In this mobile age, technology has become increasingly valuable in supporting all generations of lifelong learners and readers. Now, Westchester Library System (WLS) and Southern Westchester BOCES (SWBOCES) have formed an innovative new partnership using ebooks and e-audiobooks to modernize access to reading materials for students. This unique collaboration strives to promote literacy and digital learning by providing unprecedented access to both the library’s and the school’s digital reading resources in one app. The combination of convenience, ease of reading on-the-go, and the inherent popularity of technology inspires students to learn anytime, anywhere.
“This feature allows libraries to open access of age appropriate content to their local school districts that offer the app, Sora” says Terry Kirchner, WLS Executive Director. “It also allows students to access the library’s titles using their student credentials if they don’t already have a library card. It’s a win-win.”
The WLS and SWBOCES partnership provides safe access to thousands of age-appropriate titles for students’ use inside the classroom, at home and anywhere 24/7. Through Sora, the new student reading app for SWBOCES, students can now access and borrow from their school’s digital collection of classroom and pleasure reading materials AND the WLS member libraries’ juvenile and young adult digital collections. Students can easily log into the WLS member libraries’ digital collections using only their school credentials/student ID rather than requiring a separate library card. The following libraries and school districts are included in this collaboration:
Ardsley Public Library
Ardsley Union Free School District
Bronxville Public Library
Bronxville Union Free School District
Byram Hills Central School District
Dobbs Ferry Public Library
Dobbs Ferry Union Free School District
Edgemont Union Free School District
Greenburgh Public Library
Greenburgh Central School District
Hastings On Hudson Public Library
Hastings On Hudson Union Free School District
Irvington Public Library
Irvington Union Free School District
Larchmont Public Library
Mamaroneck Public Library District
Mamaroneck Union Free School District
Mount Pleasant Public Library
Mount Pleasant-Blythedale Union Free School District
Mount Vernon City School District
Mount Vernon Public Library
North Castle Public Library
Port Chester Rye Brook Public Library
Port Chester-Rye Union Free School District
Rye City School District
Rye Free Reading Room
Rye Neck Union Free School District
Scarsdale Public Library
Scarsdale Union Free School District
Tarrytown Union Free School District
Tuckahoe Public Library
Tuckahoe Union Free School District
Valhalla Union Free School District
White Plains City School
White Plains Public Library
Warner Library
The entire community can access the WLS member libraries’ complete ebook and e-audiobook collection through the award-winning Libby app. Readers can use Libby on any major device or computer, including Apple ®, Android™ and Chromebook™, and “send to Kindle®” (US only).
The Sora app is available for SWBOCES students to download through the Apple App Store and Google Play Store, and on Chromebooks that support the Google Play Store. It is also available for use in web browsers at https://soraapp.com on any computer.
The award-winning Libby and Sora apps were built by OverDrive and OverDrive Education respectively. To learn more, visit https://meet.soraapp.com/ and https://meet.libbyapp.com/.