March 04, 2026

In This Issue:

• Spring Forum 2026
• Save The Date
• WRLC Instruction Interest Group Seeks Interested Members
• TAWG Seeking Members
• Correction: ProQuest Academic Complete

Mark your Calendars for Apr 22, 2026 at 12:00pm for this year’s WRLC Spring Forum.

This year’s program will highlight several initiatives and tools that support our work across the consortium:

OpenAthens, WRLC’s federated authentication solution. OpenAthens enables access to licensed electronic resources by allowing users to log in through their home institutions rather than relying solely on IP-based access. The session will cover current implementation status, benefits for users and administrators, and how enhanced analytics and access controls can inform future decisions.

Alma APIs and the growing opportunities they provide for automation, integration, and workflow optimization. Alma’s APIs allow access to programmatically retrieve and update data across acquisitions, cataloging, fulfillment, and user management. We will share practical examples of how APIs can reduce manual processes, improve reporting, and connect Alma with other systems.

Primo Research Assistant, an AI-enhanced discovery feature designed to support users at the beginning of their research process based on our current library catalog software platform, Primo. The Research Assistant provides topic overviews and contextual summaries drawn from indexed library resources. The session will demonstrate how this tool can enhance discovery while focusing on authoritative, licensed content.

Alma Peer-to-Peer (P2P) resource sharing. Alma P2P enables direct borrowing and lending between participating Alma libraries, streamlining request workflows and reducing reliance on intermediary systems. We will discuss how this functionality can improve turnaround times and improve resource sharing across the consortium.

We look forward to seeing you there!

- WRLC Sharing Expertise Committee

We are excited to announce that the WRLC Annual Meeting will take place on May 19-21st, 2026.

This three-day event is an opportunity for us to come together as a community and celebrate our achievements, share our experiences, and plan for the future.

We are planning a packed agenda filled with engaging discussions and opportunities for networking. Whether you are a new member or a long-time supporter, you won't want to miss this chance to connect with your colleagues and peers.

In next month’s newsletter, we will be sharing more information about the program, and how to sign up to be a presenter. In the meantime, we encourage you to mark your calendars and plan to join us for this exciting event.

We look forward to seeing you in May!

Do you currently provide library instruction or have an interest in library instruction? Consider joining the WRLC Instruction Interest Group! If you are like us, you’ve probably had a fair share of successes and challenges teaching students and interacting with faculty members. We’d love to meet and discuss them!

The goal of the Instruction Interest Group is to share teaching techniques and strategies between WRLC librarians. The group meets every 2-3 months with a main topic determined before each meeting. A reading related to the meeting's topic is provided beforehand. Our next meeting will be March 16th at 10am via Zoom. The meeting's topic will be AI in instruction.  If you are interested, please fill out the interest form or contact either Charles Gallagher (Gallaghercha@cua.edu) or Ben Cushing (cushingb@cua.edu).  

Instruction Interest Group-Interest Form:

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeLbS0ggplppmGmm7hHxCZrglefWB-colOYnb9KHIhF27JHcA/viewform?usp=pp_url

Are you interested in making course materials more affordable and accessible for students?

If so, please consider joining WRLC’s Textbook Affordability Working Group (TAWG).

The mission of the Textbook Affordability Working Group is to bring together members from

across the WRLC to advance initiatives related to open educational resources (OER), open

pedagogy, and other open education efforts. The group provides a collaborative forum for

sharing expertise, best practices, and campus experiences related to reducing the cost of

course materials and supporting student success. TAWG will foster collaboration on consortial and campus-level projects, programming, advocacy, and communication related to textbook affordability and open education.

The working group will maintain a listserv where members can share announcements, ask

questions, and seek collaborators. The group may also develop shared resources, such as

guides, toolkits, or Creative Commons–licensed materials, to support OER and textbook

affordability work across member libraries.

We welcome interested members from all WRLC partner libraries. If you are interested in

joining, contact Meghan Kowalski, Outreach and Reference Librarian, University of the District of Columbia, at meghan.kowalski@udc.edu.

In our previous newsletter, the ProQuest Academic Complete infographic included an incorrect figure for cost per use without the shared agreement. We apologize for the confusion. The updated infographic is included below and better illustrates the savings resulting from our shared agreement.

Contribute to the Newsletter

The WRLC Newsletter serves as a platform to showcase the achievements and activities of our consortium members. We invite you to submit news items, announcements, or program highlights for inclusion in upcoming issues. Your contributions help ensure the newsletter reflects our collective work across the consortium.

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