Overview+and+Mission+Statement


 * Project Background**

The town of Magnolia, Oregon is situated on the coast, about an hour away from Eugene. It's currently home to approximately 8500 people, swelling to nearly twice that size during the summer tourist season. The Magnolia Library District contains two branches serving five communities in the surrounding area.The main branch is staffed by a total of seven employees: the library director, three librarians, and three library assistants. The library holds a collection of 20,000 items, with an annual circulation of 55,000.

In recent years, the Magnolia Public Library has found itself serving an increasingly diverse population even as its current library systems have begun to grow obsolete. The current technology was put in place following a state technology grant in 1998, but is no longer meeting the library's needs. The current ILS is SirsiDynix Unicorn, but patrons have expressed a desire for an improved OPAC and additional services.

While the library staff would like to upgrade to an entirely new ILS in the near future, at the present time budget pressures and technological limitations mean that the prospect of major change must be approached cautiously. The staff agree that cloud-based or hosted solutions are an attractive option, given that they bypass the need for additional investment in hardware and labor hours within the library itself. The technology planning committee has undertaken to explore various cloud-based library software ranging from add-on modules to complete ILS systems in order to determine the best path forward in both the short- and long-term.


 * Current Technology Configuration**

The Magnolia Public Library uses the SirsiDynix Unicorn ILS. Hardware includes four desktop computers for staff use, three for patron internet access, one dedicated catalog computer for patron use, and one self-checkout station, as well as a printer, barcode readers, etc. The self-checkout station uses self-check software from ITG, which integrates with the Unicorn catalog. Public internet computers use Cybrarian software, likewise integrated with the Unicorn ILS. These computers offer a variety of software, including office and web browser applications as well as games and educational products for children. The library also subscribes Library2Go and to various proprietary databases, which can be accessed through the library's website using patron ID verification through the Sirsi server. SIP2 (Standard Interchange Protocol) installations connect the library computers and self-checkout station to the Sirsi server.


 * Mission Statement**

In order to aid the pursuit of lifelong learning, the Magnolia Public Library will provide all community members access to information and also guidance evaluating that information. The library will remain receptive and responsive to community needs and adjust itself accordingly, while maintaining high standards of staff and volunteers who will be appropriately trained to most effectively serve all library users. This mission supports 3 major goals included in the library vision.