May 9, 2023

In preparation for the closing of most Access Pennsylvania school library participants during the summer months, HSLC will set holiday dates for all K12 libraries in SHAREit from 5/26/2023 through 9/10/2023.

This process will ensure that all ILL requests made during the summer months will skip schools and will be sent to libraries open for business. The system will automatically set your library to be excluded from appearing in lending strings from 5/26/2023 through 9/10/2023, but you will still be able to place requests.

If those dates do not work for your library or, if your school library will remain open during part of the summer, you may set your own dates. Just click here for the SHAREit Tip, Setting Holiday Dates.

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 effort to share the recent e-resource survey results, the chart below presents the top 10 most important resources currently in POWER Library selected by respondents representing elementary school libraries.

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

POWER Library/Access Pennsylvania training will occur in October. Training will be in-person only. Locations for fall training are based on a number of criteria including availability of training locations, costs of the location, available free parking, HSLC staff efficiency related to travel, etc. 

Registration, agenda, and more for fall training will be available in August. 

October 10, 2023
Midwestern Intermediate IU 4                                         
Grove City, PA

October 11, 2023
Westmoreland IU 7

Greensburg, PA                                                                                              

October 12, 2023
Appalachia Intermediate Unit 8

Altoona, PA

October 17, 2023
BLaST Intermediate Unit 17

Williamsport, PA

October 18, 2023
Colonial Intermediate Unit 20                                                           

Easton, PA                                                                                                

October 19, 2023
Capital Area Intermediate Unit 15

Enola, PA

October 25, 2023

The Alloy

King of Prussia, PA

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