MCHENRY, IL – November 6, 2007 – A student in the Hoover City Schools can search for a book for a class assignment right from home, and have it delivered to his or her desk the next morning.
That's just one of the benefits the Alabama district is bringing to its 12,000 students after adopting Destiny Library Manager from Follett Software Company. Hoover City began using the centralized web-based library management system at the beginning of the 2007-2008 school year.
Unlike the site-based library automation the district used previously, Destiny maintains the catalogs of all 16 district libraries on a single set of servers at the central office. Librarians, teachers, students and even parents can access the library records from any computer with Internet access.
According to Hoover High School Library Media Specialist Sonya Jordan, the district switched from its older site-based library system because it wanted to make library resources more available to students. "We wanted to give students the advantage of being able to search from home for materials that they need for assignments, and we wanted get their parents involved and let them see what library resources are available," Jordan recalled. "We wanted to be on the web, and Destiny gave us that option."
Jordan was one of two library media specialists who served on the district's Destiny implementation team. She said that students are responding well to the new system. "Students especially love Destiny. They love the fact they can renew their own materials at home and reserve materials at home," Jordan said. "We check for reservations in the morning and actually deliver the material to students in the classroom."
Additional Services
Hoover City Schools opted to enhance their Destiny implementation to bring even more benefits to students. They have chosen to use TitlePeek, which gives students a chance to preview books online; and One Search, which lets students get information from the school library and the Internet as a whole with a single search, and WebPath Express, which limits student searches to approved, grade-appropriate web sites.
"We want to encourage reading among students," Jordan said. "With TitlePeek, students can not only see a picture of the books they find in a search, they can actually read the first few pages of many of the books. It really helps them find books they'll enjoy."
About Destiny Resource Management Solution
Follett Software Company addresses the challenges of education resource management with its award-winning Destiny Resource Management Solution. Destiny is a comprehensive, browser based system that gives districts and schools the power to manage resources centrally. The solution includes Destiny Library Manager, Destiny Textbook Manager, Destiny Media Manager and Destiny Asset Manager. Districts can choose to deploy the system in its entirety or select those modules that address top resource management priorities.
About Follett
Follett Software Company, is the partner that over half of America's school districts trust to help them manage everything from library books to laptops, textbooks to trombones, computers to curriculum kits and digital cameras to data-driven decision-making. Follett Software Company helps districts of all sizes track and use resources more efficiently so their dollars are best leveraged to help each and every student.
Follett Software is a subsidiary of Follett Corporation – a $2.2 billion, privately-held company that provides products, services and solutions to the educational marketplace. Follett Corporation was founded in 1873 and has its headquarters in River Grove, Illinois.
