The Southern Illinois Learning Resources Cooperative began with an organizational meeting at Kaskaskia College, Centralia, Illinois, on April 26, 1979. This group of colleges and universities had met informally for about five years to discuss issues of mutual concern and possible areas of cooperation using the name Southern Illinois Junior College Co-op. Mr. Jack DuHasek, Director of the LRC at Kaskaskia College provided leadership in that first year--serving as the first president and chairing the by-laws committee.
The By-Laws were adopted at a meeting on July 10, 1979, and SILRC was incorporated as a not-for-profit corporation with administrative offices at Kaskaskia College. Bi-monthly meetings were established to alternate between Kaskaskia College and John A. Logan College.
The first official meeting of SILRC was held on September 10, 1979 at John A Logan College, Carterville.
Here is a list of the charter institutions and their representatives:
| College | Delegate | Alternate |
| Belleville Area College | Lloyd Gentry | Bobbie Peduzzi |
| Greenville College | Bruce Ronk | Cornelia May |
| Kaskaskia College | Jack Du Hasek | Betty Breithaupt |
| Lewis and Clark College | Beverly Humphries | Doug Landrum |
| Lincoln Trail College | Juanita Martin | Paul Lange |
| John A. Logan College | Carl Cottingham | Peggy Milles, John Little |
| Olney Central College | Ralph Steinke | Joyce Kocher |
| Shawnee College | Morton Wright | Karen Dexter |
| Southeastern Illinois College | Melba Patton | Paul Talaski |
| Southern Illinois University-Carbondale | Don Winsor | Jerry Hostetler |
| Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville | John Abbott | Bob Miller |
| State Community College | W.J. Van Grunsven | Gloria Jackson |
| Wabash Valley College | John Krug | Nadine Smith |
One of the primary goals of SILRC has always been staff development. In November, 1979, the staff development committee was established. The membership was surveyed and workshops were set up to meet the professional needs of the group. These early workshops covered such topics as telecourses (previewing& administration), new AACR2 cataloging rules, audiovisual equipment demonstrations, public relations in the library, microcomputers in education, slide shows introducing member campuses and LRCs, photographic techniques, copyright law, satellite downlinking, CD-ROMs and desktop publishing.
Telecourses began as a SILRC cooperative effort in 1981 with a Japanese history and culture course offered by a few colleges and broadcast by WSIU-TV. This program has continued to expand with eight colleges offering 15-20 courses to over 3000 students each semester. Other distance learning delivery methods now include an interactive video network connecting most of the SILRC members and Internet based courses.
SILRC works closely with the other learning resources cooperatives in Illinois to promote state-wide sharing of resources. In 1985 the Northern Illinois Learning Resources Cooperative(NILRC) became the state-wide (and beyond) agency for learning resources cooperative efforts. Most SILRC members are now, also, members of NILRC.
After 1982, SILRC expanded its membership to include out-of-state members: Vincennes University (Indiana), East Central College, Maryville College, and Jefferson College (Missouri).
SILRC made its first large acquisition in 1989 with the purchase of a Book stack mover. The equipment would be loaned to members and non-members for a rental fee. This proved to be a successful project with considerable savings to many libraries over the years.
The By-Laws were revised in 1991 to allow associate membership for the library systems. Shawnee Library System, Kaskaskia Library System and Lewis and Clark Library System joined and have contributed greatly to the organization.
SILRC approaches 20 years of age and has remained faithful to its original purpose: "... to provide expanded learning resources to its members through interaction, cooperation, and staff development." Most agree that the greatest benefit of SILRC has been the warm, friendly relationships that have been formed. These friendships and our professional cooperation will surely continue to grow in the coming years.
5-4-98
Carl Cottingham
Member Emeritus, SILRC, 1979-1998