LOUIS update and request: LALDF-L - Louisiana Academic Library Directors Forum LALDF-L@LISTSERV.LSU.EDU

http://appl003.lsu.edu/ocsweb/louishome.nsf/$Content/Louisiana+Academic+Library+Information+Network+Consortium?OpenDocument

Good morning everyone,

As you should be aware by now, the LALINC Public Relations Task Force has been instrumental in creating ways to get the word out about the LOUIS funding issue. And many of you have also taken time out of your day to personally call or write to your local legislators. I think this has been successful in that almost every elected official, the Governor and the Regents now know about LOUIS. It is safe to say that everyone that hears about LOUIS and the benefits/services/savings agrees that it is a model for how to do “more with less”. BUT, no new funding has resulted from this PR push. In order to keep the pressure on , attached are recommendations from the LALINC PR Task Force with ideas of how to get the word out on your campus. Please take a moment to review and implement what you can.

The Board of Regents has only allocated $500,000 of the 11-12 $2,270,000 that is needed. NSULA did meet with Sen Gerald Long to ask him to introduce a bill to centrally fund LOUIS. It will be hard for him to pull this off without support from other Senators and Representatives. So, I’m asking that each library Dean or Director, call the elected officials that represent your campus and ask that they work together to introduce a bill to centrally fund LOUIS. The amount needed for 11-12, is $2.27m.

Without central funding, your library/campus is responsible for paying the difference. The LALINC Executive Committee understands that this isn’t something easy to do and has implemented a new procedure this year. Each of you has been required to sign a letter of intent that indicates you will pay the LOUIS Membership Fee for 11-12. While you have seen estimates of the fee, the exact amount will not be calculated till later in the year.

There are still a handful of sites that have not signed the letter of intent and today is the deadline. Without this signature, your library will be excluded from access starting July 1, 2011. While this may seem extreme, we have to start the negotiation process for all resources and services in the coming weeks and without the commitment, we will be forced to exclude the campus. This is the ugly, unfortunate truth behind no central funding and not something any of us look forward to.

In conclusion, please review the attachment and implement what you can. And please call your elected officials asking for central funding. The deadline for filing bills is April 29th. If we all start today and make these calls, there is a chance we can get the central funding and offset what each campus will be required to pay.

Thank you for all the efforts you have put forth to date. I know this whole process has been a distraction to the normal activities in your library and with your staff. We all appreciate the efforts of those that are going out of their way. I would like to extend a big thank you to the LALINC PR Task Force. They are: Mike Matthews, NSULA; Karen Niemla, ULM; Carla Clark, LSUS; Nicole Morello, BRCC; Tony Fonseca, Nicholls.

Sara