Library Technology Guides

PALNI welcomes Holt as new Operations Manager. The Private Academic Library Network of Indiana has announced the appointment of Patti Holt as the organization's new Operations Manager, effective September 11. Holt is charged with supporting the management and coordination of business operations for the consortium, including finance and accounting, insurance and human resource compliance, administrative data management, business processes, contracting, and other integral office infrastructure. [Full Announcement].

PALNI recognizes affordable learning champions with Open Educator Award. The Private Academic Library Network of Indiana has named nine faculty and staff members from its supported institutions as recipients of the PALSave Open Educator Award for the 2022-23 academic year. The award recognizes innovation and excellence in support of higher education, textbook affordability and student success. As part of the PALSave: PALNI Affordable Learning Program, these individuals have been key players in the creation and adoption of Open Educational Resources, or OER—a move that reduces costs for students, improves access to required texts, and increases student success and retention. [Full Announcement].

PALNI Awards Library Innovation Grants to Three Supported Institutions. The Private Academic Library Network of Indiana (PALNI) has awarded $20,000 in grant funds to three of its supported institutions in recognition of their innovative ideas for enhancing student learning and success. Butler University, the University of Indianapolis, and Wabash College are the 2023 recipients of the PALNI Library Innovation Grant—an award that funds programs, projects and initiatives that align with PALNI strategic priorities and support deep collaboration throughout the consortium. [Full Announcement].

PALNI and PALCI launch new Hyku for Consortia toolkit and redesigned website. The Private Academic Library Network of Indiana and The Partnership for Academic Library Collaboration and Innovation announced the launch of a redesigned Hyku for Consortia website and new collaborative repository toolkit. Developed as part of the IMLS grant-funded Hyku for Consortia initiative, these resources provide new assets and best practices to assist consortia and groups of libraries in creating and managing their own digital repositories. The revamped website offers information and demonstrations for those seeking to deploy institutional repository solutions, while the toolkit provides guidance on communication and engagement, documentation and training, staffing and service models, governance, and technical support. [Full Announcement].

PALNI awards grants to fund eight open textbooks. The Private Academic Library Network of Indiana (PALNI) has awarded PALSave Textbook Creation Grants to fund eight open textbooks from faculty authors at its supported institutions. The grants will allow these educators to develop open textbooks that are freely available online, making them part of a statewide effort to reduce the cost of course materials for college students. Financed with support from Lilly Endowment Inc., authors will receive up to $6,500 per project. [Full Announcement].

PALNI joins NISO as a voting member. The Private Academic Library Network of Indiana recently became a voting member of the National Information Standards Organization. Through this membership, PALNI will play an integral role in advancing standards-based library infrastructure and innovation through collaboration with cultural, scientific, scholarly and professional communities. [Full Announcement].

PALSave Textbook Creation Grant program releases first open textbook, The Bible and Music. In “The Bible and Music,” the first open textbook published with a grant from the PALSave: PALNI Affordable Learning program, author James McGrath, Ph.D., Clarence L. Goodwin Chair in New Testament Language and Literature at Butler University, explores the intersection of faith and music while inviting readers to experience the material firsthand through interactive video and audio clips. [Full Announcement].

PALNI and PALCI continue to remove barriers to Hyku adoption with IMLS grant. The Private Academic Library Network of Indiana nd The Partnership for Academic Library Collaboration and Innovation are midway through a 2-year, $248,050 grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services to support Hyku for Consortia: Removing Barriers to Adoption. With this award, granted in 2021 as part of the National Leadership Grants for Libraries Program, the partners are increasing the flexibility, accessibility, and usability of Hyku, the multi-tenant repository platform system. [Full Announcement].

PALNI celebrates 30 years of excellence. The Private Academic Library Network of Indiana (PALNI) proudly celebrates its 30th anniversary in 2022. Since its first library-to-library collaboration in the 1980s, PALNI has worked to advance the educational missions of its supported institutions by sharing resources and leveraging expertise. The consortium was approved as a nonprofit organization in 1992 and has grown to support 24 private colleges, universities and seminaries—serving more than 47,500 students and faculty throughout the state. [Full Announcement].

PALNI awarded an ARPA grant to launch an initiative in open bibliographic data management. The Private Academic Library Network of Indiana announced that it has received an American Rescue Plan Act grant of $225,000 from the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services, administered by the Indiana State Library. The planning grant will enable PALNI to identify ways of expanding current infrastructure to support open bibliographic data management tools, which library staff use to manage and share collections. The project aims to significantly enhance financial sustainability and access to information, allowing libraries to further deliver on their critical role in student success. [Full Announcement].

PALNI awarded additional funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. to support PA. Indianapolis-based Lilly Endowment Inc. has awarded the Private Academic Library Network of Indiana (PALNI) a $275,000 grant to support PALSave, the consortium's affordable learning initiative. [Full Announcement].

PALNI awarded ARPA grant to launch initiative in open bibliographic data management. The Private Academic Library Network of Indiana announced that it has received an American Rescue Plan Act grant of $225,000 from the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services, administered by the Indiana State Library. The planning grant will enable PALNI to identify ways of expanding current infrastructure to support open bibliographic data management tools, which library staff use to manage and share collections. The project aims to significantly enhance financial sustainability and access to information, allowing libraries to further deliver on their critical role in student success. [Full Announcement].

Private Academic Library Network of Indiana's Affordable Education Initiative Garners Support from Lilly Endowment. Indianapolis-based Lilly Endowment Inc. has awarded $520,000 to the Private Academic Library Network of Indiana (PALNI) for PALSave, an affordable education initiative that will combat rising textbook costs and their detrimental effects on student success and retention. [Full Announcement].

Library consortia partner on innovative institutional repository solutions. The Private Academic Library Network of Indiana is developing collaborative instances of two open-source institutional repository platforms, Islandora and Hyku, via partnerships with the Washington Research Library Consortium and the Pennsylvania Academic Library Consortium, Inc.. The work will include analyzing and improving the functionality and capacity of the software to support collaboration. To benefit the wider community, all developments from the partnerships will be openly available for adaptation. [Full Announcement].

Bethel College and Saint Mary's College join the PALNI Consortium and the PALNI group OCLC WorldShare Management Services. The Private Academic Library Network of Indiana announced the addition of two institutions, Bethel College and Saint Mary's College, to the PALNI family. Bethel College and Saint Mary's College join a highly engaged and collaborative group of private college and seminary libraries across the state bringing the number of supported institutions up to twenty-four. PALNI uses OCLC's WorldShare Management Services to provide direct, unmediated access to the collective collections of all the institutions without the need to export or import records. OCLC is also continuing development in WMS to support collaboration in analytics, licensing, and more. [Full Announcement].