Activity Details
Title: TexShare databases
Narrative: Five hundred sixty-one (561) TexShare Consortium member libraries participated in the TexShare Databases Program in SFY 2023. TexShare facilitates the statewide acquisition of electronic resources, which resulted in a cost savings of $214,923,731.73 compared to vendor retail costs in SFY 2023.
Available 24 hours a day in the homes or offices of registered patrons of participating Texas libraries, these resources provide access to a wide range of subjects for Texas students and library patrons. They enable libraries to broaden the range of materials and services available to their patrons, providing access to broad multi-topic authoritative full-text content for both advanced scholars and the general public. TexShare electronic resources are selected with input from a representative group of Texas librarians who review electronic resources offered through an open solicitation process.
TexShare core electronic resources are licensed statewide for participating libraries, who share in the licensing costs. One hundred twenty-nine (129) core electronic resources were available to TexShare member libraries in SFY 2023; 29 of these were provided to both TexShare and to its sister TexQuest electronic resources program for public school districts and open enrollment charter schools. Database topics include homework help for students, consumer health information, general academic and business research, biography and genealogy, e-books, and career development resources.
The 129 resources provided through the TexShare Databases program were used 52,645,179 times (total item investigations) with 18,154,339 full-text and e-media accesses (total item requests) in SFY 2023.
To ensure that TexShare electronic resources can be used by participating institutions, vendors include training and outreach in the cost of the electronic resources. A total of 1,383 public, academic, and special librarians participated in TSLAC and vendor TexShare training sessions in SFY 2023.
Intent: Improve users’ ability to obtain and/or use information resources.
Activity: Content
Mode: Acquisition
Format: Digital
Quantity
Number of hardware acquired: 0
Number of software acquired: 0
Number of licensed databases acquired: 129
Number of print materials (books & government documents) acquired: 0
Number of electronic materials acquired: 0
Number of audio/visual units (audio discs, talking books, other recordings) acquired: 0
Partner Information
Organization Type of Partner Organization(s):
Libraries: Yes
Historical Societies or Organizations: No
Museums: No
Archives: No
Cultural Heritage Organization Multi-type: No
Preschools: No
Schools: No
Adult Education: No
Human Service Organizations: No
Other: No
Legal Type of Partner Organization(s):
Federal Government: No
State Government: No
Local Government (excluding school districts): No
School District: No
Non-Profit: No
Private Sector: No
Tribe/Native Hawaiian Organization: No
Beneficiaries
Is the activity directed at the library workforce: No
For a targeted group or for the general population: General
Locale
Is the activity state-wide: Yes
Specific Locations: No
Library Types
Public Libraries: 401
Academic Libraries: 158
SLAA: 1
Consortia: 0
Special Libraries: 2
School Libraries: 0
Other: 0
Activity Details
Title: E-Read Texas
Narrative: E-Read Texas brings electronic books to Texans served by small community libraries in all parts of the state. E-Read Texas provides library e-books, digital audiobooks, and the SimplyE e-reader application to make it possible for all Texans served by public libraries to access e-books and digital audiobooks. E-Read Texas began as a trial in SFY 2020 and became a full program under the legislative authorization provided for the TexShare Consortium in SFY 2021.
TSLAC funds implementation and hosting for the SimplyE mobile e-reader app for public libraries that either serve a population under 100,000 people (based on data submitted to the Texas Public Libraries Annual Report) or which have electronic materials expenditures of less that $100,000 annually. SimplyE was developed by the New York Public Library in partnership with other major libraries in response to challenges patrons face in accessing e-books. As of August 2023, 207 public libraries from all parts of Texas were able to use SimplyE so that their patrons could access not only collections of e-books licensed by the libraries themselves, but also content licensed by TSLAC.
The E-Read Texas e-book and audiobook collection primarily includes adult fiction and popular non-fiction and is most appropriate for an adult audience as described in the E-Read Texas Collection Development policy (available at LINK). All content can be accessed using the SimplyE mobile application, although some titles can also be accessed online by anyone physically located in Texas. The collection is chosen to include titles that will be popular with patrons, with enough copies to keep hold lists short. TSLAC staff, along with the TexShare E-Book Working Group, are responsible for the selection of content for the program.
The number of e-books and digital audiobooks ordered this year was 3,565; as of August 2023, a total of 15,345 e-books and 4,292 digital audiobooks were available to patrons of participating libraries. These materials were downloaded a total of 38,131 times in SFY 2023.
Intent: Improve users’ ability to obtain and/or use information resources.
