WASHINGTON, DC – Thanks to a law authored by U.S. Senator Jack Reed (D-RI), the University of Rhode Island (URI) will receive over $475,000 in federal funds from the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) to launch a multi-year project that will use technology, film, and digital media to creatively engage children, families, educators and librarians and advance their digital and media literacy competencies.

URI’s Graduate School of Library and Information Studies (GSLIS) will use the funds in partnership with the Providence Children’s Film Festival, and the Rhode Island Office of Library and Information Services (OLIS) to pursue a creative and innovative “Media Smart Libraries” collaboration between school and public librarians and children's media professionals, film festivals, youth media and media literacy groups.

The project will include public programming events, to be held at public libraries across Rhode Island. The program will formally launch in February 2015 at the Providence Children's Film Festival. These programs will help parents, teachers and children's libraries advance digital literacy and digital learning by using children's films from around the world as well as digital media tools and technologies. There will be continuing education workshops for librarians and educators and the program will provide a fully-online graduate course for future librarians and an online resource hub.

Senator Reed authored and successfully passed the bipartisan Museum and Library Services Act of 2010, annually providing needed federal assistance to museums and libraries across the country.  In addition to these competitive library grants, as well as grants to museums, Reed’s law includes state formula funding, administered by IMLS, which help libraries meet community needs, better utilize technology to provide enhanced services, and reach underserved populations.  Reed, a member of the Appropriations Committee, annually champions funding for these federal library programs.

“We live in a digital age and our libraries are right there at the intersection of community and technology.  This federal funding will help URI use innovative digital media and programming to connect with the community through movies, media, and technology to increase literacy and help students succeed.  I commend URI and its partners for putting together a successful application and I appreciate IMLS’ continued support for Rhode Island’s libraries and library users,” said Reed.‎

“Librarians play a key role in helping children, teens, and parents make thoughtful choices in the use of film and digital media,” said Karen Mellor, Acting Chief of the Rhode Island Office of Library and Information Services.  “Through this grant, we will be able to provide librarians with the knowledge and skills to support Rhode Islanders not only in making informed choices about media, but also assisting them in creating digital media.”

“The Providence Children's Film Festival is a real treasure to Rhode Island families,” said Renee Hobbs, Professor of Communication Studies and director of the Media Education Lab at the Harrington School of Communication and Media at the University of Rhode Island. "We are thrilled to help build bridges between current school and public librarians, future librarians, children's media professionals and Rhode Island families.

IMLS is the primary source of federal support for the nation’s libraries and museums.  Its mission is to create strong libraries and museums that connect people to information and ideas while advancing innovation, lifelong learning, and cultural and civic engagement.  Through this round of grant funding, IMLS handed out 51 grants to library projects around the nation, totaling over $9.2 million.  URI was selected from over 210 applications around the country.‎

The Media Smart Libraries project helps build the future of school and public libraries.  The $475,980 federal IMLS grant is through the National Leadership Grants for Libraries (NLG) program, which aims to support projects that address challenges faced by the library and archive fields and that have the potential to advance practice in those fields.  This year, 31 projects were chosen for NLG funding totaling $7,554,313.  URI will provide in-kind support in the amount of $476,572 for the project.

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