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Perspective | How a statewide partnership through NC LIVE empowers every learner and saves millions of dollars

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Courtesy of Catawba Valley Community College

Vanessa Verley was working as a dental assistant after she graduated from Wake Technical Community College, but she always knew she wanted to do more. When it was finally time for her to reach for her goal of becoming a dental hygienist, she was overwhelmed by the costs of tuition and textbooks, on top of the typical $150 for the Admission Test for Dental Hygiene (ATDH) exam prep.

Luckily, from her experience as a community college student, she knew that she had access to premium test prep materials through her local public library by way of NC LIVE, North Carolina’s statewide digital library. Through NC LIVE, Vanessa got the specialized test prep she needed to prepare for the Dental Hygiene exam and was admitted to her top-choice program.

Vanessa’s story is just one example of the impact of NC LIVE, a powerful 30-year statewide collaboration between the UNC System, the N.C. Community College System (NCCCS), N.C. Independent Colleges & Universities (NCICU), and the public libraries via the Library of North Carolina.

Through NC LIVE, all North Carolina residents can freely access high-quality subscription tools to build their career, grow their business, advance their education, and learn new skills. NC LIVE saves the state millions of dollars annually through its centralized, collaborative infrastructure, all while bridging the digital divide, fueling student success, and driving economic mobility across the state.

All students, whether they are at a community college, small private college, or large research institution, depend on high-quality educational resources to support their learning. In today’s complex information landscape, these tools are vitally important to building critical thinking skills, supporting AI literacy, and supporting digital literacy.

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NC LIVE prepares the state’s future workforce by providing a core collection of premium academic resources, including e-books, educational streaming videos, academic articles, and workforce readiness tools to North Carolina’s 500,000 higher education students. Additionally, NC LIVE supports statewide economic readiness by aligning its resource procurement directly with North Carolina’s high-demand industries like nursing, technical education, and teacher training.

For community colleges in particular, NC LIVE is a necessary educational component for all campuses and communities. NC LIVE provides upwards of 90% of the online educational resources for the NCCCS, including workforce and career-readiness content, which connect classrooms to the real world, evidence-based allied health resources for clinical programs, and academic databases in support of early college programs.

By purchasing a core group of online resources for all four statewide systems, NC LIVE is a highly cost-effective investment in North Carolina’s educational and economic infrastructure. In 2025 alone, NC LIVE saved the state a combined $47.8 million through centralized purchasing and procurement.

This collaborative approach makes premium, otherwise cost-prohibitive resources available to every higher education student in the state.

It ensures that all North Carolina higher education institutions can provide the resources necessary for programmatic support and accreditation requirements. NC LIVE’s cross-system infrastructure also supports transfer student success between NCCCS, UNC System, and NCICU by providing continuity of academic resources between institutions.

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Through the collaboration with North Carolina public libraries, NC LIVE’s value extends beyond graduation. Whether students transfer to another campus or directly enter the workforce, they maintain uninterrupted access to NC LIVE resources through their local public library. This continuity of access supports lifelong learning, workforce adaptability, and equitable access to information across North Carolina.

NC LIVE’s career readiness and business market research tools, available through the Small Business Centers and local libraries, ensure that any resident of North Carolina has the tools they need to continue their education or start a business.

Since 1997, NC LIVE has been leveling the academic playing field for students across North Carolina and saving the state millions of dollars in the process. It is a powerful example of what statewide collaboration can achieve with a commitment to shared investment and shared impact.

However, to maintain its collaborative purchasing power, NC LIVE requires renewed financial investment. NC LIVE has been operating on a flat budget for over 20 years and is not able to keep pace with rising resource costs. An increase in funding is critical to maintain NC LIVE’s centralized purchasing power and cost-savings.

NC LIVE is more than a digital library — it is vital infrastructure that fuels student success, adapts our workforce, and drives economic mobility across the state efficiently and sustainably.

NC LIVE’s impact is real and requires ongoing support. Here is how you can help:

  1. Learn what NC LIVE offers at your institution. Talk to your campus librarians or visit NC LIVE’s website and take a few minutes to explore the resources available.
  2. Share your story. Has an NC LIVE resource helped you or a student finish a research paper, prepare for a job interview, or study for a licensing exam? Even a brief description about a specific instance when you used an NC LIVE resource could be helpful in supporting increased funding.
  3. Share this article with your institution’s leadership and let them know NC LIVE matters for your campus and community.