Contracting with the ERS Library          

The ERS Library offers two types of contracts for school districts and/or individual schools: the Library Media Services contract and the Portal Only contract. While the level of service differs between these contracts, the annual cost for each is based on the current school year's ADA (Average Daily Attendance).

The ERS Library also has contract options available for Individual Teachers and Home School Families.

ERS Teacher Portal, Kids Portal & Teen Portal
The pre-login ERS Portal is a fantastic place to learn about the services and upcoming events provided by the ERS Library, including: CheckThisOut!, Bookmarked (the ERS Library blog), Library Multimedia Network (LMN), the Teacher Resource Center (TRC), and more! Post-login, the Portal becomes one of three interfaces that provide complete access to California State Standards correlated, grade-level appropriate, premium online content with a single login.  Click here to learn more about the Teacher Portal, Kids Portal and Teen Portal.

ERS Portal Presentation
Each contracting site is allotted one annual on-site ERS Portal Presentation. This 60-90 minute presentation is the best way to (re)introduce school staff to the ERS Portals and the Follett Destiny online catalog. A member of the ERS Library team will visit your campus to demonstrate how to search for resources in the Portal, ways to integrate online content into curriculum, updates and improvements from the past year and also answer any questions the school staff have regarding the ERS Library, Teacher Portal, Kids Portal & Teen Portal. Our presenter is available Monday - Friday between the hours of 9:00am - 4:00pm. Accommodations can be made outside those hours with advance notice.

ERS Library Circulating Collection & Delivery/Pickup Services
Through our online Follett Destiny catalog, teachers at Library Media Services contracting schools can request anything from our collection of over 28,000 carefully selected fiction/non-fiction books, Spanish language materials, robotics kits, PlayAways, DVDs, book kits (8-30 copies of same title), big books, puppets, art prints, realia kits and more. The materials selected are then delivered to the school site on the weekly delivery day of the teacher's choice. Pickup of ERS Library items from the school site is also included in the contract and easy to arrange. 

In-person access to the ERS Library and Multimedia Center is available year-round: Monday thru Friday from 8:00am-5:00pm, with the exception of TCOE observed holidays.

Another exciting option for contracting school staff is our CheckThisOut! Library Multimedia Subscription Service, which includes resources from both our circulating collection and the online portals. Click here to learn more! 

FREE Technology Day
As part of your Library Media Services contract, each contracting campus receives a free on-site Technology (Tech) Day. This day, with a maximum of 4 hours on-site, is led by one of our Instructional Technology Specialists. In the 2019-20 school year, a voucher option was added allowing staff members from contracting schools to attend newly offered "Tech Tools: ______" trainings free of charge. -- Due to the ongoing need for virtual & distance learning in 2020-21, the Tech Tools virtual sessions are temporarily replacing our Tech Tools voucher classes. Site staff are encouraged to sign up to attend as many sessions as they like. All sessions will be held via Zoom.

Library Multimedia Network (LMN) Meetings
Library personnel from all Tulare & Kings County schools are invited to participate in the ERS Library & Multimedia Center’s bi-monthly Library Multimedia Network meetings dedicated to school library development, exploring technology and discovering how to best use the ERS Portal resources. Registration is free for contracting school sites & $30 per meeting for non-contracting site library staff. Click here to learn more about LMN.

Librarian of Record 
The ERS Library Media Supervisor is a credentialed librarian and holder of the Library Media Teacher Services Credential. This allows her/him to serve as the “Librarian of Record” for any Library Media Services contracting district/school that does not employ a credentialed librarian. Ed Code 44868 allows a DISTRICT/SCHOOL to employ non-credentialed personnel to assist in the provision of school library services, however these individuals do not supersede the Ed Code requirement that a credentialed librarian provide oversight of school library services. This agreement further fulfills the district/school obligation under Education Code, sections 18100 and 18120. A district/school is in compliance with the law when it contracts for library services with the Tulare County Office of Education's ERS Library for the services of a credentialed librarian.

Teacher Resource Center
The ERS Library's Teacher Resource Center (TRC) is home to both B&W and color copiers, laminators (27" & 43"), a poster printer, 1.5" and 3" button makers, a comb & spiral binding machines and our collection of over 1000 die-cut blocks. While the TRC is open to the public, staff members from Library Media Services contracting sites pay a reduced fee for printing, copying, and laminating. and have free use of the die-cuts if they bring in their own paper.  Click here to learn more about the TRC.

Included in the Portal Only contract:

ERS Teacher Portal, Kids Portal & Teen Portal
Districts/schools who prefer a Portal Only contract receive unlimited access to the ERS Teacher Portal and Kids/Teen Portal appropriate for their site.

ERS Portal Presentation
Portal Only contracting sites are allotted one annual on-site ERS Portal Presentation.

Library Multimedia Network (LMN) Meetings
School library personnel from each Portal Only contracting site are invited to participate in the ERS Library & Multimedia Center’s Library Multimedia Network meetings.

Individual Teachers
An Individual Teacher contract allows that teacher to check out media from the library's circulating collection on a walk-in basis.

Home School Families
Contracting Home School families have access to the ERS Library's circulating collection as well as the ERS Teacher Portal and a 10% discount on any TRC purchases.

For more information about ERS Library contracts, please call Sara Torabi at (559) 651-3031 or email her at Sara.Torabi@tcoe.org.