Laura Bush Librarian Grant

The Office of Commonwealth Libraries is pleased to announce the award of $537,600, A Laura Bush 21st Century Librarian Grant, provided by the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS).

The grant will provide scholarships for the MLS coursework for 25 Pennsylvania public librarians working primarily in rural, but also in lower income urban communities. The 25 new MLS educated librarians will be better equipped to improve the level of service provided by PA public libraries in their communities.

As part of the grant requirement, in addition to taking classes, students will also complete a research project. Clarion University is partnering with the Office of Commonwealth Libraries to oversee the research. Required research projects will contribute to the library profession and will give Pennsylvania the opportunity to use the research in the best way possible to improve libraries. Research will be published and put on the Clarion University website.

Acceptance in a university’s program is a requirement. Students will have their choice of which ALA-accredited college they want to attend. However. the maximum amount each student can be awarded is $19,992 for the entire program. If the student chooses to attend a university other than Clarion, the student must make arrangements with the school to ensure the research component of the project is included. Classes will begin with the winter semester.

More information, an application, guidelines and criteria for selection will be posted here at a later date.