May 2, 2023

This notice is provided to alert you that the Annual Technology Support Fee invoice was mailed to your institution in April. If you need your invoice e-mailed to you, please contact us at support@hslc.org. 

Please note that for schools, invoices were mostly mailed to the district office for consolidated payment.

Thank you!
Thank you to everyone who has already paid for 23-24! These payments help HSLC cover costs during the transition from one fiscal year to the next while we await Library Access funding appropriations.

We accept payments online
Please note that the fee may be paid via credit card on the HSLC website at: https://www.hslc.org/payments-accepted/
Please contact us if you need assistance.

HSLC's W-9 is available at:
https://www.hslc.org/wp-content/uploads/HSLC-W-9-2022.pdf

Did you know?
The Access Pennsylvania and POWER Library programs are underwritten with Pennsylvania Department of Education and Federal grant funding. These funds cover most of the resources (staff, networks, hardware, and software) to offer these services at no cost to Pennsylvania taxpayers.

PDE, through the Office of Commonwealth Libraries, contracts with HSLC for basic services that comprise the Access PA/POWER Library programs.

HSLC charges an annual technology support fee to provide enhanced support, training, and custom programming for participating libraries. Technology support fees also underwrite costs to administer the grant, capital expenses for new hardware, and other unbudgeted expenses in support of the Access PA/POWER Library program.

On behalf of the Pennsylvania Department of Education, Office of Commonwealth Libraries, Hosting Solutions and Library Consulting (HSLC) has issued a Request for Proposals for electronic resource subscriptions to be included in POWER Library, effective July 2023. Proposals from vendors are due on or before May 31, 2023.

What is the timeline?

• RFP Issue Date May, 1, 2023
• Question and Answer Period May 12 – 19, 2023
• Proposal Due Date May 31, 2023 (5:00 PM)
• Evaluation Period June 1 – 16, 2023
• Award Date June 30 – July 30, 2023

Which vendors have we attempted to notify? View the list here:
https://www.hslc.org/2023_e-resources_rfp/vendors_notified/

Thank You To Everyone That Completed the Survey!

In our continuing series sharing a bit of the e-resource survey results, the chart below presents the top 10 most important resources currently in POWER Library selected by respondents representing public libraries.

Top 10 Most Important Resources Currently In POWER Library Selected By Respondents Representing Public Libraries 

Need a One-Stop-Shop to Assist Your Patrons with Employment Information? The PA Job Resources Webpage Has You Covered!

Want to learn more about job resources in POWER Library available for your patrons/students? Check out the POWER Academy tutorial titled Career and Job Resources in POWER Library!

Due to a lack of content updates, CyberSmarts will cease to be available in POWER Library as of June 30, 2023. This includes the e-books in CyberSmarts and Teen CyberSmarts.  HSLC, in consultation with the Office of Commonwealth Libraries, decided to re-purpose those subscription funds toward other POWER Library e-resources in the next fiscal year.

What do Participating Institutions Need to Do?

1. If your institution provides a direct link to CyberSmarts from your website, blog, Google Classroom, etc., it will be necessary to remove the link(s) by June 30, 2023.
2. If your institution provides a link to the e-resource 'List All' or 'By Subject' lists, CyberSmarts will be automatically removed from these lists on June 30, 2023. No action is required from institutions that only provide a link to the e-resource 'List All' or 'By Subject' lists.

Information about an Alternate Resource

A review of comparable resources has revealed that the best alternative is Commonsense.org's Digital Citizenship Program. The Digital Citizenship Program is updated regularly, targets a variety of learning styles, is well-produced, and covers the entire K-12 curriculum.

Help Keep the Participant Directory Up-To-Date!

Do You Need Support? We Are Here To Help!

If you need support, please use one of the options provided below to contact HSLC. 

Complete the POWER Library Support Form
Email us at support@hslc.org
Call us at 215-222-1532