White Awards $3.9 Million in LSTA Grants to Libraries, Library Systems and Museums
SPRINGFIELD – Secretary of State and State Librarian Jesse White has awarded FY08 Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA) grants totaling $3.9 million to 241 Illinois libraries, library systems, and museums containing libraries. Over the last ten years, LSTA grants have produced hundreds of worthwhile new programs in Illinois' more than 5,000 libraries, regional library systems and museums.
"LSTA funds encourage our libraries to be creative and innovative," White said. "Illinois librarians work hard to look ahead and identify specific local needs and use these funds to address those needs. These grants help provide our libraries with some of the financial resources they need to remain our state's most reliable sources of information."
All of this year's grant recipients have been invited to attend a special reception October 10th at the Illinois State Library in Springfield during the Illinois Library Association's annual conference. The reception is a celebration of the 10th anniversary of the creation of LSTA grants.
White said this year's LSTA grants were awarded in the following categories:
- The Safety Grant– The intent of this offering is for libraries to provide training, educational programs or demonstrations on issues relating to safety. Illinois citizens' access to information on safety issues and disaster preparedness will increase with the library as the hub of information. Illinois citizens will turn to the library for information, education and training on issues relating to personal and community safety. This grant allows public, school, academic or special libraries to be an integral piece of the safety and disaster preparedness puzzle.
- Libraries: Innovate, Create, Collaborate (LINCC)– Illinois libraries have received nationwide recognition over the years for their innovative and creative partnerships, programs, and services. To continue this tradition, the Libraries: Innovate, Create, Collaborate (LINCC) grant offering provides the opportunity to create partnerships that will reflect understanding of the community, with an emphasis on innovative and creative programming and services.
- Digital Imaging– Digital Imaging grants allow libraries to create Internet-ready electronic versions of their materials and collections, specifically Illinois-related historical and cultural materials. Types of materials that may be digitized include archival materials, manuscripts, diaries, personal journals; photos and film; handwritten musical scores, maps, posters, drawings, and prints; sound recordings such as oral histories and tapes; and historic newspapers.
- Developing a Statewide Technology Toolkit– Regional library systems are encouraged to collaborate and cooperate on a statewide initiative to enhance library services using new technologies such as blogs, RSS, Wikis and instant messaging. Together, the regional library systems will focus on research and development, testing and training that will have an impact statewide. Systems will work with teams of pilot project libraries to introduce new technologies into Illinois libraries. These teams will create templates that can be replicated statewide, and develop standard policies that can be duplicated by any library in Illinois.
- The Emerging Grant Writer– The intent of this grant is to encourage librarians and other applicants who have never written a successful LSTA grant to apply. The grant is designed to alleviate the first time grant writer's apprehension by easing them into the grant process. The Emerging Grant Writer application is designed to focus on a new or enhanced activity, program or library service.
LSTA funding is awarded to states by the federal Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS). The Illinois State Library administers LSTA funding awarded to the state of Illinois each year, and issues grants to applicants who seek funding as part of a competitive grant program. LSTA grants are available for the development of projects that specifically provide and focus on library service, new initiatives and library activities. All types of libraries-academic, public, school and special-and regional library systems and museums with libraries are eligible for funding.
LSTA Grant Recipients
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