Laura Bush 21st Century ProgramAwards $20 Million to 33 Institutions

Some 33 institutions in 21 states have been awarded grants totaling $20.4 million from the Laura Bush 21st Century Librarian Program to assist literacy efforts, increase the number of media specialists, and create more diversity in the workplace.

The grants also will be used by library students and staff to assist very young children in achieving early literacy; support libraries in rural communities; create more librarians with a specialty in government information services; and strengthen the workforce to better meet the needs of users of all types of libraries.

The University of Wisconsin System School Education Consortium (UWSSEC)—a collaborative venture of five state universities—will use its $ 989,495 grant to address a statewide shortage of school library media specialists by training 50 classroom teachers to become media specialists for the state's rural and high-need urban public schools. The teachers will receive full scholarships to earn a master's degree in librarianship with a school library media specialization.

Old Dominion University in Virginia will use its $661,154 grant to establish a Librarianship Upgrades for Children and Youth Services center to help librarians acquire skills to better serve an increasingly diverse population by using a variety of online, teleconferencing and face-to-face instruction.

Sam Houston State University's Department of Library Science will use its $898,195 grant to partner with the Texas Education Agency's Regional Education Centers to provide scholarships to 40 students in south Texas studying to be certified media specialists. The project addresses a critical need for school library media specialists to serve the region's growing Hispanic student population.

Since its inception in 2002, the program—sponsored by the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS)—has funded the education and training of 3,220 master's students, 186 doctoral students, 1,256 pre-professionals, and 26,206 continuing education students. It also supports grants for research related to library education and library staffing needs, curriculum development, and continuing education and training.

“The driving force behind any successful library is a staff of educated and dedicated library professionals," says Anne-Imelda Radice, director of IMLS. "It is IMLS's great pleasure to announce the Laura Bush 21st Century Librarian Program awards which will help support the next generation of library professionals in their academic and community-building endeavors.”

See a list of grant recipients and descriptions of how they intend to use the funds.

The next deadline for the Laura Bush 21st Century Librarian Program is December 15, 2009. For more information, click here.