Illinois School Library Money Flows

This article originally appeared in SLJ’s Extra Helping. Sign up now!

Laura B. Weiss -- School Library Journal, 4/13/2006

Illinois Secretary of State and State Librarian Jesse White recently awarded school library grants totaling almost $1.4 million to 716 public school districts to help provide library services to nearly two million students in more than 3,300 media centers, according to the Salem Times-Commoner. Funding can also be used to help librarians and staff with continuing education and professional development.

"Each year, my office awards grants to help school libraries buy books, computers, and other library materials," White says. "I am proud to say that Illinois was the first state in the nation to implement a public school library per capita grant program, and our program remains an unqualified success."

A study last year by the Illinois School Library Media Association revealed that school libraries boosted student achievement.