FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
IMLS Press Contact
Giuliana Bullard
202-653-4799
gbullard@imls.gov
Federal Investments of $10 Million Will Support Library Leadership and Model Library Projects
Washington, DC—The Institute of Museum and Library Services today announced 49 grants to institutions totaling $10,216,923. The awards are made through the FY 2017 second cycle of the National Leadership Grants for Libraries Program and the Laura Bush 21st Century Librarian Program.
“We are delighted to announce today’s grant recipients whose projects are designed to have lasting benefits for the library and archives fields,” said IMLS Director Dr. Kathryn K. Matthew. “These grants highlight how IMLS helps steer the nation’s investments in libraries and ensure that librarians are equipped to provide citizens access to the information, resources, and services they want and need.”
National Leadership Grants for Libraries support projects that address challenges faced by the library and archives fields and that have the potential to advance library and archival practice with new tools, research findings, models, services, or alliances that can be widely replicated. Nearly $26 million was requested, and $5,557,160 was awarded for 31 projects. See the list of second cycle National Leadership Grant recipients (PDF 493KB). Funded projects include:
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A toolkit of citizen science resources by Arizona State University, in partnership with Arizona State Library and NISE Net, to help public libraries serve as community hubs for citizen science. The toolkit will be developed by a team of STEM educators, citizen science experts, and scientists and field-tested by practitioners.
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A project to help public and academic libraries serve as key partners in local open civic data ecosystems. The University Library System at the University of Pittsburgh with the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh, the Western Pennsylvania Regional Data Center, and the Urban Institute will develop a guide and toolkit that will help libraries address needs, develop practices, anticipate challenges, and learn from successful civic data partnerships.
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Growing Providers, a program for aspiring childcare providers of the Brooklyn Public Library in collaboration with Committee for Hispanic Children and Families, New York Early Childhood Professional Development Institute (PDI), and Business Outreach Centers. This seven-session program will help applicants complete their state license registration and provide them librarian-led training on early literacy and business resources.
Visit the IMLS website for more information about the National Leadership Grants for Libraries program.
The Laura Bush 21st Century Librarian Program supports projects to recruit and educate the next generation of librarians, faculty, and library leaders. IMLS is awarding $4,659,763 of the nearly $19 million requested to fund 18 projects. See a list of second cycle Laura Bush 21st Century Librarian Program recipients (PDF 458KB). Funded projects include:
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Rural Engagement to Advance Learning In STEM Digitally (REALISD) in School Libraries, a project of the University of West Georgia in collaboration with the University of Buffalo to deliver professional development with STEM educators, school library leaders, and digital resource experts for 80 rural school librarians to help them better facilitate STEM learning in their libraries.
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The Regents of the University of Minnesota’s project to create an Open Educational Resources (OER) Librarian Bootcamp, a professional development program to prepare librarians to become stewards and advocates for open educational resources, with online content, workshops, and mentor-led cohorts.
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Washington State University’s extension of the Tribal Digital Stewardship Cohort Training program, which supports the educational and curatorial needs of tribal archives, libraries, and museums, to include 24 participants from 12 tribes over 2 years.
Visit the IMLS website for more information about the Laura Bush 21st Century Librarian Program.