Boston, MA – February 11, 2021 – Index Data is pleased to announce that the PALCI consortium and ConnectNY (CNY) will adopt ReShare to support their consortial resource sharing programs. The two consortia, both planning to go live this summer, will partner with Index Data for implementation, hosting, and support services.
By choosing ReShare, PALCI and CNY have affirmed their commitment to user-focused resource sharing services and an open, community-led approach to library software development. In addition to adopting the software, both consortia are founding members of the Project ReShare community and have contributed financial and personnel resources to the development of the ReShare product.
PALCI has been involved with Project ReShare since the project’s inception in 2018. The consortium provided $100,000 in seed money to jumpstart user experience development, and PALCI’s Executive Director, Jill Morris, served as the first ReShare steering committee chair from 2018-2020. As PALCI has begun its implementation, additional consortia staff have worked closely with Index Data’s team to provide development partners for integrated library system (ILS) integrations and to help design documentation and implementation workflows.
“The power of ReShare is in its vision and its incredible community,” noted Morris. “We’re completely re-envisioning how libraries share. By partnering with Index Data to implement ReShare, we’re empowering libraries to serve our patrons and researchers with modern services that contain costs and support innovation.”
CNY became a member of Project ReShare in 2019. As consortia and library staff begin planning for go-live, CNY has begun to deepen its involvement with the ReShare community. The consortium will provide an ILS development partner and has contributed several members to the project’s Subject Matter Experts Team.
Pamela Jones, Executive Director of CNY, shares her enthusiasm, “It is very exciting to be an early adopter of ReShare and to partner with Index Data. CNY was looking for a new approach to resource sharing when we joined Project ReShare, and implementing a library-developed, owned, and managed product is very appealing to the CNY community.“
Index Data has led the development efforts behind ReShare since the start of the project. As a Project ReShare member and certified service provider, the company has contributed significant staff time in the areas of design and architecture, project management, and software development. This deep involvement in the creation of the ReShare software will allow Index Data to engage with consortia and libraries as a true partner invested in the success of the software and the community.
“At the heart of our participation in Project ReShare is the idea that the rules of engagement between users and developers of software must change,” says Index Data co-founder Sebastian Hammer. “Everyone in the library community, from leaders to practitioners to commercial entities, are faced with huge challenges and an urgent need to change and evolve in response to these challenges. We believe that collective ownership of technology and open collaborations can be a powerful agent of change, and we’re incredibly proud and excited to be working with PALCI and CNY and all of the other ReShare partners to make this vision a reality.”
About PALCI
PALCI is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit membership organization, which originated in 1996 as the Pennsylvania Academic Library Consortium, Inc., a grassroots federation of 35 academic libraries in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Known today as the Partnership for Academic Library Collaboration and Innovation, the PALCI membership now consists of 71 academic and research libraries in Pennsylvania and surrounding states, with a mission to enable cost-effective and sustainable access to information resources and services for academic libraries in Pennsylvania and surrounding states. PALCI Members partner to serve over 800,000 students, faculty, and staff, through a variety of programs, including the highly-regarded E-ZBorrow consortial borrowing service. www.palci.org
About ConnectNY
CNY (ConnectNY, Inc.) is a consortium of independent academic institutions in New York State. The mission of ConnectNY is to share collections, leverage resources, and enhance services through cooperative initiatives and coordinated activities. A robust e-book program, a shared print trust, and OER program provide members with additional value. To learn more, visit www.connectny.org.
About Index Data
For over 25 years, Index Data has been building market-leading open source software and offering hosting, implementation services, and robust customer support relied on by libraries and service providers around the world. As a key stakeholder in Project ReShare and FOLIO, both community-owned, open platforms for resource sharing and library management, Index Data is uniquely positioned to provide customization and migration services for libraries looking to adopt the platforms. Together, we’re building the library platform of the future! To learn more about Index Data, visit www.indexdata.com.