Re: Statewide databases

[Donna Baumbach 407-823-2056 <BAUMBAD@MAIL.FIRN.EDU>]

I am replying to the list since no specific address or name was included:

1) Does your state have a statewide database for school libraries?  If so,
what is the name of your state?

----->Florida has a statewide database for school library media centers in
public schools called SUNLINK.

2) Is it a bibliographic database of school libraries?  or is it full text?
If full text, what databases?

----->SUNLINK is a bibliographic database of school library media holdings.

3) Does your state have interrlibrary loan for schools?

----->SUNLINK has an interlibrary loan feature.  In fact, the primary
purpose of the SUNLINK project is resource sharing.  School districts have
established interlibrary loan policies for their schools.  The SUNLINK
resource sharing protocols are intended as general, common sense guidelines
to work WITH school and district policies and procedures.  SUNLINK provides
the ability to search a school's holdings first, then the district, then
the region and then the state.  Most resource sharing takes place within
the district.

4) Who is the contact person for the databases?  and telephone number?

----->SUNLINK is a project of the Florida Department of Education and is
managed by the University of Central Florida's College of Education.

        DOE Contact:            Sandy Ulm               (904) 488-8184
        Project Director:       Donna Baumbach          (407) 823-5045
        Associate Director:     Linda Miller            (407) 823-0070
        Research Associate:     Mark Yannie             (407) 823-0085

You may address questions or comments about the project to
SUNLINK@mail.firn.edu.

5) Has the database been successful?  Have you enjoyed using it?

----->We are about to begin the third year of using SUNLINK in FLorida's
public schools.  It has been well received by school library media
specialists and district level media staff.  We are told it is used by
elementary students, secondary students, teachers and administrators.

6) What problems has it presented?

----->SUNLINK is a cd-rom based product; many schools report that they do
no have adequate equipment to dedicate a cd-rom workstation to SUNLINK.
THis, of course, makes access difficult.  The legislature has provided some
funding for equipment this year to help to begin to alleviate this problem.

The second "problem" as you might guess is maintenance.  The database MUST
be maintained by having each school report adds and deletes in a timely
manner.  As more and more schools enter the project, the communication and
coordination required to maintain the database becomes more time consuming
as well as more critical.  We have several methods in place to help make
this as painless and accurate as possible.

The third problem is visibility.  We need media specialists to understand
and use the database and promite its use with teachers, administrators and
students in order for it to be the tool it has been designed to be.
We have several training sessions annually for media specialists to attend
in their regions, but training and information dissemination remain key
components to acceptance and use.

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Donna Baumbach
baumbad@mail.firn.edu

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