LSTA Guidelines and Categories


Applying for an LSTA (Library Services and Technology Act) grant is a big project, but it can really make a difference to your library and your community.  The Rice Lake Public Library applied for and received a literacy grant for 2012, and they are transforming their children's room to support early literacy.  Dawn Wacek reports:  "We finally have our furniture in and play activities and we LOVE everything about it.  The kids are having a blast playing in the new space."
Toddlers enjoy the new literacy panels installed as part of the Rice Lake Public Library's Early Literacy Grant Project.


The guidelines for the 2013 LSTA grants are now available. Individual libraries can apply in the following categories:  Literacy, Accessibility, Digitization of Local Resources, and new category--Digital Creations in Public Libraries.  Also online is an LSTA grant application worksheet containing information to include in a successful grant application as well as a blank form for use as a model.

If you are thinking about writing a proposal, here are 3 suggestions:

  1. Attend a virtual information session on writing LSTA grant proposals on June 28--for more details contact Terrie Howe at Teresa.howe@dpi.wi.gov.  
  2. Contact me if you want help writing a grant, or deciding whether or not to write one.  I cannot help you if you contact me last-minute, but if you want my help, I'm happy to provide it.  Make an appointment to talk with me about it sometime in July!  langby@ifls.lib.wi.us 
  3. As you write the grant, remember that they are for the calendar year, but because it is a federal grant, sometimes you won't find out if funding is available until well into the grant year.  Make sure you are cooking up a scheme that can be compressed into 9-10 months if necessary.

FYI:  I will plan on writing an IFLS-wide grant proposal about autism and teens and young adults, so watch for details on this.

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