The Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS), in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) and in cooperation with Arts Midwest, announces the 2010 deadline for The Big Read, a program to revitalize the role of literature in American culture. 
Want to build your romance fiction collection or host romance fiction programming? Then the Romance Writers of America Library Grant is for you. The grant consists of a $4,500 cash award from the Romance Writers of America. 
Planning Ahead
February
February is African American History Month, and last year we asked librarians to share their African American History Month ideas. Here’s what some of your colleagues were up to: programs in every genre and discipline featuring African American authors, films, visual artists, quiltmakers, musicians, scholars, and storytellers. Read more...
What's New?
Online Learning Opportunities
Picturing America for Public Libraries will be offering several online learning opportunities this fall offered free of charge and open to public librarians and public library staff involved in developing programs that incorporate the Picturing America collection. Read more...
Poll
Making the Case for Library Programming
Even though library programming is widespread, programmers still find themselves faced with having to persuade the library administration, board members, colleagues, and even patrons and the public of its value. As different agencies and library departments compete for limited funding, it’s important to be able to articulate why cultural programming is worth the investment.
One of the strongest arguments is that programming puts the library in the spotlight, and is a way to attract additional funding and support rather than a drain on the library budget. Programs that reach beyond the library’s traditional services and draw diverse audiences are the ones most likely to get coverage in local media and garner other types of attention.
An interesting case in point is the recent allocation of more than $4 million to libraries in Minnesota specifically for cultural programming as part of statewide revenue dedicated to the arts and the environment. The funds could not be used for general library services, so if a library wasn’t in a position to present programming, it didn’t have access to the funds.
Don’t think of making a case as an extra job—it’s really the résumé for your library’s programming, a way to sell people on its strengths and build a stronger base for more and better programs to come. Use this outline to get started: Read more...