Philip van Zijl, Whare Takiura Waiariki Institute of Technology, Te Rutoi-A-Tini Malcolm Murchie Library, Rotorua, Aotearoa, New Zealand
No institution can operate in isolation of its community. How this community is defined will determine the spectrum and focus of the services offered by the institution. For instance, if the definition is narrow, as the paying members, e.g. students and staff, the "wider " community will be excluded. At Waiariki Institute of Technology in Rotorua, New Zealand, we have made provision in our membership categories to include Outside Membership where members of the Public as well as community organisations may access our resources and facilities. We are in the process of negotiating with a local trust to access funds to extend this community support to bridge this digital divide.
In the context of Rotorua, with a 43% Maori population, the outreach also has a socio-economic objective. We hold our Partnership (with Maori) in high regard at the Institution and has a formal agreement with the Maori Educational body. In the Library we have a Partnership Policy and is the Section on Campus that has developed the practice the furthest. This has resulted in greater acceptance and trust by the Maori community.
Most community organisations lack the technical and educational expertise to do justice to ICT. There has been a realisation amongst organisations that ICT per se is not the answer to educational problems, but that it should be liked to Information Literacy programmes. This outreach function is written into our Information Literacy strategic plan as a pro-active attempt to co-operate with the community, and to share resources.
This could ensure that when students arrive at Waiariki they would have a better Information and Technology background, expediting their adjustment to tertiary studies as well serving a marketing function.