Spotlight on Potential Partners: Libraries and Museums
February 6, 2012
At The Grant Center, we have been stressing the importance of building relationships with state and local educational agencies. Last month, we hosted a webinar that highlighted station success in partnering with their states to receive federal education dollars. In addition to building those relationships, public media stations should consider partnerships with local and state organizations and agencies doing more informal education work, such as libraries and museums.
Like public media stations, libraries and museums are doing innovative work outside of the traditional education sphere. Although they are often government-funded, these institutions are not limited by the same regulations and histories that public schools are. In many instances, they have used that freedom to create cutting-edge programs and provide students with opportunities they might not otherwise have. As trusted community institutions supported by expert, innovative professionals, libraries and museums are natural partners for public media. The resources they provide are complementary to stations', and stations might consider looking to them as partners in applying for federal grants, especially those from the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS).
In 2011, IMLS partnered with the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, a long-time supporter of public media projects, to create a network of Learning Labs in libraries and museums. The Learning Labs are intended to become spaces for experimentation and creativity for young people, helping them to gain experience in STEM learning, critical thinking, problem solving, communication and collaboration in an out-of-school setting. Because this program emphasized STEM learning, media literacy, communication, problem-solving and community engagement, local public television and radio stations were well-positioned to play a role in these initiatives. Of the 12 funded projects, three have public broadcasting partners:
- Twin Cities Public Television partnered with St. Paul Public Library, which was awarded $100,000 to plan and design digital learning labs to improve digital literacy and to engage young people in hands-on learning. The labs will help youth gain the 21st century skills and knowledge they need to succeed in school, careers and life.
- KQED partnered with San Francisco Public Library and will help to create a new Teen Center/Learning Lab that will bridge the digital divide in San Francisco's youth community, promote digital media literacy, convert digital media consumers to producers, develop leaders and prepare youth for the technology job market of the future.
- WOSU Public Media partnered with Columbus Metropolitan Library and will develop a system of teen learning labs across the city of Columbus, Ohio. The labs will use digital media tools to enhance learning and create a collaborative community of teens.
Here are some ways in which libraries and museums can be strong partners for public media stations:
- Libraries around the country have taken innovative approaches to programs for older youth, overlapping with the goals and strategies of the American Graduate initiative. Programs like the one in the Dallas Public Library System use the library's technology resources to entice teens to participate.
- Programs in libraries and museums often focus on engaging youth outside of school to keep them engaged in the classroom and in learning in general -- public media can contribute to and magnify those efforts.
- Libraries and museums, like public media, are supporters and curators of culture and heritage. Partnerships to digitize, share and display the vast collections of these institutions with those of public media could be hugely valuable.
Grants from the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) and other agencies can support partnerships between museums, libraries and public media stations. In addition to education, IMLS programs emphasize professional development, community engagement, digital media, preservation and technology. Public broadcasting stations' expertise in these areas will make them appealing partners to local museums and libraries. Currently, only one IMLS competition, 21st Century Museum Professionals, is accepting applications, but stations can begin preparing for future competitions by developing relationships with local museums and libraries.
To find out more about libraries and museums, visit the Institute of Museum and Library Services. Other resources, as well as a library locator, can be found at the American Library Association.
