Old Dominion University selects OCLC's WorldShare Management Services as its library services platform

ODU partners with OCLC to streamline operations and provide greater access to global research resources for students and faculty

DUBLIN, Ohio, May 18, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Old Dominion University (ODU) recently concluded a comprehensive review of its library systems, and OCLC's WorldShare Management Services (WMS) emerged as the clear choice to provide ODU Libraries with the library services platform it needed.

ODU is a public doctoral research university with nearly 24,000 students and rigorous academics. ODU's world-class faculty foster dynamic on-campus and global online learning for undergraduate and graduate students to enrich their lives, promote insightful and perceptive leadership, and motivate the pursuit of excellence in their chosen fields and professions.

Aligning library services for the future

This year, ODU marks the 50th anniversary of the Patricia W. and J. Douglas Perry Library, one of the campus's most iconic buildings. Notably, ODU Libraries serves as an essential part of the teaching, research, service, and outreach mission across campus and is strategically aligned and focused on the future.

After more than a decade with its previous provider, ODU Libraries conducted an extensive review of its systems process over several years. Following the ODU-Eastern Virginia Medical School merger in July 2024, the Brickell Medical Sciences Library, which had been using WMS for years, became a part of the ODU Libraries organization. The combined libraries then jointly selected WMS for its scalability and its strong alignment with ODU's strategic direction and long-term needs.

Partnering to advance innovation, research, and student success

WMS offers a proven and comprehensive cloud-based library services platform that streamlines workflows, enhances resource discoverability, and integrates seamlessly with existing systems. WMS is continually enhanced through ongoing communication and collaboration with library partners. The result is an advanced, flexible platform that continues to evolve to support student success and meet the complex challenges facing modern academic libraries.

"Old Dominion University is a great addition to the WMS community," said Mary Sauer-Games, OCLC Chief Product Officer. "ODU's dynamic learning environment will be supported by WMS's capabilities to improve discoverability and broaden access to global resources through WorldCat. Building on the continued growth of WMS and our strong resource sharing network, we're confident that ODU will be well equipped to meet the evolving needs of students and faculty for years to come."

About WorldShare Management Services

WMS is a cloud-based, integrated library management platform that connects local operations to a shared global data network with WorldCat as its foundation. The system supports:

• Acquisitions
• Circulation
• Cataloging and Metadata
• Discovery
• Interlibrary loan
• License management

About OCLC

OCLC is a nonprofit global library organization that provides shared technology services, original research, and community programs so that libraries can better fuel learning, research, and innovation. Through OCLC, member libraries cooperatively produce and maintain WorldCat, the most comprehensive global network of data about library collections and services. Libraries gain efficiencies through OCLC's WorldShare, a complete set of library management applications and services built on an open, cloud-based platform. It is through collaboration and sharing of the world's collected knowledge that libraries can help people find answers they need to solve problems. Together as OCLC, member libraries, staff, and partners make breakthroughs possible.

OCLC, WorldCat and WorldShare are trademarks and/or service marks of OCLC, Inc. Third-party product, service and business names are trademarks and/or service marks of their respective owners.

For more information: Contact Bob Murphy at [email protected] or +1-614-761-5136

SOURCE OCLC