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GALILEO Chooses FOLIO Library Services Platform

GALILEO Chooses FOLIO Library Services Platform

April 2023

NISO Member News

Ipswich, MA | April 3, 2022

GALILEO has selected FOLIO as its new Library Services Platform (LSP), with plans to share FOLIO with 86 libraries from 26 colleges and universities across the University System of Georgia (USG) and the Georgia Archives. GALILEO will utilize EBSCO Information Services (EBSCO) for implementation and hosting services via EBSCO FOLIO. GALILEO will begin migrating these new technologies in 2023, with plans to be fully operational by June 2025.

FOLIO represents a significant advancement in library technology, including meaningful improvements such as integrations, record formats, and discoverability. FOLIO's growing community of librarians actively enhances the platform while supporting traditional resource management functionality that can be extended into emerging areas. FOLIO is designed to be flexible, allowing librarians to choose their preferred applications and workflow needs.

In addition to FOLIO, GALILEO will implement a consortial borrowing solution that is being developed by Knowledge Integration, a key software developer and a part of Project ReShare. Project ReShare is a user-centered, community-owned resource-sharing platform that will allow opportunities to include various forms of object fulfillment as the consortium grows and evolves. GALILEO has been a member of the ReShare community since 2021.

Gar Sydnor, EBSCO Information Services Executive Vice President of Research Databases and Library Services, says EBSCO helps make open-source solutions viable, even to the world's largest libraries and consortia. "GALILEO's involvement in FOLIO is yet another example of the impact of the library community's most disruptive technology. GALILEO is a cutting-edge library consortium that combines vision and practicality, and we are very pleased to be working with them in this regard."

Jeff Steely, Dean of Libraries at Georgia State University Library, describes the decision-making process being influenced by FOLIO's effort to redefine library services and innovate with library futures in mind. "After a very robust, year-and-a-half process involving many USG library professionals scoring hundreds of technical requirements, we entered negotiations with exciting options. I am pleased that the process led to the selection of an affordable, modern, and constantly improving system."

Lucy Harrison, Assistant Vice Chancellor for Academic Library Services and Executive Director of GALILEO, says they look forward to collaborating with like-minded institutions like MOBIUS and the Library of Congress while working towards a common goal. "As a library consortium, we understand the power of knowledge sharing. FOLIO represents a place where we can do just that alongside some of the most influential players in the open source community. EBSCO has been a longtime, trusted partner on statewide projects like OpenAthens and the GALILEO Search Portal. We look to deepen that relationship even further to foster innovation, openness, and cooperation with this FOLIO and ReShare implementation.

The 26 colleges and universities include nine state colleges, nine state universities, four comprehensive regional universities, four research universities, and the Georgia Archives. In addition to the support from EBSCO FOLIO Services, the University System of Georgia libraries have access to the EBSCO Knowledge Base and currently use EBSCO Discovery Service (EDS) for discovery and OpenAthens for single sign-on software.

About GALILEO

GALILEO, Georgia's virtual library, empowers, connects and improves the lives of Georgia residents as the state's gateway to credible, authoritative library resources. Began in 1995, GALILEO is an initiative of the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia. The community of more than 2,000 GALILEO institutions includes the University System of Georgia, the Technical College System of Georgia, public and private K-12 schools, public libraries, and several private academic colleges and universities. GALILEO's programs include Affordable Learning Georgia, GALILEO Interconnected Libraries and Digital Library of Georgia. To learn more about GALILEO, visit about.galileo.usg.edu.

About EBSCO Information Services

EBSCO Information Services (EBSCO) is the preeminent provider of online research content and search technologies serving academic, school and public libraries; healthcare and medical institutions; corporations; and government agencies around the world. From research, acquisition management, subscription services and discovery to clinical decision support and patient care, learning, and research and development, EBSCO provides institutions with access to content and resources to serve the information and workflow needs of their users and organizations. For more information, visit the EBSCO website at: www.ebsco.com.