The Roanoke Rapids Public Library has been awarded an $8,270 grant to be used for non-fiction books to assist juveniles and young adults with homework assignments. The federal Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA) funds from the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) were awarded by the State Library of North Carolina, a division of the Department of Cultural Resources.
These federal funds are investments of dollars to help libraries deliver relevant and up-to-date services for their communities. At Roanoke Rapids Public Library, the LSTA grant will purchase science, history, social studies, health, and technology books along with current biographies to expand and improve its collection of books to provide information for personal pursuits and school assignments. Upon learning that the Roanoke Rapids Public Library received the federal grant, Head Librarian Jeff Watson said, “I am delighted our library will be able to offer up-to-date materials on topics children and young adults have an interest. It has been one of my goals to improve our library collection for the benefit of students. This grant has helped us to achieve this goal.”
Roanoke Rapids Public Library received one of the 162 grants for fiscal year 2010-2011 awarded to North Carolina libraries; funding for all projects totaled $4,923,671. The LSTA program grant program administered by the State Library of North Carolina funds projects across the state that help libraries deliver learning opportunities for a lifetime, support libraries in their mission to provide cost-effective access to the Internet and to information expertise, and make library resources more accessible to all users.
The Institute of Museum and Library Services is the primary source of federal support for the nation’s 122,000 libraries and 17,500 museums. The Institute’s mission is to create strong libraries and museums that connect people to information and ideas. Through the LSTA Grants to States program IMLS provides funds to State Library agencies using a population-based formula. State libraries may use the appropriation to support statewide initiatives and services; they may also distribute the funds through subgrants to public, academic, school, special, and research libraries.
To learn more about the Institute, please visit www.imls.gov. For more information about North Carolina’s LSTA program, visit the State Library of North Carolina’s LSTA web page at http://statelibrary.ncdcr.gov/lsta/lsta.htm , or contact the State Library’s Federal Programs Consultant Raye Oldham at (919) 807-7400.
The collection will be available for public examination and check out after an event to celebrate its arrival at Roanoke Rapids Public Library on Wednesday, November 10 at 4:30 p.m.
Refreshments will be provided by the Friends of Roanoke Rapids Public Library. To obtain more information, contact Jeff Watson at 252-533-2890, email him at
