Seeds for Education Grant

Deadline: Nov. 15

Are you planning a library garden? Wild Ones is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to the use of natural landscaping with native plant species as an ecologically better alternative to traditional landscaping practices. Eligible applicants include schools, nature centers and other non-profit and not-for-profit places of learning including houses of worship. Project goals should focus on the enhancement and development of an appreciation for nature using native plants. Projects must emphasize involvement of students and volunteers and increase the educational value of the site. Creativity in design is encouraged, but must show complete and thoughtful planning. The use of and teaching about native plants and the native plant community is mandatory, and they must be appropriate to the local ecoregion and the site conditions (soil, water, sunlight).
Examples of appropriate projects are:

• The design, establishment and maintenance of a native plant community such as prairie, woodland, wetland etc. in an educational setting such as an outdoor classroom.
• Developing and maintaining an interpretive trail landscaped with native plant communities.
• Developing a wetland area to study the effect of native vegetation on water quality improvement.
• Group student-teacher research projects aimed at documenting the presence, behaviors, needs and contributions of various forms of wildlife and the impact of native plant species.

Cash awards range from $100 to $500 for the purchase of native plants and seed. More information and the application are available on the Seeds for Education Web Site.

Usborne Literacy for a Lifetime Matching Grants

Deadline: Ongoing

This is a matching grant program for schools and organizations that support literacy, including churches, to buy Usborne books. If your school or organization receives a grant or donation and uses it to purchase Usborne Books, EDC (Educational Development Corporation) will match it by 50% in additional books.

For example, a $1,000 grant is matched with an additional $500 and the organization receives $1,500 in educational Usborne Books for their use. Literacy for a Lifetime can be used as often as grants or donations become available, and there is no cap on the amount matched. The receiving school or organization can select the books, from over 1,400 titles. The books are shipped free (within the US).

For more information, visit www.literacyforalifetime.com. To view titles, visit www.readingstars.us.

If you would like a free informational packet, e-mail Krissi Newtown krissi @ readingstars.us, Certified Educational Consultant.

Pathways Within: Roads to Reading Initiative

Pathways Within: Roads to Reading Initiative
Deadlines: March 15th & October 15th

Pathways Within, Inc. is a 501(c) 3 organization that was established in 1993 to assist communities that are underserved. The Road to Reading Initiative's mission is to provide quality reading and educational materials to underserved small and rural communities (with a population of fewer than 50,000) in the United States.

Eligible programs for book donations include: after-school or community literacy programs, day-care centers programs, library reading programs, storytime programs, and reading centers. They will make donations to library collections available for students and for direct use. Most titles are in English with a limited number of books in Spanish (titles are listed on the website). On average 100 to 200 books are awarded per grantee.

Visit the website for application information or email Pathways Within, Inc. at biannual@pwirtr.org.

Pay It Forward Foundation Mini-Grants

Deadlines: January 15, April 15 and October 15 of each year

The Pay It Forward Foundation Mini-Grant program was established to inspire students to realize that they can change the world. Grants fund service-oriented projects that are identified by youth as activities they would like to perform to benefit their school, neighborhood, or greater community.

Projects must contain a “pay it forward” focus – that is, they must be based on the concept of one person doing a favor for others, who in turn do favors for others, with the results growing exponentially – to be considered in the grant making process.

Schools, churches, and community youth groups may apply for mini-grants of up to $500. Because funding is limited, projects requesting smaller amounts will be given priority. Additional information and the application are available on the foundation website.

NLM Individual Fellowship for Informationist Training

Deadline: Multiple Receipt Dates

The National Library of Medicine (NLM) awards informationist fellowships to those wish to become informationists. Informationists are information specialists who work in domain settings of healthcare, public health and biomedical research as peers, in teams with scientists and health professionals. These fellowships are intended for health sciences librarians, scientists, health professionals and others who wish to broaden their existing scientific background by acquiring the additional disciplinary knowledge and experience to function as an informationist. Priority fields include but are not limited to library and information sciences, health professions, biomedical and behavioral sciences, public health, engineering and computer science.

For additional information visit the link to the full announcement.

Captain Planet Foundation Grants

Deadlines: March 31, June 30, September 30, and December 31

Want to teach youth about the environment? Start a library garden project, recyling program, or other hands-on environmental education programming. The Captain Planet Foundation awards grants in the amount of $250 - $2,500. The Foundation's objective is to encourage innovative programs that empower children and youth to work individually and collectively to solve environmental problems in their neighborhoods and communities. The application process (a short online form) and more details are on the website.

ALL PROJECTS MUST:
Promote understanding of environmental issues
Focus on hands-on involvement
Involve children and young adults ages 6-18
Promote interaction and cooperation within the group
Help young people develop planning and problem solving skills
Include adult supervision
Commit to follow-up communication with the Foundation

The Reviews are In!

Stephanie and Pam's book, Grants for Libraries: A How-To-Do-It Manual, was published in 2006. Order it from the Neal-Schuman website or order from Amazon.com.

Library Journal, Starred Review:
“Grants for Libraries is like the Boy Scouts’ field manual when it comes to grant-writing and development: it is an essential, authoritative, step-by-step guidebook to securing the funding your library needs….this essential “how-to” manual makes a complex topic comprehensible. Grab it and go “granting”!”

Booklist:
"This book should be at the side of every grant-writing librarian."

American Libraries:
"Although having a genie to grant all your funding requests might be handy, a better bet is to follow the advice of Stephanie K Gerding and Pamela H MacKellar."

Midwest Book Review:
"A "must-have" resource especially for library professionals."

Teacher Librarian:
"This book is an appropriate purchase not just for the individual teacher-librarian who needs a short course in grant writing but also for a district director who intends to provide professional development on this topic. This book can also be used as a text in a library school seminar or in a continuing education workshop. It is certainly a text worth considering. Bottom line: Recommended."