New York State Library

Division of Library Development

Will Your Constituents Lose Library Services in 2008?

Will you ensure your constituents have what it takes to compete and succeed in the Information Society?

Story Hour at Library Photo by Jessica Chornesky, courtesy The New York Public Library

What Does the LSTA Program Mean for New York?

The Federal Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA) program provides federal funds that help support local libraries throughout New York State. Through statewide services and grants from the New York State Library, the program encourages the blending of local, state, and federal resources to build and enhance library services for all New Yorkers.

Funding to New York Libraries has been cut

Give Your Constituents’ Libraries Their Fair Share of Funding through the Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA) Program

Support increased funding for LSTA

  • New Yorkers benefited from $9 million in federal funding to their libraries through the LSTA program in 2007.
  • Although Federal funds represent less than one percent of library expenditures in New York State, their impact is great as they leverage state and local funds and fuel innovation.
  • Family reading programs, employment information services, and access to high-quality electronic resources are among the vital library services these funds stimulate.
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New York State Library
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The LSTA program helps provide these services to New York’s library users in their communities:
  • Access to timely, accurate online information that’s not available free on the Internet.
  • Access from home, school, or office to full-text electronic information updated and maintained by librarians.
  • Training in new computer technology.
  • Literacy programs for adults and families.
  • Job and consumer health information.
  • Marketing, demographic, and other information crucial to small businesses.

The New York State Library distributes LSTA funds through grants and statewide services that support library programs to New York’s 7,000 libraries, 73 library systems, and the New York State Library:
  • Programs that enable libraries to provide high-quality computer and Internet services to their communities.
  • Projects that provide equitable access to technology by supporting cooperative efforts among New York’s 7,000 libraries, 73 library systems, and the New York State Library.
  • Projects that provide special services that contribute to better access to information for all community residents, such as adult and family literacy programs and economic opportunity grants.

LSTA funds help New Yorkers in densely populated urban centers, sparsely populated rural regions, and ethnically and economically diverse communities through these services:
  • Programs to help at-risk preschoolers develop literacy skills.
  • Promotion of literacy in family environments.
  • Training for entrepreneurs in the skills needed to research and develop their plans for small businesses.
  • Counseling and job information for individuals moving from welfare to work.

The LSTA program supports the Statewide Summer Reading Program that helps children develop a love for reading and maintain reading skills learned during the school year.
  • Research shows that library summer reading programs raise student achievement and test scores and help prevent learning losses over the summer.
  • More than any other public institution, including schools, public libraries contribute to the intellectual growth of children from diverse backgrounds during the summer. 
  • More than 1.3 million youngsters from throughout New York State participated in the 2007 Statewide Summer Reading Program.

[NOVELny logo]

NOVELNY, the pilot project for New York's first Statewide Internet Library, helps bridge the digital divide and supports New York’s continued leadership in the information economy:
  • Statewide access to online information: major collections of commercial databases such as Health & Wellness Resource Center, Business & Company Resource Center, General Science Collection,  InfoTrac Custom Newspapers (full text of over 150 newspapers, including New York State newspapers such as The New York Times), and  age-appropriate electronic resources for K-12 students.
  • Provision of $35 in resources for every $1 of LSTA funding through statewide purchasing of electronic information now available through more than 5,000 subscribing libraries.

For more information on LSTA funding and New York State, visit these websites:

New York State Library at
http://www.nysl.nysed.gov

LSTA funding at
http://www.nysl.nysed.gov/libdev/lsta/

Or contact:

Office of the State Librarian
Room 10C34
Cultural Education Center
Albany, New York 12230

Phone: (518) 474-5930

Fax: (518) 486-6880

E-mail: ppaolucc@mail.nysed.gov

 

LSTA Funds at Work in New York

  • The Linking Libraries and Learning LSTA project was a unique way of promoting literacy for school-aged children.  Sponsored by two NY school library systems: Erie 2 BOCES and Buffalo City, it enhanced staff’s delivery of the schools’ curriculum and also strengthened partnerships between staff and students. The project’s major focus was nurturing teachers’ connections with young to middle-school students.  Through a series of workshops, school staff and administrators were instructed in Best Practices regarding identifying quality children’s literature and implementing programs to promote interest in reading.
  • Three in-depth interactive workshops were the centerpiece of the Finger Lakes Library System’s Making Connections: Libraries Serving the 50+Population in Their Communities.  These workshops focused on bridging the generational gap, addressing specific methods of encouraging lifelong learning, and civic involvement. The project also involved partnering with local community organizations, and future collaborations have been planned beyond the project’s time period.
  • An innovative project sponsored by The Metropolitan New York Library Council (METRO) began by getting their member libraries exposed to Web 2.0 and modeling best practices to encourage virtual networking.  METROcasting: Best Practices in Building Networking Communities and How Web 2.0 Helps educated the 5500 monthly visitors to their website by demonstrating how useful and easy information transfer can be through the use of wikis and social networking software.
  • The Hispanic Community Outreach program conducted by The New York Public Library involved thirteen NYPL branches in promoting awareness of the free resources, programming services, and technology services those libraries provide to their local Hispanic communities.  Sixty-five instructional classes as well as cultural seminars were held in both Spanish and English in collaboration with local cultural organizations.
  • The Partners for 21st Century Learning project involved collaboration among four school library systems: Washington-Saratoga BOCES, Albany BOCES, Questar III BOCES, and Hamilton-Fulton-Montgomery BOCES.  The project’s purpose was to educate school administrators, teachers, and school library media specialists through a series of workshops and seminars as to how they can have a positive role in student achievement.

This document is available in .PDF format

See projects funded, listed by Congressional Districts: Districts 1-18 | Districts 19-22 | Districts 23-25 | Districts 26-29

See projects funded, by Congressional Districts, in .PDF: Districts 1-18 | Districts 19-22 | Districts 23-25 | Districts 26-29

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