Library Stuff

“The jobs of Florida historians and genealogists will soon be much easier, thanks to a recent grant for the University of Florida libraries. In August, the National Endowment for the Humanities announced it would be awarding $325,000 to the Florida and Puerto Rico Digital Newspaper Project, a joint project between the Smathers Libraries and the University of Puerto Rico-Rio Piedras.” (via Gainesville Sun)

“Across the country museums are innovating to engage their communities, creating exciting new learning experiences, and caring for and making accessible their rich collections. This year the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) awarded grants totaling nearly $30 million for 244 projects at museums of all types, from art museums to science centers, from aquariums to history museums. On September 18, IMLS Director Susan Hildreth will honor the grantees at a workshop and ceremony in Washington, D.C. Representative Paul Tonko (D-NY) will give remarks. Grant recipients from across the country will also attend.” (via IMLS)

“During the month of August several Maine libraries reported receiving news that they had been awarded grants from the Stephen and Tabitha King Foundation. Once again, Maine libraries are so fortunate to benefit from the generosity of this Foundation. Libraries have shared with us their delight in learning that their library was a recipient of a grant from the Kings in this latest round of awards. Keep in mind that the list includes only those libraries that shared this information with the Maine State Library.” (via Maine State Library)

“The Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum is getting a grant to help pay for the storage of tens of thousands of images of documents related to the 16th president. Officials announced Tuesday that Amazon Web Services awarded the Papers of Abraham Lincoln $24,000 worth of storage services.” (via AP)

“MIT and Harvard libraries will play a role in ensuring a new generation of library school graduates will be prepared for jobs in digital stewardship. The universities were jointly awarded a 2013 Laura Bush 21st Century Librarian Program Grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) that will fund a pilot program to help recent graduates gain the skills, experience, and network needed to begin successful careers. “There’s a real gap between students graduating and the skills they need for available jobs. The program aims to bridge that gap,” said Nancy McGovern, head of curation and preservation services for MIT Libraries, and a co-author of the grant proposal.” (via MIT Libraries News)

“Duke University Libraries is establishing a new unit, Duke Collaboratory for Classics Computing (DC3), that will use digital technologies to analyze some of the world’s oldest documents and artifacts. Funded by a $500,000 grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, the DC3 will be led by Joshua D. Sosin, associate professor of classical studies and history at Duke, who will also assume a joint appointment within the libraries.” (via ARL®)

“LibQUAL+ is pleased to announce that three libraries have been selected to receive in-kind grants in 2013. The selection of grantees was based on financial need, contribution to the growth of LibQUAL+, and potential for surfacing best practices in the area of library service improvements.”

via Association of Research Libraries

“The Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) and the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation today announced the second round of winners of a national competition to design 21st century Learning Labs in museums and libraries around the country. The 12 winners—five museums and seven libraries—will receive a total of $1.2 million in grants to plan and design the labs. Inspired by YOUmedia, a teen space at the Chicago Public Library, and innovations in science and technology centers, these labs will help young people move beyond consuming content to making and creating it.”

via IMLS

“The California State Library has awarded the Southern California Library Cooperative (SCLC) a grant for $371,000 to provide text books and recreational reading materials to California Prisons. These funds provided through the Library Services Training Act (LSTA), are being granted to support an important need – new materials and textbooks in prison libraries. The monies granted are being used to furnish textbooks to three California prisons. These include adult prisons San Quentin and Ironwood and juvenile prison, the Ventura Youth Correctional Facility. Recreational reading materials are being sent to all California prisons. The textbooks provided for the adult prisons will be used to give inmates more resources to complete classes at community colleges. At Ventura’s Youth Correctional Facility, juvenile offenders will get textbooks to help them complete their high school diplomas. The recreational reading materials, going to all 33 prisons in California, include magazines, newspapers, and fiction and non-fiction books.”

via California State Library

“The Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners today announced that they have awarded eight communities General Construction Provisional Grants awards. Governor Patrick increased funding for the Public Library Construction Program in the administration’s FY13-FY17 Capital Plan to allow for these eight additional grants, which will assist with the cost of construction over the course of the next few years. “Public libraries are a valuable resource for cities, towns and residents across the Commonwealth,” said Lieutenant Governor Timothy Murray. “These grants, and others before it, will assist municipalities with construction of top-notch, environmentally-conscious facilities that will serve residents for many years to come.”

via Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners