LIBRARY AUTOMATION

6320
Date Issued: 6/1/98

Year Effective: 98-99

Service Descriptors

Class/Division: Instructional Resources (23)
Type Student: N/A
Delivery Method: Central Service
Time Period: July-June (43)
Location: BOCES Center (11), District Classroom (12), Other, Specify (13)

Nature of Service

BOCES operates a library automation and database development service designed to provide an integrated regional database, online catalog, circulation management, records conversion, and interlibrary loan system for two or more component districts.

Standards for Approval

GENERAL REQUIREMENTS Compliance with applicable laws and regulations, the general guidelines, including Commissioner's Regulations 90.18 and Education Law, Sections 282 and 283, and the following specific standards are required:
SPECIFIC REQUIREMENTS

A service plan must be submitted with the initial application for approval.  The service plan must describe: the service provided, the role of BOCES staff in the management and operation of the program, the role of consultants and/or contract services in the provision of the program, and the basis on which participants are billed.

The service should be managed by the School Library System director with technology services support.  There must be evidence of cooperative planning between the school library system director and the BOCES instructional support service staff and the Regional Information Center staff in the development of the computer-based portion of the service.

BOCES staff may provide training as deemed appropriate.  The use of consultants and/or contracted services to provide direct services to districts is not eligible for BOCES aid.

Professional staffing must be shown in the CO-SER.  Professional staffing must constitute at least ten percent of the service expense, exclusive of equipment purchase.  A percentage of time of the School Library System Director must be included in the professional staffing.

All activities provided under this service must be consistent with the mission, operation and standards of the School Library System.  Operation of the system should be fully consistent with: 1) the database program used by the School Library System which is consonant with the regional long-range automation plan submitted by the Reference and Research Library Resources System; 2) Regional Information/Computer Center Services or regional network based services, all of which are based on the Chapter 793 plan.

The requirement for standardized cataloging of data or visual elements must adhere to machine readable cataloging (U.S. MARC) format standards for database entries.

Districts participating in database development (records conversion), both retrospective and new acquisitions, may be provided with the entire database in any usable form in sufficient quantities to serve district libraries.  Eligibility for aid on equipment necessary to use the database in electronic format will be approved if it is part of a network which meets requirements for sharing.  The network connection may be either online or dial-up access.

Hardware per school library media center eligible for BOCES aid may include the following if it is networked for utilization with the library automation software:

  • 1 network file server, with appropriate back-up devices
  • 6 workstations (including one circulation and one management workstation) for up to 600 students enrolled – additional workstations will be eligible for BOCES aid at the ratio of 1 per 200 additional students enrolled
  • 2 printers (output devices) – additional printers will be eligible for BOCES aid at the ratio of 1 per 4 additional workstations
  • 1 uninterrupted power supply
  • 1 modem or other analogous device for exploring beyond the library’s walls
  • 1 direct (non-switchboard) telephone line – ongoing telephone charges are not included
  • 3 barcode scanning devices

Software per school library media center eligible for BOCES aid includes:

  • network operating system software
  • telecommunications software
  • library automation software
  • management system software
  • computer operating system software

Supplies per school library media center eligible for BOCES aid includes:

  • initial backup tapes, as needed
  • initial barcode labels, as needed
  • initial printer supplies, as needed
Databases which have been developed cooperatively by component districts and which are shard between two or more participating school districts are eligible for BOCES aid.
AID ISSUES In addition to these specific requirements, Library Automation Services must be consistent with criteria/guidelines for Instructional Technology Service (6360) excluding the staff development requirements for Model Schools. See also criteria/guidelines for Library Media/Services (6316).