Note: Apparently the Louisiana State University Library has a dominant role in statewide initiatives. I found little on public library projects.

1991 (EA) "Prime Time Family Reading Time" reading, discussion and storytelling public library series offered by the Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities in partnership with the American Library Association Public Programs Office. The program, based on illustrated children's books, is designed to teach parents and children to read and discuss humanities topics and aids them in selecting books and become active public library users. Prime Time began in 1991 at the Baton Rouge Public Library and spread to surrounding states with NEH funding. One Parish has installed computer kiosks in public buildings for people in rural communities to use. A bookmobile also visits the communities on a regular basis.( http://www.newport-news.va.us/library/awards/awards.htm; http://www.icpna.edu.pe/ABLA/Wright%20Janet.htm)

1994 (DD) The Louisiana Library Network of public and school libraries was initiated. Now every public library system in Louisiana, regardless of size or location, is able to offer patrons access to all of the resources made available through the system---more than 100 times the number of journals that they could offer previously. (http://www.asis.org/Conferences/M98/Barry.htm; http://its2.ocs.lsu.edu/OCS/louis/about.htm)

(DD) NUTRIAS (http://nutrias.org )is New Orleans Public Library's User-Friendly Technologically-Correct Research and Information Access System---it's presence on the World Wide Web. A typical Louisiana nutria is a furry, yellow-toothed rodent that swim quite easily, probably because they have WEBbed feet. As for their information carrying abilities, many find NUTRIAS to be vastly superior to GOPHERS of years ago. The charming, locally flavored acronym should encourage patrons to consider using the system.