The funding for electronic resources from the New Jersey Knowledge Initiative has ceased as of February 28.  The New Jersey Knowledge Initiative was the first program of its kind in the nation, offering over 10,000 publications online to small businesses, universities and public libraries state-wide. The databases funded by the NJKI:

• Biomedical Reference Collection:  Comprehensive
• Business Source Premier
• CINAHL
• Pre-CINAHL
• Medline
• Nursing and Allied Health Collection:  Comprehensive
• Reference USA
• Regional Business News
• Wiley InterScience Journals
• Your Journals @Ovid-- Selected Core Medical Journals
• Nature Journals

The New Jersey State Library has issued this statement:

“We hope and expect to have an NJKI program available in the '09 state budget to begin July 1, 2008.  We would appreciate your contacting the Governor's office by mail at PO Box 0001, Trenton NJ 08625; by phone at 609-292-6000; or by email go to http://www.state.nj.us/governor/govmail.html, select “Commerce” as your topic, then “Small Business” as your sub-topic, as well as your local legislators (go to http://www.njleg.state.nj.us/members/legsearch.asp to locate their contact information) to let them know what the NJKI databases meant to you in terms of helping you grow your business, conduct your research or earn your degree. We hope you will strike a positive tone as you urge the Governor and local legislators to resume supporting this statewide shared service that had 15 million uses over the past two years while simultaneously saving $68.5 million dollars over retail prices.”

Rider University Libraries have been able to secure funding to continue some of these databases. This funding will allow only a portion of the databases to be retained and only until June 30, 2008.  After that date, should there be no resumption of state funding, we will not be able to support these databases.  The Libraries, along with faculty, will need to make some difficult decisions on what to retain and what we must give up. We join the State Library in asking for your action to ensure future funding of the New Jersey Knowledge Initiative.

These databases are:

• Business Source Premier
• Medline
• Reference USA
• Nature Journals