Good morning, Chairman Schlichter and Committee Members:

Thank you for this opportunity. My name is Theresa Fredericka. I am the Executive Director of INFOhio. And, I am here on behalf of Ohio’s students, educators and parents to ask you for continued support of INFOhio, the state’s virtual library and information network for all K-12 schools.

I’m sure you will agree that all K-12 students and teachers, no matter where they live or what school they go to, must have access to current, accurate and reliable information in a wide variety of formats – print, digital, video, audio and Web-based. Just as we teach our students how to read and how to do math, we must also teach them how to access and retrieve data, how to interpret, sort and analyze information, and how to use information to effectively acquire knowledge.

And this is INFOhio’s job. We do it efficiently, economically and equitably. We work every day with school librarians and teachers across the state to ensure that all students master 21st century learning skills and have the resources to effectively use these skills.

Very simply, INFOhio offers a wide range of electronic databases, instructional resources, standardized software and technical support. We deliver these services by using the existing school telecommunications and network infrastructure through the 23 regional Information Technology Centers of the Ohio Education Computer Network (OECN).

INFOhio is in the proposed state budget: line item 200-426 of the Ohio Department of Education budget for the OECN.

Because our time is short, I will highlight just two key services as examples of the added value INFOhio provides.

First, Electronic Resources.

INFOhio provides age-appropriate, curriculum-related, librarian-tested and teacher-approved electronic resources.

For more details, I call to your attention the information bulletin we sent to every classroom teacher last fall. The bulletin highlights INFOhio’s Core Collection of Electronic Resources, which is available to all Ohio schools.

As a statewide content provider, INFOhio makes it possible for students to access databases and retrieve useful and accurate information instead of just “surfing the Web” and finding large quantities of unverified information. This access is available anytime, anywhere – 24/7 from any Internet-accessible computer at school or at home. The INFOhio library is never closed. And, it is this online access to these millions of educational resources that helps assure that no Ohio child is left on the have-not side of the Digital Divide.

Our 13 databases include 6,000 journals, newspapers and magazines; encyclopedias; statistical and biographical materials and professional resources for educators. Since 2001, usage has increased by 635%. And last year alone, nearly 10 million articles were retrieved and printed by students, educators and parents.

In addition, we purchase these electronic resources cooperatively with state and federal dollars through Libraries Connect Ohio. This is a consortium that includes INFOhio, OhioLINK and OPLIN – the academic and public library networks in Ohio – and the State Library. As a result of these agencies working together, Ohio K-12 schools achieve substantial savings: The resources cost just 45 cents per student each year, compared to 45 dollars per student, if individual schools purchased only a fraction of these resources separately.

INFOhio recognizes the need to reach K-12 parents so they, in turn, can help their children. Thanks to a grant from the Reinberger Foundation, INFOhio conducted focus groups with parents to better understand their needs. As a result, we initiated The INFOhio Parent Project – an ongoing campaign to show parents how to access and use these powerful INFOhio resources with and for their children.

The second key service is Library Automation.

INFOhio provides a statewide, standardized library automation system, which converts out-dated print card catalogs into online catalogs. This allows students and teachers to access books and other materials in their library, their district libraries, other automated school libraries outside their district and even public libraries. As one small, rural district librarian put it, “It is like magic that my little library is receiving resources from all over Ohio. Last Friday, 44 items arrived to help students with their research papers. My district is thrilled.”

With computers, the Internet and electronic databases being such an integral part of today’s education process, knowing how to access information through an online catalog is one of the most important skills a student can learn. That’s why the effort to automate school libraries is so important.

Currently, of the state’s 614 public school districts, 378 are completely automated with INFOhio. Another 222 districts are partially automated. And, 14 districts remain totally unautomated. In all, this translates to about 1,200 school libraries that remain either not automated or underautomated.

As you well know, students today expect to use technology in every facet of their lives. With our hopes next fall to introduce SchoolRooms®, a new multimedia online portal (like Google, but better), INFOhio will bring the next generation of information delivery to Ohio’s K-12 school libraries.

Teams of Ohio school librarians, teachers and parents worked with our automation vendor (SirsiDynix) to select, design and test the SchoolRooms content, which features more than 25,000 Web sites that match Ohio’s Academic Content Standards. In addition to these “Best of the Web” resources, one “smart search” on SchoolRooms will also retrieve materials in the school library's catalog, the local public library catalog, the INFOhio online databases, content from publishers and from other search engines.

Unfortunately, when INFOhio deploys SchoolRooms statewide next year, schools with unautomated or underautomated libraries will not be able to fully access or use SchoolRooms.

In conclusion, INFOhio is a proven part of the solution for helping all schools have equitable access to learning resources regardless of school size, location or fiscal resources.

And, INFOhio is prepared to be part of the solution going forward for helping all school libraries become 21st century centers of learning.

INFOhio has boldly created a statewide information system which, after years of implementation and growth, is well-tested and a proven success. Students, educators, parents and citizens across the state recognize INFOhio as an essential resource that improves student achievement, prepares graduates to continue their education, and creates qualified workers for an ever-increasing high-tech world.

In FY00, INFOhio had automated 1,299 school libraries. By the end of the last fiscal year (FY06) this number had grown to over 2,400 libraries. We at INFOhio are proud that our state can claim one of the world’s largest school library automation networks serving over 1.1 million of Ohio’s K-12 students. With additional funds, INFOhio can automate more Ohio schools.

Also since FY00, the usage and availability of online electronic resources has grown by over 600%. In FY06, there were 9.9 million registered “hits” against the databases for INFOhio’s electronic resources. During this time of phenomenal growth, the funding provided by the state budget has decreased by over $300,000. With additional funds, INFOhio can provide even more resources our students and educators need to succeed.

I recognize that you face difficult choices in crafting Ohio’s next budget. Everyone at INFOhio has worked hard to provide our products and services as efficiently as possible. I am here to ask for your support so we can continue to serve Ohio’s students and educators by restoring our biennial appropriation to $2.8 million each year. This will allow INFOhio to maintain the critical services needed to support 21st century learning for all Ohio students.

Thank you. As always, I welcome your inquiries about our program and its effectiveness.

Theresa M. Fredericka
INFOhio Executive Director
35 E. Chestnut Street, 8th Floor
Columbus, OH 43215
614-485-6731
614-752-2940 Fax
fredericka@infohio.org
http://www.infohio.org