November 17, 2022

MONTGOMERY – The Alabama Virtual Library (AVL) recently added two new e-book resources from the  Springer Nature Group. The new additions — Springer Nature Energy and Springer Nature Biomedicine & Life Sciences — represent a significant cost savings to libraries and students statewide.

The new academic resources, which are permanent additions to AVL, seek to minimize the costs of traditional textbooks and other course materials for the state’s students through Affordable Learning initiatives. These initiatives reduce costs by substituting high-quality library-licensed electronic resources for expensive commercial textbooks typically used for course instruction.

“Springer Nature is a leader in the information industry and is one of the largest scholarly publishers of DRM-free e-books,” said Ron Leonard, director of special initiatives with the Alabama Commission on Higher Education and treasurer for the AVL. “These electronic textbooks are great additions to the AVL and classrooms statewide not only because the texts are vetted and peer-reviewed, but because they are downloadable, don’t require Wi-Fi, and are easily accessible to students who use them. AVL aims to be economical to Alabama taxpayers, and these texts are quality resources that embrace disciplines taught at high schools, colleges, and universities throughout the state.”

AVL (www.avl.lib.al.us) is Alabama’s statewide digital library. First funded by the Alabama Legislature in 1999, AVL ensures equitable access to high quality information that is always available remotely to anyone in Alabama. The AVL Council is composed of representatives from the Alabama State Department of Education, the Alabama Public Library Service, the Alabama Community College System, the Alabama Commission on Higher Education, and the Alabama Supercomputer Authority. The Alabama Public Library Service serves as the fiscal agent for AVL.

The Alabama Public Library Service is the state agency whose mission is to provide information services to all citizens, local public libraries, and state employees.