Panhandle Public Library Cooperative System

The Panhandle Public Library Cooperative System (PPLCS), which serves Florida’s Calhoun, Holmes, and Jackson Counties, will improve upon its digital collections, adding more electronic titles and additional copies of popular e-books and other materials when wait times exceed ninety days. PPLCS experienced an extreme increase in demand for digital resources after schools and library buildings closed during the COVID-19 pandemic. Even after the libraries reopened in late summer of 2020, physical library visits were significantly lower than their pre-pandemic levels, with usage of the system’s digital collections continuing to rise. Enlarging PPLCS’s digital collections, including e-books and eAudiobooks, will improve equity by increasing access to educational and other materials in these rural and economically disadvantaged communities.