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El Paso Community College expands access to analytics and offers stronger services across campuses

Facing urgent FedRAMP/TX-RAMP compliance requirements and growing workflow friction across disconnected systems, El Paso Community College migrated to OCLC WorldShare Management Services (WMS) on an accelerated timeline, creating a more intuitive staff experience, expanding access to analytics, and laying the groundwork for stronger, more consistent services across campuses.

Key outcomes

  • Implemented WMS in under three months after the legacy system could no longer meet compliance requirements
  • Reduced complexity and long-term cost pressure by consolidating workflows across multiple systems
  • Improved visibility and self-service reporting with analytics, reducing bottlenecks and single-person dependencies
  • Enabled cross-training and stronger operational resilience by breaking down expertise silos
Photo: El Paso Community College Northwest Campus
Photo courtesy of El Paso Community College

When El Paso Community College (EPCC) began planning for a new library services platform, the goal was clear: modernize workflows and better connect with the college's evolving technology environment.

After years of evaluation, the timeline suddenly accelerated. EPCC's legacy system could no longer meet FedRAMP and TX-RAMP compliance requirements, and the college could not continue working with the vendor past a set deadline.

Needing an immediately compliant solution, EPCC selected OCLC WorldShare Management Services (WMS), a secure platform that could simplify operations and support future growth.

"We were already having issues with our older system as far as workflows and connecting with newer systems the college had acquired," said Lorely Ambriz, Dean of Counseling and Libraries, Instruction and Student Success at EPCC. "Then we were forced to migrate much faster because we were soon to be out of compliance."

Reducing fragmentation and preparing for what's next

EPCC's previous environment had become a patchwork of tools and vendors. Staff often navigated interoperability challenges and manual processes as campus systems evolved and expectations for integration increased.

During platform evaluation, EPCC prioritized FedRAMP/TX-RAMP compliance, interoperability with campus systems and library services, and long-term cost savings that would reduce the need to assemble multiple systems into a single workflow.

Library staff across departments contributed their perspectives, while IT leadership, purchasing, and academic leadership ensured the solution aligned with institutional requirements. The team ultimately presented a recommendation to the board supported by clear criteria, including security, stability, and long-term cost savings.

Photo: Lorely Ambriz

“Our librarians liked all the workflows, reports, and everything that WMS has to offer. For them, at the end of the day, it was unanimous that we select WMS.”

Lorely Ambriz
Dean of Counseling and Libraries, Instruction and Student Success
El Paso Community College

Treat migration as a policy moment, not just a data move

With the compressed timeline, EPCC quickly learned that implementation involves more than moving data. The team had to decide what to migrate, what to clean up, and what to leave behind, often while the work was already underway.

Lorely's top advice: allow a full year for migration whenever possible and clean data early. EPCC encountered data issues tied to legacy practices and had to make pragmatic decisions. For example, the team set a cutoff for patron records due to scale while retaining older records where fines required it. Some incomplete reserve records also required rebuilding by linking to OCLC records and creating new reserve items.

EPCC also opted for additional implementation support, an investment Lorely recommends, particularly for smaller teams or when staffing changes reduce in-house expertise.

"Having that flexibility and support is important, especially when it's a new system and you don't have every specialty role available," said Lorely.

Build resilience through cross-training and shared visibility

While still in implementation, EPCC is already seeing operational benefits. Staff describe WMS as more intuitive, reducing the need to rely on manuals for routine tasks.

With analytics more accessible, reporting no longer depends on a single person to generate data for others.

The migration also created an opportunity to review policies and cross-train staff across functional areas—reducing "one-person" knowledge silos and increasing flexibility for the future.

These improvements ultimately help EPCC deliver more consistent library services to students and faculty across its campuses.

September 2026