Libraries' faculty and staff must now concern themselves with teaching library patrons not only how to locate resources but also how to interpret them. In the print environment, the physical appearance of resources books, journals, documents provided many clues about their reliability. In the digital environment, the authenticity of sources is much more difficult to assess. Collaboration The Libraries can only hope to meet their ambitious goals by working together with other organizations and with other Penn State units. In addition, Libraries' employees must also work together effectively and efficiently to meet the needs of students and faculty.
Collaboration is, therefore, a key to infusing information into the learning construct.
Penn State University Libraries' position as one of two participants, along with the University of Michigan, in both these consortia provides a strategic advantage for the next five years. Both the CIC and the NDLF are addressing the importance of digital resources. The implementation of the Virtual Electronic Library, which will allow faculty to initiate and send their own requests for library material to other CIC libraries, will further improve turnaround time in an area that has already undergone significant process improvement. These partnerships will significantly enhance resources for the Penn State scholarly community and will address the number one student and faculty demand for more full-text electronic resources. The Libraries request funding for a two-year Digital Initiatives fund that would meet patron demands by funding a number of electronic projects.