WSDLC Buzz

Martha Berninger, Resource for Libraries and Lifelong Learning
“Participating in the WSDLC school ebook purchasing consortium makes it easy to add eBooks (or expand your library’s current eBook collection) at a very reasonable cost. Participation also lessens the administrative burden on your school library.”
Kathy Boguszewski, School District of Cambridge
“We in Cambridge found that by joining the consortium we were able to introduce ebooks to the staff and students. Their print usage from the elementary school library is outstanding. Not as heavy print usage at Middle and High Schools When they discovered overdrive ebooks they all wanted audiobooks from OverDrive so we purchased those separately. We got our teachers involved with building the collection. When they saw the books appeared within a day or 2 they were hooked. Internet access in homes is still limited in rural communities though. We are looking at solutions. We start 1-1 Chrome books in grades 6 and 9 in a couple weeks. We expect there will be increased usage of OverDrive materials as well as other digital resources. We also will introduce Guided Inquiry Design as a research model, so access to peer-reviewed digital resources will also increase. The consortium offers the best choices in books. And hearing tips from experienced users at WEMTA Conference was a plus. I am thrilled with what the consortium offers at a wonderful price.”
Jennifer Peterson, Menasha Joint School District
“Joining the WSDLC is a great way to have a large starting or addition to your ebook collection. As someone who already had a large ebook collection, I find it saves me time and money. I no longer have to search out Battle of the Books, Golden Archer, and other award books as they are instantly in our collections once they are announced. When there are waiting lists on WSDLC more books are purchased to fill those gaps. I can then use money in other areas I have high demand, such as young adult audiobooks.”
Beth Hennes, Marshall Public Schools
As a small district, a couple years ago we eased into an eBook collection starting with OverDrive for one building with the kids with the most devices–the high schoolers, because that was all we could afford and we thought it would be the most bang for our buck. Later, we added the middle school, because some of those titles would overlap. However, we really didn’t feel like we had an option that would offer enough digital titles that our youngest students would want, without building a digital collection from scratch and devoting a lot of money to it.

However, when the Consortium came along, so did our solution. Not only can we offer a huge collection to our younger readers, but we added on so many more options to our older readers–and it’s only going to continue to grow. We didn’t lose the titles we already had; our students still have dibs on those copies. We’re also finding that it’s more possible for us to shift our digital collection development focus a little since the important stuff is covered, and we can work on offering more audiobooks to our kids next.

Holly Selle, Sturgeon Bay Schools
The WSDLC is a great way to provide digital resources for your students without breaking your budget. I love that the collection is divided by grade levels, so I don’t have to worry about what my students are reading. Although I had ebooks in the past for my middle and high school students, my selection was limited due to cost. Students are amazed now when they look at our collection and see tons of familiar titles.”
Peg Billing, Tomahawk School District
“The WSDLC has expanded our collection and given the freedom to be able to instantly respond to requests by my users. We put money into out Advantage account so I can add titles immediately – drawing students in as they do not have to wait AND teachers as they get what they ask for immediately. This IS possible because my school district dollars now can directly meet the needs of my students AND I have access to a huge collection and many choices for our students. A” win, win” for everyone!”
Jill Polglaze, Franklin Public Schools
“Hundreds more ebooks at fingertips
No fines, no losing them, no damage
Easy to use for all”