A r c h i v e d I n f o r m a t i o n

Colorado Residents Get On-Ramp

Soon, even the smallest and most remote of Colorado libraries will have the resources to fully participate online in the statewide and national information infrastructure. As the result of a new $2.49 million federal library grant administered by OERI, the Colorado Department of Education will expand its statewide electronic library network. A key component of the grant is training librarians to assist patrons in using this new resource to enhance many aspects of their lives, such as community affairs, education, business, health, social services, and personal growth.

The Colorado State Library will build on its strong statewide network, Access Colorado Library and Information Network (ACLIN) which is already online, to improve free public access to information and library resources. Working with academic, public, school, and special libraries, it will add new databases and create one comprehensive network that is useful, practical, and accessible. In addition, ACLIN will expand and improve its connections across the state to allow all types of libraries and all residents equitable access to the library catalogs and other information databases around the state.

Initially, these enhancements will enable the statewide online delivery of documents from a centralized interlibrary loan service, as well as remote access to image collections at two major Colorado libraries. Ultimately, the project will determine the potential for statewide access to multimedia library resources.

The project will help establish the role of the statewide library network within Colorado's developing public and commercial information system. It will also determine to what extent library principles and policies, especially those that ensure equal access to information, are adopted within that environment.

For further information about the project, contact the project director: Susan Fayad, Networking and Resource Sharing Consultant, State Library and Adult Education Office, Colorado Department of Education, 201 East Colfax Avenue, Denver, Colorado 80203, phone: 303-866-6907, or e-mail: sfayad@csn.org.

Other states and institutions have also received OERI-administered grants to increase access to technology through libraries. For information about the Library Research and Demonstration Program, contact Neal Kaske, Library Programs, at 202-219-1315, or by e-mail to nkaske@inet.ed.gov. For fact sheets on other federal library programs, call 202-219-2293.

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OERI Online Access Math and Science Online