The SHARE CloudLibrary consortial collection was created with the eRead Illinois grant provided to the Illinois Heartland Library System (IHLS) and the Reaching Across Illinois Library System (RAILS) from the Illinois State Library in 2013. The main goals of the eRead Illinois project were to increase access to e-books for Illinois residents, grow ebook expertise among library staff, library system staff, and Illinois residents, and to further promote resource sharing among all public, academic, school, and special libraries in Illinois.
Today, the SHARE CloudLibrary Collection Development Guidelines strive to uphold the ideals of the American Library Association's (ALA's) Library Bill of Rights and Freedom to Read while also providing a collection appropriate to a multitype consortium, including public, academic, school, and special libraries. SHARE is dedicated to developing a diverse and inclusive collection so that readers may both see themselves reflected in the items that are available and learn more about those that have a different experience.
Collection Overview
SHARE continuously strives to provide a robust selection of titles to serve the diverse needs of member libraries participating in the CloudLibrary shared collection. As a multitype consortium, the CloudLibrary shared collection serves patrons of all ages coming from a wide range of backgrounds and with a variety of interests and abilities. The collection seeks to provide access to a well-balanced selection of resources providing different viewpoints on issues and topics, as well as popular fiction and nonfiction titles that fulfill the recreational and lifelong learning needs of a diverse patron base.
General Selection Criteria
The following criteria are used when selecting titles for the collection. Titles may be selected based on the presence of one or more criteria. Not all criteria must be met for a title to be selected.
- Accuracy and objectivity of the subject matter
- Artistic merit or excellence
- Attention from critics and professional reviews
- Authority of the author/creator or publisher
- Award-winning or "classic" title
- Cost and budget
- Cultural diversity
- Educational relevance to the Illinois Learning Standards
- Lasting value of material
- Popular demand
- Relevance to community needs
- Representation of diversity of viewpoints
- Significance of topic
- Timeliness
Funding
The CloudLibrary shared collection is funded by participating SHARE member libraries. Each library pays an annual fee to provide access to the collection for their patrons. A portion (80%) of that fee is dedicated to purchasing materials for the consortial collection, while the remaining portion (20%) is reserved for future platform fees.
Collection Development Process
SHARE utilizes a multi-faceted approach to collection development for the SHARE CloudLibrary.
SHARE staff work in partnership with the CloudLibrary collection development team to make selections. The CloudLibrary team compiles weekly lists that feature new releases and popular titles in adult, YA, juvenile fiction and non fiction, and special interests. SHARE staff review items on these lists weekly, and if suitable, titles are purchased for the collection.
When possible, reviews from publications such as Booklist, School Library Journal, Kirkus, Choice, and the New York Times are consulted to inform the selection process.
SHARE member libraries participating in the CloudLibrary shared collection are also able to select items for the collection via CloudLibrary shopping carts. Libraries that choose to select titles for the CloudLibrary are provided access to the CloudLibrary Content Acquisition Tool (CAT) and are allotted a percentage of their annual member fee to add items to the collection.
A.I. Content
A.I. content has begun to weave its way into published e-books and audiobooks. SHARE will not intentionally buy A.I. content, whether written or narrated, for the CloudLibrary collection. However, because SHARE utilizes pay-per-use (PPU) audiobooks, we cannot control what is added to the PPU collection. CloudLibrary has added a feature, however, that allows us to exclude which PPU titles are accessible to patrons. Therefore, whenever we come across A.I.-narrated audiobooks, we exclude them from the collection.
Changes to Audience Level
Occasionally, SHARE will receive a request to change the audience level for a title. These requests are typically from school libraries that have filters in place for their students, which limit the type of content they can access based on the audience level. For instance, we may receive a request to change the audience level of a title from Adult to YA so their student(s) can access it. SHARE does not adjust the audience level of titles in CloudLibrary unless there is a clear error in the publisher data. For example, if a title has a category tag of Young Adult but the audience level is set to Adult, then we will change the audience level to reflect that category. Libraries are welcome to contact SHARE at any time to discuss the set audience levels for titles in CloudLibrary and options for students to access titles with filters set on their account.
Reconsideration of Materials
SHARE endorses the American Library Association (ALA) Freedom to Read Statement, Freedom to View Statement, the Library Bill of Rights, and all relevant Library Bill of Rights Interpretations. The choice of library materials by patrons at participating libraries is an individual matter.
Patrons of CloudLibrary participating libraries wishing reconsideration of materials within the CloudLibrary collection must complete the SHARE CloudLibrary Request for Reconsideration Form in its entirety and submit via email to Cassandra Thompson, SHARE director at cthompson@illinoisheartland.org. Only signed forms will be considered. The title in question will be reviewed by the SHARE E-Resources Committee within 30 days to determine if it aligns with the collection development guidelines. The committee's recommendation will be reviewed by the SHARE Executive Council. Once a decision has been made, the requester named on the Request for Reconsideration Form will receive a written response indicating the decision and reasoning. Titles will remain in the collection during this process. For more information, please see the step-by-step Request for Reconsideration Procedure.
Adopted 06-2022
Revised 08-2026