The effort was part of an annual capstone project in which groups of students work with business owners to identify issues affecting budget and profitability. Ultimately, they gave us three options to choose from, which included the costs for each one.вЂќ вЂњThey did the research and possessed the knowledge needed to assess our needs. вЂњThe report delivered by these students was very useful to the library system and saved us a considerable amount of time,вЂќ said Nancy Fredericks, a libraries administrator in Pasco. The project is expected to start in the fall and last about two years.ДЄdministrators were in the midst of creating a plan to swap out the computers when they reached an impasse over a suitable replacement system. вЂњUltimately, I think they were happy with the choice they made, and I think the work we did for them saved them from additional work they would have had to do themselves.вЂќД¬rouch said the report affects about 275 computers, including public-use terminals and computers used by office staff and IT personnel in seven branches. вЂњThe goal was to help them understand or give them an idea about whether one computer was a better idea or not,вЂќ recent USF graduate and project lead Louis Crouch said.

They detailed their findings in a 57-page report delivered to library administrators last month. The students, members of Jean KabongoвЂ™s Strategic Management/Decision Making class, spent about two months analyzing the librariesвЂ™ needs and investigating systems suitable for staff and library patrons. A group of business students from theВ University of South Florida Sarasota-ManateeВ helped select a computer system forВ Pasco CountyвЂ™s public libraries.

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