Kent State University Libraries has gone mobile, so students, staff and faculty can more easily navigate the wide array of assets the library houses from anywhere.
The OhioLINK Mobile App is a new development rolled out by the Kent State University Libraries Systems Team in February 2026.
The Ohio Library and Information Network, OhioLINK, is Ohio’s statewide academic library association of over 80 institutions. Delivering IT infrastructure and content negotiation, the service provides communities with affordable access to digital research collections. OhioLINK saves its members more than $1 billion each year for print and electronic library resources.
University Libraries acquired the app in partnership with OhioLINK, configuring the instance to make it “perfectly Kent State,” according to Mike Collura, executive director for technology and resource innovation at University Libraries.
The OhioLINK Mobile App aims to make it easy to locate resources quickly, get help with loans or connect with librarians, access digital content on the go and receive notifications to stay up to date on important library news.
Cynthia Williams, director of communications, marketing and public relations for University Libraries, said the configuration of the OhioLINK Mobile App was a natural progression to ensure that the library provides the best services available for students, staff and faculty.
“We want everyone who uses the library to succeed,” Williams told Kent State Today. “Everybody wants to come to the library to make sure they are getting the best that they can get in terms of their academic career. We want to say there is another tool that we can use to make sure that they are receiving the best.”
The OhioLINK Mobile App provides the Kent State community with easy access to library resources. Using the app, users can search for library materials, download content, request research assistance, renew checkouts and much more. Not only is the app a resource for academics, it is also an opportunity to see and participate in the University’s digital progression.
Collura played a key role in the creation of the OhioLINK Mobile App, which was a collaboration with the vendor of Kent State’s library services platform. Every OhioLINK library migrated to the platform, but Collura’s role was to make Kent State’s platform unique.
Typically, Collura said, when a customer buys the platform and purchases the app from the vendor, they receive the vendor-branded version. Kent State had the opportunity to customize it, making the app unique to the institution.
“My team chose not to use any of their standard out-of-the-box design icons,” Collura said. “We created our own set of custom icons using Kent State colors to make it uniquely Kent State.”
By tailoring this statewide resource to fit the specific needs of the Kent State community, University Libraries provides support and access. This custom digital tool ensures that high-quality research materials are available to students wherever they are, reinforcing Kent State’s commitment to student success.
Collura said his favorite part about the app’s creation was the process. He said he enjoyed playing around with the app and working with his team to develop visual features.
Additionally, Collura had the opportunity to soft-launch the OhioLINK Mobile App to the University Libraries Student Advisory Council before the app went live. Feedback given from the students helped Collura and his team fix bugs that they otherwise did not catch.
Jess Brenneman, library and information science graduate student and member of the University Libraries Student Advisory Council, found a bug that the development team fixed.
Brenneman noticed that upon logging in, the app featured a welcome message that contained the user's legal name, not your chosen or preferred name. Brenneman approached the development team with the error and asked if chosen names could be displayed instead. On the back end, the development team was able to quickly rectify the issue. For Brenneman, speaking up about the error was a no-brainer.
“Seeing any kind of thing where it’s like, ‘oh, you could make this safer,’ queer people or for anyone, right? It is ingrained in me that I need to say that,” Brenneman said. “I need to be the kind of advocate and say ‘hey, this needs to be changed.’”
Situations like these communicate the need for student opinion around campus and how departments across campus truly appreciate the views of students. It helps to progress and change aspects of the university that would not have necessarily been changed if not for students speaking up.
The app is instrumental in aiding academic needs and in making students on campus aware of different events or experiences. It is a vital tool that helps students stay connected and focused.