Consortium Management
Save your time, resources, and energy by enlisting WiLS to help create or manage your consortia.
Consortia are an effective way for our members to work together to provide services and resources while saving time and money. But developing and managing consortia can take a lot of time. WiLS can help you by assisting with forming a consortium, managing the day to day business, and by finding new directions for your consortium to grow.
WiLS currently manages Recollection Wisconsin, the Wisconsin Public Library Consortium (WPLC), WISPALS, and more. If you are interested in joining these, starting a new consortium, or enlisting our help with your existing consortium, let us know!
Consortia Managed by WiLS
Recollection Wisconsin
Since 2005, Recollection Wisconsin (formerly Wisconsin Heritage Online) has partnered with libraries, archives, historical societies and museums across the state to help them digitize and share unique local content online. As Project Manager for this collaborative initiative, WiLS coordinates the program’s governing board, committees and work groups, facilitates communication among partners and stakeholders, maintains policy and procedures documents, and coordinates outreach activities. As Fiscal Agent, WiLS manages the program budget and develops grant applications to secure additional funding. This year, WiLS spearheaded Recollection Wisconsin’s expansion into a Service Hub for the Digital Public Library of America (DPLA), elevating the collective and its assets to a national stage.
For more information about Recollection Wisconsin, or other available digital project support, contact Emily Pfotenhauer at or 608-616-9756.
Wisconsin Public Library Consortium
WiLS provides support for a range of activities for the Wisconsin Public Library Consortium (WPLC). In addition to fiscal management, WiLS provides expertise on topics relevant to Wisconsin’s Digital Library, including managing the public library systems’ buying pool; e-book, audiobook, and streaming media vendor research; authentication technology; and day-to-day activities such as technical support, training, statistics compilation, and web updates. WiLS works with the vendors, OverDrive and BiblioBoard, to improve the service and to develop expertise to share with the WPLC members.
WiLS provides additional services to support the WPLC’s collaborative activities, including research on platforms and process for sharing local content, communication and meeting facilitation for WPLC governing bodies, website maintenance, and research on existing processes and systems to improve efficiency.
To learn more about WiLS’ support of WPLC, please contact Melody Clark at or 608-313-4175.
WISPALS
WISPALS is a consortium of 11 Wisconsin technical colleges. WiLS manages the WISPALS shared ILS, cooperative purchases, and coordinates the consortium in its day-to-day production and future planning. WiLS is also the consortium’s fiscal agent.
To learn more about WISPALS, contact Andrea Coffin at or 414-979-9457.
Wisconsin Schools Digital Library Consortium (WSDLC)
WiLS, in partnership with DPI, CESA Purchasing, and CESA Statewide Network, is managing the creation and growth of this Wisconsin consortium of K12 libraries to create a statewide shared digital collection that will provide ebooks and other materials for students to use through their school libraries.
To learn more about WSDLC, contact Sara Gold at or 608-616-0355.
Horticulture Library Consortium
The Horticulture Library Consortium was initially formed by three libraries looking to create a shared ebook library. WiLS managed the project of helping the Horticulture Library Consortium research, purchase, and grow this shared collection, and continues to provide consortium management and cooperative purchasing services. Since WiLS began managing the consortium, membership has grown to six organizations and continues to expand.
To learn more about the Horticulture Library Consortium, contact us at .
Infopass: Milwaukee Area Libraries’ Resource Sharing
Milwaukee area libraries currently have a reciprocal agreement among all types of libraries for public users to access their collections. In order to efficiently facilitate this process, WiLS developed a custom web application called Infopass to streamline an existing paper-based process, and now provides support for that application, along with fiscal management and other project management support.
