annually in the fall preceding the budget year. Technology plans and requests involving the budget year are evaluated at this time. Projections for anticipated probable and possible future technology expenditures are presented for consideration. The Technology Planners attempt to estimate budgetary needs as far into the future as possible in order to allow informed decisions in the present. Final decisions are made by the North Olympic Library System Board of Trustees based on the recommendations of the Library Director.

NOLS owns or has budgeted for all definitely stated improvements outlined in this document. Items that are recommended, under consideration or beginning the planning process may not have funds allocated.

George Stratton, Director
North Olympic Library System