The Nevada State Council on Libraries and Literacy (SCLL) is leading the way for Nevada's libraries to adopt vital 21st century technology. At the end of the annual 2017 Nevada Library Association (NLA) conference, it was announced that Nevada libraries would have a robust continuing education opportunity to learn about virtual reality (VR) and deploy it in their facilities in early 2018! These libraries are part of a select group of emerging technology early adopters in the country. Partial resources for this VR initiative are provided by the Nevada State Legislature with funds from SB-549.
See below for a detailed timeline of the pilot program.
ETEAP Timeline (REVISED May 8, 2018)
July
A select number of libraries have been chosen to receive a fully loaded VR system, complete with a VR-enabled computer/software/ educational media catalog and Oculus Rift headgear. Libraries will receive training and ongoing support for their VR systems through a web portal that provides information and resources on VR technology, capabilities, applications in libraries, and promising practices.
The selected libraries represent a range of types and geographies. These libraries demonstrated a need and have well-conceived ideas for incorporating VR into their library programs. Participating libraries are required to collect and submit statistics, which we will use to evaluate demand for VR technologies and ways they can be used. This data will help determine possible future directions and support for VR projects and programs. This project relates to Nevada’s current LSTA 5-Year Plan and the intention of the Nevada Legislature’s SB-549 (2017).
Questions? Contact Tammy Westergard, Nevada State Library assistant administrator and ETEAP program manager, at 775-684-3306 or twestergard@admin.nv.gov.
Late July - September
October – Mid-November
November
December
