RALEIGH, N.C. — June 26, 2023 — NC LIVE is excited to announce the addition of a custom JSTOR eBook collection to its portfolio of permanent online resources. This collection, which includes titles from 19 publishers, was selected by NC LIVE’s Resource Advisory Committee with an emphasis on titles most popular worldwide. For libraries that currently have JSTOR eBooks, the addition of these eBooks to NC LIVE’s permanent collection means individual libraries are ensured ongoing access without the need to purchase these books directly. For libraries that do not currently have JSTOR eBooks, this agreement will provide new content as well as a new eBook platform on which libraries can add content of local interest over time. All titles in the custom collection will be available to an unlimited number of simultaneous users, meaning that no one will ever be placed in a hold queue.
“NC LIVE has a long history of providing permanent access eBooks without barriers to access,” notes Rob Ross, Executive Director of NC LIVE. “Unlike common ‘limited user’ eBook models, information seekers will never encounter a wait time or lose access to JSTOR titles they are reading. We believe that content is only valuable if it is accessible.”
“We are extremely excited to work with NC LIVE to make these great eBooks available on JSTOR to such a wide range of institutions and users across North Carolina,” said Kevin Guthrie, President of ITHAKA. “We are aligned with NC LIVE’s mission to support education, enhance economic development, and improve the quality of people’s lives. We look forward to continuing to work on this and future initiatives to broaden access to education and knowledge.”
In addition, NC LIVE has added eBooks from Gale, Credo and Omnigraphics in critically important disciplines like Mental Health and Contemporary Issues. In total, NC LIVE has added 729 permanent access, unlimited simultaneous use eBooks to its collection.
- JSTOR Custom Collection - 595 eBooks
- Omnigraphics Health Reference Sourcebooks Collection - 72 eBooks
- Credo Contemporary Issues & Controversies Collection - 47 eBooks
- Gale Mental Health and DEI Collections - 15 eBooks
“Given that additional eBooks supporting education, health, and workforce development are being made available through NC LIVE, they are accessible to every resident of North Carolina through the public and academic libraries across our state,” commented North Carolina State Librarian, Michelle Underhill. “Demand for eBooks was on the rise before the COVID-19 pandemic. That demand skyrocketed during the pandemic and has continued. This collection helps to meet the varied information needs of communities throughout the state.”
This project/program/service is made possible by funding from the federal Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA) as administered by the State Library of North Carolina, a division of the N.C. Department of Natural and Cultural Resources (IMLS grant number LS-250229-OLS-21).
About NC LIVE
NC LIVE is North Carolina’s statewide library cooperative, supporting over 200 public and academic libraries across the state. NC LIVE provides content, products, services, professional development, and technical support to North Carolina’s libraries. Content includes an online collection of 1.6 billion full-text articles, eBooks, streaming videos, digitized newspapers, language learning tools, and more. Additionally, NC LIVE provides authentication, discovery and website services to libraries to improve access to information. To learn more, please visit www.nclive.org
About JSTOR
JSTOR is a mission-driven, nonprofit digital library. We strengthen the depth and quality of research by bringing together journals, books, images, and primary sources on a platform with unique tools for teaching and exploration. JSTOR is part of ITHAKA, a nonprofit organization with a mission to improve access to knowledge and education for people around the world. To learn more, visit www.jstor.org
Media Contact:
Claire Leverett, NC LIVE
claire [at] nclive.org (claire[at]nclive[dot]org)
919-513-0449