Laura Bush 21st Century Librarian Program
The next competition is expected to have a September 16, 2013 deadline. The FY 2014 guidelines will be made available approximately 90 days before the deadline. Until then, stations are encouraged to use the FY 2013 guidelines as a reference.
Grant: Laura Bush 21st Century Librarian Program
Agency: Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS)
Deadline: September 24, 2012
Description: The Laura Bush 21st Century Librarian Program inve sts in the nation’s information infrastructure by funding projects designed to address the education and training needs of the professionals who help build, maintain and provide public access to the world’s wide-ranging information systems and sources.
In 2013, the program will support projects to:
- Develop faculty and library leaders.
- Recruit and educate the next generation of librarians and archivists.
- Build institutional capacity in graduate schools of library and information science.
- Assist in the professional development of librarians and archivists.
The program is especially interested in developing information professionals who can help manage the burgeoning data generated by the nation's researchers, serve as stewards of the nation's cultural legacy and meet the information needs of the underserved. The program also seeks to help librarians develop the information and digital literacy of their communities.
There are three funding categories: Project Grant, Collaborative Planning Grant and National Forum Grant; and five project categories: doctoral, master's, early career development, institutional capacity, continuing education and scholarship continuation. Applications should designate one funding category and one project category. For a more detailed description of each category, see the Program Notice.
Partnerships may strengthen an application; Collaborative Planning Grants require a partner. An application can include one or more partners. The lead applicant in a partnership must be eligible to apply as an individual entity, and all members of a partnership should be active contributors to project activities.
Fit for public broadcasting: Public broadcasting stations are not eligible to be the lead applicant for this program, but IMLS encourages partnerships, so stations may be able to partner with a local library or museum. Many of the activities that can be funded by this program are related to media, technology, education and workforce training and development. Stations that have relationships with museums and libraries, and stations that do workforce development or digitization work could play a valuable role in a project funded by this program. Each applicant is required, in their proposal, to discuss the variety of media and other means the project will use. Stations may also find a fit in helping their partners with a communication strategy.
Eligibility: Applicants must be either a unit of state or local government or a private nonprofit organization, located in the United States, and one of the following six types of organizations: a library or a parent organization, an academic or administrative unit, a digital library, a library agency that is an official agency of a state or other unit of government, a library consortium, or a library association. Definitions of each type of organization are available in the program notice.
IMLS recognizes the potential for valuable contributions to the overall goals of the Laura Bush 21st Century Librarian Program by public, nonprofit, non-U.S. and for-profit entities that do not meet the eligibility requirements. Although such entities may not serve as the official applicants, they are encouraged to participate in projects as partners.
Anticipated funding: Project Grants will range from $50,000 to $500,000 and have a grant period of up to three years, or four years for doctoral projects. Collaborative Planning Grants will be for no more than $50,000 and for up to one year. National Forum Planning Grants will be for up to $100,000 and for up to one year. A 1:1 funding match is required for Project Grants. Collaborative and National Forum Planning Grants do not require cost sharing, but cost sharing of at least one third is encouraged.
Projects must begin April 1, May 1 or June 1, 2013.
How to apply: Applications must be submitted on Grants.gov, and applicants must have a DUNS Number and be registered in the Central Contractor Registry (CCR). Online submission requires registration, a process that usually takes 3-5 business days but can take as long as four weeks. Be sure to visit Grants.gov and begin registering well in advance of the grant deadline.
Resources:
Program Notice
Program Website
IMLS is hosting two pre-application web conferences about this program. They will be held Wednesday, July 25 at 3:00 p.m. EDT and Tuesday, August 14 at 3:00 p.m. EDT. Confirmation of the meeting dates and times, as well as instructions for participating in the online meetings, will be posted on the IMLS website.
For examples of funded projects, search the Awarded Grants database.
