Sue+Carr

Dear Mr. Superintendent,

I understand you are considering going back to a site-hosted library manager to replace the Destiny Library Manager Online Public Access Catalog (OPAC) which we currently use. I understand that you are financially motivated to make this change to Mandarin Library Automation but I do not feel it is in the best interest of the students and staff of Westford Schools. The Mandarin system, which would be licensed to run on our library’s local network, lacks the timely updates of an online system and may not be the best investment for a forward-thinking, technology-driven district such as Westford.

Destiny OPAC, a centralized, online catalog is a far superior product and a better fit for our district. Before 2008, our site-hosted system functionality was extremely limited. Each school library ran as an independent entity. All technical problems had to be addressed site by site, increasing the need for IT service calls. The increase in IT service needs may outweigh the savings of a site-hosted system. Collaboration between schools was sluggish or nonexistent. When we transitioned to Destiny Library Manager OPAC the usefulness of our library catalog expanded exponentially.

The benefits of our current Destiny Library Manager OPAC:


 * District-wide management
 * One point (Central Office) upload of new patrons and new staff, contact for billing, and on-site training.
 * Inventory management
 * Protect the town’s investment with annual inventory. Track losses and fines. Avoid redundancies in ordering new materials.
 * Partner with FollettTitlewave Library Solutions to find gaps in school catalogs.
 * Searchable curriculum-based database to support state frameworks.
 * Intuitive interface to access all our assets/media.
 * Catalog available in two different styles - each Individual library can further customize the format most appropriate for their age group.
 * Available to all patrons on any platform with internet access. The browser-based library catalog is now in the classroom and in the home.
 * New Destiny Discover format seamlessly integrates the physical inventory and the eBook inventory in a graphic-rich interface. New features include: Browse by topic, genre, interest level, reading level; Expanded tagging; EasyBib citation.
 * Shared Assets across the district.
 * We now have the ability to access and share all collections in all school libraries.
 * Reduces the need for duplicate titles when use is minimal.
 * Processing and cataloging new material is streamlined due to a shared database.
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Intuitive cataloging, inventory, circulation and reporting capabilities.
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Due to limited time of Library Media Specialists’ and Library Media Teacher Assistants’ for library administration tasks - the convenient processing capabilities insure that current titles are available in a timely fashion.
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Ever expanding services such as Destiny Discover Chrome Extension.
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Displays resources available in patron library with every Google search.
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Students are learning to critically think about the validity of the resources they use for research.
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Follet support
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">WebHelp extensive database available 24/7
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Destiny Training Toolkits - Lesson and video for library staff to master Destiny.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">A step backwards to site-hosted catalogs would be a great loss. While on the surface our catalog would still be available in the library and the students could still find books, so much more would be missing. As we move forward in the digital age we are realizing that we can achieve so much more with our students through technology. Books are not a dead format but a vital part of a rich collection of media necessary in our future library. We would be handicapping our Westford students if we deny them the use of a fully functional Online Public Access Catalog.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I encourage you to continue to support Destiny Library Manager Online Public Access Catalog.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Sincerely,

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Sue Carr <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Library Media Teacher Assistant <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Crisafulli School