Windfall for Illinois Libraries

State library increases grants for schools, public libraries

By Lauren Barack -- School Library Journal, 4/1/2005

Illinois school and public libraries will enjoy more books, computers, and other materials, thanks to a hefty increase in the annual grants they receive from the Illinois State Library.

The 2005 fiscal year awards, announced in March, provide $1.4 million to 735 school libraries, up from $1.39 million in 2004. And 628 public libraries will share $14.2 million, a substantial increase from the $12.1 million awarded last year.

"This is a way to support our school and public libraries," says Pat McGuckin, spokesperson for the Illinois State Library, a division of the Secretary of State's office.

Launched in 1989, the grants come from the state budget and are given annually to supplement state and federal funding. All libraries apply for the grants annually, and to qualify, they must be a member of the regional library system and have at least one paid employee who is a dedicated, but not necessarily certified, librarian. Librarians and their staff can also use the money to pay for professional development services.

Grants are calculated based on the number of students or residents in a library's community, and must be spent before July, the start of the 2006 fiscal year. But at 72 cents per student and $1.25 per resident, some grants can be fairly miniscule.

The Vermont Public Library, for example, will receive $989 and a school library in Industry, IL, just $143. Still, Illinois is the first state in the nation to create a per-capita-styled grant for school libraries, says McGuckin. The award can be spent at the discretion of the library, but not on capital improvements. "No shelves, desks, or wiring," McGuckin says.