The UNC Library Advisory Council (ULAC) is pleased to announce that a contract has been fully signed with the Ex Libris Group to implement Alma, an integrated library system, between twelve UNC campuses.
WHO: Appalachian State, UNC Asheville, UNC Charlotte, Fayetteville State, NC Central, NC State, NC A&T, UNC Pembroke, UNC School of the Arts, Western Carolina, UNC Wilmington, and Winston-Salem State.
WHEN: Implementation will last over three years, with “go live” dates of June 2025, 2026, and 2027. The contract is open for additional participating UNC institutions when they determine the best time to join.
BENEFITS:
- Unified circulation system
- Advantageous pricing gained through collective bargaining
- Rapido a software designed to enhance our print resource sharing network
- Leganto for course integration, Open Educational Resources and affordability measures
- Ex Libris student app
- A shared digital space (ALMA-D) will provide us the opportunity to consider collaborative digital collections and shared licensed resources such as those available through NC LIVE. These can be enabled in a Network Zone environment, streamlining our work.
ULAC will collaborate and gather consensus to determine the best configurations, workflows and implementation plans for our institutions.
NEXT STEPS: We have established three statewide governance committees for Metadata & Cataloging, Systems & Implementation, and Resource Sharing. Each institution will prioritize internal transitional projects while working with their colleagues from other institutions toward implementation of new services.
