Your input needed: Potential new statewide databases for MN, ND, and SD

We are currently in the process of selecting new statewide databases, which in Minnesota are branded as eLibrary Minnesota or ELM but are also under consideration in North Dakota and South Dakota. The Shared E-Resources (SER) Task Force represents libraries across the three-state region and is leading in this effort. That group helped to create a Request for Proposal (RFP) that defines what we’re looking for in these e-resources.

That RFP closed recently, and we received responses and proposals from 22 vendors, many of which submitted multiple e-resources for consideration. The SER Task Force is evaluating these proposals, and we’d like the broader library community’s input as well. Trial access is available to all of the potential new statewide databases.

Please look through the listing, test out resources that are of interest, and provide feedback on as many as you can using this survey. Complete one survey per resource, and submit as many surveys as resources you test. Community input will inform our decision-making. We want ELM and our statewide databases to be as broadly relevant as possible to the library community, so your participation is so valuable. Thank you in advance. The survey will remain open until February 16th, though trial access to the proposed resources will be open through April. 

The SER Task Force will identify vendor finalists to invite for demonstrations to that group in March. We will pursue negotiations in April, and plan to share as much as we can with the wider community by early May. New contracts will take effect on July 1, 2026. We know that decisions we make at the state level impact local purchasing decisions, and will share as early as possible. 

Thank you again for your participation in this selection process. Your perspectives and opinions will help to make eLibrary Minnesota and our regional statewide database collections the core resources we strive for them to be.