Activity: Content
Mode: Acquisition
Format: Digital
Quantity
Number of hardware acquired: 0
Number of software acquired: 0
Number of licensed databases acquired: 0
Number of print materials (books & government documents) acquired: 0
Number of electronic materials acquired: 3,565
Number of audio/visual units (audio discs, talking books, other recordings) acquired: 0
Partner Information
Organization Type of Partner Organization(s):
Libraries: Yes
Historical Societies or Organizations: No
Museums: No
Archives: No
Cultural Heritage Organization Multi-type: No
Preschools: No
Schools: No
Adult Education: No
Human Service Organizations: No
Other: No
Legal Type of Partner Organization(s):
Federal Government: No
State Government: No
Local Government (excluding school districts): No
School District: No
Non-Profit: No
Private Sector: No
Tribe/Native Hawaiian Organization: No
Beneficiaries
Is the activity directed at the library workforce: No
For a targeted group or for the general population: Targeted
Geographic community of the targeted group: Urban
Suburban
Rural
For what age groups: 18-25 years
26-49 years
50-59 years
60-69 years
70+ years
For what economic types: Economic Not Applicable
For what ethnicity types: Ethnicity Not Applicable
Is the activity directed at families: No
Is the activity directed at intergenerational groups: No
Is the activity directed at immigrants/refugees: No
Is the activity directed at those with disabilities: No
Limited functional literacy or informational skills: No
Is the activity category not already captured: No
Locale
Is the activity state-wide: Yes
Specific Locations: No
Library Types
Public Libraries: 207
Academic Libraries: 0
SLAA: 1
Consortia: 0
Special Libraries: 0
School Libraries: 0
Other: 0
Activity Details
Title: TexQuest K-12 Databases
Narrative: TexQuest is a statewide digital resources program that provides anytime, anywhere access to high quality, authoritative digital resources to all educators, students, and students’ immediate family members in participating Texas K-12 public schools and open enrollment charter schools.
Supported, in part, by appropriations from the Texas State Legislature and fees paid by participating institutions, TexQuest enhances student learning and success in schools by providing digital resources to meet the information needs of Texas K-12 students through a program available statewide. The primary objective of TexQuest’s digital resources is to assist, enrich, and support instruction and independent learning Texas K-12 schools.
Available 24 hours a day in school and at home, these resources provide access to a wide range of subjects for Texas students at all grade levels. They support the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) standards from the Texas State Board of Education. TexQuest electronic resources are selected with input from a representative group of Texas school libraries who review electronic resources proposed through an open solicitation process.
During this program year, 859 public school districts and charter schools, with 8,757 elementary, middle, and high school campuses, participated in the TexQuest electronic resources program. TSLAC facilitates the statewide acquisition of electronic resources, which resulted in a savings of $231,461,740.09 compared to vendor retail costs in SFY 2023. The 37 resources provided through the TexQuest program were used 87,464,548 times (total item investigations) with 28,498,726 full-text and e-media accesses (total item requests) in SFY 2023.
To ensure that TexQuest electronic resources can be used by participating institutions, TSLAC contracts with an educational service center (ESC-20) to provide support and training. A total of 3,777 school librarians and educators participated in trainings provided by ESC-20 in SFY 2023, and 1,246 consulting sessions were recorded. Another 116 received training from a TexQuest vendor or TSLAC trainer.
Intent: Improve users’ ability to obtain and/or use information resources.
Activity: Content
Mode: Acquisition
Format: Digital
Quantity
Number of hardware acquired: 0
Number of software acquired: 0
Number of licensed databases acquired: 37
Number of print materials (books & government documents) acquired: 0
Number of electronic materials acquired: 0
Number of audio/visual units (audio discs, talking books, other recordings) acquired: 0
Partner Information
Organization Type of Partner Organization(s):
Libraries: No
Historical Societies or Organizations: No
Museums: No
Archives: No
Cultural Heritage Organization Multi-type: No
Preschools: No
Schools: No
Adult Education: No
Human Service Organizations: No
Other: No
Legal Type of Partner Organization(s):
Federal Government: No
State Government: No
Local Government (excluding school districts): No
School District: No
Non-Profit: No
Private Sector: No
Tribe/Native Hawaiian Organization: No
Beneficiaries
Is the activity directed at the library workforce: No
For a targeted group or for the general population: Targeted
Geographic community of the targeted group: Urban
Suburban
Rural
For what age groups: 0-5 years
6-12 years
13-17 years
18-25 years
For what economic types: Economic Not Applicable
For what ethnicity types: Ethnicity Not Applicable
Is the activity directed at families: No
Is the activity directed at intergenerational groups: No
Is the activity directed at immigrants/refugees: No
Is the activity directed at those with disabilities: No
Limited functional literacy or informational skills: No
Is the activity category not already captured: No
Locale
Is the activity state-wide: Yes
Specific Locations: No
Library Types
Public Libraries: 0
Academic Libraries: 0
SLAA: 1
Consortia: 0
Special Libraries: 0
School Libraries: 8757
Other: 0
