The Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) invites libraries, archives, and library agencies, associations, and consortia to apply for the Laura Bush 21st Century Librarian grant program.
Washington, DC--The Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) invites libraries, archives, and library agencies, associations, and consortia to apply for the Laura Bush 21st Century Librarian grant program. The program supports efforts to recruit and educate the next generation of librarians and the faculty who will prepare them for careers in library science. It also supports grants for research related to library education and library staffing needs, curriculum development, an early career development program for untenured, tenure-track library and information science faculty, and continuing education and training.
Guidelines are available on the IMLS Web site. The application deadline is December 15, 2006.
In 2003, with a shortage of professional librarians on the horizon, First Lady Laura Bush called on the Institute of Museum and Library Services to help recruit "a new generation of librarians" through a special funding initiative. Since then, the Institute has funded 2,224 master's degree students, 149 doctoral students, 1,016 preprofessional students, and 4,190 continuing education students. The program also supported a major national study on the future of librarians in the workforce.
"I am proud of the contribution of the Laura Bush 21st Century Librarian Program and its goal to develop a new generation of highly skilled librarians who will expand the educational role of libraries for learners of all ages, from early childhood through retirement," said Dr. Anne-Imelda M. Radice, Director of IMLS. "This program has demonstrated an ability to spur new innovations in library service while upholding our field's traditional values."
The program supports
* recruiting and educating students at the doctoral and master's levels
* graduate schools of library and information science to build institutional capacity through curriculum development in key areas
* research to develop strategies for recruiting and retaining librarians with the appropriate skills and characteristics to meet future users' needs and to evaluate program effectiveness
* efforts to recruit future librarians from the ranks of promising junior high, high school, and college students;
* updating the skills of current librarians and library staffs through continuing education programs
* early career development programs that help promising untenured library and information science faculty in tenure-track positions gain tenure by supporting their research at a critical stage in their careers. Research topics in early career programs address the investigator's individual field of inquiry.
NOTE: For fiscal year 2007, categories of funding have been expanded to highlight opportunities for library disaster recovery in 2005 and 2006 FEMA declared disaster areas, and internships in conservation practice in libraries that have suffered disaster-related collections damage.
Applications, guidelines, and examples of successful proposals can be found on the agency's Web site at http://www.imls.gov/applicants/grants/21centuryLibrarian.shtm. All applications must be submitted electronically through Grants.gov.
Instructions for completing and submitting applications through Grants.gov are in the guidelines and on the IMLS Web site at:
http://www.imls.gov/applicants/grantsgov/L2107.shtm. Contact Senior Program Officer Stephanie Clark at sclark@imls.gov or Program Specialist Karmen Bisher at kbisher@imls.gov with questions or for more information.
Awards will be announced in mid-June 2007.
